Many of you should have heard this by now, the most expensive Malayalam film of all time, ‘Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea’, is heading for a direct-to-OTT release on Amazon Prime Video. The announcement was made by the film’s producer, Antony Perumbavoor, hours after his frustrating meeting with the Government officials and theatre associations. However, according to multiple reports, the discussion between the theatre associations and Perumbavoor are far from over, with Minister of Culture, Saji Cheriyan, expected to sit down with both groups and amicably move forward.
‘Marakkar’s’ theatrical release is a matter of great importance for not just Perumbavoor and the theatre owners – but for the State as well. While the film has a price tag of around 100 Crore Rupees, ‘Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea’ is a bigger deal than many would think. This film won the National Award for Best Feature Film this year at the 67th National Awards, which was held in New Delhi last week. And we know that this film is definitely capable of drawing in crowds due to its ridiculous cast, brilliant story, action sequences and CGi. Also this means a good amount of revenue AKA return for investment AKA more taxes, etc., etc.
So it is in the interest of the State Government as well for the film to release in theatres. Plus, Antony Perumbavoor wants his film to be viewed in theatres rather than to be watched on an OTT platform. Unfortunately, this ardent supporter of theatres has not received the same support from the theatre association (according to the Indian producer) and he has decided to release the film on an OTT platform instead. But currently, Minister Saji Cheriyan is holding talks with both the producer and the theatre associations this coming Friday, to salvage this situation and hopefully release this film on the silver screen.
But the chances of a reversal in announcement are quite low at the moment. While many do want to see this film release in theatres, there is a very good chance that Perumbavoor’s primary two demands will not be met. But for now, we will have to wait and see.