Jeethu Joseph on why Mammootty said no to Drishyam: ‘He asked me to wait for 2 years’

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Jeethu Joseph on why Mammootty turned down Drishyam

Since then, there has always been speculation about why Mammootty chose not to take up the project and how he, widely regarded as a visionary actor, failed to see its potential. However, Jeethu himself once revealed that the megastar turned down the project not because he wasn’t impressed by it, but solely because he had too many movies on his plate at that time. In fact, Mammootty was the one who encouraged Meena to take on the role of Rani, Georgekutty’s wife.

Sharing that Mammootty liked Drishyam’s story a lot, Jeethu noted that he opted out of the project due to prior commitments. “It wasn’t that Mammootty didn’t like the story of Drishyam. When I first narrated it, he was very happy and called it terrific. However, at that time, he had already committed to four or five films where he played a father and family man. Since he didn’t want to do films of the same pattern back-to-back, he suggested that I either wait for one and a half to two years or proceed with someone else,” Media One quoted the writer-director as saying in a past interview.

Mammootty encouraged Meena to do Drishyam

Despite Mohanlal stepping in as Georgekutty, Jeethu said that Mammootty provided great support during the film’s casting. In fact, he narrated the story to Meena while she was working on a film with the megastar, and Mammootty was the one who told her that Drishyam was a film she must definitely do. She recently admitted this herself.

“When I was first asked to act in Drishyam (2013), I had actually said no. Now I realise how foolish that was. My daughter was only two years old at the time, and I said no because I felt I couldn’t leave her to go for a shoot. I told producer Antony Perumbavoor that although the script and character were good, I didn’t think I could come because of my daughter,” she shared during a special chat show organised by Aashirvad Cinemas, the franchise’s production company.

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“Even before Jeethu came to see me, Mammukka (Mammootty) had told me about the film. He said, ‘It’s a good character, it will suit you well, and Jeethu will come to narrate the story.’ Everything sounded great, but I was still unsure. I had given 200 per cent to all the films I had done until then, but now I had a daughter. I was concerned about whether I could focus 100 per cent on a movie or if I could portray the character to perfection. I had many confusions. However, Antony promised to provide whatever facilities I needed. Thus, I finally said yes to the character of Rani,” she added.

Besides, when Jeethu informed Mammootty that he intended to cast Kalabhavan Shajohn as Constable Sahadevan, the main villain in the first instalment, the megastar praised the choice, calling it an excellent decision. Jeethu shared that Mammootty invited him into his caravan to discuss the casting and sincerely hoped the project would become a great film.