PremiumExclusive! Biju Menon, Manju Warrier-starrer Lalitham Sundaram to release directly on Disney+ Hotstar
Its director Madhu Wariar confirmed to OTTplay that the family entertainer will hit the streaming platform after Bro Daddy
Last Updated: 10.10 AM, Jan 04, 2022
Disney+ Hotstar has been on a roll bagging the OTT rights for big Mollywood releases. After Nivin Pauly’s Kanakam Kaamini Kalaham, Dileep’s Kesu Ee Veedinte Nadhan and Mohanlal-Prithviraj Sukumaran duo’s Bro Daddy, the streaming platform will also release Biju Menon and Manju Warrier’s Lalitham Sundaram.
The movie’s director Madhu Warier confirmed the news exclusively to OTTplay. “The state of theatrical releases is still uncertain with the Omicron threat now. The youth audience were mostly responsible for movies such as Kurup and Jan-E-Man being huge hits. Lalitham Sundaram, however, is a family entertainer and family audiences have to come to the theatres for it to be successful,” he says.
The filmmaker also says that it’s not fair on the producers to delay the release of the movie till the family audience are ready to come back to the cinema halls. “The producers have been investing in the film since 2019. They had held back the release for so long,” he says.
Lalitham Sundaram also marks the debut directorial of Madhu, Manju Warrier’s brother. Ask him about missing a theatrical release and he says, “It’s every filmmaker’s dream to see his or her name on the big screen. But we can’t be selfish under the current circumstances.”
On whether a release date has been confirmed for the movie, he says, “Disney+ Hotstar will take a call on that. It could be a February release after Bro Daddy, but it’s not confirmed yet.”
Lalitham Sundaram marks the first collaboration of Biju Menon and Manju Warrier since the latter’s return to acting in 2014. The movie, which was shot in Vandiperiyar, Wagamon and Kumily, also has Saiju Kurup, Anu Mohan and Deepti Sati in supporting roles. Manju Warrier has also co-produced the movie.
This will mark Disney+ Hotstar’s fourth Malayalam release in as many months. Bro Daddy, which is directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran, will be the streaming platform’s next Malayalam film.