Director Chidambaram's Film With Jithu Madhavan Will Not Be A 'Star Movie'

After making Malayalam cinema’s biggest hit, Manjummel Boys, its director, Chidambaram, will likely make a small film with limited characters next. Speaking to Cue Studio, the director said he wanted to “avoid prejudice” for his characters that came with known faces. He also added that his films will mostly have new actors and that he wanted to avoid the predictability that came with casting familiar actors. He noted that the film did not demand big stars, joking that he was able to predict the “modus operandi of certain characters based just on the casting decisions.”

The film is being written by Jithu Madhavan. This project was announced in January this year, and it brings together the directors of two superhit Malayalam films Manjummel Boys and Aavesham — films released in 2024. KVN Productions, led by Venkat K Narayana, has partnered with Thespian Films, headed by Shailaja Desai Fenn, for this new film. The production has enlisted top-tier talent, including Shyju Khalid as director of photography, Sushin Shyam as music director, and Vivek Harshan as editor.

"Our vision has always been to redefine cinema across languages, and this film marks our foray into Malayalam with the same grandeur and excellence that audiences expect from us," said Venkat K Narayana, Founder of KVN Productions. "With such exceptional talent at the helm, we’re confident about it."  Director Chidambaram had remarked, "I’m thrilled to work with a team that shares my passion for storytelling. This collaboration is something I am looking forward to, can’t wait to bring this vision to life."

The film is part of a broader 2025 slate for KVN Productions, which includes projects like KD (Kannada), Toxic featuring Yash, Jana Nayagan (Tamil) featuring Tamil star Vijay, and a Hindi thriller by Priyadarshan. The Malayalam venture marks another step in KVN’s expansion into diverse regional cinema.