13 May,2026 06:58 AM IST | Mumbai | Athulya Nambiar
L-R: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Mohanlal and Abhishek Pathak
Drishyam 3 is no longer just a sequel. It will set new standards for the reach of Malayalam cinema beyond Kerala, says Kumar Mangat Pathak, founder of Panorama Studios, which has made one of its biggest strategic bets yet on the Malayalam film industry.
The studio has entered Malayalam cinema with scale, strategy, and what could be one of the most aggressive investments the industry has seen, starting with Drishyam 3.
Panorama has acquired the theatrical and digital rights of filmmaker Jeethu Joseph's much-awaited thriller, while simultaneously developing its Hindi counterpart. But unlike previous adaptations, the Hindi version will not be a remake.
"We have been developing our script for the last one or two years now," says Abhishek Pathak, son of Kumar Mangat Pathak, who directed Drishyam 2 and will also helm Drishyam 3 (Hindi).
"And we also have our own take on how the story will grow. Both are two different tracks moving forward. So Hindi and Malayalam this time are going to be very different stories."
He adds that while both films begin from where Part 2 ended, they will branch into entirely different emotional and narrative territories. "The palette is the same in terms of the core emotion of the family, but they are two different approaches to how the story will grow."
For Kumar Mangat and Abhishek, the decision to invest in the Malayalam original came after reading Jeethu's script. The conviction was instant, and so was the ambition. The film will be dubbed in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada, and released in territories where Malayalam cinema has traditionally struggled to penetrate.
"I don't think any Malayalam film has been released at this level," says Kumar Mangat. "Even if only 2,000 people live in a city, we are showing films there as well."
The numbers back that ambition. Panorama plans to scale Malayalam releases from roughly 150 screens outside Kerala to nearly 800 across India, a leap that could fundamentally alter how Malayalam cinema travels.
But Drishyam 3 is only the beginning. Panorama's Malayalam slate already includes six films this year, with two projects, Tikitaka, starring Asif Ali and Wamiqa Gabbi, and Unmadham, starring Kunchacko Boban, already in motion.
"We have planned everything," Kumar Mangat says with unmistakable certainty. "This year, apart from Drishyam 3, we are making six more films. Four more films are lined up, which will be completed in the next three to four months."
Their vision for Malayalam cinema is long-term. "Every year, we are thinking of doing 10 to 12 films. We are making films worth Rs 2 crore and Rs 100 crore. We will be working with all actors as well." The studio is also optimistic of the industry having its own pan-India level movie.
Panorama's shift in focus towards Malayalam cinema comes from the industry's willingness to experiment, says Abhishek. "As a Hindi audience, we are getting shocked by their content. It can be a good shock- what an interesting subject. That's why we wanted to go there, experiment with the content, and be part of it. That's what's different about Malayalam cinema. They don't follow the typical tick marks that other industries do."
"They experiment with stories, subjects and screenplays, which might not look very conventional on paper. But when it comes out, it's really interesting to watch," he added.
The larger question, however, is whether "going global" risks diluting the rooted cultural identity that has made Malayalam cinema one of India's most respected storytelling industries.
Abhishek doesn't think so.
"Going global is only about the reach," he says. "It's not that the story will become very different from what they have been making. That's what is working. That's what will work globally now."
He points to European cinema as an example of local stories finding universal audiences.
"There are so many countries in Europe where they tell rooted stories of their culture, but they are going global. That's the whole idea, make the story based on what your culture stands for, and it will eventually reach everywhere."
"We don't change the format of storytelling. We just want to be part of structuring the whole process of filmmaking till exhibition."
As part of that long-term strategy, Panorama has also struck a Rs 100-crore multi-film collaboration with Nivin Pauly, a move that surprised many given the actor's recent box-office struggles (barring Sarvam Maya). Kumar Mangat, however, sees far more than star value.
"He is an actor whose production house wants to make films," he says. "So it will be easy for us because there is a creative person who understands Malayalam cinema, someone who delivered a blockbuster like Premam early in his career."
"If he is with us, it will be a support for us."
With Drishyam 3 as the first move, Panorama's bet is clear: take Malayalam cinema everywhere, without changing the very thing that makes it special.
