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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

Mollywood Times is one of Indian cinema’s sharpest critiques of film industry

Mollywood Times, directed by Abhinav Sunder Nayak, suggests that major production houses sometimes invest in films for reasons beyond box-office success.

Indian cinema has rarely addressed the art and challenges of filmmaking in the way Mollywood Times, directed by Abhinav Sunder Nayak, does. While the plot revolves around a director’s childhood dream of making the scariest horror film, Mollywood Times gradually exposes the darker truths of the industry, where corporate interests often overpower artistic vision. 

Vineeth, played by Naslen K Gafoor, dreams of achieving commercial success without compromising his artistic vision. That conflict becomes the heart of the story.

It reflects the reality of today’s film industry, where many directors who began their careers making grounded, auteur-driven films eventually shift toward commercial entertainers.

Good directors can fail

Vineeth fails several times. His first short film turns out to be the biggest lie of his life. He believes he has made the scariest film ever after his grandfather enters into a coma while watching it. As the truth unfolds, the film reminds us that even good directors can make bad films and that not every film becomes a cult classic.

Why can’t we accept that directors like Anurag Kashyap or Imtiaz Ali can make a bad film? When Imtiaz Ali’s Main Vaapas Aaunga was failing at the box office, the entire PR machinery behind the “cult director” narrative became active. Reels were flooded with one message: “Watch the film now, before it becomes a cult classic.” Can’t we just accept that........

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