Exclusive! Asif Ali on working with Jeethu Joseph in Kooman: ‘Screenplays have been his source of confidence’

Before resuming shoot of Mohanlal’s big budget movie Ram, Drishyam director Jeethu Joseph had completed the shoot and post-production of another investigative thriller titled Kooman, which has Asif Ali in the lead role.

In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Asif opened up about working with the filmmaker in the movie and the character that he will be essaying in Kooman. “It’s after a long time that I am doing a big film,” he says. “Jeethu chettan has done movies with Lal (Mohanlal) sir, worked in Tamil and Bollywood, and he has that experience of handling movies that have huge production value. It’s also the first time I am working on such a movie. The shoot was systematic and the way of functioning of the technical department too was advanced in a way.”

On working with the filmmaker for the first time, Asif explains, “He might not be a technically brilliant filmmaker but he is extremely clear about what he wants. The screenplay has always been the source of his confidence.” KR Krishnakumar, who also wrote the script of Jeethu’s 12th Man that is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar, has also written Kooman. “Their rapport itself is very interesting. Half the story is framed by Krishna chettan and the investigation bits are handled by Jeethu chettan,” says Asif.

Further on the plot of the film, the actor tells us, “It’s a trademark Jeethu Joseph film. It’s a thriller and there’s an investigation angle to it. But it’s different from his previous movies in the sense that it has a rural backdrop of a village that is on the border of Kerala-Tamil Nadu. I play a police constable in the movie. The incidents that happen in his life and how its consequences form the plot of the thriller.”

Jeethu, meanwhile, is currently filming Mohanlal’s Ram in the UK. The action-thriller also has Trisha, Samyuktha Menon, Indrajith Sukumaran and Adil Hussain as part of the cast.