Exclusive! Mammootty to resume shooting for Amal Neerad’s Bheeshma Parvam, lengthy schedule planned

While the celebrations of Mammootty’s 50th year in the film industry has been rather subdued this year on account of the pandemic, the megastar will resume the shoot of his much-anticipated movie Bheeshma Parvam, which is directed by Amal Neerad. 

Talking to OTTplay, the filmmaker tells us, “We will resume the shoot of the movie, which was stalled due to the second wave of COVID-19 cases, soon. The plan is to shoot continuously for a month till the first week of September.”

The film, which also has Sreenath Bhasi, Shine Tom Chacko and Lena, in pivotal roles is co-scripted by Devadath Shaji and Amal Neerad with additional inputs by Ravi Shankar and Mano Jose. The movie has Mammootty playing a former gangster, who is forced to return to his old ways after a series of incidents. 

Telugu actress Anasuya Bharadwaj and Nadiya Moidu are also part of the movie, which has Kochi as its main location. The movie is extensively shot in Kochi and it’s expected that the team will wrap up the portions by next month. Considering that Mammootty has been keen on releasing films in theatres first, rather than on OTTs, it’s expected that Bheeshma Parvam too would follow that. Mammootty’s The Priest and One too had opted for a theatrical release earlier this year. 

Also read: 50 years of Mammootty: Jabbar Patel on what Dilip Kumar said after Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’s screening 

Meanwhile, Lena, who plays a pivotal role in Bheeshma Parvam, had earlier told OTTplay, “We still have a few more portions left. have a few more days of shoot left and these have me in important scenes. It’s always a great thrill to work in such big budget films. I love the secrecy that they maintain throughout the movie. The whole team keeps the audience waiting. I think that’s what cinema is all about.”

Incidentally, Amal and Mammootty were in fact set to team up for Bilal, the sequel of their 2017 blockbuster Big B, earlier in 2020. The team had even held a puja function by mid March, but the movie’s shoot was stalled due to the pandemic lockdown. 

Bilal, a multi-starrer, had also locations abroad and the makers deemed it tough to film the movie under the pandemic circumstances and so instead decided to do a smaller film such as Bheeshma Parvam in the meantime. Amal had discussed the plot of the film with Mammootty during last year’s lockdown and the megastar was asked to maintain his current look of overgrown hair and beard for the movie. 

Also read: 50 years of Mammootty: The megastar’s best films from the 90s on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hotstar 

Earlier this year, the team brought in hairdresser Rohit Bhatkar, who has worked with Bollywood stars such as Ranveer Singh and Hrithik Roshan, to style Mammootty’s look in the movie that was released through two posters in February. 

After Mammootty wraps up filming Bheeshma Parvam, he is expected to join the sets of CBI 5, which will once again have him in the trademark look of the sleuth, CBI Sethuramaiyer. The superstar has also signed Ratheena Sharshad’s Puzhu, which also has Parvathy as part of the cast.