Bollywood actors turned down Mirage; Ram stalled at producer’s end: Jeethu Joseph | WATCH

Director Jeethu Joseph is gearing up for the release of his upcoming film Mirage, starring Asif Ali and Aparna Balamurali in lead roles.

Speaking to Mathrubhumi News, Drishyam director opened up about the film and what to expect from the film, which is set to hit theatres on Friday.

“The film revolves around a real-life issue faced by Aparna Balamurali. During her journey, the character played by Asif Ali, an investigative journalist, steps in to support her and confront the challenges. As the title Mirage suggests, when the characters dig deeper into the matter, they discover that the issue is far more complex than it first appeared,” he explained.

He added that the film unfolds as a gradual journey from one incident to another, told through a female-centric narrative. Jithu Joseph further revealed that the film was originally planned for Bollywood but faced setbacks because of its female-centric storyline.

“The story of Mirage came to me five years ago and was originally written for Bollywood. But the project didn’t take off as the lead actors turned it down because of its female-centric narrative. That said, the male lead also has an equally significant role in the film. When shelving the film seemed inevitable, we decided to bring it to Malayalam,” he explained.

What is the update of Mohanlal’s Ram?

Speaking about Ram, Jeethu Joseph’s long-delayed project with Mohanlal, he said, “If I make any announcement on social media, people immediately ask me what happened to Ram. The film is facing some issues on the producer’s side. Discussions are ongoing, and they are interested in restarting the project. Ram requires about 45 to 50 days of shooting, with the first and second schedules needing completion. Right now, they are trying to finish the first schedule. A lot of money has already been spent, and portions were shot in many countries. We all want to see the final output,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Jeethu Joseph added that Drishyam 3 shooting will commence in three weeks, and the script has already been handed over to the Hindi team for its remake.