| Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Malayalam | Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham |
| Directed by | Priyadarshan |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by | Priyadarshan |
| Produced by | Antony Perumbavoor |
| Starring | Mohanlal Pranav Mohanlal Arjun Sarja Suniel Shetty Prabhu Ashok Selvan Manju Warrier Siddique Nedumudi Venu Hareesh Peradi |
| Cinematography | Tirru |
| Edited by | M. S. Aiyyappan Nair |
| Music by | Score: Rahul Raj Ankit Suri Lyell Evans Roeder Songs: Ronnie Raphael |
Production companies |
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Release date |
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Running time | 181 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
| Budget | ₹100 crore |
| Box office | ₹45 crores |
Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea (titled Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham in Malayalam) is a 2021 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical action film directed by Priyadarshan. Set in the 16th century Calicut, the film is based on the fourth Kunjali Marakkar named Muhammad Ali, the admiral of the fleet of the Zamorin.[2] Priyadarshan scripted the film with Ani Sasi. The film is produced by Antony Perumbavoor's Aashirvad Cinemas. Marakkar features Mohanlal in the titlular role, with ensemble cast including Pranav Mohanlal, Arjun Sarja, Suniel Shetty, Ashok Selvan, Prabhu, Nedumudi Venu, Mukesh, Siddique, Manju Warrier, Keerthy Suresh, Kalyani Priyadarshan, Suhasini Maniratnam, Innocent, Mamukkoya, Hareesh Peradi, Santhosh Keezhattoor and K. B. Ganesh Kumar. In the film, upon being terrorised by an oppressive Portuguese regime, legendary naval chieftain Kunjali Marakkar IV wages an epic war against the Europeans and their allies. This film was Keerthy Suresh's comeback to Malayalam cinema after a gap of seven years and the Malayalam debut of Ashok Selvan.
The initial plan for a film based on the admirals Kunjali Marakkar started between Priyadarshan, Mohanlal, and screenwriter T. Damodaran in 1996. Damodaran pitched a plot idea in 1999. However, the film did not materialise in Damodaran's lifetime because of the high budget requirements, which was unaffordable for a Malayalam film at that time. Priyadarshan kept the project in mind for years, until in 2017 he proceeded with the research work. The final draft was completed by June 2018.
Principal photography took place from December 2018 to March 2019, filmed in sets created at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. It lasted 104 days and post-production took 14 months. Four life-size ship replicas were constructed and were shot inside a water tank. The sea was completely created using visual effects. Sabu Cyril and Siddharth Priyadarshan oversaw the production design and visual effects supervision, respectively. Production began with a budget of ₹100 crore, making it the most expensive Malayalam film to date. The original score was composed by Rahul Raj, Ankit Suri and Lyell Evans Roeder; and songs by Ronnie Raphael.
The film, originally scheduled to release on 19 March 2020, was delayed by the outbreak of COVID-19. It was then rescheduled and postponed through three more dates in March, May, and August 2021 before settling on release date by the end of the year. Meanwhile, at the 67th National Film Awards, the film won three awards — Best Feature Film, Best Special Effects, and Best Costume Design. The film released theatrically worldwide on 2 December 2021.[3][4] It received mixed reviews and failed at the box office.[3][4] The film was also shortlisted among with 35 other films for the Indian submissions for Best Feature Film category at the 94th Academy Awards.[5]
- ^ "Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
makingwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b Vyas (14 December 2021). "'Marakkar' to stream on Amazon Prime". The Hans India. Archived from the original on 2 November 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Five key moments for Malayalam cinema in 2021". Deccan Herald. 18 December 2021. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ "Mohanlal's 'Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea' makes its way to the 94th Academy Awards". The Times of India. 21 January 2022. Archived from the original on 23 March 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2024.