Marco actor Unni Mukundan says Malayalam cinema’s reputation is ‘burdensome’: ‘I want us to do a KGF or a Baahubali’

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While agreeing that the reputation gained by Malayalam cinema over the years thanks to its consistently good work is an important thing, Unni Mukundan points out that this special attention also limits expectations from the industry. “This kind of pressure limits us. Let’s say we have this big idea, but an artistic brilliance is missing in the idea, then it gets dropped. That is one reason why huge movies don’t come out of Malayalam,” said Unni, who is steadfast in wanting to change this system altogether. “I want to do bigger cinema. I am expecting a KGF or Baahubali from Kerala. Even my good friend Prithvi (Prithviraj Sukumaran) also mentioned the same. Why isn’t such projects happening when you have the best of technicians and actors in Malayalam. What is holding us back?”

Appreciating Telugu filmmakers for dreaming really big, and Telugu cinema for executing that vision, Unni said that his quest in cinema is to get that high from doing such films. “I want to do movies that impresses a lot of people. Our cinema is travelling, and Malayalam cinema does have a good reputation. Of course, I don’t want to compromise on that, but I do want to match up to the different kind of films I look up to. That was the driving force to do Marco. When people look at Marco, and are shocked about where it comes from, and ask… ‘Why?’, all I want to do is ask… ‘Why not?'”

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Meanwhile, Unni Mukundan will next be seen in director Vinay Govind’s comedy drama Get Set Baby, which also stars Nikhila Vimal, Chemban Vinod Jose, and Surabhi Lakshmi in pivotal roles. With music by Sam CS, Get Set Baby, which marks the return of Vinay as a director after Kohinoor (2015), is set to hit the screens on February 21.