Director Roby and scriptwriter Rony are the sons of CT Rajan who produced Mammootty-starrer 'Mahayanam' in 1989.
Roby Varghese Raj and Rony David Raj with CT Rajan. (VK Sreeraman/ Facebook)
Mammootty’s Kannur Squad has entered the ₹30-crore club during its extended weekend, thanks to the public holiday on Monday, 2 October, marking Gandhi Jayanthi.
The movie did great business on Monday as special shows were screened from midnight in many theatres across Kerala. It is doing exceptionally well in the GCC.
Though it was released with fewer promotions and meagre hype, word-of-mouth publicity is helping the Mammootty-starrer draw crowds to cinema halls.
The movie is based on the real Kannur Squad, a police team formed by the Kannur Superintendent of Police, to nab the criminals involved in various crimes in the State.
The police squad travelled across the country as the perpetrators hailed from various parts of India.
Kannur Squad has an interesting story behind it. The makers of the film — Roby Varghese Raj and Rony David Raj are brothers.
While Roby is the director, Rony is the scriptwriter of Kannur Squad. Roby also played the role of Jayan in the flick.
They are sons of CT Rajan, an old-time producer who bankrolled Mammootty’s Mahayanam in 1989 — a box office dud.
Directed by Joshiy, the film received critical acclaim. However, Rajan faced financial problems after Mahayanam didn’t meet the expectations and turned out to be a failure.
The producer owned a theatre in Kunnamkulam in Thrissur district. However, he was forced to shift to his native place in the neighbouring Palakkad district due to financial instability.
After the release of Kannur Squad, Anju Mary Paul, wife of Roby Varghese Raj, shared a photo on Instagram where she briefed the journey of their family.
She wrote: “Happy to put this on my feed…with lots of love and mixed emotions. Pappa produced the 1989 Mammootty starrer film ‘Mahayanam’. Even though film was critically acclaimed, it gave him huge financial loss and eventually had to give up producing. But his love for films was finely carried on to next generation…”
She further wrote: “34 years later his elder son @ronydavidraj wrote the script and younger one @robyraj_ Directed it with the same megastar Mammootty!! Life comes in full circle❤”
View this post on Instagram
In his Facebook post, actor VK Sreeraman recalled the woes faced by Rajan and his family after Mahayanam‘s debacle.
Sreeraman wrote that CT Rajan, also known as Thavoos Rajan, had to shift to Kunnamkulam due to financial issues. However, the Rajan-owned Thavoos Theatre in Kunnamkulam is still operational.
The actor felt that “the journey started by Rajan has now been accomplished by his sons” as Kannur Squad has been declared a hit.
“People in Kunnamkulam say, ‘Rajan’s sons have made Kannur Squad’. Rajan’s passion and energy for cinema seem to have been transferred to his sons now,” he added.
Sreeraman also praised Roby, Rony, and Mammootty for their efforts in making Kannur Squad.
May 15, 2024
May 13, 2024
May 12, 2024
May 11, 2024
May 11, 2024
May 10, 2024
