Lens (film)

Last updated

Lens
Lens (film) poster.jpg
Poster in Tamil
Directed by Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan
Written byJayaprakash Radhakrishnan
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography S. R. Kathir
Edited by
  • Gaugin
  • G. B. Venkatesh
  • Jainul Abdeen
Music by G. V. Prakash Kumar
Production
companies
  • Glowing Tungsten
  • Mini Studio
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 17 June 2016 (2016-06-17)(Malayalam)
  • 12 May 2017 (2017-05-12)(Tamil)
Running time
109 minutes
CountryIndia
Languages
  • Malayalam
  • Tamil

Lens is 2016 Indian drama thriller film written and directed by Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan. The film was made simultaneously in Malayalam and Tamil languages. [1] Dealing with the subject of voyeurism, it features Anandsami and Jayaprakash in the lead roles.

Contents

Lens has been screened in several film festivals including CLAM Festival Internacional Cinema Solidari  [ ca ], South Asian International Film Festival, Jagran Film Festival, Chennai International Film Festival, Pune International Film Festival, Bengaluru International Film Festival, Lonavala International Film Festival, and Bioscope International Film Festival. The Malayalam version was distributed by LJ Films and the Tamil version was distributed by producer Vetrimaaran under his company Grassroot Film Company.

The film was later released on Netflix. [2]

Plot

Aravind's growing estrangement with his wife, owing to his indulgence in virtual sexual relationships, paves way for his encounter with a stranger. This random experience takes a turn for the worst when the stranger requests Aravind to witness his suicide on a Skype call. [3]

Cast

Reception

The film was received positively with the audience liking the fact that it addressed concerns about privacy and adult content on the web. Malayalam director Vineeth Sreenivasan said "There are so many things I wanted to say about this film. In fact, if the movie was released already, I would have written in detail. For now, I' ll just say this... this film needs to be seen by today's internet-savvy generation. It is relevant, gritty, honest, and it haunts." [4] Baradwaj Rangan wrote, "Lens is a refreshingly grown-up film...not only does it deal with a grown-up subject, it also refuses to infantilise the audience by treating its points as messages. Lens understands that a movie isn’t a pharmacological product: pop one and cure a social ill. It lays out problems without the comfort of easy solutions." [5]

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malayalam cinema</span> Indian Malayalam-language film industry

Malayalam cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Malayalam language, which is widely spoken in the state of Kerala, India. In 1982, Elippathayam won the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival, and Most Original Imaginative Film of 1982 by the British Film Institute. The film Marana Simhasanam has won the prestigious Caméra d'Or at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sreenivasan</span> Indian film actor, screenwriter, and director (born 1956)

Sreenivasan is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, dubbing artist and producer who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. Sreenivasan has starred in over 225 films. Sreenivasan wrote the screenplays of films such as Odaruthammava Aalariyam (1984), Sanmanassullavarkku Samadhanam (1986), Gandhinagar 2nd Street (1986), Nadodikkattu (1987), Pattanapravesham (1988), Varavelpu (1989), Thalayana Manthram (1990), Sandesam (1991), Midhunam (1993), Mazhayethum Munpe (1995), Azhakiya Ravanan (1996), Oru Maravathoor Kanavu (1998), Udayananu Tharam (2005), Katha Parayumpol (2007), and Njan Prakashan (2018) among which the latter is one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time. He has won two Kerala State Film Awards for Best Screenplay, for Sandesam and Mazhayethum Munpe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vineeth Sreenivasan</span> Indian actor, producer, director, writer, and musician

Vineeth Sreenivasan is an Indian playback singer, actor, film director, screenwriter, producer, lyricist, creative director and dubbing artist. He predominantly works in the Malayalam cinema. He is the elder son of actor and screenwriter Sreenivasan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revathi</span> Indian actress

Asha Kelunni Nair, better known by her stage name Revathi, is an Indian actress and director, known for her works predominantly in Tamil and Malayalam cinema - in addition to Telugu, Hindi and Kannada films. She has won several accolades, including three National Film Awards, and six Filmfare Awards South. She has also won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in Bhoothakaalam (2022).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vineeth</span> Indian actor

Vineeth Radhakrishnan is an Indian actor, Bharatanatyam dancer, voice artist and choreographer who primarily works in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu language films. He has also appeared in a few Hindi and Kannada films. He has won several awards including 2 Kerala State Film Awards, Kalaimamani Honour from Government of Tamil Nadu and Filmfare Award South Nomination.

