Nearly a month after its theatrical release, Nivin Pauly-starrer 'Prathichaya' is gearing up for its streaming release. Directed by B. Unnikrishnan, the political thriller is scheduled to make its OTT debut on JioHotstar on April 24, 2026.
Released in theatres on March 26, 2026, the film received mixed reviews from audiences and critics.
A technology-driven narrative, Nivin Pauly plays the techie son of the Kerala Chief Minister (Balachandra Menon), who is forced to get into the political game after his father's name gets tarnished by an unforeseen scandal while the latter is giving an interview for a television channel. Though inspired by true events, the film follows an entirely fictional narrative.
Sharaf U Dheen plays the chief antagonist and head of a tech company. Ann Augustine appears in a pivotal role. Veteran actors Maniyanpillai Raju and Harishree Ashokan play integral supporting roles. Vishnu Agasthya plays a television journalist, while Nishanth Sagar plays Pauly's elder brother, who also has his eye on the Chief Minister's seat. Sabitha Anand plays Pauly's mother.
The film has an approximate runtime of 2 hours and 40 minutes.
In its review of the film, THE WEEK wrote that "'Prathichaya' has that old-school charm found in some of the iconic 80s and 90s Malayalam political thrillers. It has emotional and thematic commonalities running the gamut from 'The Godfather' to 'Bhoomiyile Rajakkanmaar' to 'Narasimham' to 'Jacobinte Swargarajyam' to 'Lucifer'."
"Prathichaya" was shot by cinematographer Chandru Selvaraj ("Marco") and edited by Manoj. Justin Varghese composed the music.
