the screenplay "tight" in order to engage viewers and that he worked extensively on the set-up of the single room. Technicians including editor R. Sudharsan, and Cinematographer A. Packiaraj, an erstwhile assistant to Nirav Shah during the making of Billa (2007) and Sarvam (2009), was signed on to work in the project that was produced by Sundar. Santhosh Prathap was signed on to play the lead actor, Shyam Krishnan signed to play the villain role, with other actors including Jeeva Ravi, Jayakumar and Kadhal Kannan also joining the cast. Model Iraa Agarwal was signed on to play one of the leading roles after Kannan had been impressed with her portfolio, and had successfully convinced her to make her acting debut through the project. Aanchal Singh, who earlier appeared in the horror film Jackson Durai (2016), was signed as another leading female actress. Another model Samaira Sandhu also made her acting debut as one of the female leads with the film and completed shooting for her scenes in fifteen days, along with the other seven actors, by October 2015. The film's release was delayed for over a year as post-production work took place throughout 2016 and early 2017, with composer Sathish Selvam recording the background score with the assistance of a sixty-piece orchestra in Macedonia. Soundtrack The film's soundtrack was composed by debutant Sathish Selvam, and released on 19 December 2016 through the Super Cassettes Industries label. Reception Malini Mannath of The New Indian Express compared it to the psychological thrillers Identity, Exam, Cube, and The Island, saying that Dhayam is "for hardcore lovers of the genre". Criticising the early parts of the film, Mannath said it is difficult to connect to, but it eventually generates interest as the plot makes more sense. The Times of India gave the film a mixed review, stating, "In Dhayam, the director has a concept that could prove a challenge even for an experienced director, but his lack of experience turns this into a clumsy effort that tests our patience". The critic added, "even if you can overlook the amateurishness performances, which would be deemed passable only in a school play, the inept blocking of actors and the staging of the scenes — crucial in a chamber piece like this one — stop the film from finding the tone that such a film needs". Indiaglitz.com's reviewer cited "go for it if you fancy a few