Premam () is a 2015 Indian Malayalam-language coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film written, directed and edited by Alphonse Puthren. It was produced by Anwar Rasheed and stars Nivin Pauly and Sai Pallavi (in her major film debut). It also features an ensemble supporting cast including Madonna Sebastian, Anupama Parameswaran, Shabareesh Varma, Krishna Sankar, Siju Wilson, Ananth Nag, Vinay Forrt, Soubin Shahir, Sharafudheen and others. The plot follows George (Nivin)’s romantic journey with his friends from their teens to adulthood. While George's first love turns out to be a disappointment, Malar (Pallavi), a college lecturer, rekindles his love interest. His romantic journey takes him through several stages, helping him find his purpose.
The principal photography began in July 2014. The film was shot across locations including Goa, Aluva and Fort Kochi. The filming was wrapped up in November 2014. Anend C. Chandran and Rajesh Murugan handled the cinematography and music. The film was produced on a budget of ₹4 crore.
Premam was released on May 29, 2015 to widespread critical acclaim with praise towards the cast performance (especially Nivin and Pallavi), story, screenplay, cinematography, music, background score, editing and direction by Alphonse Puthren. The film emerged as a major commercial success grossing ₹73 crore. The film had a theatrical run of 175 days in Kerala and over 300 days in Tamil Nadu. The film was included in The Hindu's top 25 Malayalam movies of the decade. Pallavi and Nivin's performances were included by the Film Companion in its list of “100 Greatest Performances of the Decade”. It was also remade in telugu by Akkineni Naga Chaitanya and Shruti Hasan portraying the respective roles played by Nivin Pauly and Sai Pallavi in 2016.
The film received nominations and won awards in several categories. At the 63rd Filmfare Awards South, Premam was nominated in seven categories, winning Best Female Debut (Sai Pallavi) and Best Male Playback Singer (Vijay Yesudas for "Malare"). At the 5th South Indian International Movie Awards, it received fifteen nominations and won seven, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Music Director, Best Lyricist, and Best Male Playback Singer (Vijay Yesudas). Nivin and Sai Pallavi won the Best Actor Critics and Best Debut Actress awards. At the 1st IIFA Utsavam, it received nine nominations and won four, including Best Performance in a Comic Role, Best Music Direction, Best Lyricist and Best Male Playback Singer. Among other wins, the film received six Asianet Film Awards, six Vanitha Film Awards, three Asianet Comedy Awards, four Asiavision Awards and two CPC Cine Awards. The film was not considered by the Kerala State Film Awards, the official state film award given by the Government of Kerala.
Plot George David is a sixteen-year-old pre-degree student studying at Holy Spirit Convent College in Aluva, Kerala. He is deeply infatuated with Mary, a popular girl from the same town. Alongside his close friends Shambu and Koya, George frequently follows Mary in hopes of speaking to her, though he is constantly intimidated by her protective father.
Despite multiple attempts, George is repeatedly hindered by unfortunate timing and circumstances. His romantic aspirations are crushed when he discovers that Mary is already in a relationship with another boy, who also happens to be named George. Heartbroken, he reluctantly agrees to help Mary meet her boyfriend discreetly. Following their poor academic performance in their final examinations, George and his friends decide to focus on their future education.
In 2005, George, Shambu, and Koya enroll at Union Christian College in Aluva. During the initial ragging period, George encounters Malar, a newly appointed lecturer from Tamil Nadu. George falls in love with her, and over time, she appears to reciprocate his affection. He is deeply impressed by her talent when she assists his college dance team. Convinced of her genuine feelings, George begins to contemplate marriage. Concurrently, a fellow faculty member, Vimal Sir, attempts to woo Malar with the help of the school’s physical education instructor, Shivan, though his efforts prove unsuccessful.
Later that academic year, Malar travels to Kodaikanal with her cousin, Arivazhagan, who is traditionally arranged to be her prospective groom. A few days later, the college receives word that Malar was involved in a severe accident and has officially resigned from her position. George and his friends immediately travel to Kodaikanal to visit her, only to discover that the trauma has caused selective amnesia, leaving her unable to recognize George or recall their relationship. Realizing she has no memory of him, a devastated George steps back, and Malar subsequently marries Arivazhagan. George and his friends quietly attend her wedding reception to offer their silent goodbyes.
In 2014, the thirty-year-old George operates a successful café alongside his childhood friend, Jojo. He crosses paths with Celine, a twenty-two-year-old woman, and develops romantic feelings for her. He soon discovers that Celine is the same young girl who used to accompany Mary years prior, and the two quickly bond over their shared past. Despite their significant age difference, George decides to propose to Celine. However, her family has already engaged her to Roney Varghese, a volatile cocaine addict who mistreats her. When Roney's abusive behavior causes the engagement to be canceled, he continues to relentlessly harass Celine. One night, George, Shambu, Koya, and Jojo confront Roney and give him a sound thrashing.
