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How To 'Malayalify' Shawn Michaels: 'Chatha Pacha' Costume Designer Melwy F On Bringing His Crazy Wrestling Outfit Ideas To Life
The award-winning costume designer of films such as 'Minnal Murali' and 'Lokah Chapter One: Chandra', breaks down the costume ideas behind five locally made WWE-style wrestlers in his new superhit Malayalam film.
After seeing Melwy’s work in the film Kettiyolaanu Ente Malakha (2019), lead actor Asif Ali deflected all his praise by giving “50 per cent” of it to the work Melwy put in to create his costumes. He played a rubber tapper in the film, the kind who’d probably buy just two to three pairs of clothes in a whole year.
“When you’re trying to create realism through costumes, you need to really understand your character,” Melwy explains. “There’s a lot of research and depth that goes into each decision. In Kettiyolaanu… I wanted you to be able to imagine the man’s cupboard and the timeline of the film to understand how many clothes he’s got and how many years he’d been wearing them. A man like him can’t keep changing his shirts, even if he can afford to.”
From a film like that to working on a project like Chatha Pacha is the other end of the creativity spectrum, the sort of film in which costumes have no limitations. It’s also an entertainer that does not attempt subtlety or realism, adding to the fun Melwy had as he went through the long making process. For one, he wants to thank the production for the way it took him and all other technicians along, right from day one. “As soon as I joined the film, they began by putting out creatives on social media announcing that I would be working on their film. It made me feel I’m joining a place that values my work and what I have to offer. It became my film.”
It’s what he calls “a crazy film” filled with possibilities. As he goes through the process of working on the wrestling costumes — an opportunity he might never get again in Malayalam — he talks about the debates and conversations that brought it all alive. Here are the six main wrestlers and how their costumes came to be, as told by Melwy himself.
Arjun Ashokan
Wrestler Name: Loco Lobo
We drew inspiration for his look from Shawn Michaels, the legendary wrestler. Right from his intro shot, in which he swings into the ring using a zipline, that was the persona we wanted to mirror… along the lines of “Malayalifying” Shawn Michaels in a Kochi backdrop. Anend C Chandran [DOP] had decided on a colour palette for him that was based on white-and-gold, and then we got to work. The entry scene for Arjun deserved to be larger than life, like a major festival, and it was Anend who gave me “Thrissur Pooram” as a cue. We based his shoulder puff on the venchamaram (the fans used by mahouts atop the elephant), and also used stencils of elephants as a design motif on the costume. To maintain the colour pattern, we also drew ideas from Kerala-specific art forms such as margam kali and mohiniyattam. The idea of his cape was again given to me by Anend because it reflects light dreamily. Basically, his entry had to have all the grandeur of witnessing the biggest elephant making its entry during Thrissur Pooram…an image no Malayali can resist.
Roshan Mathew
Wrestler Name: Vetri Lobo
Similarly, the colours that were planned for Roshan were going to be red. I had already worked on a lot of Theyyam designs and research for my work in Bramayugam (2024), so it wasn’t particularly hard to reimagine those colours for a wrestling attire. We then brought motifs from Kalaripayattu, the ancient marital art form. Reds and blacks were both abundant in both, and Adhvaith, the film’s director, had already visualised a sequence during Vetri’s entry in which he could pull away a large part of his costume in one dramatic shot. So, what he was wearing inside needed to be given equal importance, almost like two different looks within one. Prints of a theyyam artist, face paints and a few additions were made as variations. The anklets (chilanka) of a theyyam performer were used in place of wrist bands for him too. It’s these sorts of ideas that one gets where there is absolute freedom and encouragement to go anywhere for a vision.
Shyam
Wrestler Name: Bhasmasuran
His look was based on a wrestler like Randy Orton. Even though we told Shyam that we'd be showing him in briefs, he was cool with the idea. Because his name was Bhasmasuran, we could experiment with the idea of him being covered with ashes all around. That gave our costume an additional madness, and it also looked fun on camera. What stands out about his character is that he plays a tailor in the film, too, so the idea is that he’s the one making all these cool costumes for the other wrestlers. Even when he was not in the ring, we gave him things like a patch for his pockets and a lot of funky additions, as part of his everyday wear.
Carmen S Mathew
Wrestler Name: Nitro Kili
She’s the only prominent woman in the lead cast, but we were sure we wanted her to look strong and capable as a wrestler. She works as a delivery person in the film, but we wanted to give her a muscular appeal, as though she could take on any man inside the ring, even if they were twice her size. The film is set in Fort Kochi and Mattanchery, a place that’s not too far away from the shipyard and the docks, so we felt she could easily source the overalls or the jumpsuit that men wear while working. That’s the reference we had, and she was able to pull it off super well.
Dartaganan Sabu
Wrestler Name: Kadalkomban
Now, for Kadal Komban, we could have used ideas from a character like Big Show from WWE. But we thought of it differently. Ronex Xavier, the make-up artist, had already imagined his hairstyle and a certain appearance, and then I wanted to give it my spin. So, for him, we borrowed elements from the Thrissur Pooram to give his costume that festive, loud look. Inspired by the Puli Kali, we had perceived a look that would play up his belly. We created detailed sketches, several trials, and errors to get the final look. We needed to make sure they were able to stay in costume for long stretches. It's also important to note that they come from humble backgrounds; it’s not like they could afford expensive fabric. We then went ahead and made some of their costumes with rexine, knowing very well how hot it can get. But they never complained about it!
Vyshnav Biju
Wrestler Name: Jango Sultan
Because of his height, we could go all out with his styling. It could be fancy and flashy, and it would look great on him. We had also used colours on him that would pop, like yellows, oranges and bright blues. We wrote his title and got it printed and attached to his clothes, too. It was magical to see his character come alive in his costume.
Ishan Shoukat
Wrestler Name: Toofan
As his name suggests, he’s not a person who has only lived in Kerala all his life. He hails from Delhi, so we didn't have to force a Malayali angle for his costume. We could go all out and make him look as Western or as different from the others, without any limitations. And as he, too, had worked on his body, we knew we could pull it off when he revealed his six-pack in the film. Jeff Hardy was one of the inspirations for his look!