“Prithviraj and I were very excited about the project,” says Arya. Lijo Jose Pellissery’s “Double Barrel” reached audiences very early.
If Hollywood has A24, Mollywood has our own Lijo Jose Pellissery, who experiments with experimental projects, without any fear of pandering to the general audiences. One of LJP’s projects was the 2015 film “Double Barrel”.Actor Arya has now spoken about Double Barrel, one of the most memorable films of his Malayalam career, describing it as a project that arrived before the audience was ready to embrace it.Looking back at the film more than a decade after its release, the actor said the team had a lot of faith in the project and enjoyed every moment of making it, even though it failed to translate into a box office success.
“The double barrel was ahead of its time.”
Speaking to Reporter Films about the film, Arya said that the team knew from the beginning that they were trying something different.
According to him, everyone involved wanted to create a film that differed from traditional commercial entertainers.“It was a very unique, experimental film. Even while making it, we felt it was a film that arrived before its time. Prithvi and I were very passionate about the project. We all wanted to do something different. It was made in a very elegant way, without compromising on the production quality at all,” he said.
“This is exactly what LEGO wanted it to be.”
Why did the film fail during its original release?
Although “Double Barrel” generated curiosity before its release, it was unable to connect with mainstream audiences during its theatrical run. However, over time, the film found a loyal fan base and gradually gained cult status among film fans.“But when it was released, it turned out to be a film ahead of its time. That’s why the audience at that time couldn’t connect with it as much,” Arya said, explaining what happened.
However, we all had a lot of fun making this film.”
A reissue was considered
Arya also revealed that the makers have recently explored the possibility of giving Double Barrel another theatrical outing. According to him, the discussions included making some changes before returning the film to cinemas.“Recently, we discussed making some minor changes and re-releasing the film. But for some reason, it didn’t happen,” he said while sharing the update.
About “Double Barrel”
Released in 2015, Double Barrel was directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery and featured a star-studded cast including Prithviraj Sukumaran, Indrajith Sukumaran, Sunny Wayne, Pearl Money, Asif Ali, Chemban Vinod Jose, Isha Sharvani and Swathi Reddy. Arya portrayed the character of Majnu and was also one of the producers of the film.Meanwhile, Arya made her comeback to Malayalam cinema after a long break with Ananthan Kaadu, scripted by Murali Gopy which received good reviews.
