Though Malayalam cinema has churned out its share of horror films, we haven’t seen a full-fledged, serious-minded zombie flick from the industry yet.
It seems that’s about to change with Raa, from filmmaker Kiran Mohan who has already filmed a few portions.
However, due to the pandemic and the fact that any zombie film would feel incomplete without a large crowd, it will take the team a long while before the film sees the light of day.
Kiran, who has worked as an associate under Tamil actor and filmmaker R Parthiban, has directed a yet-to-be-released horror thriller titled Brahmapuri and has been working on Raa for the past two years.
“Since we are planning this film in a big way, we are taking the necessary amount of time to work on it. We don’t want to disappoint the team or the audiences. We hope to release it theatrically in 2022 or 2023,” reveals Kiran.
Asked about his approach to the material, Kiran shares that the team is proceeding carefully to create an “original work that doesn’t make compromises in logic”.
“We are taking steps to ensure not only high-quality VFX output but also make the film feel closer to reality. We hope to change the perception that Indians can’t make a good zombie film,” he adds.
The team has released an impressive first-look teaser that gives a tiny hint of what to expect. Speaking about the visualisation, Kiran tells us that they are using well-planned video storyboards and camera rehearsals to get everything right. The technical team has members from Kerala as well as outside.
There has been no mention of the cast members so far, which, Kiran says, was deliberate as they didn’t want to encourage high expectations at such an early stage itself.
“If we start making huge promises in this regard and then don’t deliver later, that wouldn’t look good. That’s why the discreet approach at the moment,” he explains.