# Arun Anirudhan
**Arun Anirudhan** (അരുൺ അനിരുദ്ധൻ) is an Indian screenwriter and film director who works in [Malayalam cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/malayalam-cinema). He is best known as co-writer, with Justin Mathew, of *Minnal Murali* (2021), Malayalam cinema's first superhero film, and he made his directorial debut with the campus action-comedy *Athiradi* (2026).[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/) • [2](https://www.boxofficeindia24.com/now-playing/2026-06-05/athiradi) He entered the industry as a writer with [Biju Menon](https://www.edgepedia.org/biju-menon)'s *Padayottam* (2018).[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8784774/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Profession | Malayalam screenwriter and film director[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/) |
| Writing credits | *Padayottam* (2018), *Minnal Murali* (2021), *Athiradi* (2026)[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8784774/) |
| *Minnal Murali* | Co-written with Justin Mathew; Malayalam's first superhero film; released worldwide on Netflix in December 2021[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/) |
| Idea origin | A 2018 meme of Batman draped in a lungi and armed with a vettuval (a sword) sparked the concept of a village superhero[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/) |
| Directorial debut | *Athiradi*, a campus action-comedy premiered on 13 May 2026, from a screenplay written with Paulson Skaria[2](https://www.boxofficeindia24.com/now-playing/2026-06-05/athiradi) • [4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) |
| *Athiradi* production | Debut production of the Basil Joseph Entertainment banner, with Dr Ananthu Entertainment; Sameer Thahir and Tovino Thomas as co-producers[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) |
## Early career
Anirudhan began in films as an assistant director, first with Khalid Rahman, and describes his experiences on director Sachy's *Anarkali* as formative; he has said that learning screenplay writing was the best decision of his career.[5](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html) His first screen credit as a writer came with *Padayottam* (2018), a comedy starring Biju Menon that also featured [Basil Joseph](https://www.edgepedia.org/basil-joseph).[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8784774/) • [4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam)
## Minnal Murali
The idea for *Minnal Murali* came to Anirudhan in 2018, when he saw a meme showing Batman draped in a lungi and holding a vettuval. He developed a one-liner about a superhero from Kerala and chose the title *Minnal Murali* ("Murali of lightning"), pitching it to Basil Joseph during the post-production of *Padayottam*. Joseph brought Justin Mathew in as co-writer in November 2018, and the final script was locked in November 2019.[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/)
**Writing method and setting.** The duo deliberately placed the story in a rooted village setup rather than a city, creating a fantasy village called Kurukkanmoola, and blended native [Malayalam drama](https://www.edgepedia.org/malayalam-drama) with superhero elements; Basil Joseph asked Anirudhan to watch superhero films across languages and Mathew to study classic Malayalam dramas by [K. G. George](https://www.edgepedia.org/k-g-george), [Padmarajan](https://www.edgepedia.org/padmarajan), and Bharathan. Anirudhan and Mathew each wrote their own version of every scene and then chose and refined the better version with Joseph.[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/)
Anirudhan has said the script went through roughly 40 drafts and that developing the villain, Shibu, took more than six months, because a village setting ruled out the powerful, well-built antagonists typical of the genre; the writers instead built social and emotional motivations for the character. The Shibu character is loosely inspired by the character [K. B. Ganesh Kumar](https://www.edgepedia.org/k-b-ganesh-kumar) played in the 1985 film *Irakal*.[5](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html) • [1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/)
The film, directed by Basil Joseph with [Tovino Thomas](https://www.edgepedia.org/tovino-thomas) as the tailor Jaison and [Guru Somasundaram](https://www.edgepedia.org/guru-somasundaram) as Shibu, released worldwide on Netflix in December 2021 to positive responses from critics and audiences.[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/) Though written with a theatrical release in mind, the writers considered the Netflix release beneficial because the film reached audiences in 150 countries and streams in six languages.[1](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/)