<i>Chennai 600028</i> 2007 Indian film

Chennai 600028 is a 2007 Indian Tamil-language sports comedy film written and directed by Venkat Prabhu in his directorial debut. It stars Jai, Shiva, Premji, Aravind Akash, Nithin Sathya and newcomers Ajay Raj, Vijay Vasanth, Prasanna, Inigo Prabakaran, Karthik and Arun in the lead along with Vijayalakshmi Feroz and Kristine Zedek, making their acting debut as well. The film was produced by S. P. B. Charan along with J. K. Saravana, a Singapore-based award-winning producer. The film's score and soundtrack were composed by Premji Amaran and Yuvan Shankar Raja respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vetrimaaran</span> Indian film director, film producer and screenwriter

Vetrimaaran is an Indian film director, film producer and screenwriter who primarily works in Tamil cinema. As of 2021, he has won five National Film Awards, eight Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards and two Filmfare South Awards.

<i>House Full</i> (1999 film) 1999 Indian film

House Full is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language thriller film written and directed by R. Parthiban. The film stars himself along with Vikram, Roja and Suvalakshmi. The film was produced by Parthiban's children under Bioscope Film Framers. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by Ilaiyaraaja. The film was released on 15 January 1999, and won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil at 46th National Film Awards.

<i>Traffic</i> (2011 film) 2011 Indian film by Rajesh Pillai

Traffic is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language road action thriller film written by brothers Bobby and Sanjay and directed by Rajesh Pillai. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of Sreenivasan, Kunchacko Boban, Asif Ali, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Rahman, Anoop Menon, Sandhya, Roma, Remya Nambeesan, Namitha Pramod, Lena, Jose Prakash and Krishna. The film has its narrative in a hyperlink format. The film opened on 7 January 2011, to a positive reception. It is widely regarded as one of the defining movies of the Malayalam New Wave. A multi-narrative thriller that intertwines multiple stories around one particular incident, Traffic is inspired from an actual event that happened in Chennai. Owing to its critical and commercial success, Traffic was remade into Tamil as Chennaiyil Oru Naal, in Kannada as Crazy Star and is also remade in Hindi, with the same name. This was also the last film of the veteran actor Jose Prakash. The film has a cult status.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nivin Pauly</span> Indian actor, producer (born 1984)

Nivin Pauly is an Indian actor and producer who works predominantly in Malayalam films. He is the recipient of several awards including two Kerala State Film Awards, three Filmfare South awards, two Kerala Film Critics Association Awards and Six SIIMA Awards. He auditioned for and was cast in one of the main roles in Vineeth Sreenivasan's directorial debut Malarvaadi Arts Club in 2009 and got his breakthrough in the romantic film Thattathin Marayathu (2012).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aju Varghese</span> Indian film actor and producer

Aju Kurian Varghese better known as Aju Varghese is an Indian actor and producer who appears in Malayalam cinema. He made his debut in 2010 in Malarvadi Arts Club, directed by his college classmate Vineeth Sreenivasan. In a career spanning over a decade, he has acted in more than 130 Malayalam films. He owns a production company named Funtastic Films along with actor Dhyan Sreenivasan and producer Visakh Subramaniam.

C. V. Kumar is an Indian Tamil film producer, director and distributor who heads the production studio Thirukumaran Entertainment. Known for producing innovative and critically acclaimed films, Kumar has also primarily introduced new talent into the film industry in terms of actors and technicians. His first three films, Attakathi, Pizza and Soodhu Kavvum won critical acclaim as well as bringing in revenue of over 50 crore (US$6.3 million). After producing successful films, Kumar began work on his first directorial venture in 2014.

