The Shafi-Mammooty team is back with a movie this month, after the success of their previous three films, ‘Mayavi’, ‘Chattambi Nadu’ and ‘Thommanum Makkalum.’
Says the director whose last two films, ‘Marykkundoru Kunjadu’ and ‘Makeup Man’ were box office hits, “Venicile Vyapari is set in the early eighties. What makes the movie different from other period films is that it has been treated in a humorous vein. The title of the movie is inspired from the Shakespearean play, ‘Merchant of Venice’. The protagonist is a coir merchant played by Mammootty, and the film portrays different stages in his life.”
There are two heroines, Kavya Madhavan and Poonam Bajwa, who get to essay substantial roles. Kavya Madhavan who started her career as a child artist with Mammootty in ‘Azhakiya Raavanan’ plays the role of Ammu, the village belle. Ammu is the daughter of Jagathy Sreekumar who though a rower by profession, is drunk all the time and does not care for his family. Naturally it is Kavya who has to make ends meet. She is the bold type who actively takes part in the local politics as well. The other heroine is Poonam Bajwa of China Town fame, who portrays the part of a girl called Lakshmi in the film.
One of the highlights of the movie is the remix of the super hit song, ‘Kannum Kannum’, from the movie Angadi which was immortalised by the Jayan-Seema pair. Mammooty and Poonam Bajwa will be featured in the song. Shafi says the number is not meant to imitate or ridicule the yesteryear actors. He says they had planned to shoot the song since the very beginning, but had second thoughts seeing the overdose of remixes in the industry, that don’t do any justice to the original. But the director assures that the song has been used here only because it is necessary to the story.
The shooting of the film was mainly done in the interiors of Allappuzha, popularly known as the Venice of the East. The director says the shooting came with a fair amount of challenge. “Since the movie is set in a remote village, we had a hard time hunting for the locations that looked appropriately rustic. Finally we found a place near Kavalam, a picturesque location which we felt was apt for the film. Also, since the movie is based in the 80s, we had get its period details correct.”
Ask him about his experience of working with Mammooty, and Shafi says there was always a comfort level, since both of them have worked with each other on previous occasions. In fact the superstar didn’t even insist on a detailed story-line when Shafi came up with the film’s basic idea. “He readily committed without asking for the details. We both have grown to have that faith in each other. And since he is one actor who watches all the new releases, he is extremely aware of the trends of the day. It was he who suggested bell bottoms and side burns - that are typical of that period.”
Like the movies of the 80s, where several plots and sub plots converge with many characters, here too, there are a number of actors like Janardanan, Salim Kumar, Suraj venjaramood and several others who will appear. Script writer James Albert is coming together for the first-time with Shafi and Mammootty in this film. The movie is produced under the banner Murali Films. Cinematography is by S Shamdat and music by Biji Bal.