We wanted to do something for the memory of Rajesh Pillai: Take Off director Mahesh Narayanan

Renowned editor Mahesh Narayanan’s directorial debut Take Off is the current talk of M Town. The movie starring Parvathy Menon, Kunchako Boban, Fahadh Faasil and Asif Ali in major roles, has been getting hugely positive reports from all the release centres.

Take Off was in the news prior to the relase itself as it was made as a tribute to late filmmaker Rajesh Pillai. Mahesh Narayanan has worked with Rajesh Pillai in Traffic, both the Malayalam and Hindi versions, as an editor and as a scriptwriter in Mili. He shared a very close relationship with the late director.

Mahesh in a recent interview, revealed how Take Off happened. Rajesh was a very close friend of many in his team and they wanted to do something for his memory. He already had this story in mind and they were supported by producer Anto Joseph and writer Sanjay.

Take Off is a story about nurses who were held captive in Iraq. The movie is inspired from real life incidents that happened in 2014 when a group of Malayali nurses were trapped in the Tikrit region in Iraq during the ISIS attacks in 2014. The movie is a fictionalized account of the same. It is jointly written by Mahesh Narayanan and PV Shaji Kumar.

The movie was funded by Anto Joseph and Shebin Becker in association with Rajesh Pillai Films. Mekha Rajesh Pillai is the executive producer of the movie. Take Off is already considered a landmark in Malayalam cinema and hence there could not have been a better tribute to Rajesh Pillai.