Ambika Sukumaran | |
---|---|
Born | |
Occupation(s) | Classical dancer Actress |
Years active | 1952 – 1979 |
Spouse | K. V. Sukumaran |
Children | 2 |
Relatives | Travancore family, Raja Ravi Varma (Great Grandfather) |
Ambika Sukumaran Nair is an Indian actress best known for her work in Malayalam cinema during the 1950s and 1960s. She is a close relative of the Travancore Sisters; Lalitha, Padmini and Ragini, and also Shobana, Vineeth, Krishna and Sukumari. [1] Ambika also was initiated to go along that path and she debuted in Udaya Studio's film Visappinte Vili in 1952 she is also the first herion of Premnazir. [2] In 1968, she acted as the lead actress in the first full-length comedy in Malayalam cinema Viruthan Shanku , directed by P. Venu. She acted in more than 80 movies. [3]
She married Sukumaran and left cinema, settling in the US. She has two daughters. [4] She is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. She ran a dance school in New Jersey before retiring. [3]
Pulloottupadathu Bhaskaran alias as P. Bhaskaran, was an Indian Malayalam language poet, lyricist of Malayalam film songs, and filmmaker. He penned more than 3000 songs for about 250 films. He also directed 44 Malayalam feature films and three documentaries, produced six feature films, and acted in several movies. For his overall contributions to Malayalam cinema, he was awarded J. C. Daniel Award by the Government of Kerala.
Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai (1900–1979) was a Malayalam dramatist, poet, screen play writer and actor who was well known in the role of Ashaan in Kavyamela. He was born in 1900 in Muthukulam, a small village near Haripad in Alappuzha District, Kerala, India. Known as the Akshara Guru of Malayalam talkie films, he wrote the screenplay and dialogues of Balan, the first Malayalam talkie and Jeevithanauka, the first box office hit in the Malayalam film industry. He is also the author of about 55 dramas and dozens of film stories and screenplays. In 1968, he acted in Viruthan Shanku, the first full-length comedy in Malayalam cinema directed by P. Venu. He acted in around 150 Malayalam films and wrote Tatathaka Parinayam Kathakali. An award named Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai Puraskaram has been instituted by Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai Samraka Samithi in honour of him.
Sheela Celine is an Indian actress and director who appears predominantly in Malayalam cinema. Paired with Prem Nazir, they hold the Guinness World Record for acting in the largest number of films (130) together as heroine and hero. Sheela is a four-time winner of Kerala State Film Award. She came back to acting in 2003 through Manassinakkare after 22 years. In 2005, she won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the Malayalam film Akale. In 2019, Sheela was honoured with the J C Daniel Award, the Kerala government's highest honour for outstanding contribution to Malayalam cinema. She was also one of the highest paid actresses, reportedly paid more than her male counterparts, of her time.
Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair was an Indian poet, playwright, script writer, lyricist, orator, film director and actor, though he is best known as an actor in Malayalam cinema. He is the recipient of Padma Shri from the Government of India, which is one of the highest civilian honours in India. In a career that spanned about 47 years, he acted in over 700 films. He is considered to be the "first superstar of Malayalam cinema". In 1993, he was honoured with the J. C. Daniel Award, Kerala government's highest honour for contributions to Malayalam cinema.
Maliampurackal Chacko Kunchacko was an Indian film producer and director who worked in the Malayalam film industry. His venture Udaya Studios influenced the gradual shift of Malayalam film industry from its original base of Madras, Tamil Nadu to Kerala. He is the producer of Jeevithanauka (1951), starring Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair.
Devika Devadoss was an Indian actress who worked in Tamil and Telugu along with a few Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi films. She was one of the popular lead actresses in the 1960s.
Jayabharathi, She is an Indian actress and two-time recipient of the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress and National Film Award by Special Jury Award - Special Mention.
