''Philip's'' is a 2023 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 ...

-language

family drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...

film directed by Alfred Kurian Joseph in his directorial debut. The film stars

Mukesh Mukesh is an epithet for the Hindu god Shiva, and literally means "conqueror of the Muka demon". It is commonly used as a male given name in India. People with the name Mukesh include: * Mukesh (singer) (1923–1976), Indian playback singer from ...

in the title role, alongside Noble Babu Thomas and

Charle Velmurugan Thangasamy Manohar (born 6 March 1960), professionally credited as Charle, is an Indian actor who works in Tamil cinema. He has acted in more than 800 Tamil films as a comedian and supporting actor. He was named after the English co ...

. The film marks the final appearance of actor

Innocent Innocence is a lack of guilt, with respect to any kind of crime, or wrongdoing. In a legal context, innocence is prior to the sense of legal guilt and is a primal emotion connected with the sense of self. It is often confused as being the op ...

and is touted as the 300th film of Mukesh.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

began in January 2022 and was completed in

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

and

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

. The music was composed by

Hesham Abdul Wahab Sayyed Hesham Abdul Wahab (born 14 October 1990) is an Indian music composer, music producer and singer who predominantly works in Malayalam and Telugu cinema. He is best known for the compositions of ''Qadham Badha'' (2015), '' Hridayam'' (202 ...

. ''Philip's'' was released in India on 1 December 2023.

Plot

Philip, a middle-aged

widower A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjective for ...

from Kerala, works at a sports retail shop in

while raising his three children: Basil, Blessy, and Betty. Basil, the elder, is a young IT professional who aspires to pursue his culinary course in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

with his girlfriend, Dona. Despite living in the same building, Basil hesitates to reveal his plans to his father due to fear of his reaction. Blessy, the second, is a 12th grader with a passion for

skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport that involves riding and Skateboarding trick, performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a method of tr ...

, who gets caught with chits during an exam, leading to a connection with Vivek, a fellow student. Betty, the youngest, enjoys playing

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

and even places bets with classmates. During a school sports event, tragedy strikes when Vivek accidentally injures Betty in a

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

competition, resulting in her comatose state. Devastated by Betty's condition, Philip takes legal action against the school for negligence. The legal battle puts a financial strain on Philip, but he finds support from his friend, Mani. Vivek's mental health deteriorates, prompting him to seek counseling. As the case progresses in Philip's favor, three months pass, and financial difficulties continue to mount. Basil's relationship with Philip strains when he advises his father to prioritize Betty over the legal battle. Philip, however, pays no heed to Basil's advice. Senthil, Vivek's father, requests Philip to let go of Vivek from the case, but Philip denies the request. Philip is forced to go on a 4-day business trip due to excess leaves. In his absence, Blessy undergoes a change, spending more time with Betty. Basil decides to leave his job after a work-related mix-up and chooses to seriously pursue his dream in New Zealand, following Mani's advice. Upon Philip's return, a moment with Betty leads to his realization of the impact of his actions. He decides to back off from the legal battle, forgives Vivek, and mends his relationship with Basil and Blessy. Betty gradually regains consciousness. Basil confirms his decision to go to New Zealand with Dona, Blessy chooses to stay in Bangalore for her degree, and Philip and Betty decide to move back to Kerala.

Cast

as Philip Abraham * Noble Babu Thomas as Basil Philip *Navani Devanand as Blessy Philip *Quinn Vipin as Betty Philip *

as Mani Uncle *

as Senthil *Asha Madathil as Ancy *

Sreedhanya Sreedhanya Thekkedath, known mononymously as Sreedhanya, is an Indian actress and television host who works in predominantly Malayalam-language films and television shows. Career Sreedhanya participated in a talk show on Jeevan TV before re ...

as Asha *Ajit Koshy as Dr. Anil Naresh *Ansha Mohan as Dona *Sacchin Nachi as Vivek Senthil

Production

Development

After the 2019 film '' Helen'', director Mathukutty Xavier, Alfred Kurian Joseph and Noble Babu Thomas teamed again for ''Philip's'', with

in the lead, his 300th film. The film also marks the directorial debut of Alfred Kurian Joseph.

Casting

The casting call for the film was a success and actors Navani Devanand as Blessy Philip and Quinn Vipin as Bitty Philip were selected.

Filming

of the film started on 14 January 2022 at different locations in

and

Music

The original soundtrack and songs were composed by

, who is known for ''

Hridayam ''Hridayam'' () is a 2022 Indian Malayalam-language coming-of-age romantic drama film written and directed by Vineeth Sreenivasan. It was produced by Visakh Subramaniam under Merryland Cinemas and co-produced by Noble Babu Thomas under Big B ...

'' (2022).

Release

The original release date for the film was set for 24 November 2023 and it was later rescheduled for 1 December 2023. The lead actor Mukesh announced the release date through his social media handles.

Reception

Critical response

Sanjith Sidhardhan of ''

OTTPlay HT Media is an Indian mass media company based in Delhi. It has holdings in print, electronic and digital media. HT Media's flagship newspaper is the ''Hindustan Times'', the second most widely read English newspaper in India after ''The Times of ...

'' gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote, "If you are a fan of feel-good family dramas that have the potential to move you, then Mukesh's ''Philip'' will not disappoint. This simple film, which is based on true events, keeps it real. You might not feel a rush of uplifting emotions at the end of it, but it will leave you with a smile." Vignesh Madhu of ''

Cinema Express ''Cinema Express'' was an Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language entertainment fortnightly magazine published from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was a part of The New Indian Express, The New Indian Express Group, which also publishes ''Samakalika Mal ...

'' gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote, "''Philip's'' will perhaps be best remembered as a fitting swansong for Innocent. The late actor does what he does best—playing the good Samaritan." A critic of ''

Times Now Times Now is an English-language news channel in India owned and operated by The Times Group. The channel launched on 23 January 2006 in partnership with Reuters. It is a pay television throughout India. Until 2016, it was India's most popula ...

'' gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote, "As ''Philip's'' prepares to unfold its heartwarming narrative on the big screen, audiences can anticipate a cinematic experience that explores the intricacies of family relationships, sprinkled with humour and unexpected turns." A staff of '' Onmanorama'' wrote, "While the fun part of the movie, except for a few one-liners delivered by the two daughter characters, is ludicrously grotesque, the serious sequences are engrossing and nuanced."

References

External links

* {{IMDb title 2020s Malayalam-language films 2023 directorial debut films Indian drama films Indian family films Films shot in Bengaluru Films shot in Kochi Films scored by Hesham Abdul Wahab