''Two Countries'' is a 2015 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
romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
film written by
Rafi and directed by
Shafi
The Shafii ( ar, شَافِعِي, translit=Shāfiʿī, also spelled Shafei) school, also known as Madhhab al-Shāfiʿī, is one of the four major traditional schools of religious law (madhhab) in the Sunnī branch of Islam. It was founded by ...
. The film stars
Dileep
Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan Pillai, better known by his stage name Dileep, is an Indian actor, producer, and businessman who predominantly works in the Malayalam film industry. He has acted in more than 150 films and has won several awards, inc ...
and
Mamta Mohandas
Mamta Mohandas is an Indian actress, film producer and a playback singer of Malayalam film industry, she has also worked in Tamil and Telugu productions. She has acted in more than 50 films and won several accolades including two Filmfare Awar ...
in the lead roles, with
Suraj Venjarammoodu
Suraj Vasudevan (born 30 June 1976), professionally credited as Suraj Venjaramoodu, is an Indian actor, comedian, impressionist, and television presenter, who appears in Malayalam films, television and stage plays. He has acted in more than 2 ...
,
Mukesh Mukesh is an epithet for the Hindu god Shiva, and literally means "conqueror of the Muka demon". It also means god of 3 worlds, heaven, hell & earth, which in turn represents Hindu god Shiva. It is commonly used as a male given name in India. Peopl ...
,
Aju Varghese
Aju Kurian Varghese (born 11 January 1985) better known as Aju Varghese is an Indian actor and producer who appears in Malayalam cinema. He made his debut in 2010 in ''Malarvadi Arts Club'', directed by his college classmate Vineeth Sreenivas ...
and
Jagadish
P. V. Jagadish Kumar (born 12 June 1955) known mononymously as Jagadish, is an Indian actor, screenwriter, television presenter and former politician. He has starred in over 375 Malayalam films and 2 Hindi films. He is best known for his com ...
appearing in supporting roles. The film was released on 25 December 2015.It Became A Commercial Blockbuster at Box Office. It grossed 10 crores in just 2 days. The film was remade in Telugu as
same name with
Sunil and in Kannada with
Sharan titled ''
Adyaksha in America''.
Plot
The plot of the film revolves around Ullas, a cunning procrastinator in his late 20s who makes a living by deceiving people in his hometown. Money is the only motivator that works for him and he wants it without any risks. He decides to marry a disabled woman, Simran, who is the sister of a Maarwadi Patelar, from whom he had borrowed some amount of money. Patelar agreed as he wanted nothing but put a smile on his sister's face. But Ullas' motivation behind the marriage was the assets in favour of her. A name coincidence, resulted in bring Ullas a proposal from an Indo-Canadian rich Malayali woman Laya. He immediately agreed the proposal, and told Patelar that he has left his interest in marrying her sister, who in turn, was furious and became violent. Immigration to Canada and easy money allures him. Only later does Ullas comes to the knowledge that Laya is a
chronic alcoholic. The knowledge of funds deposited in her name, that Laya cannot claim due to her alcoholism, and the possibility of access entices him however and he adjusts with the troubles.
In time Ullas falls in love with his alcoholic wife, and the call of a husband makes him care for Laya even in troubles. Laya learns of Ullas's original plan through Avinash, Ullas's friend, accidentally.
This leads to a divorce case. Initially Ullas gains the upper hand from the court, citing his wife is an alcoholic and she needs treatment and that the divorce case is resistance towards it. Laya gets treated through a de-addiction center.
By the guidance of the doctor, Ullas goes with the divorce process to help Laya. Ullas returns and decides to marry Simran again. Patelar reluctantly agreed as Ullas promised he won't change his mind again. Later, Laya understands about the role of Ullas for her wellness and decided to fly back to India to meet Ullas. Ullas on meeting her, requested to never disturb him again in his life as he is planning to marry a woman, whom he deceived before and cannot do the same again. Ullas, regretfully, dresses up and leaves for marriage. On arrival, he discovers that it was all a play by Patelar, as Ullas is deceived by him, for his past activity towards Simran. Ullas, cried mockingly, as things went good as he is reunited with Laya.
