''19(1)(a)'' is a

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

Indian

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

-language

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

film written and directed by debutant Indhu V. S. It stars

Nithya Menen Nithya Menen (born 8 April 1988) is an Indian actress and singer who has acted in more than 50 feature films and in six different languages: Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, English, and Telugu.In her acting career, Nithya has won three Film ...

Vijay Sethupathi Vijaya Gurunatha Sethupathi (born 16 January 1978), known professionally as Vijay Sethupathi, is an Indian actor and film producer who predominantly works in Tamil films. He is a recipient of several accolades including a National Film Award. Fo ...

, and

Indrajith Sukumaran Indrajith Sukumaran (born 17 December 1978) is an Indian actor and singer. He predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. Indrajith was born to the actors Sukumaran and Mallika Sukumaran and is the elder brother of Prithviraj Sukumaran. Indrajit ...

. The film is produced by Anto Joseph and Neeta Pinto. The film marks Vijay Sethupathi's debut in a character role in Malayalam and his second Malayalam film after '' Maarconi Mathaai''. The film released directly on the OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar on 29 July 2022 and received mixed reviews.

Synopsis

The mundane life of an acquiescent lady (who could be anybody) who is running a photocopy shop goes into a tailspin when a revolutionary writer leaves the manuscript of his unpublished novel with her. The movie's title references the below: Article 19(1) in The Constitution Of India 1949 (1) All citizens shall have the right (a) to freedom of speech and expression;

Cast

as Gauri Shankar *

as Anand Manmadhan *

Indrans Indrans is an Indian actor and former costume designer, who appears in Malayalam films.His mentor was Shiyas M S, a law college student. He started his film career as a costume designer and actor in 1981 and got a breakthrough in 1994 with the ...

as Mohanan, a police officer * Srikant Murali as Gangettan *

Bhagath Manuel Bhagath Manuel (born November 26, 1986) is an Indian actor who appears in Malayalam cinema. He made his debut in Vineeth Sreenivasan's '' Malarvadi Arts Club''. He is known for his performance in '' Doctor Love'' and ''Thattathin Marayathu ...

as Sakhavu Hareendran *

Deepak Parambol Deepak Parambol (born November 1, 1988) is an Indian actor who appears in Malayalam films. Deepak Parambol made his acting debut in ''Malarvaadi Arts Club'' (2010), directed by Vineeth Sreenivasan. He is notable for his roles in '' Thattathin ...

as Ismail Ibrahim, police officer *Abhishek Raveendran *Athulya Ashadam as Fathima * Sreelakshmi as Sarojini, Gauri Shankar's sister *Arya K. Salim as Jenny Philip

Production

''19(1)(a)'' is produced by Anto Joseph Film Company and it marks the directorial debut of Indhu V.S. It also marks the debut of

in Malayalam in a character role. The film's shooting was completed in January 2021.

Release

In April 2021, director Indhu V. S. announced that the film would not be having theatrical release due to

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

and was looking for an OTT release. The film released directly on Disney+ Hotstar on 29 July 2022.

Reception

For ''

Firstpost ''Firstpost'' is an Indian online news and media website. The site is a part of the Network 18 media conglomerate owned by Reliance Industries, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC-TV18. The ''Network 18'' group was originally owned by Ragh ...

'', film critic

Anna M. M. Vetticad Anna Mercy Mathews Vetticad, commonly known as Anna M. M. Vetticad, is an Indian film critic and journalist. She has been in the field of journalism since 1994. Vetticad has also hosted her own interview show, ''Star Trek'', on Headlines Today ...

ranked it ninth in her year-end list of best Malayalam films.

References

{{reflist 2020s Malayalam-language films 2022 direct-to-video films 2022 directorial debut films 2022 drama films 2022 films Disney+ Hotstar original films Films about freedom of expression Films about writers Films scored by Govind Vasantha Films shot in Kerala Indian direct-to-video films Indian drama films