Lady luck smiles on Appu Bhattathiri

Appu N. Bhattathiri has always wanted to become a director and it is one of his biggest dreams. But editing occurred by chance. Editing is one of the most daunting and creative aspects of filmmaking and Appu’s rise to becoming one of the brightest talents in the business is no shock. Winning the Kerala State Award for Editing for the films Ottamuri Velicham and Veeram just underlines how good he is. Though he is still in his 20s, he has done a lot of work and has been in the industry for the past eight years. But still he is not able to cope with the fact that he has won the prestigious award.

“This is absolutely wonderful and shocking. I never expected anything like this before. Because I am still learning and the minute I heard the news, I was baffled,” says Appu, not hiding his emotions. Appu started his journey by editing short films. “Like everyone else, I started without much knowledge of working in big projects. Before coming to the industry, I use to work for short films and uploaded them on video sharing websites. After seeing my works, director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan called me and asked me to do the editing for his film Oralpokkam. That’s how I made my debut in Malayalam films.”

Appu is already an acclaimed editor and his work is equally lauded by film buffs as well as critics. “Winning this award gives me joy as well as more responsibility. It is really good to get acknowledged like that for your hard work. Nothing makes you happier than when your hard work pays off,” he says. Appu is busy with his ongoing projects. He is committed to more than five films, some are completed and some are still under works.