Interview Malayalam Filmmaker Dinjith Aythan: I Revealed the Success of ‘Kishkindha Kandam’

Dinjith Aythan has been on the air for an interview for over a week now. Appreciations are pouring in from all quarters for his film Kishkindha KandamHis happiness knows no bounds.

“I have expressed the success of the movie to the extent that it may seem ambitious to others. But, we were confident about the product and I was confident about making my mark as a filmmaker,” says Dinjith.

Its layered and engaging narrative Kishkindha Kandam, The slow-burn thriller deals with the lives of Appu Pillai (Vijayaraghavan), an embittered retired army man, his son Ajay Chandran (Asif Ali), a forest department employee, and Ajay’s wife Aparna (Aparna Balamurali). They live in a lovely old house amidst vast greenery, near a protected forest with a herd of monkeys. Soon Aparna realizes that there is more to her father-in-law and husband’s life than meets the eye. He is the catalyst for the revelation of the mystery, shocking the audience.

Aparna Balamurali and Asif Ali In Kishkindha Kandam
| Photo credit: Special Arrangements

Dinjith says he was thrilled when the decision was made to release the film during Onam. “The release of an Onam is special. The film was supposed to hit the theaters earlier this year but Asif had to push it when a couple of his movies got delayed. Releasing it at the festival was the job consciousnessIt’s (producer Joby George Thadathil’s) decision. Many of my well-wishers in the industry advised me against it because of the content and other strong films. But he did not give up. The film became personal for him,” says Dinjith.

Kishkindha KandamIts success is a testament to what his journey as a filmmaker began with Eye: AmminipilaAn engaging family drama released in 2019. “It did not do well at the box office, although many liked the film. We realized quite late that the movie was not being promoted. So the entire team went out to put up posters across the state. The best thing that has happened is that the team is still together,” he added. The cinematographer and editor of the movie Bahul Ramesh and Suraj ES respectively reprise their roles. Kishkindha Kandam.

Bahul also wrote the screenplay for the film which has been hailed as one of the best in Malayalam cinema. “Emotions run high in the narrative with no relief for the audience. It was important to keep these emotions in proper measure. Since we were not shooting the sequence in chronological order it was a challenge for the actors. In the beginning some intense scenes of the climax were shot. We had to re-shoot Asif’s important scenes.”

The director insisted that Bahul gave him a beautiful script and cranked the camera with him, the filmmaker had nothing to worry about. “He wrote the story during the lockdown and the script was made in eight days. He knew what he wanted and we were on the same page. This is a prerequisite for a film. Sooraj is a master of his craft and his editing makes it a seamless watch.”

Filmmaker Dinjith Aythan Photo credit: Special Arrangements

It was a conscious decision not to have any songs but Mujeeb Majid, as the film’s composer Mandharam, thinkalajach shamvamand web series Perilou Premier League created a soundscape that became a character in the movie. The Tibetan song track ‘Dore Dore’ was used as the promo song. It was the producer’s suggestion.”

The performance was spot on with many seasoned artists on board. “When [director] Fazil sir read the script, he pointed out that we should select the actors wisely. Kuttettan (Vijayraghavan), Asif, Aparna, Jagadish consciousnessAshoka consciousness… We’ve got some great talent.”

Dinjith observed that Vijayaraghavan knew how to carry the role. “He acted in my first film and I was amazed by how he designed the character [as advocate RP]. In Kishkindha Kandam I just had to make sure he performed within the meter we had in mind.” He added that Asif “needs to explore potential as he has grown a lot as an artiste over the years”.

The project was delayed due to various reasons and hence there is a gap of five years between his two films. “I got the story in 2022 and planned to shoot in 2023. But it kept stalling. For example, finding the right home takes time. Although we identified one in Kasaragod, we did not get permission to shoot there. Finally we got the current one in Palakkad,” he says.

Dinjith Aythan with Vijayaraghavan during the shooting of Kishkindha Kandam Photo credit: Special Arrangements

The most difficult part of the shoot was the scene featuring the monkeys. “We spent a whole day in Athirapilli for the shot and ended up with five hours of footage. From there we had to take the necessary shots.”

Chennai-settled Dinjith, a native of Thalassery, gave up his career as an animator to become a filmmaker. “I also had the option of going to New Zealand. But despite not knowing anyone in the film industry, I didn’t want to give up on my dream. It was then that a company in Kochi called me to do some pre-production work for their 3D animation film. Although I had only planned to work there for three months, I was behind. Eventually we started working on VFX and were part of the film viz 1983, Phillips & Monkey Pen, Double Barrel And Action Hero Biju“

Aparna Balamurali and Asif Ali Kishkindha Kandam Photo credit: Special Arrangements

By then he was ready with a script and thanks to Abrid Shine, whom he considered his mentor, Dinjith Dulquer met Salman. As Dulquer was tied up with other projects, he was advised to meet Asif. “The project has not taken off. But he was fascinated by one of my animation films, A mail for Colonel John Waits. Later, I approached him with the script Eye: Amminipila And he immediately agreed to do it.”

Filmmaker Dinjith Aythan with his father Dibakaran Aythan on location in Kishkindha Kandam Photo credit: Special Arrangements

Before signing off, Dinjith said that Kishkindha Kandam Gave her a few moments to cherish. “Everyone is talking about the sequence where Asif is hugged Kuttettan, Which surprises the latter. There was such a hug in my first film too [featuring Ahmed Sidique and P Sivadasan]. I have never hugged my parents, probably because we are not used to it. my father [Divakaran Ayyathan] He did a small role in the film. When I met my parents the other day, he gave me his vintage watch and he was crying. As they were returning home, I gave her back and hugged both of them for the first time. At that moment he was overwhelmed. It was special.”