Fahadh Faasil's highly-anticipated 'Malik' will not have an OTT release, confirms director

Fahadh Faasil's highly-anticipated Malayalam crime-drama titled Malik is not heading towards an OTT release, clarified filmmaker Mahesh Narayanan. Several filmmakers are contemplating releasing their films on video-on-demand platforms instead of a theatrical release, owing to the nationwide lockdown due to the Coronavirus outbreak.  However, Mahesh Narayan set the record straight regarding his upcoming crime-drama Malik having a theatrical release only, in an interaction with an online portal.

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Fahadh Faasil's 'Malik' will not have an OTT release, confirms director Narayan

The Malayalam A-lister, Fahash Faasil's upcoming crime-drama titled Malik, helmed by director Mahesh Narayan is one of the much-awaited Malayalam films of the year which was slated to hit the silver screens in April 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 lockdown imposed by the government of India, all the public places including theatres have been shut until the Coronavirus pandemic comes under total control.

Therefore, the makers of the film had to postpone the release date of the film. However, in an interaction with an online portal regarding Malik's release plans, director, writer and editor, Mahesh Narayan cleared the air surrounding an OTT release of Fahad Faasil's Malik.

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Narayan said that there is a huge demand for Malik among the masses but they are quite firm on having a theatrical release for the film due to multiple reasons. Elaborating more about the same, the filmmaker said he believes that it is a film that has been conceived and specially made for the theatre-going audience and added that the wide canvas itself demands a theatre release, both economically and otherwise. Furthermore, he stated it's an ecosystem that involves multiple stakeholders so they do not want to bypass the system

Mahesh Narayan also expressed his thought about watching movies in theatres post the COVID-19 era. In his statement, the Malik director stated that nobody knows how things will pan out after the lockdown gets lifted, at least for the next six months. He added, despite situations swinging back to normal, watching a film in a theatre will be different according to him, with social distancing protocols being taken into consideration.

He also feels that the concept of housefull shows will no more exist so producers will definitely set foot in the digital world and explore different strategies. According to him, the 30-day trial period on an OTT platform can also come down to 10 days because 10 days could be enough for the audience to switch to streaming platforms.

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