Aadu was re-edited after its first show, with Lijo Jose Pellissery sharing his inputs: Sandra Thomas

It’s no secret that director Midhun Manuel Thomas’ film Aadu, which has gained a cult following now, was a disaster at the box office. The film’s co-producer Sandra Thomas, who had backed Chemban Vinod Jose’s Nalla Nilavulla Rathri, recently revealed that Aadu was re-edited soon after its first show in theatres, with director Lijo Jose Pellissery also weighing in.

“The film had a nonlinear way of storytelling, which left the viewers confused,” said Sandra, in an interview with Club FM recently. “After the first show, the movie started getting negative reviews. I had shared my indifference to the non-linear style even before the release, but the director (Midhun) and editor were confident. After the first show, we decided to re-edit the content and went to the edit suite. Lijo, who is a friend, accompanied us and shared his valuable inputs during the editing process.”

However, she said that the Jayasurya-starrer couldn’t get traction even after the new version was released. The film Aadu showcased Shaji Pappan and motley crew, who unexpectedly receive a young goat as the prize for winning a tug-of-war competition. With no clear idea of what to do with it, they embark on a series of misadventures that lead them astray. One of the standout features of the film was the memorable intro song given to each character.

After the film became a hit post it finding its way on torrent sites, the director was pushed to make a sequel for the film. Aadu 2 collected more than its predecessor at the box office and became one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of that year, with a theatrical run extending 100 days.

Midhun, who has hinted a three-quel is also in the pipeline, later repeated the success through his film Anjaam Pathiraa, which went on to collect over Rs 50 crore from the worldwide box office. The filmmaker, who has written scripts for Phoenix and Garudan, is now helming Ozler, starring Jayaram.