Barroz

On 21 April 2019, Mohanlal took to social media to announce his directorial debut—a 3D film adaptation of Jijo Punnoose's novel Barroz: Guardian of D'Gama's Treasure.[1] Originally, Mohanlal and T. K. Rajeev Kumar had planned to create a 3D stage play, seeking guidance from Punnoose, the director of India's first 3D film, My Dear Kuttichathan (1984). However, due to the high production costs involved, the project was put on hold.[2] During their discussion, Mohanlal proposed the idea of adapting Punnoose's novel into a film, with himself as the director. Punnoose agreed to the proposal. Mohanlal also mentioned that the film would be shot in Goa and include foreign actors.[3] Described as a "fantasy film for children",[4] the story revolves around a 17th-century fable rooted in a Portuguese-Afro-Indian myth along the Malabar Coast, recounting the tale of a hidden treasure belonging to the D'Gama family.[5] The story explores the maritime history of Portugal, Spain, Africa, and India,[6] while the mythical being is known locally as kappiri muthappan. According to Mohanlal, it took one-and-a-half years to finalize the screenplay. Initially, he encouraged Punnoose to direct the film, but Punnoose declined. Mohanlal also considered other directors before deciding to take up the role himself.[7] He mentioned that Punnoose granted him freedom to make changes to the story, as the original premise had a more serious tone that underwent revisions.[8]

Punnoose discovered the Portuguese-Afro-Indian myth in 1980 while exploring various indigenous fables for India's first 3D film. Eventually, he opted to adapt the kuttichathan myth instead. In 2003, he revisited the subject and crafted a story that he shared with friends.[9] Years later, responding to his colleagues' insistence, Punnoose decided to turn the story into a film in English and Hispanic languages, taking on the role of director. He revised the 2003 story and penned it as a novel in 2017 to claim copyright. It features two primary characters—Barroz, an elderly Afrikaner ghost, and Isabella, a teenage girl of Malayali-Portuguese descent. While Punnoose's screenplay deviated from the novel in terms of setting and narrative technique. Foreign actors were considered for various roles, including that of Barroz. However, the project underwent significant changes in the course of events.[10]

In a 2022 blog, Punnoose provided a detailed explanation of the film's development and its departure from his original work.[11] In mid-2018, Mohanlal and Kumar sought Punnoose's consultation for a 3D stage show. Kumar proposed making the film in Malayalam language, with Mohanlal portraying Barroz. In February 2019, Punnoose changed the character to a Malayali to accommodate Mohanlal, but opted out of directing. Mohanlal then took on the role of director, while Antony Perumbavoor joined as the producer. Punnoose revised the screenplay 22 times to his satisfaction and to the liking of Mohanlal and Antony, while keeping Isabella as the central character. Mohanlal contributed several story elements, which were incorporated into the film.[10]

Preparations for the film were finalized by early January 2020[10] and filming was set to begin in June.[12] However, their plans were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India, which affected the set work scheduled for February. The work resumed by the end of 2020. A team of approximately 160 personnel worked at Navodaya Studio at various departments. The extended time allowed for improvements in previsualization, voodoo doll animation, visual effects, and action sequences. Pre-production was completed in March 2021.[10] Production was officially announced on 24 March 2021, with a pooja ceremony held at Navodaya Studio.[13] Filming began in the same month but was interrupted after one week due to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Kerala. By the time the lockdown restrictions began to ease, Aashirvad Cinemas had shifted their focus to producing films for direct OTT streaming. As a result, there were discussions about shelving Barroz due to its perceived non-viability. However, in November 2021, Mohanlal took the initiative to revive the project, capitalizing on his four-month gap before starting other films.[10][14]

Considering the challenges posed by the pandemic, including the difficulty of bringing back foreign actors and shooting in distant locations, extensive discussions led to a decision to change the story, screenplay, and actors. In December 2021, Mohanlal and Kumar collaborated to rewrite the scenes, locations, and characters to ensure the film's feasible completion. Mohanlal reimagined his character in line with his successful commercial films to cater to his fans. In May 2022, Jijo expressed his determination to pursue his original plan of directing a film in English and Hispanic languages through his blog, as his original screenplay and production design had not been utilized. This decision ultimately led to Jijo leaving Barroz. He also requested to have his name removed from the screenplay credits.[10][14]

