Kolambi (loudspeaker), film director TK Rajeev Kumar’s 25th film, amplifies issues that crop up when changes in law affect those living on the margins. Made in 2019, the film, which was premiered in the Indian Panorama at the 50th International Film Festival of India, will finally be released on MTALKIE, a new OTT platform. Releasing on December 24, Kolambi will be the their inaugural Malayalam film. The film also won a National award for the best lyricist for poet Prabha Varma.
“It is the story of an aged, childless couple eking out a living by renting loudspeakers and megaphones. Their living takes a hit on account of new laws regulating the use and renting of megaphones and sound amplifiers,” narrates Rajeev.
Renji Panicker in a still from TK Rajeev Kumar’s ‘Kolambi’
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement
The lead characters are played by Renji Panicker and Rohini. It is their deep love for music that manifests in their small enterprise. Music lovers make a beeline to their outlet for rare pieces of music and voice records.
As a result of the new laws, the couple are forced to relocate and they begin a small café, where customers can have a bite and also listen to vintage music of their choice.
Rohini in a still from TK Rajeev Kumar’s 25th film ‘Kolambi’
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement
One such collector who reaches the shop is Vijay Yesudas, who appears in a cameo as himself. He requests for the first microphone that is believed to have been used by his father, KJ Yesudas. “Meanwhile the elderly gentleman tells him that the first Ayyappa devotional was sung by none other than his grandfather, KJ Augustine… There are many interesting snippets in the movie. One gets to hear the voices of past leaders such as Nehru, EMS Namboodiripad and so on,” says Rajeev.
Nitya Menen in a still from TK Rajeev Kumar’s ‘Kolambi’
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Nithya Menen, in the role of an artist, is en route to Kochi to participate in the Kochi Biennale when she comes across an article on the couple. She visits them and soon they develop a deep bond with the young artist.
“Nithya is the catalyst in the film and that is how the movie’s narrative takes a decisive twist,” says Rajeev.
The cast includes Manju Pillai, Pauly Valsan, Suresh Kumar, Dileesh Pothan, Baiju Santhosh and Sijoy Varghese.
But for some shots of the Biennale in Kochi, the film was shot in a heritage agraharam at Neyyattinkara in Thiruvananthapuram.
Rajeev says that as a result of the lockdown, an OTT release would be the best option for his work. “Several big films are waiting in the wings for a release. Instead of competing with such big-budget films, I felt a movie like Kolambi would get a better audience on OTT,” believes Rajeev.
Even as he eagerly awaits Kolambi’s OTT release, Rajeev has already completed the shooting of his new film Bermuda, starring Shane Nigam. “It is a satire that is based on a real incident that I read in the paper. A complaint was filed in a police station in Nagpur by a man who claimed that his heart had been stolen,” says Rajeev. The film is in the post-production stage and will be released in theatres in 2022.
He says the theme is relevant as it deals with a period of confusion, when many seems to have lost their conscience or become numb to the tragedies we read or see in the media.
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