KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 — It’s finally happening — the critically acclaimed local Tamil film Jagat returns to cinemas nationwide on October 3 in celebration of its 10th anniversary, followed by the release of its two spiritual sequels: Macai on November 13 and Blues on December 4.
Ahead of the re-release, a special media screening was held yesterday at Lotus Five Star (LFS) cinemas in Petaling Jaya, giving members of the press a chance to revisit this groundbreaking story that took the nation by storm a decade ago.
Watching Jagat again felt much like experiencing it for the first time, with the key difference being that the film has been trimmed from its original 130 minutes to 120 minutes for a more compact experience, and the entire colour correction has been redone, according to director Sun-J Perumal.
The reason for the many postponements
The re-release and its accompanying sequels were first announced in April, but all three have faced multiple delays — initially slated for earlier this year, then postponed to align with Malaysia’s cultural month, and now finally scheduled for release at year’s end.
Sun-J, who helms all three films, explained that the delays were a necessity due to limited marketing funds, especially since the team was working on launching all three films within the same year.
“Whatever we do, we have to manage with very minimal resources and careful planning,” he said.
“Some parts of the marketing plan had to be postponed, so we felt we needed more time to do it properly.
“Eventually, some of the marketing activities were carried out two months later than originally planned.”
Sun-J Perumal explains why Jagat is returning to cinemas after 10 years. — Picture by Raymond Manuel
Why the sudden plan for a multiverse story?
The three films are being presented as the Jagat multiverse, and while it’s referred to as a multiverse, Sun-J clarified that the films are not directly connected or interconnected.
Each film features different characters, stories, but they all explore a “what if” scenario centred around Jagat’s main character, Appoy.
When asked about the origins of the multiverse idea, he explained that it began shortly after Jagat, when he started developing two additional scripts.
“I actually wanted to remake a Tamil series about a Mat Rempit story and adapt it into a Malay movie,” he said.
“I spent over a year and a half developing it, but I couldn’t strike the right balance, so I decided to put a full stop on it.”
He had also started working on another story, which was also put aside because it was not fully mature.
Blues was originally written around 2012, while Macai began as notes in 2018.
At that time, a multiverse was never part of the vision, as Sun-J intentionally avoided forcing the concept.
“While developing these two stories, a friend pointed out that the characters might be connected,” he said.
“That’s when we started to see the possibilities.”
He added, “Maybe it was in my subconscious, but I hadn’t realised it until my friend mentioned it.
“After that, I saw the connection clearly.”
Karnan G. Crak, who had a minor role in ‘Jagat’, now stars as Siam in ‘Macai’. — Picture courtesy of Skyzen Studio
Possibilities of more films, and the actors’ excitement
There could be more stories set in the Jagat multiverse, though Sun-J noted he might not be the one to direct them.
“It really depends on how well the multiverse does,” he said.
“I do have some ideas, but we’ll have to see how things go.”
For now, Jagat, Macai, and Blues are set to hit cinemas.
Kuben Mahadevan, who played Maniam (Appoy’s father in Jagat), told Malay Mail that he’s excited to see the film being re-screened
“Jagat was my debut movie 10 years ago, and the film definitely helped me in my career as I was able to learn many aspects of acting.
“I am really excited for Jagat, which will be followed up with Macai and Blues,” he said.
Karnan Kanapathy, widely known as Karnan G. Crak, had a minor role in Jagat, now carries the responsibility of lead actor in both spiritual sequels — Macai, as Siam, and Blues, as Karthi — portraying an alternate version of Appoy.
“It was God’s gift to transcend from a small role to becoming the lead in two films, and really a blessing to take on this responsibility,” he said.
Karnan G. Crak as lead character Karthi in ‘Blues’. — Picture courtesy of Skyzen Studio
The Jagat Multiverse is not to be missed
Jagat is a 1990s coming-of-age story about 12-year-old Appoy, who struggles with poverty, a strict father, and a criminally-influential uncle as he’s drawn toward a life of crime.
Macai will follow the story of the main character, Siam, who is a drug dealer in the fictional country of Lingapura, while Blue’s will follow the story of Karthi, a filmmaker.
This re-release and the upcoming new releases won’t be a one- or two-day event, as they are planned for a wide rollout across Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak, which will reach more than 25 cinemas by next Friday.
“We really hope people will come and watch Jagat,” said Sun-J.
“When it was released 10 years ago, it gained a cult following, and we were grateful — even if it was a small audience.”
He added that now is the perfect chance, as many people didn’t get the chance to watch it in cinemas the first time around, and after discovering it on Netflix or television, many asked if there would ever be back in cinemas.
“There’s also a new generation who have never seen it, and we hope audiences will also support Macai and Blues,” he concluded.
