John Abraham says Malayalam cinema is making the ‘best films', praises Mammootty for playing a ‘gay politician': ‘That industry is brave'

Indian Express

2 days ago

Malayalam cinema is widely known for its realistic, content-driven storytelling, prioritising substance over star power and flashy visuals, a contrast to much of the Indian film industry. Bollywood actor-filmmaker John Abraham too has long admired their work. In an Idea Exchange session hosted by The Indian Express, John spoke about his desire to produce films inspired by Malayalam cinema and revealed that he is a huge fan of superstars Mammootty and Mohanlal.
During the conversation, John Abraham shared that he finds the Malayalam film industry 'brave'. 'That industry is very brave. So, I think as of today, the best films in the country come from the Malayalam film industry. If you ask who my favourite actor is, I would say Mohanlal by light years. I love Meryl Streep also,' he said.
John expressed his admiration for Mammootty for playing a 'gay politician' in Kaathal – The Core, mentioning that he is a huge fan of the Malayalam superstar. 'You look at Mammootty playing a politician and you find out in the film that he is gay. I mean, it's brave for that man to do a film like that,' he stated.
John Abraham wants to produce more films in Malayalam and has even set up a writer's room in Kerala. 'I thought maybe I could borrow from some of their ideas. So, what I did was set up a writer's room in Kerala. Let's generate ideas out of there and see films that could be made nationally or only in Malayalam. I want to produce more Malayalam films because it's the right time, they are fantastic. But, I also want to produce other films,' he shared.
ALSO READ | 'Chess is actually my favourite game and this board was gifted to me by Viswanathan Anand': Inside the award-winning home of John Abraham
On the professional front, John Abraham was last seen in the political-thriller The Diplomat. His next film, Tehran, is set to release directly on ZEE5 on August 14.