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Mollywood
Malayalam OTT Roundup: Mammootty's Kalamkaval and Dileep's Bha Bha Ba Headline the Early January Slate
BY SACNILK
The Malayalam digital space is off to an explosive start in 2026, with major streaming platforms like SonyLiv, Zee5, and Prime Video rolling out a diverse slate of content. Between January 9 and January 16, Mollywood fans are in for a treat as high-octane action comedies, gritty crime thrillers, and intense sports dramas make their digital premieres. Leading the pack is the psychological thriller Kalamkaval, featuring a stellar face-off between Mammootty and Vinayakan, and Dileep's satirical mass-entertainer Bha Bha Ba.Here is your comprehensive guide to the Malayalam movies arriving on OTT in the opening weeks of the year. OTT Releases This Week Jan 9 , 2026 Balti Sports Drama Prime Video Language:Malayalam Running Time: 2h 31m IMDB Rating:6.6/10 View Box Office Collection→ Set in a border town between Kerala and Tamil Nadu, Balti follows Udhayan (Shane Nigam) and his three close friends, all talented kabaddi players known as the Panjami Raiders. While their lives initially revolve around the sport, they are soon drawn into a dangerous conflict involving three ruthless local loan sharks: Soda Babu (Alphonse Puthren), Porthamarai Bhairavan (Selvaraghavan), and Gee Ma (Poornima Indrajith). As the four friends become pawns in the criminals' fraudulent power plays, their loyalties and friendships are tested, transforming the story from a spirited sports drama into a gritty, violent revenge saga Jan 9, 2026 Khedda: The Trap Family Drama Manorama Max Language:Malayalam Running Time:1h 34m IMDB Rating: 6.4/10 Khedda - The Trap is a family thriller starring Asha Sharath and her daughter Uthara Sharath. The film follows a mother and daughter whose lives are upended by the dangers of the digital age, exploring how smartphones and social media can lead to devastating emotional traps. Directed by Manoj Kana, the narrative serves as a cautionary tale about modern vulnerability and the changing dynamics of family relationships in a tech-driven world. Jan 9, 2026 Guardian Angel Action, Thriller simply south Language:Malayalam Running Time: 2h 27m IMDB Rating: 4.3/10 Directed and written by Sergeant Saju S Das, Guardian Angel is an intense action-drama that follows Devan, a once-honest and principled police officer. His life collapses following a chain of tragic events that fracture his moral compass and ignite a desperate thirst for vengeance. As Devan's quest for retribution begins to overshadow his duty, the film explores themes of betrayal, grief, and the radical transformation of a person's soul when pushed to the edge. Jan 9, 2026 Leech Action,Drama Manorama Max Language:Malayalam Running Time: 1h 36m IMDB Rating: 7.0/10 Leech is an action-crime thriller that follows Karthi (Anoop Rethna) and Megha (Megha), a traveling couple whose journey takes a dark turn after an unforeseen accident. Stranded in a dense forest, they encounter predatory individuals who, like the film's namesake, silently exploit and "feed" off their victims' vulnerability. The narrative explores intense themes of survival, human greed, and the loss of trust in a desperate fight against hidden threats. Jan 16, 2026 Bha Bha Ba Comedy,Thriller Zee5 Language:Malayalam Running Time: 2h 33m IMDB Rating:5.8/10 View Box Office Collection→ Bha Bha Ba is a high-octane Malayalam action-comedy spoof starring Dileep as an eccentric commoner who plunges Kerala into chaos by kidnapping the newly elected Chief Minister. Hiding in plain sight, he demands that citizens submit their grievances directly to him while being pursued by the CM’s son, an NIA officer played by Vineeth Sreenivasan. The film, which features a notable cameo by Mohanlal, balances no-logic madness with a revenge-driven backstory centered on the protagonist's past trauma. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Jan 16, 2026 Kalamkaval Crime,Suspense SonyLiv Language:Malayalam Running Time: 2h 19m IMDB Rating: 7.3/10 View Box Office Collection→ Kalamkaval is a 2025 psychological crime thriller that reimagines the real-life Cyanide Mohan serial killer case. The narrative follows SI Jayakrishnan (Vinayakan) as he uncovers a pattern of missing women while investigating a village riot. The trail leads him to Stanley Das (Mammootty), a mild-mannered policeman who leads a double life, luring vulnerable women to secluded lodges only to murder them for a psychological high. In a tense cat-and-mouse game, Stanley infiltrates the investigation to sabotage it, but his facade eventually crumbles through a survivor's testimony and a clever ruse by Jayakrishnan. The film concludes with a violent confrontation and a lingering hint that the killer may have survived. /* ---------- OTT Section ---------- */ .ott-section { font-family: "Nunito Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.5px; line-height: 1.7; max-width: 960px; margin: 20px auto; padding: 20px; background: #fafafa; border-radius: 12px; box-shadow: 0 2px 10px rgba(0,0,0,0.06); } .ott-section * { font-style: normal !important; } .ott-section h2 { font-size: 1.8rem; margin-bottom: 18px; color: #222; border-bottom: 2px solid #e6e6e6; padding-bottom: 10px; font-weight: 600; } /* ---------- Card ---------- */ .ott-card { position: relative; background: #fff; border-radius: 12px; padding: 18px; margin-bottom: 20px; box-shadow: 0 1px 6px rgba(0,0,0,0.05); } /* ---------- Date pill ---------- */ .ott-date { position: absolute; top: 18px; right: 18px; background: linear-gradient(90deg,#3b0078,#5b2b99); color: #fff; padding: 6px 14px; border-radius: 20px; font-size: 13px; white-space: nowrap; box-shadow: 0 2px 6px rgba(0,0,0,0.12); font-style: normal !important; } /* ---------- Grid: Poster + Meta ---------- */ .ott-grid { display: grid; grid-template-columns: 150px minmax(0, 1fr); gap: 20px; align-items: start; } .ott-poster-wrap { display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: flex-start; } .ott-poster { width: 150px; height: 210px; border-radius: 10px; object-fit: cover; box-shadow: 0 2px 8px rgba(0,0,0,0.12); margin-top: 18px; transition: transform 0.18s ease; } .ott-poster-wrap:hover .ott-poster { transform: translateY(-3px); } /* ---------- Meta ---------- */ .ott-meta { display: flex; flex-direction: column; justify-content: flex-start; align-items: flex-start; } /* Title */ .ott-title { font-size: 1.4rem; font-weight: 700; margin: 0 0 10px 0; } .ott-title a { text-decoration: none; color: #000; font-style: normal !important; } /* Pills / Tags */ .ott-tags { display: flex; gap: 8px; flex-wrap: wrap; margin-bottom: 10px; align-items: center; } .genre-pill, .ott-pill { display: inline-flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center; gap: 6px; padding: 6px 12px; border-radius: 999px; font-size: 13px; font-weight: 600; text-align: center; min-width: 110px; height: 32px; } .genre-pill { background: #f7e9e9; color: #d6336c; } .ott-pill { background: #e9f0ff; color: #1f4f91; } .ott-pill img { width: 20px; height: 20px; object-fit: contain; border-radius: 3px; } /* Info section */ .ott-info p { margin: 4px 0; font-size: 1rem; color: #444; font-style: normal !important; } .ott-info strong { color: #222; } /* Synopsis */ .ott-desc { margin-top: 16px; font-size: 1rem; color: #555; line-height: 1.6; text-align: justify; font-style: normal !important; } /* Box office / links */ .ott-links a { color: #5b2b99; text-decoration: none; font-weight: 600; font-style: normal !important; } /* ---------- Responsive ---------- */ @media (max-width: 768px) { .ott-grid { grid-template-columns: 1fr; gap: 14px; } .ott-poster { width: 180px; height: 250px; margin-top: 0; } .ott-poster-wrap { justify-content: center; } .ott-meta { text-align: center; align-items: center; } .ott-title { text-align: center; } .ott-tags { justify-content: center; } .ott-desc { text-align: left; } .ott-date { top: 10px; right: 10px; } }
