Intro
Premalu, starring Naslen and Mamitha Baiju, is a Malayalam rom-com film directed by Girish A.D. The film is about Sachin Santhosh, a graduate from Kerala, who aims on moving to the United Kingdom, but instead goes to Hyderabad and takes a GATE course, where he meets and falls in love with Reenu Roy, an employee of an IT company.
The film was shot in Kochi, Hyderabad, and Polachira, and wrapped by mid-September 2023. The film has music composed by Vishnu Vijay, cinematography handled by Ajmal Sabu, and editing by Akash Joseph Varghese.
Premalu was released worldwide on 9 February 2024 in theatres rewarding with praise for its performances, script, soundtrack, direction, and especially humor. It ranks as the fifth highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time and the third highest-grossing Malayalam film of 2024.
Cast
Naslen as Sachin Santhosh
Mamitha Baiju as Reenu Roy
Sangeeth Prathap as Amal Davis
Akhila Bhargavan as Karthika
Shyam Mohan as Aadhi
Mathew Thomas as Thomas, Amal’s cousin (special appearance)
Meenakshi Raveendran as Niharika a.k.a. “Wanderlust”
And other supporting cast actors
Storyline
After confessing his love on the last day of college to his classmate Anjali, Sachin gets rejected and plans to move to the UK for higher studies, leaving all his failures behind, but his visa application gets rejected due to insufficient funds, leaving him with one more chance to re-apply after six months. In this free time, he starts helping his father with deliveries from his bakery.
During one of these deliveries, he reconnects with Amal Davis, a buddy from his teenage years. Amal advises him to enroll in a GATE course in Hyderabad. At the same time, he mulls over his options as a safety precaution in case the application is denied again and as a means of holding him until he can reapply for his visa. He moves to Hyderabad with Amal after agreeing.
Reenu Roy, a young woman in her early twenties, recently started working as a senior developer at Ospyn, an IT company in Hyderabad. The team is led by an arrogant guy named Aadhi. Although he presents himself as Reenu’s “bestie” and well-wisher, Aadhi has a crush on her. Sachin and Amal meet Reenu and her team at a wedding, where Sachin falls for Reenu and they all strike a friendship during the wedding.
Reenu finds Sachin’s pranks entertaining and friendly, and she feels extremely comfortable around him. Sachin chooses to remain in Hyderabad despite having made up his choice to leave GATE and go to Chennai with his college friends. To stay in Hyderabad, he takes a job at a fast-food restaurant and becomes curious about Reenu. At a pub, Amal tries to drop hints about Sachin’s crush on Karthika, but she shoots him down, telling him that Reenu is looking for someone accomplished and mature, unlike Sachin, who doesn’t even have plans for tomorrow. After much introspection, Sachin decides to approach Reenu and declare his love for her, but she rejects him, stating that she prefers someone responsible and established in life.
One salient feature of Premalu, that sets it apart from other romance films—particularly the more contemporary Malayalam ones—is how it handles Reenu. She’s not only the romantic interest; she’s not even the manic pixie dream girl (MPDG), full of obnoxious cuteness. She is intelligent, independent, self-reliant, resolute, and skilled at recognizing sincerity. Reenu doesn’t jump into things without enough information, even when she is not confused. Reenu clearly states her independence, even in the face of Aadhi’s attempts to “be the man and protect her.” As a result, she neither quickly finds herself in love with Sachin nor returns the favor merely because of his misery. She gradually begins to realize how much she loves Sachin, and she comes clean about it.
Premalu Trailer