“To be frank, I wasn’t a football person until I made this documentary,” says filmmaker Nyx Lopez on a call from Kochi, when asked about his latest directorial, Panthadikkaam, a five-episode docu-series about Keralam’s kinship with the sport, during the FIFA World Cup 2026. Narrated by veteran actor Mammootty, the show travels across the State, speaking to people about their relationship with football and the various festivities following the quadrennial tournament.
Released on October 1, Panthadikkaam follows former football players, fans and other stakeholders in Keralam, brought together by their favourite footballers and teams. From Argentinian and Portuguese fans painting their houses and cars, respectively, to Brazilian supporters serving payasam, Malayalis’ merriment knows no bounds when it comes to football.
Nyx Lopex
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Nyx, known for directing the music video of the viral track ‘Pacha Parishkari’ by Jay Stellar and ThirumaLi, was approached to direct the series after ZEE Entertainment Private Limited became the Indian broadcaster for the tournament. “Sangeetha (Janachandran, producer) was contacted by the team to explore the possibility of creating a documentary. But they wanted something between a show and a documentary. They didn’t realise how big the football culture in Keralam is, until they saw videos on Instagram,” he says.
Narrated by a legend
(From left) Sajeesh Swaminathan, Geetartha AR, Nyx Lopez, Mammootty and Sangeetha Janachandran
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“When we told the streaming platform about onboarding a narrator, we were looking at what David Attenborough did with the show, Our Planet. It was they who suggested Mammootty, and when I heard the name my knees started shaking,” recalls Nyx.
He continues, “We have been watching him since childhood and our expectations were high when we set out to work with him. He hasn’t done exclusive narrations before, and even though AI options are available to clone his voice, which have been used in the past, nothing could match his tone and modulation. Our brief was simple; we wanted it to be like someone in our neighbourhood telling Malayalis what football means to us.”
The director points out that, despite not being publicly associated with the sport that much, the actor often played exhibition matches and supports all sports. “He has his own way of enjoying the game. While we were at his residence for the recording, he even showed us his VR gaming console, where he plays football games.”
Behind the scenes
Panthadikkaam was meant to release during the World Cup, which took place in June and July, in the United States, Mexico and Canada. However, as the filming progressed, the team decided to include celebrations surrounding the semifinals and final.
“There can be multiple seasons for this show, which could talk about the sevens football culture, and other formats played here. We realised the influence this sport has on the people, and how it has helped them in life, to even come out of addiction,” says Nyx.
The team of nearly 15 members began shooting in July in Kozhikode and made their way to other districts. “All my teammates were big football fans. As I travelled for the documentary, I started becoming a fan of so many people and teams. My writer, Geetartha AR, helped me identify these stories and tie them together in the end instead of starting the shoot with preconceived expectations,” explains Nyx, who has also composed music for the award-winning Telugu film, Narudi Brathuku Natana.
A deeper layer
The film begins with Vysakh SR, captain of India’s first national amputee football team, narrating his love for the game and how an accident changed his life forever. Vysakh, who lost a leg at 13, is a consistent presence throughout the show and is an integral emotional cog in the documentary.
Vysakh SR in Panthadikkaam
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“Initially, we thought about having an internet personality as a host. But we wanted to capture raw emotions. We stumbled upon Vysakh on Instagram. He fought to get where he is now. The first time he says on camera, ‘Football is life, and without it I am not there’, I teared up. And that’s when we realised this is the person we were looking for.”
The documentary also explores the deeper politics around football in India. “Everything we see in the show is from the people. We asked most people the same set of questions. We developed the docu-series through their responses. Be it questions about the women’s team or the future of Indian football, eight-year-olds to 80-year-olds, they all have answers,” says Nyx, who has directed multiple short films and is gearing up for his feature film debut.
Panthadikkaam is streaming on Zee5
Published – October 15, 2026 08:00 am IST
