Recently, we reported about director Lijo Jose Pellissery's debut film, Nayakan (2010), starring Indrajith Sukumaran in the lead role, being set to release again in theatres. Earlier this Wednesday, Indrajith shared a poster confirming that the film is scheduled to rerelease in theatres worldwide on September 04, Friday. The rerelease will involve a 4K restored version of the film with Dolby Atmos sound.
Written by PS Rafeeque, Nayakan received critical appreciation at the time of its release in 2010, but the film did not perform well enough at the box office. Many audiences found it to be a piece of style over substance at the time, although the audience generally appreciated the film's technical quality. It was released a day after Thanthonni, starring Indrajith's brother Prithviraj Sukumaran. Over the years, the film has been celebrated as a cult classic and has had more viewership, especially with Lijo's rising stocks as a filmmaker.
The film follows Indrajith's character, a Kathakali artist named Varadanunni, who gets into the underworld to avenge his family's murder at the hands of a gangster.
Nayakan is best known for its unique blend of Kathakali and Hollywood-style action as well as the decidedly over-the-top performances from the supporting cast, especially from Siddique as an underworld don and Thilakan as a Mafia kingpin. The cast also includes Jagathy Sreekumar, Vijayaraghavan, Lalu Alex, Kalashala Babu, Chemban Vinod Jose, Dhanya Mary Varghese, Sreejith Ravi, Anil Murali, Salu K George, Shivaj, Kiranraj, Tosh Christy, Vijay Menon, and Ambika Mohan, among others. Director Lijo Jose Pellissery himself features in the film in a cameo role as an underworld goon.
Manoj Paramahamsa's cinematography and Prashant Pillai's music, too, earned much appreciation at the time of its release. The film is produced by Anoop Johnson Karedan.
With Nayakan now being restored in 4K, it is an opportunity for an entire generation of audiences, including old and new, to experience the beauty of the film on the big screen again.