Cast
*
Dileep
Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan Pillai, better known by his stage name Dileep, is an Indian actor, producer, and businessman who predominantly works in the Malayalam film industry. He has acted in more than 150 films and has won several awards, inc ...
as Ullas Kumar
*
Mamta Mohandas
Mamta Mohandas is an Indian actress, film producer and a playback singer of Malayalam film industry, she has also worked in Tamil and Telugu productions. She has acted in more than 50 films and won several accolades including two Filmfare Awar ...
as Laya Ullas
*
Aju Varghese
Aju Kurian Varghese (born 11 January 1985) better known as Aju Varghese is an Indian actor and producer who appears in Malayalam cinema. He made his debut in 2010 in ''Malarvadi Arts Club'', directed by his college classmate Vineeth Sreenivas ...
as Avinash Kumbalachottil, Ullas's best friend
*
Mukesh Mukesh is an epithet for the Hindu god Shiva, and literally means "conqueror of the Muka demon". It also means god of 3 worlds, heaven, hell & earth, which in turn represents Hindu god Shiva. It is commonly used as a male given name in India. Peopl ...
as Simon Varghese/ Achayan, Ottawa Malayali Samajam President.
*
Jagadish
P. V. Jagadish Kumar (born 12 June 1955) known mononymously as Jagadish, is an Indian actor, screenwriter, television presenter and former politician. He has starred in over 375 Malayalam films and 2 Hindi films. He is best known for his com ...
as Ujwal, Ullas's elder brother
*
Asokan as Mukundan Kurup, Laya's stepfather
*
Suraj Venjarammoodu
Suraj Vasudevan (born 30 June 1976), professionally credited as Suraj Venjaramoodu, is an Indian actor, comedian, impressionist, and television presenter, who appears in Malayalam films, television and stage plays. He has acted in more than 2 ...
as Jimmy Chokliyil
*
Vinaya Prasad
Vinaya Prakash ( Bhat), also credited as Vinaya Prasad, is an Indian actress who has primarily featured in Kannada, and Malayalam films and TV series besides acting in Telugu language films. She has won the State Best Actress Award for her pe ...
as Revathi, Laya's mother
*
Rafi as Daniel, Laya's father
*
Isha Talwar
Isha Talwar (born 22 December 1987) is an Indian actress and model who predominantly works in Malayalam and Hindi-language films, besides appearing in a few Tamil and Telugu films. She started out as a model and appeared in various commercial ...
as Simran, Patelar's sister
*
Sajitha Betti
Sajitha Betti is an Indian actress known for her works in Malayalam television serials and films.
Biography
Sajitha Betti belongs to a community of Urdu-speaking Muslims from Hyderabad. She is married to Shamas. She has two elder brothers and t ...
as Reshmi Ujwal, Ujwal's wife
*
Srinda Arhaan as Jessy / Jessica, Laya's stepmother
*
Lena
Lena or LENA may refer to:
Places
* Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso
* Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada
* Lena, Norway, a village in ...
as Adv. Susan, Simon's wife
*
Vijayaraghavan
Vijayaraghavan (born 20 December 1951) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. He is popular for his character roles. He is the son of popular drama and cinema artist N. N. Pillai. He got his break by playing the icon ...
as Kochachan, Ullas's uncle
*
Riyaz Khan
Riyaz Khan is an Indian actor and bodybuilder. He predominantly works in Malayalam and Tamil films and television series, besides acting in a few Telugu and Kannada films, as well as two Hindi films. Riyaz debuted in Malayalam through the 199 ...
as Kiran
*
Makarand Deshpande
Makarand Deshpande (born 6 March 1966) is an Indian actor, writer, and director in Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil cinema, and Indian Theatre. He is often seen in supporting and pivotal roles in various films like ''Jungle'' ...
as Patelar
*
Kalasala Babu
Kalasala Babu (1950 14 May 2018) was an Indian actor who performed on stage, and in television serials and films.
On stage
Babu had been acting in radio plays while at college. Following his graduation in 1973, Babu acted in ''Paanchajanyam ...
as Sukumaran, Ullas' father
*
Shobha Mohan
Shobha Mohan is an Indian actress known for her works, predominantly in Malayalam cinema along with few Tamil films.
Biography
Shobha Mohan was born to actor Kottarakara Sreedharan Nair and Vijayalakshmi at Kottarakkara in Kollam, Kerala. She ...
as Radhika, Ullas' mother
* Kalyani Nair as Usha, Avinash's wife
*
Ajmal Ameer
Ajmal Ameer (born 8 November 1985) is an Indian actor and former physician, who works in the Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu film industries. He has won two Filmfare Awards South for his role '' Anjathe'' (2008) and '' Ko'' (2011).
Early and per ...
as Ullas Kumaran, a politician
*
Hareesh Kanaran
Hareesh Perumanna , known by his stage name Hareesh Kanaran, is an Indian comedian and film actor who appears in Malayalam films. He is best known for his stock character Jaliyan Kanaran which first appeared in ''Comedy Festival'', a comedy r ...
as Sajan Koyilandy
*
Balachandran Chullikadu as Kanaran Master
*
Dinesh Prabhakar
Dinesh Prabhakar, also known by his birth name Dinesh Nair, is an Indian actor who predominantly appears in Malayalam films.