Ragini was an Indian actress and dancer. She was the youngest of the Travancore Sisters; Lalitha, Padmini and Ragini. She started her acting career in the mid-1950s along with her sister Padmini and has acted in movies of different Indian languages, including Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. She also starred opposite Shammi Kapoor in film Mujrim (1958). She played the role of Parvati opposite Trilok Kapoor who played Shiva in the 1962 film Shiv Parvati. The era of dance in Hindi cinema is considered to have begun with the entrance of Ragini and other South Indian actresses. Ragini died of breast cancer in 1976. She had acted in many dramas also.
Viruthan Shanku is a 1968 Indian Malayalam-language comedy film directed by P. Venu, starring Adoor Bhasi and Ambika. It revolves around Vikraman, and how he tricks people and steals their valuables in a comic way and also how he wins the heart of Kunjikkavu.
Rajasree, also known as Rajasri or Rajashri, is an Indian actress active from 1956 to 1979. She is particularly famous for her portrayal as a princess in several folklore Telugu movies opposite N. T. Rama Rao and Tadepalli Lakshmi Kanta Rao and for acting alongside Ravichandran in the Tamil comedy films Neeyum Naanum, Kadhalikka Neram Illai and Delhi Mappilai. Notable among Rajasri's roles in non-folklore social films in Tamil are as Nimmi in the Tamil hit comedy film Kaadhalikka Neramillai, remade as Preminchi Choodu in Telugu, as movie star Bhama in Tamil film Bama Vijayam. She was credited as Gracy in the Malayalam movies she starred in her career since her debut film Bharya (1962), directed by Kunchako. Rajasree went on to do 200 films spread across the languages – Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi from beginning of 1956 to 1979.
T. S. Muthaiah was a Malayalam and Tamil film actor. He was a popular actor in both film industries who usually played character and supporting roles in 1950s and 1960s.
T. R. Omana is an Indian actress in Malayalam films. She mainly acts in supporting roles and mother roles. She has acted in more than 500 films.
T. K. Balachandran was an Indian actor who worked mainly in Malayalam films. He has acted in more than 200 films. His areas of contribution includes production, dialogue, story, screenplay. He is the first actor to play a double role in the history of Malayalam cinema.
Khadeeja was an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was one of the prominent lead actress during the late 1960s and 1970s in Malayalam. In 1968, she acted in Viruthan Shanku, the first full-length comedy in Malayalam cinema directed by P. Venu. She was born in Odakaali in Perumbavoor, Kerala, a Muslim girl who had suffered a lot for learning dance in Kalamandalam. She acted in more than 50 movies.
K. V. Shanthi known by her stage name Shanthi was an Indian actress acted in Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi and Tamil movies. She was a prominent lead actress and dancer in Indian Cinema during the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. She appeared in famous Hindi films like Chori Chori of 1956.
Vanchiyoor Radha is an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was one of the prominent supporting actresses in late 1960s and 1970s in Malayalam movies. She has acted in more than 50 movies.
Kottayam Chellappan was an Indian actor in Malayalam movies. He was also a renowned stage actor and film actor who was very active in Malayalam films during the 1960s and '70s. He died on 26 December 1971.
Bengaluru Vijaya Radha, commonly known as B. V. Radha, was an Indian actress and film producer. She began her career in the 1964 Kannada film Navakoti Narayana. She went on to play mostly supporting roles in over 300 films, 250 of which were in Kannada, and the rest in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Tulu and Hindi.
Geethanjali was an Indian actress who worked in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, and Hindi films. In a career spanning close to six decades, she featured in over 500 films across multiple languages. Her first film as a dancer is Rani Ratnaprabha in 1960. NTR introduced her to the silver screen as a heroine with his directorial debut film Sita Rama Kalyanam in 1961. She was famous for her roles in Murali Krishna (1964), Doctor Chakravarthy (1964), Illalu (1965), Sambarala Rambabu (1970), Kaalam Marindi (1972), and Abbayigaru Ammayigaru (1973). She was also a member of the Nandi Awards committee.
M. A. Thirumugam was an Indian film director and editor. He was the younger brother of the film producer Sandow M. M. A. Chinnappa Thevar.