Malayalam star Prithviraj and the crew of his film Aadujeevitham are stuck in Jordan after curfew was imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak. Besides Prithviraj and the film’s director Blessy, the 58-member crew that was shooting in the deserts of Jordan are currently stranded there. The team was asked to stop shooting by the Jordanian authorities as a result of measures taken because of the pandemic.
After reports of the crew being stuck in Jordan came out, Prithviraj put out a message on his social media giving his fans, followers and the media more information about their situation. As a part of his note, Prithviraj says, “As we had originally planned to stay and shoot in Wadi Rum till the 2nd week of April, our accommodation, food and supplies are taken care of for the immediate future. But obviously, what happens beyond that timeline is a matter of concern”.
Read Prithviraj’s message here:
Hello all.
Hope everyone is holding up and doing their best to stay safe during these tough times. On 24/03/2020, the shooting of Aadujeevitham in Jordan was temporarily stopped due to the prevailing circumstances. But after an appraisal of our situation, the authorities were convinced that our unit was isolated and operating safely within the confines of the Wadi Rum desert, and hence, we were given a go ahead for the shoot.
Unfortunately, soon after, the prevailing restrictions in Jordan had to be further strengthened as a precautionary measure and as a result, our shoot permission was revoked on 27/03/2020. Following that, our team has been staying at the desert camp in Wadi Rum. We have now been told that an immediate permission for shoot to resume is unlikely due to the situation and hence, our next best option would be to return to India at the first available opportunity.
As we had originally planned to stay and shoot in Wadi Rum till the 2nd week of April, our accommodation, food and supplies are taken care of for the immediate future. But obviously, what happens beyond that timeline is a matter of concern.
We have a doctor in our team who’s carrying out medical check ups for each member of the crew every 72 hours, and we are also subjected to periodic check ups by a govt appointed Jordanian doctor. We completely understand that given the circumstances around the world, our team of 58 might not be the biggest concern of authorities back home now, and rightfully so. But we also felt that it was our duty to let all concerned know about the situation and keep them updated.
There are thousands of Indians around the world waiting to get back home and we hope when the appropriate time and opportunity arrives, we are also able to come back to India. Till then, I hope all of you stay safe and let’s collectively hope and pray that life gets back to normal soon.
Cheers.
It was earlier reported that fIlmmaker Blessy has sought help from the central government and the Kerala state government. The Kerala Film Chamber has also requested the authorities to provide possible help the film crew. According to a report, the Aadujeevitham team had earlier got permission to shoot after an intervention from the Indian government. The crew was working on their second schedule in Jordan’s Wadi Rum region for the last few weeks and were going to continue shooting till the second week of April.
According to a report in The Hindu, after one of the Omani actors on the crew was quarantined along with his translator, and with the spread of coronavirus globally getting more severe, the Jordanian authorities reversed its permission given to shoot.
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