Unni Mukundan defends violence in ‘Marco’; says' It’s a reflection of society'

Unni Mukundan is basking in the success of his latest film, ‘Marco,’ directed by Haneef Adeni.

Released in December last year, the film has sparked intense discussions among cinephiles, with many debating its graphic depiction of violence. The film was said to be the most violent movie ever made in India.
In a recent interview with Baradwaj Rangan for Galatta Plus, Unni Mukundan addressed these concerns, asserting that the film’s violence is a mere fraction of what exists in reality. “Marco doesn’t even show ten percent of the violence present in our society,” he stated.

The ‘Get Set Baby’ actor elaborated on the theme, emphasizing that violence has been an inherent part of human evolution. "We have achieved peace through wars, as survival has always been our primary instinct. I'm not justifying the portrayal of violence on screen, but the reality is that violence is an undeniable part of our society," he remarked.
In the same interview, Unni Mukundan said that he expects bigger movies in Malayalam like ‘KGF’ or ‘Baahubali.’. He said, “Our cinema has this reputation of being ‘good and neat.’ It is burdensome for people like me. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to achieve that ‘good cinema’ tag with every film. People shouldn’t feel the pressure of only making benchmark movies. I don’t see this burden in Telugu, Hindi, or Tamil cinema.”
He further said, “Even Prithvi (Prithviraj Sukumaran) has said the same. We have the best technicians and actors—so what is holding us back? When people ask why a film like Marco comes from Malayalam, all I want to ask is—why not?”
Apart from Unni Mukundan, ‘Marco’ features Siddique, Jagadish, Abhimanyu Shammi Thilakan, Yukti Thareja, and Sreejith Ravi in pivotal roles.
Meanwhile, ‘Marco’ has now started streaming on OTT.