'DRISHYAM' DIRECTOR ON WHY MALAYALAM FILMS SCORE

Jeethu Joseph tells us why Bollywood heroes rejected 'Mirage', but South Indian actor Asif Ali said 'yes'

- By Manjusha Radhakrishnan

Malayalam filmmaker Jeethu Joseph is not afraid to speak the truth. Best known for redefining thrillers with Drishyam, he reveals that his latest film, Mirage, almost never saw the light of day. Originally conceived as a Bollywood project, the script was repeatedly rejected by leading Hindi film heroes.

"It’s a female-centric film, not fully, but the hero is slightly down when you compare with characterisation. So no hero in Bollywood was ready to do that film," Jeethu recalls.

That moment, he says, laid bare Bollywood's chronic problem: a male-dominated star culture that resists scripts where men are not the unquestioned centre of gravity.

"We tried for three, four years. Then we were about to drop this project. That’s when I said, why don’t we try it in Malayalam?"

And unlike Bollywood, Malayalam cinema didn’t hesitate. Jeethu narrated the script to Asif Ali. “He said, ‘Sir, it looks interesting, but I want to know the detailed screenplay.' I personally narrated the entire screenplay. Then he said, ‘Okay,'” Jeethu smiles.

Soon, Aparna Balamurali and Asif Ali were cast — actors known for nuance and substance rather than hero-worship.