Anurag Kashyap praises Naslen's 'Mollywood Times', calls it 'a cinephile filmmaker's dream'

Director Anurag Kashyap has heaped praise on the Malayalam film 'Mollywood Times', describing it as a work that strikes a rare balance between realism and idealism.

Sharing his review on Letterboxd, the filmmaker lauded director Abhinav Sunder Nayak's storytelling, saying the film captures the aspirations and contradictions of a generation shaped by the internet and social media while retaining an emotional core.

"A post Internet/social media's cinephile filmmaker's wet dream is this film. A lot of truth and a lot of idealism. The articulation of it all from the filmmaker that Abhinav Sunder Nayak is only going to get sharper with time. This is how it all is but the wee bit of romanticism of it all is what we wish. Loved the film," Anurag wrote.

Directed by Abhinav Sunder Nayak, 'Mollywood Times' stars Naslen in the lead and explores the fine line between a love for cinema and the obsession that often comes with chasing creative dreams.

Naslen plays Vineeth Madhavan, an aspiring filmmaker from Kuttikkanam who dreams of becoming the greatest horror filmmaker in the Malayalam film industry. For Vineeth, cinema is more than a career choice. It becomes the force that shapes every aspect of his life, influencing his ambitions, relationships and identity.

While stories about aspiring filmmakers are not new, 'Mollywood Times' approaches the familiar premise from a different perspective, examining how an all-consuming passion for cinema can both inspire and overwhelm those who pursue it.