When college professor Unni Mukundan comes to know that the veteran Malayalam director Lal Jose is undergoing treatment in the same hospital as him, he decides to exploit the situation to fulfil his long-cherished dreams of becoming a filmmaker someday. This forms the crux of ad-filmmaker Jis Joy’s second film, Sunday Holiday. His debut film was Bicycle Thieves.
Veteran actor Sreenivasan plays Unni Mukundan and Lal Jose plays himself.
“It’s a story within a story that follows the life of Amal, a young man who is going through a phase of depression in his life. Travelling from his remote village, Amal arrives in Kochi,” said Joy.
What he goes through there forms the rest of the story. Does Mukundan make his dream film?
Sunday Holiday has received a good response in India despite the rains in Kerala and the prevailing situation in Malayalam cinema.
“I am overwhelmed with the feedback. People from the industry have appreciated my storytelling. It’s a new experiment,” said Joy who began his film career as a dubbing artist along with close buddy Jayasurya. While Jayasurya realised his acting dreams and became a star, Joy continued as a dubbing artist. He dubs for all Allu Arjun films. He also manages an advertising firm in Kochi.
Asif Ali plays Amal in the story. Aparna Balamurali and Shruthi Ramachandran are the leading ladies. The supporting cast includes Siddique, Asha Sharath, KPAC Lalitha and Sudheer Karamana. Deepak Dev has scored music. Alex J Pullikal is the cinematographer.
Joy is clear that his films will convey a positive message, are clean entertainers and don’t invite the beep sound.
What about making a film with buddy Jayasurya in the lead?
“Of course, that will also happen. I wanted to prove myself before I approached him with a story,” said Joy.
Produced by Maqtro Pictures, Sunday Holiday releases in the UAE on July 27.
