Stalled film Shyaamaragam, nears completion after 6 years

Legendary veteran composer V. Dakshinamoorthy left a remarkable imprint in the Malayalam film industry with his classical music repertoire based songs before he passed away at the age of 94 in 2013. With a career spanning over five decades and as many as 859 songs to his credit he was revered as one of the forefathers of the Malayalam music industry. Even at the age of 93 his devotion towards music had not mellowed down. Before he succumbed to death he was working on a movie titled "Shyaamaragam" which was virtually his last composition. Kept on hold for a very long time, Shyaamaragam is now ready for release in Malayalam and Tamil.

What is unprecedented in the movie is that the film has songs sung by four generation of iconic singer K. J. Yesudas, his father Augustine Joseph, his son Vijay Yesudas and grand-daughter Ameya. Another unique aspect in the movie is that the role of protagonist is played by renowned theatre artist Y. Gee Mahendra and in a casting coup of sorts, his family members also play key roles in the movie. YGM plays the role of veteran Bhagavatar, while his wife Sudha Mahendra plays his wife on-screen too. His daughter Madhuvanti Arun also play a prominent role.   

But the man behind the wheel who is the driving-force in transpiring the movie is director of the movie Sethu Eyyal, an award winning creative artist nurtured and moulded by late Lohithadas. Very calm and composed in nature, he has been the curator and has mentored his team very convincingly to materialize the movie. The movie is produced by K. Vijayalakshmi and Leena Anandan, under "New Era Creations" and the lead roles have been played by debutants Pranav Suresh and Praseeda Uday. A V Anoop, Santhosh Kizhattoor, Shanthi Krishna and Amal Raj also play very important roles.

Shyaamaragam, is a heart touching musical love story scripted by National Award winner Matambu Kunjukuttan who has done the screenplay as well. The movie is an amalgamation of legends as a tribute to the late iconic composer V. Dakshinamoorthy. The movie has two phases, one in the flashback and one in the present.  In a telephonic talk Y.Gee Mahendran avers, "Shyaamaragam is the story narrating the bond between a guru and his disciple. There is a love story in the backdrop of musical thread. My name was suggested by K. J. Yesudas himself. Luckily the director was my fan so it clicked very well. It was a challenge doing such a complex role. But I have 58 years of stage experience and the inspiration from my Dronacharya Shivaji Ganesan. So I was able to handle it. Great coordination by the director and his team made it very easy for me."

The shooting was completed in Trichur and Palakkad. Madhuvanti Arun, who plays a small but an interesting role, says, "This is my first Malayalam film. I play the role of mother of the girl who is swayed a bit in the wrong direction. It's an intense situation and my role has come out very well. The ace theatre artist also had great admiration for the director and his team. "Director Sethu Eyyal is very calm and composed and gets work done very efficiently, his entire team is so active in their work but it appears as though they are relaxed.         

The artistic mind behind the movie is of Jimjose while the editors are Baiju Kurup and Jaifel Jaifu. The lyrics are by Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri and Rafeeq Ahmed. Madhu Madassery is the cinematographer. Presence of eminent singer K.S. Chithra adds to the musical spectacle.