In July 2019, Mohanlal announced the casting of Spanish actors Paz Vega, Rafael Amargo, and Cesar Lorente Raton in the film through social media.[15][16] Amargo was cast as Vasco da Gama, while Vega was chosen to portray his wife.[17] Raton, who initially worked in the casting department, was invited to audition for a part and landed in dual roles.[18] Later in September, Mohanlal revealed that American child actress Shayla McCaffrey would play the lead role.[19] In March 2020, Pratap Pothen confirmed his signing for the role of the voodoo doll.[20] Speculations about Prithviraj Sukumaran's casting arose when he was spotted with the crew during the film's pre-production discussions in March.[21] His presence in the cast was confirmed during that same month.[22] Sara Vega, the sister of Paz Vega, replaced her in the role of Teresa de Gama.[23]

Due to the COVID-19 lockdown in India, the film faced delays, leading to the replacement of some major cast members when production resumed in December 2021. Prithviraj opted out of the film due to scheduling conflicts with Kaduva and Aadujeevitham.[24] Tuhin Menon was brought in as his replacement.[25] McCaffrey was replaced by Indo-British actress Maya[26] due to conflicts with her academic studies and noticeable physical changes.[27] In December 2021, Guru Somasundaram confirmed his casting in the film, who was called by Mohanlal after the release of his film Minnal Murali (2021).[28] He plays a cop[29] and was scheduled to join in February 2022.[30] Komal Sharma was cast in an undisclosed role. Sharma shared her experience of working on the film, highlighting Mohanlal's equal treatment of all cast members regardless of their status as leading stars, newcomers, or children.[31] Pranav Mohanlal was spotted filming in the set.

Principal photography began on 31 March 2021 at sets constructed in Fort Kochi.[32] Before filming began, K. U. Mohanan, who was initially appointed as the cinematographer, was replaced by Santosh Sivan.[33] Sivan described Barroz as "a visual film that doesn't have a conventional story. It's got magical realism, 3D and is VFX heavy".[34] Santhosh Raman oversaw the production design. Filming took place at sets in Navodaya Studio in April.[35] The film prominently features Goa, and the shooting schedule there was planned to start in early August.[5]

Filming, which initially involved 85 crew members, proceeded for a week in Kochi before being halted due to the second COVID-19 lockdown. In May, efforts were focused on caring for the 24 infected cast and crew members and arranging the return of foreign actors to their home countries, as airline operations had been suspended.[10] With Aashirvad Cinemas changing their plans, Barroz came close to cancellation, leading to the dismantling of the treasure cellar set at Navodaya Studio on Antony's instruction. However, in November 2021, Mohanlal revived the film. Due to logistical challenges like bringing back foreign actors and shooting on location, even in nearby places like Goa, the decision was made in December 2021 to change the story, screenplay, and cast. The revised plan involved shooting in and around Kochi, primarily using indoor sets at Navodaya Studio for major filming.[36]

Filming resumed on 26 December 2021, with recasting and reshoots taking place.[37] Portions featuring Prithviraj, shot in April 2021, were scrapped by Mohanlal. From February to April 2022, filming occurred in Kochi.[38] In April, Punnoose assisted in executing a rotating-set mechanism for a scene involving Barroz walking on the walls of the treasure cellar, which was his only involvement after he left the film.[14] It was followed by a schedule in Goa, which was completed in May,[39] marking the majority of the film's completion, with only two songs remaining.[34] In early July, a song featuring an animation sequence was filmed in Bangkok. The title song was filmed in Chennai by the end of that month.[40] The original plan was to film the title song in Portugal.[8] Filming wrapped up on 29 July 2022.[41] Kumar served as an associate director[8] and Mohanlal's daughter Vismaya Mohanlal worked as an assistant director.[42]

The post-production work of the film commenced in 2022 shortly after the conclusion of filming. It took place at Thailand and India, with sound mixing done in Los Angeles. In September 2022, Mohanlal revealed plans to complete post-production and submit the film for certification by the Central Board of Film Certification within the same year. He worked towards completing the film in time for a projected theatrical release within March 2023.[8]