Tag: Rajisha Vijayan

First Day First Show | Reviews of ‘Neeyat’ and ‘The Idol’

Post By Entertainment , , , , , , , , , , ,

(This article forms a part of the First Day First Show newsletter that brings you the latest and best from the world of movies and entertainment. Subscribe now)

Around Tinsel Town

>> Allahabad HC directs ‘Adipurush’ makers to appear before it on July 27

The makers of Adipurush – director Om Raut, producer Bhushan Kumar, and dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir – have been directed by the Allahabad High Court to appear before it on July 27 and the central government to form a committee to give its views on the film. This comes after the hearing of separate petitions of Kuldeep Tiwari and Naveen Dhawan seeking a ban on the movie.

Bollywood

Shah Rukh Khan meets with an accident on movie set and undergoes surgery in US

Kajol, Kriti Sanon team up for Netflix film ‘Do Patti’

Ranbir Kapoor, Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Animal’ gets postponed

Varun Dhawan’s action entertainer with Atlee gets release date

Motion poster of Vishal Bhardwaj’s ‘Charlie Chopra’ released

Kareena Kapoor, Tabu, Kriti Sanon’s ‘The Crew’ to release in March 2024

John Abraham’s ‘The Diplomat’ to hit theatres in January 2024

‘Metro… In Dino’, starring Sara Ali Khan and Aditya Roy Kapur, gets a Good Friday release

Sidharth Malhotra’s ‘Yodha’ to release on December 15

Kartik Aaryan-Kabir Khan’s film titled ‘Chandu Champion’

Kangana Ranaut-starrer ‘Tejas’ gets a release date

Hollywood

Tom Cruise says he hopes to keep making ‘Mission Impossible’ movies until he’s 80

Greta Gerwig to direct ‘Narnia’ movies for Netflix

Sylvester Stallone gets his own documentary

Daniel Radcliffe weighs on the chances of returning to Hogwarts

Benedict Cumberbatch hints at Doctor Strange’s return next year

Ezra Miller responds to harassment order; calls it “Unjustly and directly targeted”

Jodhi May, Olivia Williams join ‘Dune: The Sisterhood’

Taika Waititi’s ‘Next Goal Wins’ to premiere at Toronto International Film Festival

Marion Cotillard joins the cast of Lucile Hadzihalilovic’s ‘La tour de glace’

Daniel Kaluuya’s ‘Barney’ to focus on millennial angst

Regional Cinema

Kamal Haasan, H Vinoth team up for ‘KH233’

Allu Arjun, Trivikram Srinivas reunite for fourth film

Mohanlal’s pan-India film ‘Vrushabha’ to go on floors soon

Ram Pothineni, Boyapati Sreenu’s film titled ‘Skanda’

Alphonse Puthren teams up with Ilaiyaraaja for ‘Gift’

It’s a wrap for Upendra’s ‘Buddhivantha 2’

First look of Kunchacho Boban’s ‘Chaaver’ out

Prabhas, Deepika Padukone, Kamal Haasan to unveil trailer and release date of ‘Project K’ at San Diego Comic-Con

Jayam Ravi’s ‘Genie’ to star Krithi Shetty, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Wamiqa Gabbi 

‘Hostel Huduguru Bekaggidare’ gets a release date

World Cinema

Japanese voice actors from original ‘One Piece’ anime return to dub for Netflix’s live-action adaptation

Trailers

Teaser of ‘Salaar: Part 1’ shows a glimpse of Prabhas in Prashanth Neel’s intense gangster world

It’s all about loving each other’s families in Karan Johar’s ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’ trailer

Sivakarthikeyan plays a comic artist with a twist in ‘Maaveeran’ trailer

Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor battle for love in ‘Bawaal’ teaser

Kichcha Sudeep’s ‘Kichcha 46’ teaser hints at a violence-heavy actioner

‘Sex Education’ teaser confirms series will end with season 4

New trailer for Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro’s ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ released

Arjun Ashokan, Lenaa star in a mystery-thriller set at a mountaintop in ‘Olam’ trailer

Kingsley Ben-Adir plays the Reggae legend in ‘Bob Marley: One Love’ trailer

Valak returns to haunt Sister Irene in a bone-chilling trailer of ‘The Nun 2’

New in streaming

Coming to Netflix in July:Bird Box spin-off film Bird Box Barcelona, comedy adventure The Out-Laws, second season of The Lincoln Lawyer, and more

New on Disney+ Hotstar in July: Vidyut Jammwal’s action film IB71, Kajol’s courtroom drama The Trial: Pyaar, Kaanoon, Dhokha, and more

New on Amazon Prime Video this week: Tamil web series Sweet Kaaram Coffee, Hindi horror film Adhura, first season of Horror of Dolores Roach, and more

Coming to Apple TV+: Idris Elba’s Hijack, Brie Larson’s Lessons in Chemistry, and more

Essential reading

1) Vidya Balan interview on ‘Neeyat’ and why Bollywood should use this period of flux to reinvent itself

