V. Ravichandran began working on
Malla in March 2003, alongside
Pandu Ranga Vittala, another film he was acting in.
Malla was produced by
Ramu, under his production house, while Ravichandran directed it. He stated: "The audience can expect to see the earlier Ravichandran in
Malla. The film will have all gimmicks and heroisms of a Ravichandran-starrer and I want the cine-goers to take something back home after seeing the film. The film will touch the hearts of all the cine-goers. It will entertain, make people laugh and cry." He added that he would star as the eponymous lead Mallikarjuna "Malla", who has a love for flowers. He further said the film would have six tracks, and that
Priyanka Upendra would star opposite him, as a girl "who comes from abroad and becomes a village girl." Ravichandran wrote the film's story and lyrics for three tracks, and co-wrote the screenplay with
J. K. Bharavi, while actor
Mohan Shankar wrote the dialogues. ==Soundtrack==