The Malayalam film industry fared well at the box office this year. From Manjummel Boys, Aavesham, Premalu, Aadujeevitham, Aattam, to ARM, the year saw different kinds of films excel on the big screen
Malayalam movies 2024
The Malayalam film industry had a relatively great year as far as qualitative cinema and box office performance goes. For the longest time now, the Malayalam cinema industry has been hailed for its content-driven films but it never gets the box office success like the ones in Tamil Nadu and Telugu language films have had the privilege. But all that changed this year. The industry which makes films on small budgets saw five Rs 100 cr films in 2024 alone. This is huge as the industry only has a total of eight films in the Rs 100 cr club (Premalu, Pulimurugan, Aavesham, 2018, Aadujeevitham, Lucifer, ARM, Manjummel Boys).
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Films in focus 2024
Malaikottai Vaaliban
Premalu
Anweshippin Kandethum
Manjummel Boys
Varshangalkku Shesham
ARM
Kishkindha Kaandam
Sookshmadarshini
Aavesham
Bramayugam
Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil
Ullozhukku
Aattam
Stand out performances
The year began with terrific performances from the big Ms of the industry- Mohanlal and Mammootty. While Mohanlal played a charming wrestler for his first film with Lijo Jose Pelliessery set in a timeless era, Mammootty unleashed his demonic side in the black-and-white film Bramayugam. Premalu, a rom-com, saw several interesting performances especially from actors Sangeeth Pratap and Shyam Mohan. In March, Prithviraj stunned with his performance in 'Aadujeevitham' with a mesmerising transformation. Fahadh shed his inhibitions and gave one of his best performances with Aavesham while Nivin Pauly stole the act with his cameo in Varshangalkku Shesham. On the other hand, Asif Ali and Vijayarahavan gave a stellar performance in the mystery drama 'Kishkindha Kadam'.
Aattam which largely went unnoticed during its theatrical release found its audience when it won the National Film Award. The performances and narrative of the film won over the audiences.
Parvathy, Urvashi in 'Ullozhukku', Nazriya in 'Sookshmadarshini', Mamitha Baiju in Premalu, Zarin Shihab in Aattam, Aparna Balamurali in 'Kishkindha Kadam' are some of the stand-out performances by the women this year.
Box office results
Malayalam films are made on smaller budgets especially when compared to other language industries of India. Therefore for a film from the region crossing the 100 cr mark at the box office is a major milestone. The Malayalam movie industry so far has eight films in the 100 cr club of which five were released this year. All these films are of different genres. The year got its first 100 cr film in Premalu, rom-com fronted by the the industry’s promising stars Nelson and Mamitha Baiju. The film was backed by Mallu land’s favourite Fafa (Fahadh Faasil) and his actor-wife Nazriya. It was directed by Girish AD who has previously excelled in this genre with films like Thanneer Mathan Dinangal, and Super Sharanya.
Next up, Prithvraij’s ambitious film Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) crossed 100 cr at the global box office. The ambitious bfilm directed by teh talented Blessy was in the making for 16 years. Yes! That is the dedication the makers put to narrate the real lfe story of a man who become victim of slavery when he visits Middle-east aspiring to earn for his family.
The mood and tone of the next 100 cr was light breezy. Fahadh Faasil and Nazriya’s second production also graced the 100 cr club with Aavesham. The film saw Fahadh winning hearts as the quirky gangster from Bengaluru who gets involved with a group of college students. His 'Eda mone' to his dance in'Illuminati' to his outfits left a mark on audiences.
'Manjummel Boys' is yet another story based on real life. It narrates a tale of brotherhood and friendship. A man who falls into a dangerous pit in the Guna caves is rescued by his friends even as professional firefighters deem the task risky.
The final 100 cr film was by Tovino Thomas-starrer ARM (Ajayante Randam Moshanam). The film is a fantasy drama with the narrative going through three different time periods following the story of one family in Northern Kerala. Tovino plays three distinct roles in the film.
Viral elements
Fahadh Faasil’s line ‘Eda Mone’ from the film 'Aavesham' added two more words to the vocabulary knowledge of non-Malayalees this year. The same film had everyone dancing to the tunes of Illuminati. Another song that had people humming is the 'Kanmani Anbodu' which was strategically used in the film 'Manjummel Boys' and proved beneficial for the film promotions. The film was originally composed by Ilaayaraja for Kamal Haasan’s 1986 film Guna. Nivin Pauly's comeback moment in 'Varshangalkku Shesham' was a befitting monologue on nepotism that proved why he is an actor to watch out for despite a streak of non-performing films at the box office.
Content is king
An outside glance may make it seem like Malayalam cinema has had a high success rate this year. However, that is not the case. The industry produces 100 films a year, most have minimal to no promotions on the ground failing to even register its release in the minds of the audience. While the success rate may not be high, the industry continued to produce content driven films with a large number of films getting acceptance and recognition from pan-India audience.
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