Jaya, Mohanlal in the lurch

Shobha Warrier

After the highly acclaimed Vaanaprastham, Shaji N Karun was to base his next film on noted Malayalam writer T Padmanabhan's short story Kadal.

It was to be his fourth directorial venture after Piravi, Swahm and Vaanaprastham.

Kadal tells the story of a daughter who tries to discover her mother from the pages of her mother's diary.

Shaji had hoped that Kadal would be a bilingual film, made in Malayalam and Hindi. Like Vaanaprastham, the film was to be produced by French producers too. Shaji had even signed Jaya Bachchan to play the mother, with Mohanlal as her husband.

Mohanlal became the producer of Vaanaprastham when the French producers walked out midway. The film became a landmark in Mohanlal’s career, not only as a producer but also as an actor. So, it seemed natural that he'd team up with Shaji for the director's next film too.

Kadal is not going to be Shaji’s next film. For the time being, he has postponed the film.

Till it happens, he has decided to make another feature film in Malayalam. A quickie, we can call it, as he plans to finish the shooting in just a month’s time. This one is about a young mother and her seven-year-old son. Archana, who gave an outstanding performance in Shaji’s first film Piravi, plays the mother.

Shaji has started shooting his new film at Dharmasala in Himachal Pradesh early this month. Nature plays a very important role in all of Shaji’s films. If nature cried with the old father and daughter in Piravi, it was dark and gloomy in Vaanaprastham.

For his new film, Shaji wants chilly weather, cold winds and thick fog; hence the reason to shoot the film in the foothills of the Himalayalas when winter is at its best.