Exclusive! Sony LIV to produce web series on ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan, Jayasurya to headline Malayalam version

Streaming giant Sony LIV, which has brought out several acclaimed web shows inspired by real-life personalities such as Scam 1992 and The Rocket Boys, is gearing up to add another one with a series on ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan.

The upcoming web series, which will be made in Hindi and Malayalam, will be helmed by Mollywood director VK Prakash and scripted S Suresh Babu, who was behind the screenplays of Mohanlal’s Shikkar and most recently, Navya Nair’s Oruthee.

In 2019, the duo had announced the project titled Ramasethu: A Bridge Between God and Society as a feature film with Malayalam actor Jayasurya playing Sreedharan and Mamta Mohandas, his wife Radha. However, this has now been changed to a Hindi-Malayalam bilingual web series.

Talking exclusively to OTTplay, Suresh Babu tells us, “The representatives of Sony LIV had seen the announcement of the biopic and during a recent meeting they had enquired about the project. When we apprised them of the status, they said it would be viable as a web series.”

Further on the reason for turning the film into a series, the scriptwriter says, “The movie requires a big budget and that’s why we decided it would be better as a web series. Sony LIV has now agreed to produce it.”

Called Metro Man for spearheading the metro services in Kolkata, Delhi and Kochi, Padma Vibhushan awardee Sreedharan also played key roles in the Konkan railway project and rebuilding the Pamban rail bridge in Rameswaram. In fact, the web series will span his life from the age of 30 to 85, and begin with his involvement in the Pamban bridge reconstruction, while journeying through his career at Cochin Shipyard, Indian Railways and various Metro projects across the country.

Ask Suresh Babu if Jayasurya and Mamta are still part of the project and he says, “Jayasurya and Mamta will be part of the Malayalam version, while somebody else, whom Sony LIV will decide, will be headlining the Hindi series.”

He also informs us that currently the casting for the web series is underway. Ask him if VK Prakash will be shooting both versions simultaneously and he says, “Sony LIV definitely wants it made in Hindi. But E Sreedharan sir was also keen on a Malayalam version. So, we will take a call on the shoot only after the casting is finalised.”

Meanwhile, Jayasurya will be busy with #Home director Rojin Thomas’ 3D fantasy thriller Kathanar for most of 2022.

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