One shot Malayalam feature makes a record

When Nishad Hasan found the finances tight for his debut feature film, he undertook a project that ended up earning him an URF World Record. In a creative solution to the budgetary restriction, his nearly two-hour-long film,

Viplavam

, was completed in a

single shot

with 1,000 junior artistes amidst the buzz of Thrissur city.


This is not the first time that Nishad has attempted a novel bit of filmmaking. His 29-minute, short film, Vattam, was shot live and done with a 10-day rehearsal. That set the stage for Viplavam, which was shot a year and a half back, and is now awaiting a censor certificate.

“The script for Viplavam was actually written as a regular film with a 45-day shoot, but we are newcomers to filmmaking and because of date hassles, it was made over a day on a tight budget,” says Nishad, who wrote and directed the movie which is a political drama with a romantic angle that carries the story forward. “The film was rehearsed over about 50 days and has about 60 new faces from across the State. It was shot around High Road, Municipal Stand, Ayyanthole Lane and the market,” he says.

Despite the innovative aspect, Nishad has not compromised on cinematic elements. From when the camera switches on to when it goes off, he points out there are three flashback scenes, eight songs and four fight sequences. The film’s crew comprised mostly of team who have a passion, but no training in filmmaking.

“But every aspect required a lot of dedicated work. The artwork for one of the songs called manja patte (song in yellow), sung by Jassie Gift, required the whole street to be painted and decorated in yellow. Apart from that, the walls of Ayyanthole Lane was painted with profiles of historic political figures who tell the story in one section; that required a lot of special effects and artwork, which was done by Jitesh Jithu,” says Nishad, adding Jassie Gift saw the rushes of the film, and agreed to sing for it.

Nishad already has his next feature on the anvil. “I have got the dates of a few stars for the next project and is set to move forward. Vattam, though a short film, had a lakh views and gave me the confidence to undertake this journey,” he says.