Steni Simon By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After winning ‘special mention’ in the Malayalam Cinema Today category at the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) last year for his debut film ‘Bilathikuzhal’, filmmaker Vinu Kolichal is back again as a delegate at the 24th IFFK. The Kasaragod-based filmmaker is all set to release his second film ‘Circus’ next year. “Like my first film ‘Bilathikuzhal’ which was based on hyper-realism portraying the protagonist’s attachment to his gun while also focusing on land, the film ‘Circus’ is a comic-thriller which is set in Kasaragod. The two-hour film revolves around a village in Kasaragod and its surrounding areas. The narrative style used in the film portrays the beauty and life of that place,” he said. If ‘Bilathikuzhal’ was more about the two stages in a person’s life such as childhood and old-age, ‘Circus’ is more fast and differs in its theme. “Although I wouldn’t limit its genre to comic thriller, it can be defined like this in one way. Also, if someone is to ask me if there is a story, I would say ‘there is’ and ‘there isn’t’ too,” he said. The film will be released in January 2020. The self-taught filmmaker’s ‘Bilathikuzhal’ was screened at the Mumbai International Film Festival and the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at Goa this year. Recently, he also received the John Abraham Award from The Federation of Film Societies of India. Vinu said: “I was passionate about films for a very long time. Six years ago when I came for IFFK I got inspired and considered making a movie. During film festivals, I would see different types of films which gave me an idea of filmmaking. But, I always wanted to make a film on themes which people were not familiar with.” Vinu feels that IFFK has been a great platform for many independent filmmakers to learn and explore new films. But, he feels that the Malayalam films should be promoted more. Talking about the film market, he opined: The concept is good but its practicability is doubtful.” “I usually watch 10 to 20 films at every film festival. I believe that if the content captures the attention of the people, then the film will be successful,” he said.

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