Rekhachithram: How A Casual Chat Sparked Jofin T. Chacko’s Vision For A Unique Mystery Thriller!
Director Jofin T. Chacko reveals how a casual conversation led to Rekhachithram, the only Malayalam hit of January 2025, blending historical fiction with a cinematic mystery. Read on!
Rekhachithram was the only financially successful Malayalam film released in January 2025. The film stood out for its unique premise, blending historical fiction with an alternate take on real events, seamlessly intertwining fact and imagination.
One of the film’s biggest talking points was its use of artificial intelligence to recreate Mammootty from the 1980s. While the attempt was impressive, something was slightly off—the digital recreation wasn’t convincing enough and couldn’t fully capture the essence of the legendary actor.
The story of Rekhachithram revolves around the exhumation of a decades-old skeleton, which turns out to be that of a girl who appeared in a song sequence from the 1985 film Kathodu Kathoram. The discovery sparks an investigation decades later, unraveling a mystery deeply connected to the classic film.
Director Jofin T. Chacko recently spoke to Cinema Express, sharing insights into what inspired him to make the film and how the idea first took shape.
Even before making his directorial debut with The Priest, Jofin T. Chacko had the idea for Rekhachithram. It all began when he and his friend Ramu Sunil were watching Aravindante Athidhikal (2018). During the interval, Ramu proposed a what-if scenario, an alternate history linked to making the film they were watching.
Jofin immediately saw the potential in that line of thought and the possibility of crafting a film around it. After the screening, the two discussed the idea further, and Jofin locked in the title Rekhachithram that very day. They also selected the film that would serve as its backdrop, Kathodu Kathoram (1985), starring Mammootty and directed by Bharathan.
While Jofin could have chosen a more popular film, his decision was influenced by the presence of Mammootty and the iconic song Devadoothar Paadi, which remains immensely popular in Kerala. Reflecting on his connection to Kathodu Kathoram, Jofin said, ‘As a child, I had seen the film a couple of times, but I’m unsure if I enjoyed it at that age. Later, as part of preps for Rekhachithram, I revisited it often and started appreciating it better.’
