Prithviraj Sukumaran: In terms of smaller films finding pan-Indian appeal, Malayalam cinema is leading the pack

Prithviraj Sukumaran is probably one of the first actors in Malayalam cinema who had talked about the film’s content gaining pan-Indian recognition, much before the pandemic or the advent of OTTs made it as popular as it is now. In this year alone, the actor has been part of films such as KGF: Chapter 2, 83 and 777 Charlie in his capacity as a distributor and is next set to act in Prashanth Neel’s Salaar.

While all of these are big budget films, Prithviraj said that even movies that are made on smaller scale with rooted stories have the potential to gain a pan-Indian appeal. Talking in a Twitter Spaces session with Netflix South ahead of the OTT release of Jana Gana Mana, the actor said, “At some point we will stop talking about Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, Bhojpuri and we will just be talking about Indian cinema. We are already headed that way. Right now, we tend to think the films that fit that bill are the Baahubalis and KGFs, the big-budget films. But down the line, I am thinking even the smaller films, if the content can travel, will start finding serious space across the country.”

With streaming services becoming popular, Prithviraj explained that the filmmakers will now start thinking of universal subjects. The actor also clarified that these don’t mean stories that happen in metro cities or films that have aesthetics that appeal to people across India. “You could be making a deeply native, rooted film. If what the story is trying to convey can be related to people everywhere, then I think we are entering an age where cinema, regardless of the language, will find universal appeal and that is hugely exciting for actors, filmmakers and producers,” he said.

The actor, who is currently shooting for Aadujeevitham in Jordan, also lauded Malayalam filmmakers. “I am proud to say that in terms of smaller films finding pan-Indian appeal, Malayalam cinema is right now leading the pack,” he said.

Also read: After Jana Gana Mana’s success, here’s what Prithviraj Sukumaran has to say about his next release Kaduva