Kesavan Venugopal, better known by his stage name Nedumudi Venu, was an Indian actor and screenwriter from Kerala, who predominantly worked in Malayalam cinema. He acted in more than 500 films, primarily in Malayalam and also in Tamil in a career spanning nearly five decades. He wrote screenplays and directed one film. Nedumudi Venu won three National Film Awards and six Kerala State Film Awards for his various performances.
Sreekumar Achary, better known by his stage name Jagathy Sreekumar or simply Jagathy, is an Indian actor, director and playback singer, who has appeared in over 1500 Malayalam films in a career spanning almost four decades. Widely regarded as the greatest comedian in the history of Malayalam cinema, he is also known for his highly nuanced character roles. He is the son of acclaimed dramaturge and writer, the late Jagathy N. K. Achary.
The Mata Amritanandamayi Math (MAM) is an international charitable organization aimed at the spiritual and material upliftment of humankind. It was founded by Indian spiritual leader and humanitarian Mata Amritanandamayi in 1981, with its headquarters in Paryakadavu, Alappad Panchayat, Kollam district, Kerala. Along with its sister organization, the Mata Amritanandamayi Mission Trust, MAM conducts charitable work including disaster relief, healthcare for the poor, environmental programs, fighting hunger and scholarships for impoverished students, amongst others. It also runs the seven-campus university known as Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, 90 chain of English medium CBSE schools known as Amrita Vidyalayam, and classes in yoga, meditation and Sanskrit.
Balachandran Chullikkad is an Indian poet, orator, lyricist and actor in Malayalam-language media.
Kaviyoor Ponnamma is an Indian actress who appears in Malayalam films and television. She began her career performing in theatre dramas before foraying into cinema. She has also acted in TV serials and commercials and has playback singing credits in few films. Ponnamma is a four-time Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actress winner. Her sister Kaviyoor Renuka was also an actress. Often called as the Mother to all actors, she has acted as mother of almost all actors in her career panning over decades. At the age of 20, she played the mother of Sathyan and Madhu in the 1965 movie Thommente Makkal. She gained critical acclaim for acting as the mother of the actor Mohanlal.
Gayatri Asokan is a playback singer who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. She started her playback career with the song "Deena Dayalo Rama" for the film Arayannagalude Veedu for music director Raveendran. "Enthe Nee Kanna" for Sasneham Sumitra won her the Kerala State Film Award for Best Singer in 2003. Her other songs include "Chanjadi Adi" from Makalkku, "Thumbikkinnaram" from Naran and "Pularumo" from Ritu.
Dhamu is a retired Indian actor, comedian and mimicry artist who mainly acted in Tamil films. He is known for his role as Otteri Nari in Ghilli (2004). He was a part of Gaana Galata Group, a popular touring and acting comedy troupe. Since then, he has appeared in several films. He has quit mainstream acting and has opened an agency to represent comedy shows known as 'Tamarai Bharani Comedy Agency'. He once hosted a program "Kalakkal Comedy" on Sun TV. He worked as assistant to the former Indian President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam for seven years. He was also a children's education advocate.
Padmadalakshan, better known by his stage name Kuthiravattam Pappu, was a popular Indian stage and film actor. His repertoire of acting was based on his unique style and use of the Kozhikodan dialect, impeccable timing and the capability to grasp the subtle nuances of any character and mould it into his signature "Pappu style". He acted in over a thousand Malayalam films. He made his debut in a small comic role in Bhargavi Nilayam. His character was named Kuthiravattom, a name that stuck for the rest of his career.
Siddique (born 1 October 1962 ) is an Indian actor and producer, who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. Along with appearing in over 350 Malayalam films, he has also acted in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi language films. He is known for having played a wide range of starring and supporting roles, including comic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes and villains.
S. Krishnamoorthy professionally known as Madhan Bob, is an Indian actor and comedian, appearing in many Tamil films in supporting roles. Madhan Babu is known for his amusing facial expressions, laughter and protruding eyeballs. He appeared in the popular Sun TV comedy show Asatha Povathu Yaaru? as one of the judges. Madhan Bob ventured into the film industry by donning the role of a musician.
Vennira Aadai Moorthy is an Indian actor and comedian in Tamil cinema. He has starred in many Tamil films and television serials as a comedian and also played supporting roles. He is a lawyer by education, and holds a B.L. degree in addition to a PhD in astrology. He is married to actress Manimala who played Suhasini's mother in Sindhu Bhairavi and the heroine in Vallavanukku Vallavan (1965). He is also a well known script-writer. Kamal Haasan's first full-fledged film as hero Maalai Sooda Vaa, had Murthy as a script writer.
DD Malayalam is a Malayalam language television channel operated by India's national broadcaster Doordarshan. The name DD4 was changed to DD Malayalam after 1995. It is one of the 11 Indian regional language channels operated by Doordarshan. DD Malayalam broadcasts from Kudappanakunnu, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
K. N. Jagannatha Varma was an Indian actor who worked in Malayalam film and television industry. He was also a Kathakali artist. His son Manu Varma is also an artist and his son-in-law Viji Thampi is a film director. He acted in a number of Malayalam movies performing roles of a senior police officer, judge or a priest. Some of his noted roles were in movies New Delhi (1987), Thanthram (1988), Lelam (1997) and Pathram (1999), all directed by Joshiy. Varma joined the Kerala Police Force in 1963, before getting active in movies. He retired from the Kerala Police as the Superintendent of Police.
Damayanthi, better known by her stage name Kozhikode Santha Devi, was an Indian Malayalam film and stage actress. In a career spanning about sixty years, she acted in more than 1000 plays and about 480 films.
Anuradha is an Indian film and television actress. She was mainly active in the 1980s and 1990s. She was known for her item numbers. She has acted in Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi and Oriya-language films.
Santhakumari is an Indian actress best known for her work in Malayalam cinema. She has acted in more than 250 films, dramas, television serials and short films.
T. N. Krishnachandran is an Indian actor, playback singer, and dubbing artist in Malayalam cinema and television.
Mridula Varier is a South Indian playback singer from Koyilandy, Kerala. She started her career as a playback singer in the Malayalam movie Big B in 2007. She has also recorded songs for Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films. She has won the prestigious Kerala State Award in 2023 and Special Jury Award in 2014.
Vairamuthu is an Indian lyricist, poet, and novelist working in the Tamil film industry. A master's graduate from the Pachaiyappa's College in Chennai, he first worked as a translator, while also being a published poet. He entered the Tamil film industry in the year 1980, with the film Nizhalgal, an Ilaiyaraaja musical, directed by Bharathiraja. During the course of his 40-year film career, he has written over 7,500 songs and poems which have won him seven National Awards, the most for any Indian lyricist. He has also been honored with a Padma Shri, a Padma Bhushan and a Sahitya Akademi Award, for his abundant literary output.
Anandakuttan was an Indian cinematographer who worked predominantly in Malayalam cinema. He worked on over 150 films including His Highness Abdullah, Bharatham, Kamaladalam, Sadayam, Chronic Bachelor, Akashadoothu, Harikrishnans, Punjabi House and Aniyathipraavu. He died in 2016, at the age of 61.
