Joy Thakkolkkaran has a history - of being a quirky entrepreneur with ideas that defy plain old commonsense. After a string of duds the wannabe-millionaire is busy hatching his next insane business plan - making incense sticks out of elephant dung. Ranjith Sankar’s Punyalan Agarbattis follows Joy Thakkolkkaran, its hero, as he sets off to accomplish his mission. Jayasurya, who is also the producer of the film, appears on screen as the young businessman. “The film is a social satire with a generous dose of humour,” says Jayasurya.
The USP of the film is definitely its entertainment quotient, but the actor-producer says Punyalan Agarbattis is a film with dirt-free humour and delightful drama fit for all segments of audience. “It’s not a film targeted at youngsters alone. It’s an out-and-out family film,” he ensures. At the same time Punyalan Agarbattis is not a madcap comedy completely built on fun. “It also tries to foreground a very relevant social issue.”
The film is a flurry of humourous situations springing from its unusual storyline. Though elephant dung is the most unwanted thing on earth its demand goes skyrocketing when someone actually wants it. Since most of the elephants are attached to temples and Joy being a non-Hindu, there erupts another trouble. Jayasurya says Joy has more of an endearing air compared with his previous comedy outings. “Joy is a youngster who goes after unusual business ventures thinking he would make big bucks one day. He is not disheartened by failures and never stops striving. The Thrissur slang adds to the freshness. From the very subject to its style and tempo everything comes coated in humour,” he says. Jayasurya, who has also crooned a song for his first production venture, says he was overwhelmed by the response. “Within one hour it was uploaded on youtube the song had nearly 30,000 hits. It may not be a great song, but everyone has been supportive. I was very relaxed and confident because I knew nothing about music. While shooting for my next film in Fort Kochi I have seen kids running around singing the song. It feels wonderful when you call someone and then hear your song as their dialler tune.”
The actor says he always nurtured the idea of producing a film and it was no impulsive plunge. “I always wanted to produce a film. Punyalan Agarbattis is a feel-good film with its heart in the right place. When I came across the script I decided to fund it,” he says.
The film also boasts of a stellar cast featuring an array of prominent stars. While Nyla Usha plays the female lead opposite Jayasurya as his wife Anu, Innocent, Aju Varghese, Rachana, Sunil Sugada, Edavela Babu and Mala Aravindan also appear in key roles.
The film produced under the banner of Dreams and Beyond hits the screens this weekend.