The trailer begins with a voiceover that sets the tone. It asks: given that there are two minority communities living here, should we deliberately incite a riot?
It looks like two communities are being taken advantage of and it is up to their leaders to protect them. One such leader appears to be Sulaiman (Fahadh Faasil), a devout person who never misses prayer, probably in his early 60s. We hear that he has given up everything (we don't yet know exactly what). All he wants to do now is to take the Haj pilgrimage. Yet, an assassin is hired to finish him off. He can't be just another devout person.
The trailer shifts to an earlier period, perhaps in the 80s, where Sulaiman comes off as a less pious and far more libertine individual. He appears to be in the process of becoming some kind of a don and also a leader in his community. Dileesh Pothan's character appears to be his consigliere. The trailer ends with Sulaiman exhorting a crowd to unite.
Set across timelines, the film also stars Nimisha Sajayan, Joju George, Maala Parvathi, Dileesh Pothan, Divya Prabha, Salim Kumar and Indrans.
The DOP is Sanu Varghese (Lootcase, Jersey, David) and the music is by Sushin Shyam (Kumbalangi Nights, Anjaam Pathira). It is being edited by the director himself.
The same director-actor duo made C U Soon during the heights of the Pandemic, even though Malik was complete and ready to release. Produced by Anto Joseph, this is also one of Fahadh's most expensive films with extensive set and CG work going in to.
Malik is Fahadh Faasil's third film with Mahesh Narayanan after Take Off and C U Soon. Malik was originally supposed to release in April 2020, but it had to be postponed due to COVID-19. The long-delayed big-budget film will release on May 13, 2021.