Vilayath Budha: The Sandalwood Survival, an open-world mobile game released in February, has a lot of new features under its belt. Not only is it possibly India’s first movie-inspired open-world (mobile) game, but it is also the first-of-its-kind collaboration between a production house, Urvasi Theatres, and gaming company, Offline Human Studios. It also features Prithviraj Sukumaran, one of the first South Indian actors in a play like this.

malayalam movie Vilayath Buddhareleased in 2025 and based on the novel of the same name by GR Indugopan, it is about a sandalwood smuggler, Double Mohanan, his mentor, Bhaskaran Master and a sandalwood tree, Vilayath Budha. Prithviraj essays Mohanan.

Karthik Suresh, one of the co-founders of Offline Human Studios, says, “We are trying something different with the Vilayath Budha game. There is a perception that it is a promotion for the film. It is not. Typically, games are released around the release of a film, like recently Chatha Pacha. But not our game.”

The film was released in November 2025, while early access to the game (for downloads) only opened in the first week of February 2026. However, it has been in the works for over six months.

Offroad based game

Offline Human Studios wanted to create a game around a familiar title that not only had memories, as in this case, but also built a world around it. It helped that they were also eager to make an off-road game. Since the film was mainly shot in Marayoor, Idukki, they were able to showcase the lush natural beauty of Kerala.

Karthik explains, “With an open world game we can create a world that a player can explore, he can go anywhere in the game universe. The world is open for you to explore, in Vilayath Budha you can do it in the jeep, which is also a character in the film.”

Profit sharing with producers.

It might be difficult to convince a producer about the idea, but Urvasi Theaters were on board from the beginning, he adds. “This is a source of income for a production company/producer beyond the release of a movie. If the movie does well at the box office, the game will benefit, and even if not, the game can still generate income.” We knew them, Sandeep and Sangeeth Senan, from before, so it was easy to approach them; Other producers may not want to take the risk. It helped that Sangeeth is also a player.” Offline Human Studios has a profit-sharing agreement with Urvasi Theatres. They also have intellectual property (IP) consent to use the book’s title, Prithviraj’s face and the film’s assets.

Instead of releasing the game, Karthik says, they opted to provide early access so players could experience it and give feedback on what they would like in the next update. When it releases later this year, it will come out with a complete story; Access for now allows the “exploration” of smaller spaces and not the entire game universe.

Although it is inspired by a Malayalam film, the game’s lingua franca is “neutral”: English. Having Prithviraj in the game helps the game because the actor has pan-India appeal. “Those who access the game may not know the character, Double Mohanan or the film, but they know Prithviraj, and for them it is a game featuring him, which also adds a curiosity factor,” adds Karthik.

Offline Human Studios was formed in 2023 by Sharath Ravi, his brothers, Sanil and Sangeeth, as well as Karthik and Nithin Neena, friends who love playing video games and mobile games. They were among the 10 Indian companies at the Tokyo Game Show 2025, where they presented Fighter: 3D Pandavas, a fighting game inspired by the Mahabharata.

Published – March 6, 2026 09:27 am IST