>> She talks about playing a detective in her first theatrical release since 2019 and wanting to do a full-fledged comedy

2) John Cho and Ken Jeong open doors to the camaraderie they shared on the sets of ‘The Afterparty’ Season 2

>> They talk about their mutual appreciation for the craft as John Cho celebrates Ken Jeong’s Hollywood Walk of Fame

3) Huma Qureshi on playing Tarla Dalal and overcoming insecurities

>> The actor opens up on her recent film ‘Tarla,’ and her decade-old journey in cinema

4) Amala Akkineni feels cinema is no longer about one person producing a masterpiece

>> The actor shares why aspiring filmmakers need formal training and her observations on the changing industry

5) Veteran actor Lakshmi: Days of actors doing homework are long gone

>> The cast and crew of ‘Sweet Kaaram Coffee’ talk about their new road-trip drama and its underlying theme

6) Rajisha Vijayan stresses on the importance of creative collaborations in films

>> She talks about being partial to roles with shades of grey, and the importance of female bonding

7) The cast of ‘Heartbeat’ on how the K-drama blends vampires with rom-com

>> The team of the Korean vampire rom-com series, talk about essaying varied roles, and the show’s comedy track

8) I wanted to break the stereotypes associated with my image: Shelly

>> The Malayalam actor talks about her role in the Telugu web series, ‘Shaitan’

9) Shashaa Tirupati, Shivam Mahadevan and Sid Paul on the single ‘Ik Raanjha’

>> They share how the track melds the vocal brilliance of the singers with the beauty of Sufi mystic Bulleh Shah’s poetry

10) Kannada director Shivu Jamkhandi on ‘Nasab’ which is based on an autobiography

>> He talks about adapting K Kishore Kumar’s book and shooting it in Bagalkote, Patadkal and its surrounding areas

11) Malayalam directors Satish Babusenan, Santosh Babusenan speak about ‘Anand Monalisa Waits For Death’

>> The lead actor in the film, Meera Nair, talks to the Babusenan brothers about their films and their style of filmmaking

12) Manoj Vaasudev on the Malayalam road movie ‘Khajuraho Dreams’

>> The filmmaker talks about how the film pivots around a group of youngsters who find themselves along the way

13) Cancellation of screening at festival leads to overnight recognition of Bengali film on same-sex marriage

>> Bengali filmmaker Debalina Majumder shares the idea behind the documentary that was made in 2019

14) Yousuf Saeed on his online database for Cinema Qawwali 

>> The Delhi-based independent filmmaker and researcher talks about his collection from talkie days to the present

What to watch

1) ‘Neeyat’ is a promising murder mystery that remains well short of what it intends to achieve

Read the full review here

2) ‘The Idol’ is a glitzy, chaotic sex and torture porn-packed look at absolutely nothing 

Read the full review here

3) ‘Insidious: The Red Door’ is a middling addition to the horror franchise

Read the full review here

4) A simplistic, flat narration dilutes ‘Tarla’, a fascinating story

Read the full review here

5) ‘Sweet Kaaram Coffee’is a feel-good series on soul-searching and introspection

Read the full review here

6) Sonam Kapoor struggles to make a fist of ‘Blind’, a shallow crime thriller

Read the full review here

7) Naga Shaurya, Satya bring in some laughs but ‘Rangabali’ is a lacklustre attempt at ‘show’manship

Read the full review here

8) Sri Simha Koduri’s ‘Bhaag Saale’ tries hard to be a quirky dark comedy

Read the full review here

9) ‘Journey of Love 18+’ is an average fare despite all the progressive sprinkling

Read the full review here

10) ‘The Witcher’ season 3, Henry Cavill’s penultimate outing, begins slow but gives way to a breathtaking cliffhanger

Read the full review here

11) John Krasinski’s last mission, Season 4 of ‘Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan’, is well set-up and plot-heavy

Read the full review here

12) ‘Nimona’ is a pop-punk fairytale send-off to Pride Month

Read the full review here

13) ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.’ is a lovely paean to growing up, warts and all

Read the full review here

Source link

#Day #Show #Reviews #Neeyat #Idol

Award-winning Malayalam costume designer Stephy Zaviour turns director with the movie ‘Madhura Manohara Moham’

Post By Entertainment , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

When costume designer Stephy Zaviour told friends that she was set to direct a film she was warned that there would be frustration and a lot of tears. “There were no tears, if there was a problem I would just deal with it. What is the point of tears?” says the award-winning costume designer who makes her directorial debut with Madhura Manohara Moham.

Starring Bindu Panicker, Rajisha Vijayan, Saiju Kurup, Sharafudheen, and Vijayaraghavan among others, Madhura Manohara Moham is a ‘family, comedy drama’. “It is peopled by characters that we may or may not know. I am not claiming that this is a ‘different’ film, but there are parts in it that might resonate with some of us.” It is the story of a mother, Bindu Panicker, and her three children essayed by Sharafudheen, Rajisha Vijayan and Arsha Chandini Baiju.

