# Pani (film)

Pani (transl. Work) is a 2024 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written and directed by Joju George (in his directorial debut). It stars Joju George, Sagar Surya, and Junaiz V. P., with Abhinaya, Seema, Prashanth Alexander, Sujith Shankar, Bobby Kurian, Renjith Velayudhan, Chandini Sreedharan, Bitto Davis, and Abhaya Hiranmayi in supporting cast. The film's music was composed by Vishnu Vijay, Sam C. S. and Santhosh Narayanan.
Principal photography commenced on 9 October 2023 in Thrissur, Kerala. Pani was released in theatres on 24 October 2024 and was a commercial success at box office.

## Plot

When the peaceful married life of a couple is unexpectedly disrupted by two youngsters with criminal inclination, the trials and tribulations connect the mobster lives of Thrissur by becoming a part of vengeance.

## Cast

* Joju George as Mangalath Giri, a powerful gangster
* Abhinaya as Gowri, Giri's wife
* Sagar Surya as Don Sebastian
* Junaiz V. P. as Siju K. T.
* Seema as Mangalath Devaki Amma, Giri and Karthika's mother, Gowri and Kuruvila's mother in law
* Prashanth Alexander as Kuruvila, Giri's best friend, brother in law and partner
* Sujith Shankar as Saji, Giri's cousin and partner
* Bobby Kurian as David Antony "Warrant Davi", a notorious gangster and Giri's partner
* Ranjith Velayudhan as Commissioner Ranjith Velayudhan
* Chandini Sreedharan as ACP Kalyani Prakash, Giri's cousin
* Bitto Davis as Sulochanan, ATM murder witness
* Abhaya Hiranmayi as Jaya, Davi's wife
* Sona Maria Abraham as Karthika Kuruvila, Giri's sister and Kuruvila's wife
* Jayashankar Karimuttom as Don's father
* Lanka Lakshmi as Lakshmi
* Merlet Ann Thomas as Sneha, Don's girlfriend
* Anoop Krishnan as Joshi
* Jayaraj Warrier as himself
* Babu Namboothiri as Suresh's brother
* Rinosh George as Kalyani's fiancé
* Ramesh Girija as Karikk Suni aka Sunil Kumar
* Ashraf Mallisery as Aashan

## Production
### Development

The film marks the directorial debut of Joju George. The film was officially announced in October 2023. On 16 December 2023, Joju George announced his collaboration with several newcomers for this project. M Riaz Adam and Sijo Vadakkan jointly produced the movie. Venu ISC joined the team to handle cinematography, while editor was Manu Antony.

### Casting

Joju George was signed to direct and play a lead role in this film. Some of the major cast members were selected from Bigg Boss Malayalam Season 5, such as Junaiz V. P. and Sagar Surya.
Abhinaya plays the female lead in this movie. The cast also includes Abhaya Hiranmayi, Seema, Chandini Sreedharan, Prashanth Alexander, Sujith Shankar in prominent roles.

### Filming

Principal photography began on 9 October 2023, with a puja ceremony. It took more than 100 days to complete the shoot, wrapping up on 27 February 2024. Shooting took place in and around Thrissur, Kerala.

## Music

The music was composed by Vishnu Vijay, Sam C. S. and Santhosh Narayanan. The lyrics for all the songs in the film were penned by Muhsin Parari. The soundtrack consists of four tracks.

### Track listing

| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer | Length |
| 1 | "Nayadikal Irakal | Santhosh Narayanan | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2 | "Pani Motion Poster - Theme 1" | Vishnu Vijay | Vishnu Vijay | |
| 3 | "Family Song" | Muhsin Parari | Shakthisree Gopalan | 2:10 |
| 4 | "Dhoorekku Dhoorekku" | Muhsin Parari | Shakthisree Gopalan | 3:56 |
| 5 | "Love Theme" | Vishnu Vijay | Vishnu Vijay | 3:01 |

## Release

Pani was released in theatres on 24 October 2024.

### Critical reception

Swathi P. Ajith of Onmanorama wrote that "the movie is undoubtedly a mass entertainer that seeks to tap into your emotions, skillfully triggerring various feelings throughout". Sanjith Sidhardhan of OTT Play rated 3.5 out of 5 stars, stating that "Joju George aces the directorial test with Pani, which turns into a thrilling ride once it gets going. Backed by solid performances and good writing, Joju makes a confident debut as a director". Anna Mathews of The Times of India rated 3 out of 5 stars and said: "With violence being the new hero of massy entertainers, Joju is probably giving audiences what they want and he succeeds fairly well in this". S. R. Praveen of The Hindu stated that "Joju George's gory drama works despite its typical revenge plot" as "[Joju] has quite a hold on the progression of events which keeps coming at almost the right pace and timing".
Rating 3 in a scale of 5, Vignesh Madhu of The New Indian Express wrote that "Despite some generic writing and blips in crafting a thrilling latter half, Joju makes an assured debut with Pani [...] Sagar Surya and Junaiz V. P. are exceptional as the antagonists, elevating the film's otherwise generic writing". Anandu Suresh of The Indian Express gave 2.5 out of 5 stars and said: "While the first act is solid, suggesting that Joju George is on track to deliver an outstanding actioner, the script falters very soon and begins bombarding viewers with stale moments, incidents and dialogues". Latha Srinivasan of Hindustan Times wrote that "Joju George has made a good directorial debut, and Pani presents it well on screen, even though the story is not new for the audience".

### Box office

The film grossed ₹36.4 crore worldwide, of which ₹13.4 crore were from outside India.