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 and Lakshadweep islands of India. Malayalam cinema includes the commercial film industry, sometimes known as Mollywood, as well as independent cinema made in Malayalam. According to recent trends and critical acclaim, the Malayalam film industry (Mollywood) is often considered the "best" film industry in India, known for its high quality storytelling, strong performances, and focus on social issues, even though the largest film industry in terms of viewership remains Bollywood
Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail, known mononymously by the hypocorism Mammootty, is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam-language films. He has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, and English-language productions. In a career spanning five decades, he has appeared in more than 420 films, predominantly in lead roles. He is the recipient of several accolades, including three National Film Awards, eleven Kerala State Film Awards, eleven Kerala Film Critics Awards and fifteen Filmfare Awards South. He was honored with the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award by the Government of India in 1998, for his contributions to cinema. He was also honored with the Kerala Prabha Award by the Government of Kerala in 2022. Mammootty was named as one of "the men who changed the face of the Indian Cinema" by CNN.
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his involvement in Indian cinema. Over a career spanning nearly three decades, Priyadarshan has directed a portfolio of over 90 films in multiple Indian languages, predominantly Malayalam and Hindi, alongside notable works in Tamil and Telugu. His career has been decorated with several accolades, including three National Film Awards, multiple Kerala State Film Awards, and the prestigious Padma Shri in 2012, India's fourth-highest civilian honor.
Meena Durairaj, known professionally as Meena, is an Indian actress who predominantly works in South Indian films as well as Hindi cinema. She is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. Meena has acted in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi films She is one of the most sought after actresses in the South Indian film industry. In addition to acting, Meena is also a playback singer, TV judge, and occasional dubbing artist. She has received numerous accolades, including two Filmfare Awards South, three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, two Nandi Award for Best Actress and Cinema Express Awards. In 1998, she was honoured with the Kalaimamani Award by Government of Tamil Nadu.
Shaji Neelakantan Karunakaran, better known as Shaji N. Karun, is an Indian film director and cinematographer. His debut film Piravi (1988) won the Caméra d'Or – Mention d'honneur at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival. He was the premiere chairman of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, the first academy for film and TV in India and was also the executive chairman of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) from 1998 to 2001. He is best known for his award-winning films Piravi (1988), Swaham (1994), Vanaprastham (1999) and Kutty Srank (2009). He won the National Award for Best Director for his debut film Piravi. He also won two Kerala State Film Awards for Best Director for his films Swaham and Vanaprastham. Currently, he is the Chairman of Kerala State Film Development Corporation.
Madhavan Nair, commonly known by his stage name Madhu, is an Indian actor, director, producer, former college lecturer and former film studio owner, who works in Malayalam cinema and a certain number of Hindi and Tamil films. He was a prominent lead actor during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s and has acted in more than 400 films. Madhu has also directed 12 films, produced 15 films and at one time owned the Uma Film Studio. He was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2013 for his contributions towards the arts. He was honored with the J. C. Daniel Award by the Government of Kerala in 2004, for his outstanding contributions to Malayalam films. He is the president of Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) Kerala Unit.
Asha Kelunni, better known by her stage name Revathi, is an Indian actress and director, known for her works predominantly in Tamil and Malayalam cinema - in addition to Telugu, Hindi and Kannada films.
Vineeth Radhakrishnan is an Indian actor, Bharatanatyam dancer, voice artist and choreographer who primarily works in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu language films. He has also appeared in a few Hindi and Kannada films. He has won several awards including 3 Kerala State Film Awards, Kalaimamani honour from Government of Tamil Nadu and Filmfare Award South nominations.
Rashin Rahman commonly known by his Surname Rahman is an Indian actor. He has worked in around 200 films, primarily in Malayalam cinema, in addition to Tamil, Hindi and Telugu cinema, and has won several awards. In Tamil and Telugu cinema, he is also known by the screen names Raghuman and Raghu.
Ajantha is an Indian film produced and directed by Rajppa Ravishankar. The film was simultaneously shot in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu languages with different starcast.
Mohan is an Indian actor, known for his works predominantly in Tamil cinema. He has also acted in some Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam films. Mohan is also known as "Kokila Mohan" after his debut film Kokila (1977), and "Mic Mohan" from numerous roles playing singers using microphones. In 1982, he received the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor for his work in Payanangal Mudivathillai.
Bharath Srinivasan, known professionally as Bharath, is an Indian actor, who works predominantly in Tamil cinema, along with few films in Malayalam, Hindi and Telugu.
K. Ramachandra Babu was an Indian cinematographer of over 125 films, out of which most are Malayalam films. He also worked for films in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Arabic and English languages. He served as the cinematographer for several documentaries and advertisement films as well. He was the founder of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
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.
Sujith Unnikrishnan, known by his stage name Sunny Wayne is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema in second lead to supporting roles. He made his acting debut in Second Show (2012), in which Dulquer Salmaan played the main lead role.
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter. Priyadarshan is mostly known for directing comedy films but has directed a few non-comical films such as a historical epic film based around freedom fighters in India titled Kaalapani and his epic period drama Kancheevaram. In a career spanning over four decades, Priyadarshan has directed 96 films in several Indian languages, predominantly Malayalam and Hindi, besides eight in Tamil, and two in Telugu. Though he began his career in Malayalam cinema in 1984, Priyadarshan was mainly active in Hindi cinema for 2001–2010. In 2013, he announced Rangrezz would be his last Hindi film for a short period; and focused on making more Malayalam films.
Don Palathara is an Indian filmmaker from Kerala. Known for working on small budgets, his films are expositions of local Kerala culture and studies on human nature. Palathara's films have gained accolades at several international film festivals, including those of Moscow, Rotterdam and Thiruvananthapuram.
Jeo Baby is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor who works in Malayalam films. His family drama film The Great Indian Kitchen (2021) won the 51st Kerala State Film Award for Best Film and he received the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay.
1956, Central Travancore is a 2019 Indian Malayalam-language period drama film written, directed and edited by Don Palathara and produced by Abhilash S. Kumar under Artbeat studios. The film stars Assif Yogi, Jain Andrews, Krishnan Balakrishnan and Kani Kusruti in lead roles. It features a musical score by Basil CJ. Cinematography was handled by Alex Joseph. The film was completely made in black and white format.
Gibu George is an Indian actor, theatre artist, model and Writer who works in Malayalam film industry. He made his Malayalam feature film debut in the 2021 movie ‘Grahanam’, becoming the first Singapore Malayalee introduced to the Malayalam film industry in a male lead role. Gibu is known for portraying the lead role of Aadi in Singapore-made English short ‘The Wheel’, which earned him wide acclaim's, including the Best Actor Award in Barcelona International Film Festival(LHIIF) Spain, making him the first Singapore Malayalee actor to win the title.
