Director Jayaraj teams up with Mammootty for his ambitious project,The Train,which is based on the 7/11 blasts that rocked the railway network in Mumbai. When filmmaker Jayaraj read 187 Lives,a book that documents the lives of the victims of the 7/11 Mumbai blasts,he was deeply moved and felt compelled to make a film on this terror attack. My film,The Train,narrates the happenings that took place between 6 am and 6 pm on the fateful day of the Mumbai train blasts. What provoked me to make this movie was the thought that those 187 people who lost their lives had dreams and hopes that were never realised. Malayalam superstar Mammootty plays the role of an Anti-Terror Squad officer named Kedarnath. Jayaraj said,Mammoottys character may remind you of the late ATS chief Hemant Karkare,who lost his life during the terror attacks that rocked Mumbai city on November 26 in 2008. There is another important character,Karthik,played by actor Jayasurya. Karthik is a track singer who is also a great fan of A.R. Rahman. He boards the train on the ill-fated day with dreams in his heart. He is in love with a girl,who he met on the train,and they decide to meet on July 11 at 6 pm. Jagathy Sreekumar plays a corrupt ATS officer,Saikumar is essaying the role of a Cyber-Cell officer while KPAC Lalitha and Sabitha have pivotal roles, explains the acclaimed director. When asked whether The Train is a mainstream film or an offbeat one,Jayaraj comments,The movie will give you the feel of a thriller and also has a romantic track. It also makes references to Kedarnaths personal tragedy where he loses his wife and kid. This makes him empathetic to the feelings of others. The plot of The Train develops through Kedarnath,the duty-conscious and alert cop. Jayaraj recalled,When I had first thought of the subject,I was focussing on the different characters and their hopes and aspirations. At that time,brave officers like Hemant Karkare were killed during the terror attack. This led me to conceiving the character of Kedarnath. Jayaraj discussed the film with Mammootty and the superstar offered to do the role. According to Jayaraj,The Train is going to be technically different and brilliant too. He is all praises for cinematographer Seenu Murukkumpzha whom he has introduced in the film. Seenu is an adventurous cameraman. He has made the equipments that were needed to shoot the film. This has enhanced the films cinematography. It took us a long time to seek permission from the railways and shoot the terror attack. We started filming from last July and now we are just completing the shoot, he stated. The Train is likely to be released in May. The film has music by Sreenivas and is produced under the banner of Harvest Dreams Films and Entertainment. The Train,in the words of Jayaraj,makes some bold statements too. He says,The film gives out a clear message. The police department gets intelligence reports well in advance of each terror attack,about the possibilities of a strike. But the indifference shown is condemnable. The vigil shown after a terror strike is not what we need; we,in fact,need such a vigil before the strike happens. Apart from The Train,Jayaraj is all equally excited about his next project,Nayika,which tells the story of a film actress. It stars Jayaram,Mamta Mohandas,Sharada,Sabitha and Jagathy Sreekumar. His Pakarnnattam,with Jayaram and Sabitha in the lead is ready and is likely to be released soon. It zooms in on political violence in a sensitive manner.