Early life
Dinesh was born as the second child of Prabhakaran Nair and Sarojini Amma at Pulluvazhi, Perumbavoor, Ern ...
as Bus Driver (cameo)
*
Saju Kodiyan
Saju Kodiyan is an Indian mimicry artist, comedian and actor who works in the Malayalam Film Industry. He started his career as a mimicry artist and has acted in more than 20 movies.
TV shows
*'' Cinemala'' - Asianet
*'' Kadamattathu Kathanar ...
as Chellappan (cameo)
*
J. Pallassery as Politician
* Nandu Poduval as Politician Rameshan
Production
Originally, the film was entitled ''Canadian Tharavu'', but this was later changed to "2 Countries" in August 2015.
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 a ...
started in July 2015 in Canada by CanEast Films Ottawa (Biju George and Satheesh Gopalan) ., Nepean MPP
Lisa MacLeod
Lisa Anne MacLeod (born 1974) is a Canadian politician who has represented Nepean (provincial electoral district), Nepean in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Elected in 2018, MacLeod is a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Onta ...
and Ottawa Film Commission actively helped the Team. Team Fondly remembers Lisa's help all through during the shoot. About 80 per cent of the film was shot in
Ottawa at locations like
ByWard Market,
Rideau Canal,
Almonte,
Manotick
Manotick ( ) is a community in Rideau-Jock Ward in the rural south part of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is a suburb of the city, located on the Rideau River, immediately south of the suburbs Barrhaven and Riverside South, about from ...
,
Brockville
Brockville, formerly Elizabethtown, is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Although it is the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, it is politically independent of the county. It is included with Le ...
and
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
. Filming in Canada was completed on 6 August 2015.
A large part of the film was shot in
Ottawa, Montreal and a song sequence was filmed at
Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...
, becoming the second Malayalam film that shot Niagara, after
I. V. Sasi directed ''
Ezham Kadalinakkare
''Ezhamkadalinakkare'' is a 1979 Cinema of India, Indian Malayalam language, Malayalam film, directed by I. V. Sasi and produced by N. G. John. The film stars K. R. Vijaya in the lead role, whereas supporting roles were played by Soman, Seema, R ...
'' in 1979. Filming took place over the course of a month. The second schedule for filming held in
Kochi
Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...
, Kerala. The filming was finished in November 2015.
Namitha Pramod
Namitha Pramod (born 19 September 1996) is an Indian actress who appears mainly in Malayalam films She made her acting debut in the Malayalam film '' Puthiya Theerangal''.
She went on to appear in super hit films like Puthiya Theerangal (2012 ...
signed into play second female lead but was replaced by
Isha Talwar
Isha Talwar (born 22 December 1987) is an Indian actress and model who predominantly works in Malayalam and Hindi-language films, besides appearing in a few Tamil and Telugu films. She started out as a model and appeared in various commercial ...
.
Release
The film was released in
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
on 25 December 2015 in the Christmas day. It released in theatres outside Kerala from 22 January 2016, and released in 63 screens in the United Kingdom on 29 January.
[
]
Critical reception
''The Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...
'' rated 3.5 out of 5 stars and stated "Packaged with umpteen laugh-out-loud moments, ''Two Countries'' is definitely what one would expect from a Dileep movie. The screenplay by Rafi is clean, situational humour with clever quips and the actors hit the ball out of the park with their comic timing".
Box office
The film received a good opening at the box office, grossing from theatres within five days. It grossed in twenty days from the Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
box office. After 40 days, the film had collected more than from Kerala alone and the worldwide gross would come in much higher after adding the earnings from the rest of India and overseas markets. By this time, film already achieved the status of being one of the highest-grossing film in Malayalam. It grossed an estimated sum of with a net amount of from 60 theatres in Kerala after 44 days, with a worldwide collection of . After 60 days, worldwide gross was over .
Soundtrack
The film's soundtrack contains 3 songs, all composed by Gopi Sundar
Gopi Sundar C. S. (born 30 May 1977) is an Indian music director, programmer, playback singer, songwriter, actor and performer who works prominently in Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil film industries. He started his career composing music for tele ...
and Lyrics by B. K. Harinarayanan.
References
External links
*
{{Rafi Mecartin
2010s Malayalam-language films
2015 films
Indian romantic comedy films
Films scored by Gopi Sundar
Films shot in Ottawa
Films shot in Toronto
Films shot in Kochi
Malayalam films remade in other languages
Films directed by Shafi
2015 romantic comedy films