Toby in Malayalam: Trailer of Raj B Shetty-led film to drop shortly
Dubbed in Malayalam, Toby, written by Raj and directed by Basil Alchalakkal, is being brought to theatres in Kerala by Dulquer Salmaan’s Wayfarer Films
Last Updated: 06.35 PM, Sep 15, 2023
After leading the charge on promotions for his latest film Toby, actor-filmmaker is following suit for its other language release too. Toby, which had released in its Kannada original version on August 25, is set to enthral audiences in Kerala next week. Dulquer Salmaan’s Wayfarer Films is presenting Toby in Malayalam on September 22. Raj, who plays the title character Toby, and Chaithra J Achar, who plays his daughter Jenny, will be in Kochi tomorrow (September 16), to promote the film ahead of its theatrical outing in the state. The duo will also launch the Malayalam trailer of Toby while in Kerala.
Toby is a film that released amid much fanfare in Karnataka but failed to generate as much excitement at the box office thereafter, as audiences went in expecting something and got something else. This, they say, boils down the fact that throughout the publicity of the film, Raj built it up as something that would be far more massy and commercial than his earlier Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana. Eventually, though, when the film came out, it had him in a few interesting action blocks, but as a speech-impaired hero who was not even spouting punch lines and a story that was more about an emotional father-daughter bond, Toby was not as big as it was made out to be. While audiences loved the performances, the music and cinematography, the slow pace of the narrative was seen as a major downer and the initial reviews that came out for Toby were mixed.
The response to the Kannada original in Kerala, for instance, was encouraging, which is why the team is now releasing a dubbed version there. Interestingly, September 22 is also when Raj’s pal Rakshit is bringing the Telugu version of Sapta Sagaradaache Ello to theatres. Rakshit is also looking at releasing his film in Kerala and Tamil Nadu among others, before the second instalment comes out, so it remains to be seen if they will clash at the box office in these other markets.