Malayalam actor Biyon joins Bengali filmmaker’s ‘Katti Nrittam’

Biyon of Malayalam Cinema plays the titular role in Bengali filmmaker Aneek Chaudhuri’s Malayalam directorial ‘Katti Nrittam’. Aneek has been shooting this film since November and it has entered the last leg of shooting.
Biyon has been active in Malayalam film industry for the past 30 years (he debuted with ‘Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha’ as a child artiste) and has recently starred in ‘Kunthapura’ and ‘Parankimala’.His performance in ‘Kunthapura’ received accolades.
‘Katti Nrittam’, meaning the Knife Dance, is a melancholic sociopath thriller. A part of the film is also loosely based on O. Henry’s ‘Cactus’. It tells the story of a failed Kathakali dancer who is on a killing spree. The wildness is somehow neutralized by a mundane foreground which narrates a complex tale of a love quadrilateral.

Biyon possesses a soft-spoken, gentle boy next door image; however, his character in this film demands a wicked look. The director says: “We needed to cast an actor who in no way looks like a ‘stereotyped’ killer. People should be shocked, or surprised when the person they prefer to admire is killing people that too brutally. However, we owe a special acknowledgment to respectful critic, Prem Chand ji for helping us with the ideal actor for this character.”
While sharing his thoughts Biyon said: “Working with a new team has always excited me and this character has a lot more to say than a normal character, has a lot of depth in it. I have felt this character as an artist who has failed to express his emotions through his art.
I love my director for giving me every single detail of the character and help me bring out the best in me. I have always felt that I'm a director's actor. I'm excited as always, haven't done a character of such travel before. It's a challenge; I'm still not clear of how to put it. Have a lot more to know about the character and I have to spend more time with our director too. It's a challenge and I have to take it. I wish this was a Bengali movie; I have always loved to work in one; nonetheless, an offer from a director from there has always excited me.”
The film is scheduled to release in theatres in 2020 after making festival rounds around the globe.

This is the first attempt by any Bengali filmmaker to make a Malayalam film. On this, Aneek explains: “Malayalam Cinema has always influenced me. More than this, the landscapes of Kerala, the culture, the people over there, each and everything has laid a profound impact on me. I can no way compare the nature stuff of Kerala with that if Bengal. Moreover, in contemporary times, Malayalam Cinema is much ahead; be it Sanal’s Sexy Durga, or the creations of Babusenan Brothers, or say Fahadh Faasil’s films like Maheshinte Prathikaram, Kumbalangi Nights, or even films made by Ashiq Abu, you can’t see such films being made in Bengal. The reason is not because people run away from Bengal to venture into other states that quality films are not being made, but the mere reason lies in the work culture and the pretentious approach in Bengal; this erodes everything related to Cinema.”