Global filmmaking sensation Payal Kapadia, known for the Cannes Grand Prix-winning All We Imagine as Light, has joined hands with Bollywood power couple Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal to produce the upcoming Malayalam film Guptam (The Last of Them Plagues). Penned and directed by Kunjila Mascillamani, who rose to fame with the segment Asanghadithar in the 2022 anthology film Freedom Fight, Guptam also brings on board Kaathal – The Core director Jeo Baby and actor Kani Kusruti — known for her performances in Biriyaani (2020), All We Imagine as Light and Girls Will Be Girls — as co-producers.
Unveiling the film’s first-look poster, the makers recently announced that Guptam will be presented to investors at CinéV Film Markets in Chandigarh from March 20 to 23. “When her younger daughter disappears in a graveyard, a single mother is forced to move to a conservative, religious, small town in Keralam, India, where she launches a desperate search for the child. Soon, a series of mysterious and disastrous incidents plague the region, and the townsfolk turn against her, convinced she has brought god’s wrath upon them. Now, she must fight to clear her name while coping with grief and struggling to care for her surviving daughter,” the movie’s logline reads.
Don’t Miss | Mammootty’s team dismisses cancer rumours, confirms he is in good health: ‘He’s on a break from filming for Ramzan fasting’
Sharing her excitement about the project, Payal shared in a statement issued to the media: “When I first saw Kunjila’s Asanghadithar, I was struck by her impeccable craft and strong voice. I knew I wanted to be part of her filmmaking journey. As a woman, I have long struggled with the lack of diverse female representation on screen. Reading the first treatment for Guptam, I was certain this was a film I had to produce. A single mother battling a society that sees her as an anomaly is the reality of countless women around us. I grew up seeing women like Sethulekshmi of Guptam.”
Expressing their elation over joining forces with Payal and Jeo, Richa and Ali stated: “As producers, we deeply resonate with Kunjila’s script, which exposes the insidious violence against women veiled as ‘culture’. In Guptam, a woman’s decision to simply exist on her own terms unsettles many in her homeland, a theme that transcends borders. We have long admired Kunjila’s work for its originality, and we are excited to embark on this journey with her, knowing she will bring depth, nuance, and vulnerability to this deeply personal story.”
Mentioning that only Kunjila can come up with such a story, Jeo added: “Her nuanced portrayal of human relationships and their fragility, while telling the story of a witch-hunt, is extraordinary.” Kani, meanwhile, shared: “When Kunjila told me the story of Guptam, it lingered in my mind for days. I grew up amid larger feminist movements and organised fights for justice, but I’ve come to see how ordinary women fight constant, unspoken battles for innumerable rights. Their small acts of resistance shape larger change, yet remain unacknowledged.”