The first look of Jayasurya-Anushka Shetty’s much-anticipated film Kathanar: The Wild Sorcerer was unveiled on Sunday by the makers, celebrating the actor’s birthday. Directed by Home-fame Rojin Thomas, the upcoming biggie is an ambitious fantasy thriller inspired by the legend of Kadamattathu Kathanar, a priest believed to have possessed supernatural powers. It is scripted by debutant R Ramanand.
The poster features Jayasurya as a fierce-looking man with long hair and a flowing dark cloak, standing on a cliff with lightning flashing behind him. He appears powerful, mysterious and magical. The tagline alongside him reads: “The one who steals your time, your mind, your reality.” The makers captioned the post: “Not the tale you know, but the one rewritten by time. An epic reborn, for a new era. Happy Birthday Dear Jayasurya – the face of our wild sorcerer, #Kathanar.”
Anushka plays Nila in Kathanar, marking her debut in Malayalam cinema, while Prabhudheva returns to the industry after a 13-year gap. Actor and choreographer Sandy, recently seen as the antagonist in Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, also has a key role.
Produced by Sree Gokulam Movies, Kathanar is positioned as one of the most expensive Malayalam films to date and is being developed as a pan-India project. The production makes extensive use of virtual production technology, underlining its large-scale approach. The technical crew includes Neil D Cunha as cinematographer, Jungjin Park as action choreographer and Rahul Subrahmanian Unni as music director.