It has been reported that Malayalam superstar Mammootty and Hollywood Actor Ben Kingsley who made Mahatma Gandhi a most remarkable character in the film Gandhi directed by Richard Attenborough will be teaming up for a periodical drama. Both these actors will be seen in equal important roles in the film based on the life of Cheraman Perumal the first legendary ruler of Kerala. When Mammootty plays the role of Cheraman Perumal, Ben Kingsley would be playing the role of Malik Bin Dinar. The script has been prepared by Delhi Jami Almil Associate professor Dr M H Ilyaz based on the study done on the historical books.
This film is expected to have a budget of 100 crores and would be produced as a bilingual film. The film is titled as The Companion and it will be directed by Bollywood’s prominent director Shuja Ali. The music of the film will be handled by Yuvan Shankar Raja son of veteran Ilayaraja. The screen play is co written by Anjurab Ali , Dr Asgar Vagath, and Shuja Ali. The film will have stars from Hollywood, and Bollywood and also a prominent actress from Morocco. The shoot of the film will be done in Muscat and UAE. The film is produced by Sayed Asif under the banner of A S R Media. The film is planned to release in Urudu, English and Arabic languages at the same time.