Ever since Eko was released last year and recently premiered on Netflix, actor Saheer Mohammed has been absorbing the scale of its reception. The film revolves around the search for a mysterious man named Kuriachan and has emerged as one of the biggest successes in Malayalam cinema in 2025. Within this layered mystery, Saheer plays Pappachan, an erstwhile police driver who assists a navy officer portrayed by Narain.
Harbouring a deep resentment towards Kuriachan, Pappachan becomes the lens through which the audience understands the cruelty inflicted on Naxals during the Emergency period, including Kuriachan’s use of trained dogs as instruments of terror. According to Saheer, the response to Eko has been immensely heartening. “Many people from the industry personally called or met me to appreciate the work.” For an actor who has travelled a long, interrupted path to recognition, the reassurance mattered deeply.
Saheer stepped into the world of Eko without knowing its full emotional or narrative scope. “I was only told who Paapachan is in the present, his intention and state of mind,” he explains. “There was no detailed backstory. I didn’t even know the full story of the film while shooting. I discovered the full story of the film when I watched the final cut in the theatre, and it took me by surprise in a good way.” That restraint, he feels, allowed instinct to guide the performance.
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