<i>Moodar Koodam</i> 2013 Indian film

Moodar Koodam is a 2013 Tamil language black comedy film written, produced and directed by Naveen. The film stars the director himself alongside Sendrayan, Kuberan, and Rajaji in lead roles. Oviya, Anupama Kumar, Jayaprakash, Five Star Krishna, and Uday Mahesh play other pivotal roles. The film was produced by director Naveen himself under the "White Shadows Productions" banner with Pandiraj releasing the movie through his Pasanga Productions. The music is by Natarajan Sankaran. This film received positive reviews.

<i>Thira</i> (film) 2013 Indian film

Thira (transl.Wave) is a 2013 Indian Malayalam-language mystery-thriller drama film directed by Vineeth Sreenivasan and scripted by his cousin Rakesh Mantodi. It stars Shobana alongside debutant Dhyan Sreenivasan in the lead roles. The film was produced by Manoj Menon under the banner ReelsMagic and distributed by LJ Films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wunderbar Films</span> Film Production Company

Wunderbar Films is an Indian film production and distribution company established by Actor Dhanush and his wife Aishwarya on 20 May 2010. Based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it mainly produces and distributes Tamil films, and occasionally Malayalam and Hindi films. The headquarters of the company is located in Nungambakkam, Chennai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kalyani Priyadarshan</span> Indian actress (born 1993)

Kalyani Priyadarshan is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films. Kalyani is a recipient of one Filmfare Award South and three South Indian International Movie Awards.

<i>The Mosquito Philosophy</i> 2019 Indian film

The Mosquito Philosophy is a 2019 Indian Tamil-language family drama film written and directed by Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan. The film stars Suresh Kumar, Sindhu Jayaprakash, Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan, and Pradeep Damodharan. The film was released on OTT platform Mubi

<i>Helen</i> (2019 film) 2019 film by Mathukkutty Xavier

Helen is a 2019 Indian Malayalam-language survival thriller film directed by Mathukutty Xavier and produced by Vineeth Sreenivasan under the companies Habit of Life and Big Bang Entertainments. The film stars Anna Ben in the title role, while Lal, Noble Babu Thomas, Aju Varghese, Rony David and Binu Pappu appears in supporting roles. It was written by Alfred Kurian Joseph, Noble Babu Thomas and Mathukutty Xavier. Its soundtrack was composed by Shaan Rahman.

<i>Hridayam</i> 2022 film by Vineeth Sreenivasan

Hridayam (transl. Heart) is a 2022 Indian Malayalam-language coming-of-age romantic drama film written and directed by Vineeth Sreenivasan. It was produced by Visakh Subramaniam through Merryland Cinemas and co-produced by Noble Babu Thomas through Big Bang Entertainments. The film stars Pranav Mohanlal, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Darshana Rajendran. The film's songs and background score was composed by Hesham Abdul Wahab.

Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan is an Indian film director and actor, who has worked on Tamil and Malayalam language films. He rose to fame through the thriller drama Lens (2016), and has gone on to make feature films including the family dramas The Mosquito Philosophy (2019) and Thalaikoothal (2023).

References

  1. "'Lens' is a hostage drama set in the digital world". The Times of India . 1 October 2015. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  2. "LENS (Netflix -Overview)". netflix.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  3. "Now, a Tamil kidnap drama set in a digital world, Lens". Hindustan Times . 3 October 2015. Archived from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  4. "'Lens' movie celebrity review: Vineeth Sreenivasan is all praises for low-budget film". Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  5. Rangan, Baradwaj (11 May 2017). "Lens Movie Review". Film Companion . Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  6. "LIFFI: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tannishtha Chatterjee grabs Best Actors awards". The Indian Express . 5 September 2016. Archived from the original on 6 September 2016. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  7. "AWARD WINNING MOVIES". Bioscope Global Film Festival. Archived from the original on 17 September 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2016.