Thiruvananthapuram, commonly shortened to TVM. Formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 2,984,154 as of 2024. The encompassing urban agglomeration population is around 1.68 million. Located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland, Thiruvananthapuram is a major information technology hub in Kerala and contributes 55% of the state's software exports as of 2016. Referred to by Mahatma Gandhi as the "Evergreen city of India", the city is characterised by its undulating terrain of low coastal hills.
Divyaa Unni is an Indian former actress and classical dancer of Indian origin who teaches various forms of dance such as Bharathanatyam, Kuchipudi and Mohiniyattom. As an actress, she mainly appeared in Malayalam language films, in addition to few Tamil, Telugu and Kannada language films too.
Thiruvananthapuram has long been a center of media. Kerala Chandrika, the first newspaper of the state, was published from Thiruvananthapuram in 1789. The media also enjoyed the patronage of the Travancore kings. In 1836, Swathi Thirunal, the Travancore king, organized a government press in the city. The first Superintendent of the Press was the Rev. Sperschneider. The press was under Samathanam Maistry, one of the first batch of workmen trained in the Nagercoil Press.
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.
Raghava Kurup Narendra Prasad was an Indian actor, playwright, director, teacher and literary critic. He was born at Mavelikkara in the erstwhile Kingdom of Travancore. Appreciated for his body language and performance by the audience and critics, he is known for portraying character roles and villain characters in Malayalam films.
The city of Thiruvananthapuram has been the centre of cultural activities of Kerala (India) from the time it was made capital of Travancore in 1745. The capital city is a major intellectual and artistic center. The Thiruvananthapuram Museum and Thiruvananthapuram Zoo were started during the reign of Swathi Thirunal (1813–1847) and are one of the oldest of their kind in India. The city's libraries include the Trivandrum Public library, which was started in 1829. The Swathi Thirunal College of Music and 'College of fine arts' are the leading institutions related to music and arts.
Kalpana Ranjani, better known mononymously as Kalpana, was an Indian actress who appeared in South Indian films, predominantly in Malayalam and Tamil. Kalpana has acted in over 300 films in various South Indian languages. She won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Thanichalla Njan (2012) at the 60th National Film Awards. Kalpana started her career as a child artist in the late 1970s. Although she came into the industry with the intention of being a lead actress, she turned out to be popular among the audiences for her comic roles.
Madhusoodanan Jayachandran Nair is an Indian composer, singer, and musician. He has won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Music Director a record number of nine times. In 2005, he also won the state award for best male singer. In 2015, he won the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for the film Ennu Ninte Moideen. He has composed music for 126 films.
Anoop Menon is an Indian actor, director, screenwriter and lyricist. He worked in television before acting in Malayalam films and has acted in more than 75 films.
Viji Thampi is an Indian film director, actor, right-wing politician, and social activist who works in Malayalam films. Thampi is a member of Thiruvananthapuram regional board of the Central Board of Film Certification and the State Advisor of Kerala Kshetra Samrakshana Samithi. In 2021, Thampi was appointed as the Kerala State President of the Vishva Hindu Parishad. He was also a Jury member of National film awards declaration committee in 2022.
Priyanka Nair is an Indian model-turned-actress who predominantly works in the Malayalam film industry. She made her debut in the Tamil film Veyyil in 2006. She gained critical acclaim for her roles in Bhoomi Malayalam, Vilapangalkappuram and Jalam.
Jalaja is an Indian actress in Malayalam films, who was active during the 1970s and 1980s. She had won Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress and Filmfare Award for Best Actress in 1981 for the movie Venal directed by Lenin Rajendran. Her family roots are from Kollam and Alappuzha district, Kerala.
Ambili Devi is an actress from Kerala, India who appeared in many Malayalam cinema and serials. She has established herself as a lead actress in Malayalam Television Industry and has won the Kerala State Television Award for Best Actress in 2005.
Praveena is an Indian actress and dubbing artist who predominantly appears in Malayalam television series and films in addition to a few Tamil series and films. She is known for portraying the role of Goddess Devi in popular series Devi Mahathmyam.
Jagannathan was an Indian actor who worked in Malayalam cinema.
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Priya R. Pai is a Carnatic vocalist, composer and playback singer. She is the host of musical TV show Layatharang on Kairali we channel. She is famous for Karnatic-western fusion music and has released five albums. On the album Harshamo Dukhamo she sang poems by former minister Binoy Viswam. She also sings and composes devotional and Classical songs.
Thara Kalyan is an Indian classical dancer and actress in Malayalam cinema. She has acted in mainstream Malayalam films, telefilms and television serials. She is also a professional dancer in Bharatanatyam, Mohiniyattam, and Kuchipudi.She is an 'A top' Mohiniyattam artist of Doordarshan.
Krishna Praba is an Indian actress and professional dancer who chiefly appears in Malayalam films. She made her entry into the film industry with the film Madampi (2008), directed by B. Unnikrishnan. She played the character Mollykutty in Life of Josutty (2015), directed by Jeethu Joseph.
Sajna Najam is an Indian dance choreographer who has worked in all the regional film industries. She started her career in 2000 in television and stage events, before working in films. She won the Kerala state award for best choreographer for 2014, film Vikramadithyan directed by Lal Jose. Veteran film actor Prem Nazir is a relative.
