Kurup has managed to become the first Malayalam film to earn Rs. 100 crore post coronavirus pandemic, in theatres. The film had to dodge multiple OTT platforms as well as cancel a Netflix agreement to release the film in theatres – but the filmmakers did manage to do it. This theatrical success for Kurup should be encouraging to Antony Perumbavoor, who is about to release Mollywood’s most expensive film, ‘Marakkar: Lion of The Arabian Sea’, in theatres as well.
The cast and crew behind ‘Marakkar’ have had a whirlwind of a month in November, especially since Antony Perumbavoor announced that the aforementioned war epic is going to get a direct-to-OTT release on Amazon Prime Video. A couple of days later, Perumbavoor went on to say that his next five films featuring Mohanlal, including ‘Marakkar’, were all heading towards OTT for direct streaming. His talks with theatre associations were discouraging and we expect the Malayalam film producer was also fearing a bad turnout in theatres at the time. But Kurup’s Box Office success should clear up some of those doubts in Perumbavoor’s mind.
Still, Antony Perumbavoor’s fear is not unfounded. He has had to spend Rs. 100 crores for ‘Marakkar’ and releasing the film in Kerala theatres without any sort of guarantee in a Covid-19 climate is nerve-wracking. The fact that he has chosen to ignore the Rs. 90 crores from Amazon Prime Video for a direct-to-OTT release is incredible and many will be happy that he didn’t choose the easy way out. Many have been eagerly waiting for the theatrical release of the film for over a year and with a pan-Indian cast, we expect ‘Marakkar’ to gain traction with the non-Malayalam speakers as well.
‘Marakkar: The Lion of The Arabian Sea’ will release in theatres on December 2nd 2021.
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