Ultimately, George and Celine marry. At their wedding reception, Malar arrives as a guest alongside her husband, having been personally invited by Celine. As they prepare to depart the venue, a conversation between Malar and her husband reveals that she has secretly regained her memory of the past. However, recognizing George's current contentment, she intentionally chooses not to disclose this truth, preserving his marital happiness. George and Malar exchange a final, understanding glance, officially achieving closure.
Cast
Production
Development Following the success of the bilingual thriller Neram (2013), writer-director Alphonse Puthren planned for a Hindi remake for this project.Asha Prakash (27 May 2013). "Neram to be remade in Hindi". The Times of India. Retrieved 28 May 2013. But he decided to remake another film Shutter in Hindi, with Prithviraj Sukumaran being cast as the lead, despite reports stating that Anil Kapoor and Abhay Deol as the leads were surfaced. However, Alphonse eventually shelved the project and decided to work on a fresh script instead. He announced that the film will be titled as Premam, and as the title suggests, the film is said to be a romantic-drama. The project was bankrolled by director-producer Anwar Rasheed under his banner Anwar Rasheed Entertainment and Nivin Pauly was announced playing the lead role, which was his second project with Alphonse in the studio album Yuvvh and Neram. The scripting process began during the same month. Rajesh Murugeshan who has previously composed music for Alphonse's Neram was roped as the music composer.
Casting
In February 2014, Jude Anthany Joseph announced that he would play a cameo in the film, which will mark his acting debut. Though, the shooting of the film commenced without any leading lady for the film, the team announced that the film would feature three heroines playing the lead. Alphonse invited applications from Malayalam-speaking women between the ages of 16 and 25. Later they released an ad in September 2014 saying the film needed only two heroines and they must be aged between 15 and 22 and "both of them should be able to speak Malayalam and English fluently as well as have a very good smile". The same month, Vinay Forrt was announced playing a comic role in the film, and also joined the shoot during the filming.
Though the details of the female lead were not disclosed initially, it was later revealed that newcomers Anupama Parameswaran, Sai Pallavi and Madonna Sebastian were announced as the female leads. Madonna was initially a playback singer, trained under Carnatic and western music, had sung for composers Deepak Dev and Gopi Sundar. Alphonse initially approached Madonna at one of the television shows she hosted, whether he asked her to act in one of her films for which she agreed. Pallavi, a doctor-cum-dancer, was approached by Alphonse six years before, through clippings from a reality show which she had participated, showcased in Facebook. Alphonse initially gave her an offer to act in his film which she refused, and after six years, he phoned to Pallavi, in which she thought him as a stalker and wanted to lodge a police complaint on him. But later misunderstood after Alphonse forcibly introduced himself. In an interview, Alphonse revealed that Asin was initially considered for the character Malar, played by Pallavi, following a fan's request. The film introduced 17 new actors in the Malayalam film industry.
Filming Following the completion of pre-production, the principal photography began in July 2014. The team began filming the first schedule in Goa in August 2014, and returned to Kerala for filming major portions of the film. Major part of the film's shooting took place in locations in and around Aluva, with some scenes were filmed at Union Christian College, Fort Kochi, Chokkampatti Hills and Marthandavarma Bridge. The café which was run by George in the film was set at Pepper House restaurant in Fort Kochi. The entire filming was wrapped up in November 2014.
Music
The original soundtrack and background score were composed by Rajesh Murugesan, who had collaborated with Alphonse in the film Neram (2013). Shabareesh Varma, beside singing, wrote the lyrics for eight of the nine songs.Robin T Varghese (5 June 2015). "Shabareesh – The actor, writer and singer of 'Premam'". Malayala Manorama. Retrieved 9 June 2015.Deepa Soman (29 April 2015). The Times of India. Retrieved 9 June 2015. One song "Rockaankuthu" which had lyrics written by Pradeep Palarr was sung by Tamil film composer Anirudh Ravichander. The soundtrack album was released by the record label Muzik 247 on 14 February 2015. All the audio songs released prior to the film release went viral on the internet. In March 2015, video for the song "Aluva Puzha" sung by Vineeth Sreenivasan was released and became the chart topper. "Malare" was released on YouTube on 6 June. The song received 1 million hits within 14 hours of release and trended on all social networking platforms. Apple Music selected it as the "Best Malayalam album" of 2015.
Release Premam was originally scheduled for a release on the occasion of Christmas (25 December 2014), however, following the post-production delays, the film was postponed to 13 February 2015, in order to coincide with the Valentine's Day weekend. Anwar Rasheed later confirmed that the film will be released within March 2015, although the film was later pushed to April. In the end, the producers announced that the film will be released on 28 May 2015 in Kerala, and the following day in India, clashing with another Nivin Pauly-starrer film Ivide and Tamil film Massu Engira Masilamani. International Business Times called it one of the most awaited film of the year.