Shraddha Srinath to play an IAS officer in Malayalam movie

Kannada actress Shraddha Srinath is set to start work on her first film after the pandemic lockdown. The upcoming film, which has Mohanlal in the lead and is directed by B Unnikrishnan, has her playing an IAS officer and will mark her Malayalam comeback five years after starring in Kohinoor.

On picking a Malayalam film to resume work, Shraddha says, “There was no reason to say no, particularly with Mohanlal sir in It And Unni sir gave a great narration. Also, I have constantly been trying to make a foray Into Malayalam again after Kohinoor.”

With the film being her first project in the new normal and that too in a new language, does she feel nervous? “Absolutely” says the Vikram Vedha actress. “In fact, I have been having strange thoughts like have I lost it?” because I have been feeling rusty Apart from the pressure of it being a Malayalam film, the language issue is daunting. It took me some time to get used to even Tamil and people say Malayalam is harder to grasp Also, I will be acting with a living legend. So, definitely there’s this fear of ‘do I still have It after all these months of absolutely no practice.”

Shraddha Srinath, who plays a revenue divisional officer in the yet-to-be-titled movie, is expected to join the sets In Kerala by November 23, but before that she will undergo a seven-day quarantine “Unni sir told me that there are strict measures in place and my staff too has to be in quarantine; the entire Malayalam film Industry has been following the precautions and no one is exempted from it. I feel confident and I am expecting a disciplined set. To be honest, If you are stepping out of your home, you have to know that where you are going is safe”.

The movie, meanwhile, is arguably one of the bigger films to go on floors in Mollywood during the pandemic. B Unnikrishnan tells us, “It’s being made on a budget of 18 crore. We have a bigger than usual crew by pandemic standards and the schedule is for 60 days.”

While the film has a village backdrop, the filmmaker says “It’s made on a big canvas and will have all elements of a ‘mass’ film”. “That’s also why it’s making will be interesting Unlike the films that are being shot now in Malayalam, this film will have stunt choreography. The fight master and his assistants will take the Covid tests and quarantine for seven days. Even after that, their team would have to maintain social distancing. So, we have a proper plan in place just like how movies with action sequences are being shot in Bollywood and Telugu right now.” says Unnikrishnan, adding that the team has allotted 30 lakh for all the tests and the Covid precautions”.