Big Pictures releasing 18 films in 2009
Big Pictures, the entertainment arm of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, which is producing its first-ever Malayalam cinema Kuttysrank (also spelt as Kuttyshranku and Kutty Srank)�directed by�Shaji N. Karun and�starring Mammootty, will release 18 films in nine Indian languages in 2009, company COO Mahesh Ramanathan said, adding that the company was eyeing the best directorial talent�across the country.
11 films will be released in Hindi while the other seven�will be in five regional languages. Vinay Shukla's Mirch, Vinod Pande's Chaalu Movie, Vikram's 13 B, Zoya Akhtar's Luck By Chance and Sudhir Mishra's Sikander are the Hindi movies being produced, marketed and distributed by Big Pictures. 13 B is a supernatural bilingual (Hindi and Tamil) thriller.
Apart from Kutty Srank, four religion films (Kannada film Ijjodu by M.S. Sathyu, three Bengali films�including Kalponik and Abohomann by Rituparno Ghosh) will be released in this year. "2009 should be a normal year and there is no cause for worry. A temporary liquidity crunch has been mistaken for recession in the film industry. But demand had not dried up. With inflation under control and interest rates coming down, there is no issue of recession at all," Mahesh Ramanathan added.
Set in the early 60's, Kutty Srank is about a boat driver who runs a parcel service between Kodungaloor and Kollam through the backwaters of Kerala. Camerawork is by Anjali Shukla, who worked with director-cinematographer Santosh Sivan for a dozen films, including two Hollywood productions – Before the Rains and Mistress of Spices.
Kamalini Mukerjee, Padmapriya and Sri Lankan actress Meenakumari are the heroines.�Others in the cast are Sai Kumar, Siddique and Suresh Krishna. National award winning music director Thomas Kottukapalli sets the music and background score for the movie, which is shot in three schedules in and around Alappuzha.
