Nairobi mall attack: Malayalam film crew escapes by a whisker

A Malayalam movie crew which was shooting in Nairobi could have been trapped in the terrorist attack on the Westgate Mall, but for an overcast sky. Three members of the crew, including the director, cameraman and associate director, had visited the mall barely an hour before the attacks to identify appropriate locations within the building. They spent an hour in the mall till they received a call from the lead actor of the movie Indrajith asking them to get back home before it rained, according to a report in Malayala Manorama. Within half an hour of their leaving the mall, the director receieved a call again from Indrajith asking them if they had left. The attack had begun by then. [caption id=“attachment_1129723” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Smoke rises from the Westgate mall in Nairobi which was attacked. AFP[/caption] The crew has been in Nairobi for a few days now shooting for Naaku Pente Naaku Taka (apparently in Swahili language). They are still in Nairobi and will return only after finishing their shoot. Interestingly, two Malayalam movies have been shot in Africa recently. One is titled Escape from Uganda which tells the story of a young girl wrongly held in an Ugandal jail and her daring escape. The shoot of the movie has been completed and it is getting ready for release. The second is the one that is currently being shot in Kenya. National award winning Tamil actor Dhanush’s recent hit Maryaan also was shot extensively in African locations.