Apothecary (film)

Apothecary is a 2014 Indian Malayalam-language medical thriller film directed by Madhav Ramadasan,[1][2][3] and produced by George Mathew and Baby Mathew under the banner of Arambankudiyil Cinemas. The film stars Suresh Gopi, Jayasurya, Asif Ali, Abhirami (after a hiatus of 10 years), Meera Nandan and Indrans.

Apothecary
Theatrical poster
Directed byMadhav Ramadasan
Screenplay byHemanth Kumar
Madhav Ramadasan
Produced byDr George Mathew
Dr Baby Mathew
StarringSuresh Gopi
Jayasurya
Asif Ali
Abhirami
Indrans
Meera Nandan
CinematographyHari Nair
Edited byK. Srinivas
Music bySheikh Ellahi
Production
company
Arambankudiyil Cinemas
Distributed byTime Ads Release
Release date
  • 7 August 2014 (2014-08-07)
Running time
138 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam

The film received Special Jury Mention in 45th Kerala State Film Awards for Indrans and producer Dr. George Mathew.[4]

Plot

Dr. Vijay Nambiar is a skilled and renowned neurosurgeon. He lives with his wife, Dr. Nalini and their two children. Both the doctors work at Apothecary Hospital. The film begins with Nambiar's being admitted to the hospital because of a motor vehicle accident. He has suffered a brain injury, and his chance of survival seems slim. Subin Joseph, a patient of Nambiar's, comes to visit him.

Subin recounts his experience at the hospital under Nambiar's care. The hospital is revealed to be run greedily, with patients being subjected to expensive and unnecessary tests and medicines. Nambiar is a doctor with a good reputation, but is forced by the management to run clinical trials for new drugs. He realizes that such trials are necessary for progress, but the lack of ethical protocol and the side effects of such drugs turn the patients' lives into a living hell.

This dilemma consumes him, causing him to have hallucinations of his clinical trial patients. His soul is locked in a surreal struggle between the good and the bad actions of his work. His accident resulted from such an episode, wherein he fell to the road in a fit of panic. Finally, he is redeemed with the realization that his work has saved thousands, compared to the few lives destroyed by his actions. Should he live, he would go on to save even more lives.

Nambiar returns to life a changed man. He confronts the hospital board about their actions. He reminds them of the definition of 'Apothecary' which was used years back, to refer to doctors who treated village folk with their medicines. Stating that the hospital simply retains that name, he leaves the hospital to set up a charitable institution. Nalini and several of the hospital staff and patients accompany him on his new journey.

Cast
  • Suresh Gopi as Dr. Vijay Nambiar
  • Jayasurya as Subin Joseph
  • Asif Ali as Prathapan
  • Arun as Dr. Raheem
  • Abhirami as Dr.Nalini Nambiar, wife of Dr. Vijay
  • Meera Nandan as Daisy, lover of Subin
  • Raghavan Nair as Dr. Shankar Vasudev
  • Indrans as Joseph, father of Subin
  • Kavitha Nair as Sabira Usman
  • Thampy Antony as Dr. Ali Ahamed
  • Neeraj Madhav as Shinoy Joseph, brother of Subin
  • Lishoy as Dr. Peethambaran
  • Malavika as Meenu
  • Jayaraj Warrier as Varkkichan
  • Seema G. Nair as Clara, mother of Subin
  • Jayan Cherthala as Sajan Xavier
  • Mohanakrishnan as Hameed
  • Dr. George Mathew as Dr. Mathew Koshi
  • Shivakumar as Dr. MK Nambiar, father of Dr. Vijay
  • Preman as Meenu's father
  • Sajad Brite as Usman, husband of Sabira
  • Neeraja as Dr. Nimisha
  • Saniya Iyappan
  • Bindu Krishna as Dr. Maria

Reception

Paresh C Palicha of Rediff movies praised Suresh Gopi's performance and noted that the film could have been better.[5] Nicy, V.P. of International Business Times, wrote that Apothecary is a must watch. She also praised performance of Jayasurya.[6]

Awards and honours
Year Award Award Category Artist Result Reference
2014National Film AwardsBest ActorJayasuryaNominated[7][8]
20142014 Kerala State Film AwardsSpecial Jury MentionDr George Mathew (Producer)Won[9]
20142014 Kerala State Film AwardsKerala State Film Award – Special MentionIndrans (Acting)Won[10]

References
  1. "Suresh Gopi, Jayasurya, Asif Ali In Apothecary - Oneindia Entertainment". entertainment.oneindia.in. 6 February 2014. Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  2. "'Apothecary' Movie First Look Poster - Malayalam Movie News". indiaglitz.com. Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  3. "Meera-Jayasurya to play a couple in Apothecary - The Times of India". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 5 April 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  4. Onmanorama Staff (10 August 2015). "State Awards: Nazriya, Nivin, Sudev bag top honours". Malayala Manorama. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  5. C Palicha, Paresh. "Review: Apothecary could have been better". Rediff.com. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  6. V.P, Nicy (7 August 2014). "'Apothecary' Movie Review Round up: Must Watch Film Starring Suresh Gopi, Jayasurya and Asif Ali". International Business Times. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  7. "Jayasurya in race for National Award - Times of India". The Times of India.
  8. "Home".
  9. "State Awards: Nazriya, Nivin, Sudev bag top honours" Archived 13 August 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Malayala Manorama. 10 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  10. "State Awards: Nazriya, Nivin, Sudev bag top honours" Archived 13 August 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Malayala Manorama. 10 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
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