Telling the story of ‘Kurup’ – one of India’s most wanted

From recreating the 1980s to ‘following’ Sukumara Kurup, based on one of India’s most wanted fugitives, filmmaker Srinath Rajendran talks about what went into making of Kurup starring Dulquer Salmaan

Kurup, which releases in theatres on November 12, has been in the making for a while but director Srinath Rajendran is not complaining. He sees the time the team got to work on it as a bonus. With the release date looming in the background, invariably there is very little time left to lavish on post-production. “The two-year break was a good thing. Not getting time to work on post-production is a curse for the Malayalam film industry, we could take all the time - a year and a half - for post-production!” says Srinath.

Srinath says making this film was his ‘destiny’, as he was born around the time the events pertaining to the crime took place. The idea for the film came randomly, he says. It was conceived in 2012, soon after the release of his first film Second Show. He says the years since Second Show have been preparatory for the team.

“Kurup is a ‘period film’, some time has passed since the event but people who are part of the story are still alive.” Telling the story of one of India’s most wanted fugitives that spans cities and countries would take time and research, which included speaking to people who knew him. There were a few who were reluctant to share their stories.