Still hurting after Dulquer Salmaan-led Solo flopped: Bejoy Nambiar on why he is yet to make another Malayalam film

Though a Malayali, noted filmmaker Bejoy Nambiar’s first and only Malayalam film to date is Solo which had popular star Dulquer Salmaan in the lead. An anthology film, Solo, failed to impress the audiences and ended up as a flop. In a recent interview with The Cue Studio, Bejoy Nambiar cited Solo’s failure that prevented him from making more Malayalam movies, while adding that he is ‘still hurting’.

Bejoy Nambiar on why he is yet to make another Malayalam film after Solo

Solo is a 2017 Malayalam movie, which starred Dulquer Salmaan in the four segments of its anthology film. An experimental film, Solo ended up as a box office failure, a fact that still hurts Bejoy Nambiar. Bejoy admitted that the audience were not clear what to expect from the movie, as it was not clearly communicated to the viewers.

“I don't think we were able to communicate clearly before the film came out that this was four different stories with Dulquer Salmaan playing four separate roles. People then thought that a mass Dulquer padam is coming and the music really caught on and we were really going for it. But a lot of people were not ready for it and it was a shock for them. And that shock did not translate into a better box office and that was very upsetting,” he recounted.

Bejoy went on to say that now people talk about the film with so much love and he is grateful for that. “But at that time it was very upsetting, very heartbreaking because we tried so hard. I felt bad that it didn’t manage to go wider and connect. I think one of the reasons I have not yet made another Malayalam film is because I am still hurting from what happened to Solo,” Bejoy explained.

He also lauded Dulquer Salmaan for taking such a chance with an experimental film, despite being a popular star. The film was a bilingual, released in Malayalam and Tamil.

Disheartened by the criticisms, even Dulquer had put out a social media post, urging viewers ‘not to kill Solo’. Bejoy Nambiar's latest film is the Hindi survival thriller, Tu Yaa Main, starring Adarsh Gourav and Shanaya Kapoor.

Also read: Tu Yaa Main review: Adarsh Gourav and Shanaya Kapoor battle a crocodile and bloated runtime that prioritises bickering over survival logic 

Dulquer Salmaan movie FAQs

Q. Which is Dulquer Salmaan's latest movie?

A. Dulquer Salmaan was last seen in the Tamil movie, Kaantha. His upcoming Malayalam movie is I'm Game, which will release for Onam 2026.

Q. Where to watch Dulquer Salmaan's Solo?

A. You can watch Dulquer Salmaan's Solo on Sun NXT via OTTplay Premium.