# Ullozhukku

Ullozhukku (transl. Undercurrent) is a 2024 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by Christo Tomy. The film stars Urvashi and Parvathy Thiruvothu, with Arjun Radhakrishnan, Alencier Ley Lopez, Prashanth Murali, and Jaya Kurup appearing in supporting roles. It got selection at the 2nd Eikhoigi Imphal International Film Festival 2025 under the International Competition: Fiction section.
The film's screenplay won the Cinestaan India’s Storytellers Contest in 2018. The film was released on 21 June 2024 and garnered widespread positive reviews from critics, especially for the acting of Urvashi. The film was a moderate success at box office.

## Plot

The film is set in the flooded regions of Alappuzha, Kerala, India. Anju is married to Thomaskutty and the two live with Thomaskutty's mother Leelamma. Thomaskutty is chronically ill and dying. Anju has an affair with her long time lover Rajeev. Anju was forced to marry Thomaskutty after her parents discovered her relationship with Rajeev.
Anju realises that she is pregnant with Rajeev's child. In the meantime Thomaskutty becomes severely ill and passes away. The rain wrecks havoc by flooding the region and delays the funeral. Leelamma discovers Anju's affair and confronts her after which Anju admits that the child is not Thomaskutty's. The truth is soon known to Anju's parents, Thomaskutty's sister and aunt. Anju discovers that her mother hid Thomaskutty's illness from her before the marriage.
Anju wants to leave to live with Rajeev after the funeral which keeps getting delayed. How she manages to convince the people around her and their reactions forms the crux of the movie.

## Cast

* Urvashi as Leelamma
* Parvathy Thiruvothu as Anju
* Arjun Radhakrishnan as Rajeev (voice dubbed by Roshan Mathew)
* Veenah Naair as Sister Rosamma
* Prashanth Murali as Thomaskutty
* Shebin Benson as Juman (Rajeev's friend)
* Alencier Ley Lopez as George
* Jaya Kurup as Jiji
* Smruthi Anish as Sheba
* Alexander Attupuram as Leelamma's neighbour

## Release
### Theatrical

Ullozhukku released in theatres on 21st June 2024 to overwhelming positive responses garnering praises for the direction and acting performances of Urvashi and Parvathy. The film had a good word of mouth and turned out to be a commercial success at box office.

### Marketing

Prior to release, Urvashi promoted the film on the Mohanlal hosting TV show Bigg Boss (season 6). She entered the Bigg Boss House on Day 88, met the contestants and shared the details about the film.

### Home media

The digital streaming rights of the film were acquired by Amazon Prime Video (India only) and Simply South OTT (Outside India). It began streaming on Simply South from 26 July 2024 excluding India. In India, the film started streaming through Amazon Prime Video from 2 August 2024.

## Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 7 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.7/10.
Divya Nair of Rediff.com rated 4/5 stars and observed "What makes Ullozhukku worth recommending is its ability to surrender to the surprises and yet grow with its characters." S R Praveen of The Hindu wrote "Urvashi’s powerhouse performance carries this haunting drama". Anna Mathews of The Times of India rated 3.5/5 stars and reviewed "Urvashi's superb presence & range carries this beautiful emotional story". Kirubhakar Purushothaman of The Indian Express rated 4/5 stars and observed "A subtle and profound drama backed by incredible Urvashi and Parvathy". Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute rated 4/5 stars and wrote "Urvashi, Parvathy are brilliant in Ullozhukku, a tense exploration of family dynamics". Priyanka Sundar of Firstpost rated 4/5 stars and reviewed "The 'undercurrent' in this film comes to life with Urvashi and Parvathy's sheer brilliant performance". Swathi P Ajith of Onmanorama wrote "Urvashi dominates in must-watch tale of empathy and love: 'Ullozhukku' rivets from start to finish". Aswathy Gopalakrishnan of Film Companion reviewed "an astounding urvashi headlines a tender film on love that defies conventions".

## Accolades
### Kerala State Film Awards

* Best Actress - Urvashi
* Best Dubbing Artist - Roshan Mathew (dubbed for Arjun Radhakrishnan)
* Best Sound Design - Jayadevan Chakkadath, Anil Radhakrishnan