Lukman, Anarkali Marikar’s Sulaikha Manzil is celebratory tale of romance and wedding: Ashraf Hamza | Exclusive

Thallumaala and Saudi Vellakka actor Lukman Avaran is all set to mark his turn as a romantic hero in Bheemante Vazhi and Thamaasha director Ashraf Hamza’s Sulaikha Manzil. The film’s first look poster was shared by Dulquer Salmaan on Valentine’s Day through his social media page.

In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Ashraf tells us, “It’s about a wedding and also love. It’s full of celebration. The film revolves around the romance between two people, whose wedding is fixed.”

Lukman and Anarkali Marikar play the lead in the film, which is co-produced by Chemban Vinod Jose. On roping in Lukman as the hero, Ashraf, who had also co-scripted Thallumaala, says, “The primary reason is that he’s a good actor. Also, we have been friends before both of us entered films. But I haven’t directed him before and so, when I am working with him, I wanted him to do a role that best suited him. That’s how we landed on Sulaikha Manzil.”

Apart from the duo, the film will also have Chemban, Adhri Joe, Ganapathy and Shabareesh Varma as part of the cast. Ask him how similar the movie is to Thallumaala, which Ashraf had co-scripted with Muhsin Parari, and the director says, “It will have a flavour of Thallumaala as it’s a story set in Ponnani in Malappuram but it’s an entirely different movie. This has a love story at its core.”

The team has completed the shoot of the movie and also its post-production. “We wanted to wait closer to the release of the film to make the first announcement,” says Ashraf, adding that the movie is set for an Eid release in April. Sulaikha Manzil has Kannan Patteri as its cinematographer while Vishnu Vijay has composed the tunes for lyrics written by Muhsin.