The Fahadh Faasil and Mahesh Narayanan collaboration – Malik was expected to be released in theaters in April 2020. Obviously it didn’t happen as the whole country shut down, a few weeks prior, to battle the quickly spreading coronavirus pandemic. The film is now expected to be released in May 2021, which will be more than a year since its original release date.
Malik had just one week of shooting left, before the national lockdown was announced. The film picked up its shooting a few weeks after the government’s “Unlock” allowed them to resume shooting. The film’s producers screened the film for the censor board on Tuesday to get a certification. Malik is one of the 46 films which was screened for the month of December alone.
Mahesh Narayanan was extremely grateful when the production house didn’t try to release this film on OTTs. The movie was made for the silver screen, said the director- screenwriter, and he was glad that the production company decided to wait out the pandemic. Mahesh also said that the 46 films being screened in December is a good thing, because it shows that the Malayalam movie industry is thriving and getting ready for the next year to release new feature flicks.
Mahesh Narayanan also scripted the screenplay for Malik. The lead actor Fahaad, underwent a physical transformation for the role – losing 20 kgs in the process. Fahad is portraying Sulaiman, a leader of a coastal community, in the feature film. This film will mark the Fahad’s and Mahesh’s third collaboration after Take Off and C U Soon (both critical and financial successes). They are both also currently working on another project, Malayankunju, together, but this time Mahesh will be behind the camera, working as the cinematographer.