'Wolf is a single-location thriller'

Filmmaker Shaji Azeez's Wolf will be hitting Zee5 directly on April 18. Starring Arjun Ashokan and Samyuktha Menon in the lead roles, the film is a thriller based on the short story, Chennaya, by acclaimed Malayalam author GR Indugopan, who also wrote the screenplay and dialogues.

Shaji tells us that Wolf, set during the pandemic, revolves around five characters, three of whom play an integral part in the narrative. Arjun and Samyuktha play two of these, while the third one remains a surprise.

"It's a contemporary story that takes place on the day the lockdown began. It's about a groom-to-be who visits his bride-to-be on this particular day and the subsequent incidents. It's a single-location film set inside a house," says Shaji.

Interestingly, Indugopan's story was published in a leading Malayalam weekly when the team was wrapping up the shoot. "We shot the film towards the end of 2020 and completed it in 18 days," adds Shaji. "The worry about Covid was on the back of our minds every day. But the cooperation of the cast and crew ensured the smooth completion of the film."

Asked why the team opted for a direct-to-OTT release, he says, "Since the theatres weren't open at the time, we found an OTT release to be the most viable option."

Shaji has previously directed two films, Shakespeare MA Malayalam and Oridathoru Postman. He also worked on the popular television series M80 Moosa and worked under noted director KK Rajeev.

Bankrolled by Santhosh Damodaran, Wolf has Faiz Siddik (Operation Java) as the cinematographer and Noufal Abdullah as the editor. Ranjin Raj wrote the music to Hari Narayanan's lyrics.