KOZHIKODE: Even if movies featuring Mamukkoya in the lead were a rarity, the late actor made waves in the toon world. At least two years before Minnal Murali, regarded as the first Malayali superhero, hit the screens, another superhero had taken birth. The project, though, got delayed due to several reasons. The superhero, named Super Mamu, was to be played by none other than Mamukkoya, who Kozhikode-based BMG Media was bringing to life.
Although the project didn’t take off as expected, the first-look poster of Super Mamu and the making video — featuring the late actor in a skin suit and cape — went viral. Yet, Super Mamu is not the first to feature Mamukkoya in an animated series. BMG had launched Gafoor ka dosth —in which the lead character, based on the Malayalam actor, deals with various social issues in a hilarious manner — a decade back.
Videos of the series have garnered several million views. Over 1,000 episodes of the Gafoor ka dosth series were launched by its creators. The first Malayalam superhero series to combine live action and animation, Super Mamu Flying, had gone into pre-production and was all set to start shooting in April.
However, due to the poor health of Mamukkoya, who was to appear in person, the production was halted. Furthermore, on Saturday, yet another series — which also fused live action and animation — featuring the virtual influencer Tintumon and Mamukkoya was released on YouTube.
It features animation character Tintumon visiting Mamukkoya (in the flesh) in Dubai to procure a golden visa. “There are very few actors who have made Malayalis laugh as much, says Thajmal Gaffoor, executive director of BMG. Before the term thug became popular, there were many characters who laughed at his thugs.
“In the 1987 movie Nadodikattu, it was Gafoorka who transported the lead characters Dasan and Vijayan to what they believed was Dubai. In our series, Gafoorka is no longer up to his old tricks and has reformed himself,” said Thajmal. Thajmal and Tanveer, the brains behind BMG animation, are the sons of late cartoonist B M Gafoor. Gafoor and Mamukkoya were close friends.“The script for Super Mamu was done. We had to give the project a break as Mamukkoya was undergoing treatment for throat cancer,” says Thajmal.
'Super Mamu' plot
Thajmal Gaffoor, executive director of BMG, said according to the plot, Super Mamu is forced to retire from the superhero club of America — of which Batman, Spiderman and Superman are members — due to old age. “In one scene, all of them sit atop the Statue of Liberty in New York before Super Mamu bids adieu and flies back to his homeland. Even on his return to Kerala he does not give up on his superhero ways,” he said.