Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam

Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam, directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery and written with S. Hareesh, produced by lead actor Mammootty, is a bilingual Malayalam-Tamil drama. The film had its world premiere at the 27th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) on December 12, 2022, where it won the Rajata Chakoram (second best film) award in the international competition; its general release followed on January 19, 2023. The film explores identity and reincarnation as James, waking up disoriented on a bus, comes to believe he's actually Sundaram, a man who vanished from a village years earlier; Pellissery and Mammootty had previously collaborated on Jallikattu and Churuli. The film was named 2023's best film by the Film Critics Circle of India and won two awards, including Best Film, at the 53rd Kerala State Film Awards. Who it's for: anyone curious about a Malayalam drama, named best film of the year by its country's own critics, in which a man wakes up believing he's someone else, from a director-actor pair with a history of collaboration. Who it's not for: viewers wanting a clear, explained ending, since the film deliberately stays ambiguous about identity and reality.