The Malayalam film ‘Lurk’ explores nuances of man-animal conflict

The Malayalam movie Lurk which addresses man-animal conflict was inspired by a news report that he read, says writer and director of the film MA Nishad. And rather than the obvious fact, he raises questions about who the actual predator is or might be. The answer is not simple, it is nuanced and layered, but he touches upon it anyway. The film reaches theatres today.

That newspaper report and the story of a helpless man who lost his wife in an attack by a wild elephant stayed fresh in his mind even as he made his last film Oru Anweshanthinte Thudakkam (2024). 

“There is more to man-animal conflict than wild pigs, there are tigers, elephants and other animals who come into conflict with human beings. And mind you, these are not far off forest-adjacent places, or remote villages. These are happening closer to us than we realise. There are several aspects to it, and there is a system of people involved in dealing with it and my film is about all these and even ‘suggested’ a solution,” says Nishad. The film is relevant especially at a time when man-animal conflict has become an everyday reality in Kerala.

The question here is what can the system do? “Sometimes aspects of the system can be more cruel than the animals!” Although the writing did not take too much time, the research did. He travelled to visit places where this conflict takes place, spoke to various stakeholders like affected people and those involved in dealing with it including forest department officials, and members of the Rapid Response Team. While he wrote the story, the screenplay and dialogues are by Jubin John. 

All his films, right from his first as a director, Pakal (2006) starring Prithviraj, have dealt with social issues, and, he says, Lurk continues the trend. Pakal, for instance, spoke about farmer suicides in Wayanad. The other films Nishad, also an actor and producer, has directed include Nagaram, Aayudham, Vairam, and Kinar.

Of making a film like Lurk, he says, “Times have changed, the grammar of films have also. With the arrival of OTT platforms the audience has more exposure to different kinds of stories and storytelling. Content is the key factor here.”       

The cast includes TG Ravi, Anumol, Saiju Kurup, Aju Varghese, and Prashanth Alexander among others. Nishad also dons a role in the film. “Having TG Ravi is special… he is the soul of the film. He acted in my first film as well.” 

Anumol plays a tribal person, while Saiju Kurup is the Forest Minister, Manju Pillai is an IAS officer, and Aju Varghese and Prashanth Alexander are tribal and forest officers respectively. Apart from these actors, the lineup includes newcomers as well. Nishad is Jairam Kalyanaraman in the film, a crack shooter brought to the forest to help ‘deal’ with the problem. 

“I chose to play the role because, as a director, I wanted to bring freshness to the character. If it was a  known face, that would have come with judgement. But when it is not, one can bring in a certain newness,” he says. 

Lurk is playing in theatres