Malayalam cinema in 2022: The most awaited ones

Last year, when we made the list of films we were looking forward to, we neither anticipated a delay in the release nor the production of a few titles mentioned. Hence, this time, we have decided to focus on the films that are in the final stages of production, films likely to see the light of day very soon. And looking at the upcoming lineup in 2022, we couldn't be more excited.  

First-time collaborations:

This year we'll be getting to see a bunch of big names joining hands with first-timers as well as established filmmakers. First on the way is director Rosshan Andrrews' Salute, scripted by Bobby and Sanjay, produced by and starring Dulquer Salmaan. The actor plays a cop in what is being touted as an investigation thriller. The film will be hitting theatres in January. Also releasing in the same month is the Nivin Pauly-Rajeev Ravi epic, Thuramukham. Based on actual events, the big-budget film features Joju George, Indrajith Sukumaran, Darshana Rajendran, and Nimisha Sajayan. Following Thuramukham, Rajeev Ravi went on to work with Asif Ali for a true crime story, Kuttavum Shikshayum, also expected to release this year. 

Speaking of Nivin, the actor has also signed Ishq-fame Anuraj Manohar's next, Shekara Varma Raja. Nivin also has director Vinay Govind's Tharam, the first solo script from noted subtitlist Vivek Ranjit. 

The other most-awaited January release is Vineeth Sreenivasan's Hridayam, a music-heavy drama that marks his first collaboration with Pranav Mohanlal, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Darshana Rajendran for the first time.

And as usual, Mammootty is exploring new frontiers with debutant Ratheena Sharshad's Puzhu, in which he is sharing the screen with Parvathy Thiruvoth for the first time. Then there is his Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam, with Lijo Jose Pellissery. We are also looking forward to Kunchacko Boban's upcoming films with Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval (Nna, Thaan Case Kodu) and Mahesh Narayanan (Ariyippu). The first is a courtroom drama. Both films are in varying stages of production.

We also look forward to Thallumala, Tovino Thomas' maiden film with director Khalid Rahman, the man behind Anuraga Karikkin Vellam, Unda and Love. The film has Kalyani Priyadarshan playing the lead.

Notable reunions:

2022 will also be a year of much-celebrated reunions. The two biggest ones? Aaraattu, of the Mohanlal-B Unnikrishnan team; Bheeshma Parvam, of Mammootty-Amal Neerad. While the former is a festive mass entertainer, the latter is a retro gangster drama set in the 80s.

Prithviraj's second directorial feature with Mohanlal, Bro Daddy, will be hitting Disney+ Hotstar, likely in January. This time around, the actor-filmmaker has opted for a family-friendly entertainer with Mohanlal, who shares the screen with the former along with Meena, Soubin Shahir, Kalyani Priyadarshan, Unni Mukundan, Jagadish, and Lalu Alex, among others. Also on the horizon is Prithviraj's reunion with Shaji Kailas in the form of Kaduva, the shoot of which is expected to complete soon, before the former moves on to Blessy's Aadujeevitham. 

Fahadh Faasil has Malayankunju, which sees him reteaming with filmmaker Mahesh Narayanan for the fourth time. However, this time, the latter is involved as a writer and cinematographer. Notably, it's Mahesh's debut stint as director of photography. Another announcement that brought smiles last year was that of Sathyan Anthikad's next film with Jayaram, which also has Meera Jasmine coming back after a brief hiatus. 

We conclude this list with Naradhan, director Aashiq Abu's third reunion with Tovino Thomas. Anna Ben plays the female lead in the thriller that takes on the fourth pillar of democracy. The former supposedly plays a dubious television journalist. Naradhan will be hitting theatres in January.