Marichi teaser: Vijay Raghavendra in cop mode again on the trail of a serial killer

Ever since Kannada cinema’s Chinnari Muttha Vijay Raghavendra has had a personal tragedy in his life, having lost his wife Spandana to a heart attack while on a family holiday, film teams he’s worked with seem to be in a hurry to bring their movies to theatres and, in the process, get him to face the media and the public to promote them. Within weeks of Spandana’s passing, Vijay had to promote his film Kaddha Chithra, in which he played an author facing plagiarism charges. However, most of his media interactions, unfortunately, revolved around his late wife’s last moments, with everyone wanting to know if he was with her when she passed away. As difficult as it was to relive those moments and speak about it, Vijay soldiered on, while trying to do justice to his film.

Now comes Marichi, the release date of which has not been announced, but the teaser launch signifies that the makers are looking at bringing the thriller to theatres shortly. Hopefully, Vijay will be spared intrusive questions this time around. The film, which pairs Vijay with Sonu Gowda, has him as an investigative officer yet again, on the trail of a dangerous serial killer. Although Sonu plays Vijay’s wife, her character has grey shades, something the actress has said she was excited about. Directed by debutant Siddhruv, a former software engineer, Marichi derives its title from Hindu mythology, wherein Marichi is the son of Brahma, the creator of good and evil. The title, said Siddhruv, seemed apt for his film.

The story, he says, was inspired during his stint in the US, when he was stuck in a hotel during the pandemic lockdown unable to return home. While watching television, Siddhruv came across a true-crime story about a man who went to prison for a crime he was alleged to have committed and was then acquitted 18 years later when new forensic analysis of DNA found at the site belonged to someone else. This, said the newbie filmmaker, gave him an idea for a story, which he developed, but his first draft was so convoluted, it did not make sense to his collaborators, after which he rewrote it with assistance from his direction team.