'Biriyani is a revenge drama'

Director Sajin Baabu, who last directed the Sreenivasan-starrer Ayaal Sassi, has announced his third film, titled Biriyani. Starring Kani Kusruti and J Shailaja in the lead roles, the film’s shoot was wrapped up recently.

The story revolves around a mother and daughter living in a coastal area trying to cope with certain events that affect their lives. “The film will reflect some contemporary events which we are very familiar with,” says Sajin, who also scripted the film and worked on its sound design. “The story is told through the point of view of Kani’s character Khadeeja. Without going much into it, I would say terrorism is one of its key themes. What would a mother and daughter do when they are faced with a difficult, scandalous situation? That’s the crux of the story.”

The film was shot in Varkala, Thiruvananthapuram, and Tamil Nadu among other locations. Sajin, who made his directorial debut with the avant-garde independent film Asthamayam Vare (Unto the Dusk), tells us that Biriyani’s narrative style is relatively different from that of his earlier films. “This time I have come up with a different narrative pattern, something that would be accessible to all filmgoers. It’s much more cinematic. The pacing is not slow — it’s not an ‘award’ film. I would call it a revenge drama. So you can expect an ample amount of suspense.”

Aside from Kani and Shailaja, Biriyani also stars Surjith Gopinath and Jayachandran. The rough cut of the film was recently selected in Film Bazaar Recommends, Goa. Karthik Muthukumar handled the cinematography while Appu N Bhattathiri worked on the editing, and Leo Tom, the music.

Biriyani, which comes with the English title Flavors of Flesh, is produced by Razzaque under the banner of UAN Film House.