Almost 7 years ago, I began writing this story about a female superhero which had the potential to become a pakka masala vigilante feature film(if it ever got made)
After quite a bit of work gone into it, before it went into the next stage of pitching and scripting, I dropped it and moved on. Mostly because of my procrastination, practicality or privilege(that I have a lot of other things to do)
But deep down I knew the bottomline of why I let it go:
"NO ONE WILL MAKE A FEMALE SUPERHERO MOVIE."
Cut to: 29 August, 2025. 12:10 PM.
A packed theatre in Chennai is hooting for a slow motion shot of a female superhero in a Malayalam film, while the passive male protagonist watches in shock
They did it. They made the impossible happen, based on stories and characters that are so rooted in their culture, on a budget that's lesser than half of a Bollywood actor's salary
And now, I feel like going back to the story I wrote, dusting off the dirt and cobwebs off the surface and take a step towards finishing that script and making it see the light of the film projector.
But that's just me: I come from a place of privilege and my aspiration to tell stories for the big screen is just ONE of the things I do and I don't have to depend on this as my revenue source. So I could probably take time to make my dream happen
But imagine...there are millions of aspiring writers, storytellers, filmmakers in the country who have so many stories to tell, but no one to give them an opportunity; no system to aid their vision
Just people to tell them: "NO ONE WILL MAKE THIS."
But when you watch a film like Lokah, you get a sudden confidence that maybe…
if there are producers like Dulquer Salmaan investing in a world of superheroes created by newcomers and if the budget is right…
If they build an ecosystem...
Maybe ANY story that seemed impossible to make or mount could find a home in that ecosystem...
Maybe ANY character of any gender could become one of the superheroes in such a universe which will already have an audience cheering and rooting for it...
And this is why films like Lokah need to be applauded and cheered because in a world where most filmmakers and producers think about ONE film, its opening weekend and immediate returns...
Films like Lokah and teams behind films like Lokah are different because they take one step towards building the future.
A week to go before the world starts obsessing over Coolie…
Diving into the 25 Greatest Tamil Films of the Last 25 Years(in my opinion)
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https://t.co/dMuUThY2Iv
Robert Pattinson says Letterboxd has allowed young people to express their identity as film lovers.
“When I was a child, everyone had a shelf of CDs that represented you, but I think that expression was a little lost due to digitization. Now there is a way to expose yourself that is very cool & that could motivate a great change in the meaning of cinema in particular & culture in general."