On A Joy Ride

Amal Neerad's ‘Bachelor Party' is about a group of friends who decide to go on a journey together.

The camera is trained on a group of stern-looking men inside a movie theatre. Smoke and lights enhance the dramatic effect. The men are directed to glance at the door. The scene seems to be a build up for a heavy duty action sequence for Amal Neerad's latest film, ‘Bachelor Party,' the shooting of which is on at Ezhupunna.

“‘Bachelor Party' is about a group of friends who undertake a journey together. There are a couple of flashbacks and the story unfolds in a span of three days. Some long lost bonds are rekindled and new friendships blossom. The story unravels during the journey, but it can't be termed a ‘road movie,'” says Amal, the young Turk of Mollywood who has directed films such as ‘Big B,' ‘Sagar Alias Jacky Reloaded' and ‘Anwar.' His films got the attention of young viewers who were enchanted by the sumptuous visuals and slick narratives.

Behind the camera

Apart from producing ‘Bachelor Party,' Amal will be handling the camera for the movie as well. “It has been a while since I wielded a camera for a movie. Friends of mine – Sameer Thahir, Shyju Khaled, Jomon T. John, and Satheesh Kurup – who assisted me during ‘Big B,' are now well-known cinematographers in Mollywood. This is sort of a healthy competition with them, a competition in which I would have no hassles even if I were to lose it,” he smiles.

There are rumours that the storyline of ‘Bachelor Party' is similar to that of the Hollywood blockbuster ‘Hangover.' But when Amal is asked about it, his reply is a smirk.

Tony (Asif Ali), Geevar (Indrajith), Benny (Rahman), Ayyappan (Kalabhavan Mani), Fakeer (Vinayakan), and Neethu (Nithya Menen) are the main characters in the story. Prithviraj does a cameo in the movie.

Multi-starrer

According to Amal, roping in stars for a multi-starrer wasn't a problem. “They are not bothered about their stardom. They like the evolution of the characters they are playing in the movie. There is some madness about this storyline and that attracted us to this script written by Unni R. and Santhosh Echikkanam,” he says.

The artistes are ready to face the camera and the camaraderie is evident as the crew prepares for the next shot. Indrajith says he plays a bold and jovial character, while Asif, who sports a goatee and a ponytail, says his character is unemployed, the youngest in the group, and is prone to get into trouble.

According to Rahman, it is the way human relations are handled in the movie that has persuaded him to play a role in the flick.

John Vijay, who shot into fame with Tamil films such as ‘Oram Po,' ‘Raavanan,' and ‘Mouna Guru,' makes his entry into Malayalam. Remya Nambeeshan and Jinu Joseph are in the cast.

‘Bachelor Party' is being produced under the banner of Amal Neerad Productions. Lyrics by Rafeeq Ahmad have been composed by Rahul Raj.

SOURCE: http://www.thehindu.com/arts/cinema/article2853749.ece