‘Qadeesso’ directed by Malayali filmmaker Pradeep Cherian recently won the award for the best philosophical film in the spiritual mystical category at the Cannes World Film Festival. While the film explores the struggles of a young priest within the fabric of society, it also turns a mirror to the inequalities and petty fights for material benefits that are seen among the faithful.
The movie was nominated in the spiritual mystical category along with other films from various countries. Pradeep who is the nephew of legendary filmmaker and writer John Abraham was also nominated in the best debut director category.
"'Qadeesso is a Syriac term meaning pure or saintly, which is commonly used among the Orthodox Christian community. The Suriyani Malayalam dialect, which was popular before, does not exist any longer. The story was written way before the Covid pandemic broke out in 2020. After the pandemic, we started discussions and began filming soon after. The film was mostly shot in Kottayam. It narrates the struggles of a young priest who is newly appointed as an assistant vicar in a church. We have included a Greek song as well as parts of the Holy Qurbana. Though most of the dialogues are in Malayalam, we have included English dialogues too. The film was completed on a really small budget. We plan to premier it at film festivals. I am extremely glad about the win and also happy that Qadeesso is also eligible to participate in the final exhibition which will be held at the end of this year,” says Pradeep.
Sanal Aman who essayed a pivotal role in the movie ‘Maalik’ plays the protagonist in ‘Qadeesso’. Devaki Bhagi who acted in ‘Neelavelicham’, Suni Babu, among others have also acted in this film. 'Qadeesso' is Pradeep's first feature film. The director who is an expert in augmented reality and worked as a computer graphics broadcast designer, has directed a few ad films as well as documentaries.