| Kaapa | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Shaji Kailas |
| Written by | G. R. Indugopan |
| Based on | Shankhumukhi by G. R. Indugopan |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Jomon T. John |
| Edited by | Shameer Muhammed |
| Music by | |
Production companies |
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Release date |
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Running time | 134 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
| Box office | ₹17 crore[2] |
Kaapa is a 2022 IndianMalayalam-languageaction thriller film[3] directed byShaji Kailas and written byG. R. Indugopan based on his novelShankhumukhi. Produced by Fefka Writers Union, Theatre of Dreams andSaregama India Limited, it starsPrithviraj Sukumaran along withAsif Ali,Aparna Balamurali andAnna Ben.
The film was announced in August 2021 withVenu assigned as the director. However, he stepped down as director in May 2022 citing creative differences.[4] Shaji Kailas later replaced him.Manju Warrier was initially cast as the lead actress but opted out due to schedule conflicts. She was replaced by Aparna Balamurali.Principal photography took place from July to September that year inThiruvananthapuram. The music was composed byDawn Vincent and Jakes Bejoy, cinematography byJomon T. John and editing byShameer Muhammed.
Kaapa was released in theatres on 22 December 2022 and received mixed reviews from critics.
Anand, anIT professional recently moves toThiruvananthapuram fromBangalore with his pregnant wife Binu Thrivikraman. During a routine police check in their neighbourhood, Anand learns that his wife's name is being included in the "KAAPA" (Kerala Anti-Social Activities Prevention Act) list, a list that includes the names of all the local gangsters. Anand decides to clear Binu's name and sends her to his hometown to have a safe pregnancy.
Later, Anand meets Arumanayagam, a police constable to seek his help for removing Binu's name, and soon learns about her involvement in leading a gang and her rivalry with the city's leading gangster and upcoming politician Kotta Madhu, as Madhu was responsible for Binu's brother's death. Anand meets Kotta Madhu and manages to earn his trust in order to help Binu. Later, Anand learns that a reporter named Latheef has hired goons to finish Madhu and informs Prameela, who later informs Madhu. Madhu thrashes them and Latheef gets scared of getting caught by Madhu.
Anand travels to Binu's hometown and arranges their baby's naming ceremony. Latheef meets Anand and reveals about his rivalry with Madhu resulted in his cousin Nazeer getting exiled toUAE, where he tells Anand to form a truce between him and Madhu in order to live a peaceful life. Though relucant, Madhu agrees and arrives at the spot where the truce is held, but Madhu is killed in a bomb blast by a boy, whose life was severely damaged by Madhu as he bombed an assassin due to his orders and was sent tojuvenile prison.
Anand pays his last respect to Madhu and leaves the premises, where he feels guilty about being used by Latheef. After Madhu'sautopsy report, Prameela learns that Binu is wearing Madhu's ring; thus revealing that she was the mastermind behind Madhu's death and Latheef was her family-friend. Binu was also the faceless leader leading a gang and attempted to kill Madhu while Anand was busy to prove her innocence. Prameela calls Binu and swears that she will avenge Madhu's death, while Binu also promises to protect her family without Anand's knowledge.
