During the early days of Covid-19, Malayala Manorama tried something bold: it turned a daily newspaper into a movie. On May 14, 2020, readers opened their morning paper to find the first episode of Locked Inn—a creative experiment born from lockdown restrictions.
Five years ago, when Covid-19 brought film production to a halt and homes became the only safe sets, Malayala Manorama attempted something innovative. It turned a daily newspaper into a movie !
On May 14, 2020, readers opened their morning paper to find the first episode of Locked Inn — a graphic-novel-styled cinematic narrative featuring popular Malayalam actors including Rahman, Jayasurya, Anu Sithara, Saiju Kurup, Aparna Gopinath, Aju Varghese, Vijay Babu, Lal Jose and Salim Kumar. The experiment unfolded over 14 daily episodes, closing on May 28, and soon became one of the most widely discussed creative outcomes of the lockdown.
There was no film crew, no studio, no professional lighting. Every actor shot their scenes from home, with makeup and costumes handled by themselves. The cameras were operated by the people closest to them. Rahman and Jayasurya were photographed by their daughters. Anu Sithara’s shots came from her husband’s lens. The raw visuals were then crafted into sequential panels by the editorial team, mimicking cinematic language and graphic novel style presentation, through still photographs.
It was a fresh form of storytelling — a movie printed in the newspaper. Locked Inn is believed to be the first project in the world to feature leading film stars in a photographic thriller, presented like a graphic novel inside a newspaper. The suspense-driven narrative invited readers to imagine motion between frames, as if leafing through a film strip frozen in time.
Audience engagement added an extra layer to the experiment. When the final chapter ended on a cliffhanger, Manorama called for reader-written endings. Nearly two hundred people sent in their versions. A jury including director Lal Jose and actor Salim Kumar selected two climaxes, which were blended into a published finale on June 21, 2020.
Five years later, Locked Inn continues to stand out as an example of how print media can reinvent itself. Even as global newsrooms explore multimedia formats and immersive design, this lockdown innovation remains a reminder that creativity thrives under pressure. It proved that a newspaper can entertain, involve and surprise — not by imitating cinema, but by transforming itself into one.
Locked Inn was conceived, written and directed by journalist and visual editor Manuel George. Photo editing was led by designer Ajo Kaitharam.
Read the online version here: Locked Inn
