Malayalam cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Malayalam language, which is widely spoken in the state of Kerala. Malayalam cinema includes the commercial film industry, popularly known as Mollywood, as well as independent cinema made in Malayalam.
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director and screenwriter who predominantly works in Malayalam and Hindi cinema.
Prashanth Thiagarajan, known professionally as Prashanth, is an Indian actor, businessman, playback singer and film producer known for his works predominantly in Tamil cinema. Besides Tamil films, he has also appeared in few Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam films.
Mukesh Madhavan, known mononymously as Mukesh, is an Indian actor, film producer, television presenter, and politician who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically appeared in Tamil-language films. In a film career spanning four decades, he has acted in over 275 Malayalam films.
Ottaplakkal Neelakandan Velu Kurup was a Malayalam poet and lyricist from Kerala, India, who won the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary award in India for the year 2007. He received the awards Padma Shri in 1998 and Padma Vibhushan in 2011, the fourth and second highest civilian honours from the Government of India. In 2007 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by University of Kerala, Trivandrum. O. N. V. was known for his leftist leaning. He was a leader of All India Students Federation (AISF). He died on 13 February 2016 at KIMS hospital in Thiruvananthapuram due to age-related illnesses, aged 84.
Shanker Panicker is an Indian film and television actor, film director, producer, businessman and social worker who has worked in Malayalam and Tamil films. He has acted in nearly 200 films and was a leading actor in Malayalam cinema and a lead youth hero in Tamil cinema in the 1980s. Shankar's debut Tamil film, Oru Thalai Ragam, and Malayalam debut, Manjil Virinja Pookkal, completed theatrical runs of 365 and 250 days respectively. He was the most successful romantic hero in Malayalam movies along with Prem Nazir. He starred in nearly 100 films from 1980-1990 as a hero. Later, he became a director and producer, while continuing to act, from 1990 to 2024.
Twenty:20 is a 2008 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written by Udayakrishna-Siby K. Thomas, directed by Joshiy, produced and distributed by Dileep through Graand Production and Manjunatha Release. The film stars Mohanlal, Mammootty, Suresh Gopi, Jayaram and Dileep. The film was produced on behalf of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) as a fundraiser to financially support actors who are struggling in the Malayalam cinema. All the actors in AMMA worked without payment in order to raise funds for their welfare schemes.
Koodevide? is a 1983 Malayalam-language drama film, written and directed by P. Padmarajan, starring Mammootty, Suhasini, and Rahman. The film is based on the Tamil novel Moongil Pookkal by Vasanthi. It marked Rahman's movie debut. The film was a major commercial success and was Padmarajan's first commercial hit.
Urumi, is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical drama film written by Shankar Ramakrishnan and directed as well as co-produced by Santosh Sivan. It features an ensemble cast including Prithviraj Sukumaran, Arya, Prabhu Deva, Genelia D'Souza, Nithya Menon, Vidya Balan, Jagathy Sreekumar, Alex O'Nell and Sasi Kallinga. This film marks the debut of both Prabhu Deva and Genelia D'Souza in Malayalam Cinema.
Pranayam (transl. Love) is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language romantic drama film written and directed by Blessy. The film stars Mohanlal, Jaya Prada, and Anupam Kher. The plot revolves around the love bond between the characters of Mathews (Mohanlal), Grace, and Achutha Menon (Kher). The music for the film was composed by M. Jayachandran. The film opened to positive reviews from critics and was also average at the box office.
Kalaikkal Kumaran was a noted Malayalam film and very popular drama actor. He was well known for his comedy roles in dramas by Kalidasa Kalakendram. He acted in 65 films and more than 150 dramas. He appeared more than 15000 stages. His first drama was Kathirukanakili by Kerala theatre of Ponkunnam Varkey. Other famous dramas are Doctor, Kathirukanakili, Althara, Muthuchippi, Kadalpalam, Swantham Lekhakan, Yudhabhoomi and Samgamam, more than 150 dramas. He received many Kerala state awards, including Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship for acting in 1989. Kumaran was a member of Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi. Kalaikkal Kumaran was supposed to create a record for appearing on more than 20,000 stages, but he lost his vision due to cataracts and left the field. Kalaikkal Kumaran was a staunch atheist throughout his life, and was a supporter of Communist Party of India.
Mahesh Babu is an Indian actor, producer, media personality, and philanthropist who works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinema. He first appeared in the 1979 film Needa when he was four years old. He continued to perform as a child actor in several films, most of which featured his father Krishna. Following his role as the titular protagonist in Balachandrudu (1990) while still a child, his career went on hiatus so he could concentrate on his education until taking on his first lead role as an adult in the 1999 film Rajakumarudu, for which he won the Nandi Award for Best Male Debut. Afterwards, his career stagnated until successes like Murari (2001), Okkadu (2003) and Athadu (2005) brought him fame. In 2006, he played a gangster in the Puri Jagannadh-directed action-thriller Pokiri. The film became the highest-grossing Telugu film of all time, and according to Vogue India, cemented Babu's reputation as a "superstar".
Vijayakumari is an Indian stage, television and film actress. She was a stage actress at Kerala People's Arts Club and Kalidasa Kalakendra. She is the winner of the Kerala State award for best stage actress. She received the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award in 1976 and the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship in 2005. Currently she is the Secretary of Kalidasa Kalakendra.
Divyadarsan Rajendran Engoor is an Indian actor and producer from Kerala, India. He made his debut in Malayalam cinema through Hide n' Seek (2012) and has acted in eight movies since then.
Kochavva Paulo Ayyappa Coelho is a 2016 Indian Malayalam-language comedy drama film written and directed by Sidhartha Siva. It was produced by Kunchacko Boban, who also stars in the title role, along with Rudraksh Sudheesh. The film marks the return of Udaya Pictures, the first-ever film production company in Malayalam cinema, after 30 years. Anusree played the female lead role. The film was released during the festival of Onam, on 9 September 2016 and received a positive response from the audience.
Kalidasa Kalakendram is a professional drama theatrical group founded by O. Madhavan, a well-known Malayalam theatre director, in Kollam, Kerala. The group was founded on 25 January 1963 as a society under the parent organisation, Paul Foundation.
Sonia Mann is an Indian actress and model. She has appeared in films and music videos.
Mohan Kumar Fans is a 2021 Indian Malayalam-language comedy drama film written and directed by Jis Joy. The film is produced by Listin Stephen under the banner of Magic Frames. Kunchacko Boban played the role of a singer. The film also features Siddique, Anarkali Nazar, Mukesh, Sreenivasan, Vinay Forrt, Saiju Kurup, Ramesh Pisharody and Krishna Shankar in pivotal roles. The songs are composed by Prince George, while the score is composed by William Francis. The film premiered on 19 March 2021.
