No better actor to play 'Casanova' than Mohanlal?

The name ‘Casanova’ conjures up so many images. Director Rosshan Andrews likes to think that there is no better actor than Superstar Mohanlal who can reprise the character of the legendary Venetian adventurer and author.

It’s the tagline attached to the historical womaniser that clinched the deal in favour of Lal for his latest movie, according to the director - the man who loves women and a man who is loved by all women.

“Is there any other actor who can pull off such a stylized Casanova act? I doubt,” says the director who has previously directed the superstar in two movies. The movie will have Mohanlal playing a large scale flower dealer, who believes in the power of love. He travels to different nations, romances different women and he loves them as much as they fall for him. "I think Mohanlal’s on screen flamboyant image goes superbly with this character," adds Andrews.

In fact for Andrews who started his career with the Mohanlal starrer, ‘Udayananu Tharam’ (which was later remade in Tamil and Hindi without much success), ‘Casanova’ took a pretty long time to make. It’s also one of his most expensive films till date made on a whooping budget of Rs 12 crores. Shot mostly in Dubai and Bangkok, the film also makes the entry of a new producer, Dr C J Roy of the Confident Group in Malayalam cinema.

Scripted by Bobby and Sanjay, who has earlier written Rosshan’s ‘Note Book’, the movie is not actually based on the Venetian adventurer though. "It’s a sleek romantic action thriller with many stylishly shot action sequences that cost us a fortune," says the director.

Though he "hardly enjoyed the process of making", Andrews is confident of the outcome and thinks he has given Mohanlal one of the best characters of his career. "Sure, it was a hassle what with even Lal getting agitated by the shooting delay owing to my penchant for perfection. But at the end of the day he knew I could give him a good product," offers Andrews who has always given the actor characters of substance, be it the reclusive assistant film director in ‘Udayananu Tharam’ or the passionate farmer in ‘Ividum Swargamanu’.

There is a long list of heroines to keep Mohanlal company, from Shriya Saran, Roma, Lakshmi Rai and a special appearance by Sameera Reddy. There are also actresses from different countries playing key roles in the film. The cast includes, Jagathy Sreekumar, Lalu Alex, Shankar, Riyaz Khan and debutantes Vikram, Abhishek, Shamsi and Arjun.

The crew consists of camera man Gim Ganesh, art director Sunil and costume designer Sai. The film is being distributed by Ashirvad through Max Lab.