The dilapidated church where Stephen Nedumpally, played by Mohanlal and Priyadarshini, enacted by Manju Warrier meet was one of the memorable locations in the blockbuster Malayalam movie ‘Lucifer’ of 2019. However, a visitor to the church would not recognize the church now as it has undergone a beautiful makeover.
The renovation of the crumbled church building, located at Cheenthalar in Idukki, was carried out after the huge success of the movie and worship has resumed. The man who took up the task of giving the church a fresh lease of life is none other than the producer of ‘Lucifer’, Antony Perumbavoor.
In the film, Stephen waits on a tomb in the cemetery attached to the church when Priyadarshini walks out of the dilapidated building. Director of ‘Luficer’ and actor Prithviraj had scouted for an ideal location to picturise the scene at several places in India before reaching Cheenthalar. Prithviraj was struck by the beauty of the place and realizing that the crumbled church was the perfect location he was searching for, started shooting immediately.
The church was built by the British who reached the area for tea trade. Later, CSI, Marthoma and Jacobite congregations carried out worship under the aegis of the Union Church. Over the years, time took its toll on the building and the church was virtually abandoned. When the film shooting took place, the church authorities shared the problems they faced in renovating the place of worship and Antony Perumbavoor decided to take up the task. At present, the renovated church and the cemetery are attracting several visitors.