Dulquer Salmaan: King Of Kotha Is A Very Story-Driven, Gangster Drama

Amplifying their infectious charm, Malayalam stars Dulquer Salmaan, Aishwarya Lekshmi and Shabeer Kallarakkal launched the trailer of their upcoming pan-Indian release King Of Kotha, at a private event in Mumbai. The Free Press Journal was also present at the do.

Thanking the media for their presence and grace, a grateful Dulquer or DQ, as hailed by fans, says, “I’ve always been welcomed with a lot of love and acceptance by the media here in Mumbai. Everytime I interact with them, I feel a sense of warmth. They’re always well-researched and aware of my work and the work done by my colleagues. So, I really thank them for taking the time out to be with us here, today. Our Malayalam industry is a very small industry and it’s the first time we are promoting a film built on a huge scale, across the country. It’s a very dear film to me. I do about four films in a year, nearly one in each language. But I’ve spent the past year making this film. It’s a very story driven, gangster drama.”

Aishwarya, who was last spotted in the city during the promotions of Ponniyin Selvan 2, shares her excitement about doing a Malayalam film again. She explains, “I’m very glad that I am here promoting King Of Kotha because the last time I was here, I was promoting a Tamil film. This is even more special because I started as an actor in Malayalam cinema. So, to represent a Malayalam film in Mumbai is such a heartwarming thing for me.”

Shabeer, who is referred to as ‘Dancing Rose’ from his Tamil film Sarpatta Parambarai, gushes, “Thank you for the love. It’s my first time in Mumbai. As far as my character is concerned, I can’t say much but Kannan (the part he plays) shares a very different and unique bond with Raju (played by Dulquer).”

When asked about the pressure of delivering a standalone pan-Indian wonder from Malayalam cinema, Dulquer concludes, “After Covid-19 and the advent of OTT, if you want to draw people to theatres, you have to offer a theatrical experience. There has to be some kind of a spectacle, people need that value for money, they need that entertainment on a larger scale. The Malayalam industry has always been very budget focused, we are a bit wary of going bigger but in the lockdown when people watched our cinema, it made us familiar across the country. Now, we have a lot more courage to push ourselves.”

Directed by Abhilash Joshiy, the film is slated to release in cinemas on August 24.