On 17 August 2021,Prithviraj Sukumaran announced thatMammootty andMohanlal would be launching a project on 18 August, the next day. That day, 18 August, the motion poster was shared by them and the title was revealed to beKaapa. The film was initiated by Fefka Writers Union. The titleKaapa is the short form of an act calledKerala Anti-social Activities (Prevention) Act.Venu was the director.[5] But in May 2022, Venu opted out of the film as director due to creative differences between him and Fefka Writers Union. He was then replaced byShaji Kailas.[6] CinematographerSanu Varghese, editorMahesh Narayanan and musicianJustin Varghese were the initial technical crew of the film.[5] They were later replaced byJomon T. John,Shameer Muhammed and musiciansDawn Vincent andJakes Bejoy respectively. The film was scripted byG. R. Indugopan based on his novelShankhumukhi.[7]
The film was initially announced with the cast of Prithviraj Sukumaran,Asif Ali,Manju Warrier andAnna Ben. However, Manju Warrier left the film as she was busy with her schedules on shooting forAjith Kumar'sThunivu (2023).[8]Aparna Balamurali came as the replacement. ActorsDileesh Pothan,Jagadish Kumar andNandhu were later revealed to be part of the cast.[9]
Filming was to begin on 20 May 2022 but was postponed due to Venu opting out of the film.[6]Principal photography began on 15 July 2022 in VJT Hall,Palayam, Thiruvananthapuram.[8] On 16 July, director Shaji Kailas sought permission from Chief MinisterPinarayi Vijayan for a day's shooting in the area around theKerala Government Secretariat as theGovernment of Kerala had enforced a ban there for shooting.[10] Sukumaran gave a 60 days date for the filming ofKaapa. An action scene with Sukumaran was shot on 26 July.[11] Filming came to a conclusion on 16 September 2022.[12]
| Kaapa | ||||
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| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 2022 (2022) | |||
| Recorded | 2022 (2022) | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | Film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 6:44 | |||
| Language | Malayalam | |||
| Label | Saregama India Limited | |||
| Producer | Jakes Bejoy | |||
| Singles from Kaapa | ||||
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| Dawn Vincent chronology | ||||
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| Jakes Bejoy chronology | ||||
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Dawn Vincent andJakes Bejoy composed the film's music. All recordings were done atKochi. The first single titled "Yamam Veendum Vinnile" was released on 16 December 2022[13] while the second single, "Thiru Thiru Thiruvananthapurathu", was released on 19 December 2022.[14]
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Yamam Veendum Vinnile" | Vinayak Sasikumar | Dawn Vincent | Kapil Kapilan | 3:00 |
| 2. | "Thiru Thiru Thiruvananthapurathu" | Santhosh Varma | Jakes Bejoy | Subhash Babu B, Anugrah Digosh, Akhil J. Chand, Jakes Bejoy | 3:44 |
| Total length: | 6:44 | ||||
Kaapa was released theatrically on 22 December 2022 duringChristmas.[15]
Kaapa had its post-theatrical streaming onNetflix starting from 19 January 2023.[16]
Gopika I. S. ofThe Times of India gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "More or less, Shaji Kailas has succeeded in delivering a satisfying gangster movie."[17] Latha Srinivasan ofIndia Today gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote that "Kaapa is one of the better films from Prithviraj this year, among the six releases he had. Those going to watchKaapa for Shaji Kailas and Prithviraj must go with an open mind for a new experience."[18]
Shubham Kulkarni ofKoimoi gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "Kaapa is a very interesting and fresh landscape but falls prey to a predictable narrative."[19] Sanjith Sridharan ofOTTplay gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "Shaji Kailas hits a meter from the first scene of the film and maintains this till the end, which is a tough aspect to do and this makes the movie watchable."[20]
Behindwoods gave 2.75 out of 5 stars and wrote "Kaapa is a dark gangster drama with convincing performances and a different take on such stories."[21] Manoj Kumar R. ofThe Indian Express gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote "Prithviraj's act as Madhu is hard to buy as he comes across as an indecisive and unwise criminal, despite being the head of a crime syndicate."[22]
Sowmya Rajendran ofThe News Minute gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote "Shaji Kailas's Prithviraj starrer doesn't work as a mass-action film because it doesn't have enough originality."[23]Anna M. M. Vetticad ofFirstpost gave 1.75 out of 5 stars and wrote "Prithviraj Sukumaran and Shaji Kailas serve up a clichéd, bloody gangster drama in which women are not written as fully fleshed out characters but as mere plot devices."[24]
S. R. Praveen ofThe Hindu wrote "One sees glimmers of what the movie could have been in some of the well-conceived background stories, but director Shaji Kailas ends up giving it a predictable treatment."[25] Nirmal Jovial ofThe Week wrote "When compared with gangster films of the 2010s, Shaji Kailas's Kaapa is more of a safe-formula film. It ticks almost all boxes—slow-mos, stylised action, ultra-close-ups, punch dialogues."[26]