Gold actor Prithviraj Sukumaran: A film’s promotion strategy must begin with its director

Prithviraj Sukumaran’s first two theatrical films this year – Jana Gana Mana and Kaduva – benefited a lot from the all-out promotions of the movie ahead of their releases. While both movies reportedly crossed Rs 50 crore in worldwide box office revenue, his most recent venture Theerppu didn’t create a mark at all.

In a recent interactive session with fans that was organised by a radio channel in Thiruvananthapuram, the actor explained if he thought Malayalam films now required huge promotions to attract audience to the theatres.

In response to a fan query asking why Theerppu didn’t have the hype as compared to his previous films, Prithviraj said, “I believe that a film’s promotion strategy must start with the director and its control must rest with the producer. Its director must take the first call on how his movie should reach the audience because it’s his vision. Then it’s up to the producer to decide and execute how and on what scale the movie is promoted.”

The actor, who was the lead actor and co-producer of Jana Gana Mana and Kaduva, also remarked that in the case of Theerppu, “I am only an actor in it”. “I am not its producer or director. I can’t even claim that I am its central character; it has an ensemble cast,” he said.

Prithviraj also cited that Theerppu’s initial plan of being an OTT release could have also been the reason for its sedate promotions. “Theerppu was a film that was shot in 2020 and it was entirely conceived to be an OTT movie. The format itself is not for the big screen. So, there must have always been a confusion on how to promote the movie because I don’t think its director Rathish (Ambat), writer Murali (Gopy) or its producer Vijay Babu thought it would have foreseen an eventual theatrical release,” explained the actor, whose next release in Alphonse Puthren’s Gold that too doesn’t have too much promotions going for it ahead of the release.