Abhishek Pathak, director of “Drishyam: The Conclusion,” says the Hindi franchise’s third installment tells an entirely new story unconnected to the Malayalam original, with Ajay Devgn returning as Vijay Salgaonkar for what Pathak calls the character’s darkest chapter yet.
The “Drishyam” franchise centers on a family man who covers up an accidental killing to protect his wife and daughters, then finds himself locked in a battle of wits with the police officer investigating the case.
“It’s completely different. It’s a new story. It’s nothing to do with Malayalam. It’s a very different film altogether,” Pathak tells Variety of the Hindi-language film film, which departs from Jeethu Joseph’s Malayalam “Drishyam 3” after the point where both franchises’ second installments ended.
Pathak also points to the spoiler culture around theatrical releases as a challenge distinct from the writing itself. He notes that the Malayalam “Drishyam 2” was available on a streaming platform while the Hindi “Drishyam 2” was still running in theaters, yet he did not see audiences posting spoilers online after watching the Hindi version on its opening weekend. He credits that restraint to viewers wanting to protect the experience for others rather than any ability to control what gets shared.
Of Devgn’s performance, Pathak points to restraint rather than the physicality the actor is known for elsewhere. “He doesn’t speak much as a character in the film. It’s all about him just thinking,” he says, noting Vijay Salgaonkar never resorts to violence across all three films.
Jaideep Ahlawat (“Paatal Lok”) joins the cast as a new investigating officer. “You will see a very different Jaideep Ahlawat. I don’t think he’s done something like this before,” Pathak says.
Pathak began his career as a director, assisting Anurag Kashyap and Luv Ranjan before returning from film school in New York in 2008. The following year, he wrote, directed and edited the short film “Boond,” a 26-minute Hindi-language drama set in a future village stricken by water scarcity, which won the Indian National Film Award for Best Short Fiction Film. He then moved into producing, including Ranjan’s “Pyaar Ka Punchnama,” before stepping back into the director’s chair with “Drishyam 2.”
As a producer, Pathak has just announced a horror film starring Devgn. On the directing side, he says he is developing ideas spanning science fiction and horror, and will not begin writing until he settles on a story. He says he is interested in long-form streaming projects eventually but feels Indian streaming content still lags behind global standards.
“Drishyam: The Conclusion” is produced by Panorama Studios and releases Oct. 2.
