Jaladhara Pumpset Since 1962

Jaladhara Pumpset Since 1962 is a 2023 Indian Malayalam-language satirical comedy-drama film directed by Ashish Chinnappa in his directorial debut. Ashish Chinnappa and Prajin M. P. co-wrote the film, based on the story by Sanu K. Chandran.^[3] The film stars Urvashi and Indrans as the lead characters, with Sanusha, Sagar Rajan, Johny Antony, and T. G. Ravi in the supporting cast.^[4] The plot of the film centres around the theft of a pump set from Mrinalini's residence, which subsequently becomes a case and drags on for years in court.

Jaladhara Pumpset Since 1962
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Ashish Chinnappa
Written by	Ashish Chinnappa Prajin M. P.
Story by	Sanu K. Chandran
Produced by	Baiju Chellamma Sagar Rajan Sanitha Sasidharan Arya Prithviraj
Starring	Urvashi Indrans Sanusha Johny Antony T. G. Ravi
Cinematography	Sajith Purushan
Edited by	Rathin Radhakrishnan
Music by	Kailas Menon
Production company	Wonderframes Filmland
Distributed by	Wonderframes Filmland Sree Priya Combines
Release date	11 August 2023 (2023-08-11)[1]
Running time	139 minutes[2]
Country	India
Language	Malayalam

The film is jointly produced by Baiju Chellamma, Sagar Rajan, Sanitha Sasidharan, and Arya Prithviraj under the banner of Wonderframes Filmland.^[5][6] Music is composed by Kailas Menon, with cinematography and editing by Sajith Purushan and Rathin Radhakrishnan.^[7] The film was released in theatres on 11 August 2023.^[3]

Cast

• Urvashi as Mrinalini teacher<^{[citation needed]}
• Indrans as Motor Mani^{[citation needed]}
• Sanusha as Chippi, Mrinalini's daughter^[8]
• Sagar Rajan as Unni, Mrinalini's driver^{[citation needed]}
• Johny Antony as Advocate Bhattathiri, appearing for Mani^[9]
• T. G. Ravi as Advocate Ravi, appearing for Mrinalini^{[citation needed]}
• Vijayaraghavan as Chandran Mash, Mrinalini's husband^{[citation needed]}
• Nisha Sarang as Lalitha, Mani's wife^{[citation needed]}
• Jayan Cherthala as Bahuleyan, First-Class Judicial Magistrate
• Althaf Salim as Arun
• Shivaji Guruvayoor as Rajendran, Police Sub-inspector
• Sajin Cherukayil as Gireesh
• Kalabhavan Haneef as Shaji
• Adhil Bruno as Ambaran
• Vishnu Govindhan as Sumesh
• Davinchi Santhosh as Tea Supplyer
• Thankachan Vithura as Adakka Pothen
• Joshy Medayil as Advocate Joji
• Anjali Sunil Kumar as Anjali, Mani's daughter^{[citation needed]}
• Sneha Babu as Kingini^[5]
• Nitha Karma as Bindhu^[5]
• Shailaja Ambu as Kavitha^[5]
• Sree Ramya as Ambili^[5]

Production

Filming

The film's switch-on and pooja were held at Chottanikkara Temple on 14 July 2022.^[5] The shooting began on 15 July 2022, and was wrapped up in August.^[10][11] Kollengode in Palakkad district was the main filming location.^[12][13]

Marketing

The first-look poster for the film was released on 4 July 2023.^[5] It was revealed by Suresh Gopi through his social media handles, which featured Indrans, Urvashi, Sanusha, Sagar Rajan, Johny Antony, T. G. Ravi, and Anjali Sunil Kumar.^[14][15] A character poster titled Muthirangadi Kalavara Team featuring Shailaja, Sneha Babu, Nitha Karma, and Sree Ramya was released on 31 July 2023.^[5][16]

Soundtrack

Jaladhara Pumpset Since 1962
Soundtrack album by Kailas Menon
Released	2023 (2023)
Venue	Kochi, Chennai
Studio	K-Space K7 Studios Octaves Studio
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Language	Malayalam
Label	T-Series
Kailas Menon chronology
Nalla Nilavulla Rathri (2023) Jaladhara Pumpset Since 1962 (2023)

Kailas Menon composed the film's music and background score,^[17] while Manu Manjith and B. K. Harinarayanan wrote the lyrics.^[18] T-Series obtained the film's audio rights.

No.	Title	Lyrics	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Kuruvi"	Manu Manjith	Vaishnav Girish	4:12
2.	"Ee Mazhamukilo"	B. K. Harinarayanan	K. S. Chitra	2:54

Release

Theatrical

The film was released in theatres on 11 August 2023 by Wonderframes Filmland through Sree Priya Combines.^[5][19]

Home Media

The digital streaming rights of the film is acquired by JioCinema and started streaming from 15 September 2024.^[20]

Reception

Critical response

S. R. Praveen of The Hindu wrote "The popularity of recent courtroom dramas based on seemingly small incidents, like 'Saudi Vellakka' or 'Nna Thaan Case Kodu' is clearly an inspiration for this attempt at following a successful formula."^[8] Princy Alexander of Onmanorama wrote "The narrative, while avoiding preachiness, adeptly highlights the repercussions of human actions and choices, skillfully balancing humour and sentimentality."^[21] Vignesh Madhu of The New Indian Express gave 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "While Jaladhara Pumpset starts off like a legal fight between a retired school teacher and a local thief, it eventually comes down to the question of adhering to the law or conscience. While the writing does deserve some praise, it's unfortunate that such profound themes couldn't be explored more effectively."^[22]