When we reached the multi-star hotel in Kochi where the cast and crew of Sujith Vaassudev’s James and Alice were assembled for the film's promotion, it was 4.15 pm. Two halls in the second floor were occupied by TV channel teams, who have already arranged their cameras and lights for talk shows with the actors. In the meantime, a channel crew has started the production of their show in the next room.
A few minutes later, after a shoot ended, Prithviraj Sukumaran, the protagonist of James and Alice, came out and moved towards the next floor. There is no need to introduce Prithviraj Sukumaran, who has been mesmerising film buffs with his versatile acting prowess for the last 13 years.
The most powerful actor in M’town is now creating history by giving back-to-back hits from last year, which started with Ennu Ninte Moideen, followed by Amar Akbar Anthony, Anarkali, Paavada and Darwinte Parinamam.
Though James and Alice follows five consecutive hits, he appeared calm and collected. “James and Alice is a beautiful love story which depicts the life of these two characters, which are equally important. There is another pivotal character about whom I cannot tell now. The film is being narrated in a different way, especially in its second half,” he says.
So what about James? “He is a smart artist, painter and sculptor and has no strings attached. He does not keep any commitment in his life. At one point, he falls in love with Alice, which changes his life,” says the actor, who is currently acting in Memories director Jeethu Joseph’s Oozham.
The past few months witnessed the announcement of around nine Malayalam films with Prithviraj in the lead. Does the actor have any plans to act in Tamil and Hindi, where he has a great fan following? “I will soon act in Tamil-Telugu bilingual, which is currently under discussion,” says the actor who is all set to be a part of an epic film and a period movie.
While R.S. Vimal’s Karnan is the epic film in his kitty, the historical film will be about Velu Thampi Dalawa, penned by Renji Panicker and directed by Viji Thampi, who earlier wielded megaphone for Prithvi’s two films — Nammal Thammil and Krithyam. “A few years back, Renji sir wrote some scenes and I dubbed the dialogues. Dialogues will have much importance in the story line because Velu Thampi Dalwa was a good orator too. The script of that film is progressing and it will go on floors after that," says Prithvi, who will be seen as Karnan in Vimal’s epic movie which speaks four languages.
Vimal, who is busy with the preproduction of Karnan, which is expected to start rolling towards 2016 end, says, “The film is set on a big canvas as it narrates Mahabharata from the perspective of Karnan. It will be made in Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi and Telugu. Prithvi is the only actor from Malayalam; the rest will be from other languages. We have locked the script and completed the story board. Majority of the production will take place on the sets erected at Ramoji Rao Film city in Hyderabad," he says.