What she does not say is that it would take more to make her cry.

Stephy chose fashion design with an eye on the film industry, determined to make a career as a costume designer. She made her debut designing costumes for Lukka Chuppi and Lord Livingston 7000 Kandi in 2015. Guppy landed her first State Award in 2018.

Getting to where she is right now, making the journey, literally and metaphorically, from Wayanad to establishing herself in the Malayalam film industry without connections, designing for films such as Aadujeevitham, Angamaly Diaries, Ishq, Joseph, Guppy, and Jana Gana Mana among others was no cakewalk.

Bindu Panicker, Rajisha Vijayan, Sharafudeen and Arsha Chandini Baiju in a still from the film
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

She was ‘advised’ to ‘stick’ to doing what she knew best and ‘warned’ that the move would jeopardise her costume designer career. “The privilege extended to a cinematographer or an editor when they turn director is denied to an art director, a make-up artist or a costume designer. We may all be in the spectrum of ‘creative’, but some of us are not enough. I have learnt from experience that it is very difficult to prove that you can be creative as a director,” she says.

She was also cautioned that she could lose work as a costume designer. “I had no such fears, in fact, I had to turn down a couple of films because Madhura… was in post-production. That said, I don’t take this chance (to direct a film) lightly.” The eight years spent in the industry have been a period of learning, some lessons in what to do and others in how not to be.

Ezra (2017) a supernatural horror film directed by Jayakrishnan, for which she was costume designer, is the film that got her curious about making a film. “I don’t watch horror films, and being on the set of one I was curious about how the subject would be treated. I would bombard Sujith Vaassudev, the DoP, and producer CV Sarathi, of E4 Entertainment, with questions. Amused by my love of storytelling and curiosity, Sarathi sir told me to direct films. That way I could tell as many stories as I wanted.”

To have that idea, which she had not told her closest friends, articulated was a turning point. It would be another two years till she told her friends about it.

By then, as the idea marinated in her mind, she found the confidence and the conviction to make the dream a reality.

Stephy Zaviour

Stephy Zaviour
| Photo Credit:
Thulasi Kakkat

The first person she narrated a story she wanted to make a film on was actor and friend Rajisha Vijayan in 2018. Just as everything fell into place the pandemic struck. It would be another two years when she would finally commit to a project as director. “Two of my friends, Mahesh Gopal and Jai Vishnu approached me with a script to read. They knew I was looking to direct a film, but this was not for that. When they asked who could be the lead, I suggested Rajisha. Unexpectedly I came on board as director… long story short, here we are!” she says. After a couple of false starts, the film finally started rolling in September 2022.

Contrary to the perception that her years in the industry would have made things easy for her, getting dates was not easy. “They see me as a costume designer; one of the first questions asked was ‘Has she worked as an AD (assistant director)? How good is she technically? How aware is she?’ Access, yes. But beyond that, it is not easy. That said, all the artists who are part of the project are here because they trust me.”

The Aadujeevitham experience

Aadujeevitham is a special film. I have been working on the film for six of the eight years that I have been part of the industry. I don’t think another film like this will happen again in my career as a costume designer. I have often wondered about Blessy sir choosing me. I barely had a couple of years of experience back then. Aadujeevitham is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Prithviraj was such a professional, he would be dressed in the threadbare costumes of the film in the biting cold of the desert. Some actors tend to get cranky, he was a thorough professional about it. A lot of research went into the costumes, for instance, how constant exposure to the sun affects fabric or how blood on a fabric ages. The whole process has been interesting.

She carefully picked technicians and actors and meticulously planned the film, unwilling to leave anything to chance. The costume designer kicked in, “We can’t go on set and improvise… same rules as a director for me.” However, sometimes even the best-laid plans don’t pan out.

“Since filming was delayed, the original DoP had to move to his next project. That is how Chandru Selvaraj came on board, I was meeting him for the first time. He does not speak Malayalam and my Tamil is below par. I was worried about how we would communicate…but it was one of the best things to happen!” says Stephy.

One of the things Chandru told her was to not get involved with the film’s costumes because that would distract her from the job at hand, and she calls it the best advice she could have got. It was not easy, she confesses, but she worked hard to not get involved. Though the costume designer is one of her former assistants, Sanooj, she stuck to her job as director.

Although a horror film inspired her, she says she prefers to be ‘genre-free’. “Women are expected to make templated films — ‘inspirational’ stories of empowerment — but I want to tell other kinds of stories too. If given a chance, I want to make an action film or even a horror flick. I don’t want to make a movie to ‘change the world’ because I have a producer’s money. Cinema should also entertain. And if I feel so strongly about something, there is always my social media.”

She says inspiration has come from everyone she has worked with irrespective of their gender. The problems she faced along the way while making the film, had nothing to do with her gender. “I have only faced the same problems that my male filmmaker peers have.”

Source link

#Awardwinning #Malayalam #costume #designer #Stephy #Zaviour #turns #director #movie #Madhura #Manohara #Moham