Malayalam thriller movie Virus, which is based on the Nipah outbreak in Kerala a year ago, comes at a time when the virus has once again infected a man in Kochi. With a case of Nipah virus confirmed in Kerala, there was some uncertainty about the release of Aashiq Abu’s film this week. But the film’s team confirmed a few days ago that it will release on June 7, as originally planned, since the movie can help spread awareness and reduce panic around Nipah.
Here are some facts about the movie and what makes it a relevant watch at this point.
1. The film was announced last year, projected as a piece of cinema that will deal with the real life stories behind the Nipah outbreak in Kerala, and the heroes who prevented it from spreading further.
2. The trailer of the film created a lot of buzz when it released in April, grabbing over a million views on YouTube within 24 hours. It went viral across social media platforms and was trending #1 on YouTube at one point.
3. The movie casts a number of leading Malayalam stars, including Kunchacko Boban, Tovino Thomas, Indrajith Sukumaran, Asif Ali, Soubin Shahir, Poornima Indrajith, Sreenath Bhasi, Rima Kallingal, Remya Nambeesan, Joju George, Dileesh Pothan, Senthil Krishna, Rahman, Revathy Asha Kelunni, Parvathy Thiruvothu, Indrans and Madonna Sebastian.
4. Rima Kallingal, who has co-produced the film with director Aashiq Abu, plays the real life nurse Lini, who died of the virus, days after she looked after the first of the patients who were infected. Veteran actor Revathy plays Health Minister KK Shailaja and Tovino Thomas plays Kozhikode Collector UV Jose.
5. A few days back, a 23-year-old student was diagnosed with the potentially deadly Nipah virus in Kerala. There was a lot of discussion on social media on whether the movie should release at this point. Aashiq and Rima waited to take the final call, but believing firmly that the film can actually help bring down the panic, they are going ahead with the release.
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Source: News18