"Apothecary" directed by Madhav Ramadasan is all set to release on 7 August. The film, touted as a medical suspense thriller stars Suresh Gopi, Jayasurya, Asif Ali, Meera Nandan and Indrans in pivotal roles.
"The story of 'Apothecary' revolves around the life of a doctor who follows a particular medical system in a hospital. His attitudes and perspectives about life are changed after coming across a few patients. Another important aspect of the film is its narrative style. I am not boasting it with a big story line, instead it is a simple story with a different narrative style," says Madhav Ramadasan, the director of the film to International Business Times, Indian Edition.
Another major highlight of the film is said to be the star cast and their performances.
"Each character of 'Apothecary' is composed in such a way that everybody has equal importance. Suresh Gopi plays the character of Dr Vijay Nambiar, Jayasurya plays the role of a patient named Subi Joseph, Asif Ali will be seen as Prathapan, Abhirami as Dr Nalini Nambiar who is Dr Vijay's wife, Meera Nandan as Daisy, the love interest of Subi and Indrans plays as Subi's father Joseph. The film has some excellent moments of their performance and there is a surprise element of Jayasurya's character, which cannot be revealed now," added the director.
"This is my second film with Suresh Gopi and I can tell you that it is going to be a different performance from him in this phase of his career. His involvement to feel and understand the character is something exceptional. His character as Dr Vijay expresses very subtle emotions and he has done it with perfection."
"Another person who surprised me with his commitment is Jayasurya. The kind of physical change he went through for his character Subi is something amazing. He almost starved for weeks to get the look right. While the shooting was going on, he had headache and was going through a lot of physical strain. He even got skin boils because of the extreme diet he was following. But, he was all set as Subi, the moment he was in front of the camera. Hats off to his commitment," the director added.
"Apothecary" is also touted as the comeback film of actress Abhirami after 10 years.
"It was a pleasure working with her. What surprised me is that she did not have any qualms of coming in front of the camera after such a long gap. It looked like she shifted her shooting location after back to back projects. One thing that is very noticeable about her is the professionalism she carry out in her work," said the director.
The director believes his film is not just about medical profession. He believes that the instances shown in the film will be something, which each one of us would have experienced at least once in our life.
"I want people to watch "Apothecary" because it is a film about any common man. The instances shown in the film are very much what we experience in our daily life. Each one of us will come across a moment where we have to decide what is right and wrong. This film is about the decisions you make in your life," Madhav said.
The technical aspect of the film is also touted to be a fresh experience. The film will give a new perspectives to visual and ambience sound. The cinematography is handled by Hari Nair and editing is done by K. Srinivas.
The music of "Apothecary" is done by Shelik Ellahi and the film has a song sung by Sudeep Palanad and Indulekha Warrier, daughter of actor Jayaraj Warrier. The lyrics are penned by Vayalar Sharath Chandra Varma.
The Suresh Gopi starrer is produced by Dr Baby Mathew and Dr George Mathew under the banner of Arambankudiyil Cinemas.
