Rana Daggubati set to conquer M’wood as king Marthanda Varma

The much-feared Bhallaladeva is marching to Mollywood. He would be landing here not as the king of Mahishmati, but the ruler of erstwhile Travancore — Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma.

Rana Daggubati, who became a household name in Kerala too through S S Rajamouli’s Baahubali, is debuting in Mollywood in the titular role of

K Madhu

’s Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma: The King of Travancore, which will be released in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi.
A source close to Rana confirms, “Yes, he is doing the film, and is quite thrilled about it.”

The pre-production work of the movie, scripted by

Robin Thirumala

, is progressing and the film will go on floors by mid 2018, says the director. “In terms of both appearance and performance, Rana is the best to play the character and that’s why we approached him. We are glad that he was happy to be part of the project, once we narrated the script.”

When asked about the language being new to Rana, Madhu says, “I believe that there is no language when it comes to acting. There is no difference in the expressions and emotions one portrays whatever the language is and thus, I am sure it wouldn’t be a problem for an actor like him.”
The rest of the team would be revealed in the days to come, he adds. “We have roped in top actors from across industries to play various parts. For instance, we can expect a leading actor from Tamil to do a pivotal role,” hints Madhu.

On which facets of the celebrated king the movie will feature, scriptwriter Robin says, “He is the one who shaped modern Thiruvananthapuram and the one who surrendered his kingdom to Sree Padmanabhaswamy through the Thrippadi Danam. Marthanda Varma was instrumental in keeping safe the wealth of Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple, the richest in the world, and also for its renovation. The film will be featuring these milestones.”
He says that the prime focus of the film will be how Marthanda Varma is the first Asian king to defeat a foreign force in a war at sea. He and his armies crushed the Dutch in the Battle of Colachel in 1741.

Peter Hein will choreograph the stunts for the film while Oscar winner Resul Pookutty will handle the sound department. M M Keeravani, who composed the music for Baahubali, has been roped in as music composer for the period film.