## Athiradi
*Athiradi* marked Anirudhan's debut as a director, from a screenplay he wrote with Paulson Skaria, the co-writer of *[Kaathal – The Core](https://www.edgepedia.org/kaathal-the-core)* and *Neymar*.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) The makers first announced an Onam 2026 release window and later moved toward a May release; production wrapped in early January 2026, and the film premiered on 13 May 2026.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) • [2](https://www.boxofficeindia24.com/now-playing/2026-06-05/athiradi)
The film is set against a campus backdrop and draws on college festivals for its material; Anirudhan described it as a festival entertainer combining comedy and action, with plot details largely kept under wraps before release.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) • [5](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html) It reunites the *Minnal Murali* creative circle: Basil Joseph plays Samkutty (Samboy), Tovino Thomas plays a negative-shaded character, and [Vineeth Sreenivasan](https://www.edgepedia.org/vineeth-sreenivasan) appears in a major role.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) • [6](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/interview/2026/05/11/basil-joseph-and-riya-shibu-talks-about-athiradi-movie.html)
**Production and release.** *Athiradi* is the debut production of the Basil Joseph Entertainment banner, made with Dr Ananthu Entertainment, with Sameer Thahir and Tovino Thomas also on board as co-producers.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) The technical crew included composer Vishnu Vijay, cinematographer Samuel Henry, editor [Chaman Chakko](https://www.edgepedia.org/chaman-chakko), and production designer Maanav Suresh, and the film runs 2 hours 36 minutes on Sony LIV.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam) • [7](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/tovino-thomass-next-film/wEFEqCtZCwQuPGA8gXQ2c6/credits/) Basil Joseph's first-look poster as Samboy trended online ahead of release, aided by his standing as the maker of *Minnal Murali* and star of *Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Hey* and *[Ponman](https://www.edgepedia.org/ponman)*.[4](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam)
In interviews around the release, Anirudhan argued that *Athiradi* was unlikely to land the same impact on OTT as it did in theaters.[8](https://www.doolnews.com/director-arun-anirudhan-talks-about-his-movie-athiradi-and-its-ott-chances-64-159.html) As of mid-2026 he was writing the screenplay for Basil Joseph's next directorial venture.[5](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html)
## Writing approach
Anirudhan has framed screenplay craft in structural terms: writing should be arranged so that even reading a single page out of sequence still leaves the story intelligible, and he endorses the view that a good writer can become a good director.[5](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html) His two major scripts illustrate the method. *Minnal Murali* adapted a foreign genre to a specific Kerala village idiom, while *Athiradi* applied the entertainer format to college life, with the climax tying the threads together, in one review account, with unexpected care.[2](https://www.boxofficeindia24.com/now-playing/2026-06-05/athiradi)
## References
1. [Chandhini R (28 December 2021). "'Minnal Murali' Writers Arun Anirudhan & Justin Mathew on Creating Malayalam's First Superhero Film", Silverscreen India (archived)](https://silverscreenindia.com/movies/interviews/minnal-murali-writers-arun-anirudhan-justin-mathew-on-creating-malayalams-first-superhero-film/)
2. ["Athiradi – Now Playing", BoxOffice India](https://www.boxofficeindia24.com/now-playing/2026-06-05/athiradi)
3. ["Arun Anirudhan", IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8784774/)
4. ["Athiradi makers plan May release instead of Onam", Cinema Express (10 January 2026)](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/malayalam/news/2026/Jan/10/athiradi-makers-plan-may-release-instead-of-onam)
5. [Vinu Janardhanan (18 May 2026). "'മിന്നൽ മുരളി' സംവിധായകൻ അഭിമുഖം", Malayala Manorama](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/movie-news/2026/05/18/athiradi-movie-director-arun-anirudhan-interview.html)
6. [Uma R Farook (12 May 2026). "'അതിരടി'യിൽ ടൊവീനോ എത്തുന്നത് നെഗറ്റീവ് ഷേഡിൽ", Malayala Manorama](https://www.manoramaonline.com/movies/interview/2026/05/11/basil-joseph-and-riya-shibu-talks-about-athiradi-movie.html)
7. ["Athiradi Cast & Crew", Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/tovino-thomass-next-film/wEFEqCtZCwQuPGA8gXQ2c6/credits/)
8. [Ashwin Rajendran (23 May 2026). "ഒ.ടി.ടിയില് വരുമ്പോള് വര്ക്കാവാന് സാധ്യതയില്ല: അരുണ് അനിരുദ്ധന്", DoolNews](https://www.doolnews.com/director-arun-anirudhan-talks-about-his-movie-athiradi-and-its-ott-chances-64-159.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screenwriters and television writers › Film screenwriters*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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