Lal Jose

Lal Jose
Lal Jose
Born	Valapad, Thrissur, Kerala, India
Occupations	Film director; Actor; Producer; Distributor;
Years active	1989–present
Spouse	Leena
Children	2

Last updated January 29, 2025

Lal Jose is an Indian director, actor, producer, and distributor who works in the Malayalam film industry. He started his career as an Assistant director in the Malayalam cinema. His directorial debut was with the 1998 film Oru Maravathoor Kanavu .^[1]

Lal Jose started his film career as an assistant director to Kamal. Lal Jose worked on a slew of Kamal's films during the 1990s. His popular films include Chandranudikkunna Dikhil (1999), Meesa Madhavan (2002), Chanthupottu (2005), Classmates (2006), Arabikkatha (2007), Neelathaamara (2009), Diamond Necklace (2012), Ayalum Njanum Thammil (2012), Immanuel (2013), and Vikramadithyan (2014).^[2]

Early life

Born in Valapad in Thrissur district, Kerala to Jose and Lilly, Lal Jose did his schooling at NSS KPT School and NSS College, Ottapalam. He is married to Leena. The couple have two daughters, Irene and Catherine.^[3] After completing his degree, he left for Chennai, with an aim of getting into movies. He got into the world of cinema by assisting noted director Kamal. He worked with Kamal in 16 films, from Pradheshika Varthakkal to Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu . He worked as associate director to prominent filmmakers like Thampy Kannamthanam, Lohithadas, Harikumar, Vinayan, K. K. Haridas, and Nizar.^[4]

Film career

In 1998, he made his debut as an independent director with Oru Maravathoor Kanavu , which starred Mammootty and was scripted by Sreenivasan.^[5] Producer Siyad Koker asked Lal Jose to direct a film for him. The film Oru Maravathoor Kanavu was a success for him.^[6]^[7]

In 2002 Lal Jose, teaming up with screenwriter Ranjan Pramod , who had earlier scripted Randaam Bhavam , came up with Meesa Madhavan , which was a milestone in his career along with that of Dileep. Meesa Madhavan was a hit and established Dileep in the industry.^[8] But Lal Jose proved his critics wrong in the year 2005 with Chanthupottu , starring Dileep. The box-office success of Chanthupottu took Lal Jose's career to new heights.^[9] In 2006, Lal Jose directed Achanurangatha Veedu , a low-budget film, which failed to bring audiences to the movie halls, though it won critical appreciation.^[10]

In 2006, Jose's film Classmates was released without much publicity, with no big stars, but became the highest-grossing film in Malayalam, until its record was broken by Twenty:20 two years later.^[11] In 2007, he did Arabikkatha , with Sreenivasan in a leading role. Arabikkatha was critically and commercially a big hit.^[12]^[13] His next movie was Mulla , starring Dileep. In 2009, Lal Jose directed Neelathamara , written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, which was a remake of the 30-year-old movie with the same name.^[14] It was accepted well by the critics and the masses. He directed a story with Mammootty as lead in Kerala Cafe in 2010. He then directed the hit film Elsamma Enna Aankutty without multistars. In 2011, he became a judge on a reality show on Surya TV called Vivel Active Fair Big Break, where the winner would be the heroine in his next movie. ^{[ citation needed ]}

Awards

Kerala state film awards

2006: Best Popular Film – Classmates
2005: Kerala state film awards for Second Best Film – Achanurangatha Veedu
2012: Best Director- Ayalum Njanum Thammil
2012: Best Popular Film- Ayalum Njanum Thammil

South Indian International Movie Awards

2013: Best Director for Ayalum Njanum Thammil
2013: Nominated—Best Film for Diamond Necklace

Asianet Film Awards

2007: Best Director Award for Arabikkatha

Ramu Karyat Awards

2010: Best Director Award for Elsamma Enna Aankutty

Asiavision Awards

2013 – Asiavision Awards – Artistic Movie – Ayalum Njanum Thammil ^[15]

Filmography

Key
†	Denotes films that have not yet been released

All films are in Malayalam language unless otherwise noted.

As director

Year	Film	Notes
1998	Oru Maravathoor Kanavu
1999	Chandranudikkunna Dikkil
2001	Randaam Bhavam
2002	Meesa Madhavan
2003	Pattalam
2004	Rasikan
2005	Chanthupottu
2006	Achanurangatha Veedu
2006	Classmates
2007	Arabikkatha
2008	Mulla
2009	Neelathaamara
2009	Kerala Cafe	Segment: Puramkazchakal
2010	Elsamma Enna Aankutty
2012	Spanish Masala
	Diamond Necklace
	Ayalum Njanum Thammil
2013	Immanuel
	Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum
	Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal
2014	Vikramadithyan
2015	Nee-Na
2017	Velipadinte Pusthakam
2018	Thattumpurath Achuthan
2019	Nalpathiyonnu (41)	25th film
2021	Meow
2022	Solomonte Theneechakal	^[16]^[17]

As second unit or assistant director

Meenathil Thalikettu (1998) (story and associate director)
Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu (1997) (assistant director)
Bhoothakannadi (1997) (associate director)
Manasam (1997) (assistant director)
Azhakiya Ravanan (1996) (assistant director)
Udyana Palakan (1996) (associate director)
Mazhayethum Munpe (1995) (assistant director)
Maanthrikam (1995) (associate director)
Sudinam (1994) (associate director)
Vadhu Doctoranu (1994) (associate director)
Bhoomi Geetham (1993) (assistant director)
Champakulam Thachan (1992) (assistant director)
Ennodishtam Koodamo (1992) (assistant director)
Pookkalam Varavayi (1991) (assistant director)
Ulladakkam (1991) (assistant director)
Pradeshika Varthakal (1989) (assistant director)

Story

Meenathil Thalikettu (1998)
Chandranudikkunna Dikkil (1999)

As producer

As distributor

Thattathin Marayathu (2012)
Theevram (2012)
Diamond Necklace (2012)
Neram (2013)
Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum (2013)
Thira (2013)
Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal (2013)
1983 (2014)
Homely meals (2014)
Vikramadithyan (2014)
KL.10 Pathu (2015)
Action Hero Biju (2016)
Jacobinte Swargarajyam (2016)
Style (2016)
Lens (2016)
Aanandam (2016)
Veeram (2017)

As actor

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Bhoomi Geetham	Journalist
1995	Sargavasantham
1996	Azhakiya Ravanan	Assistant Director
2007	Rock & Roll	Himself
2010	Best Actor	Himself
2010	Nadan	Himself
2014	Ohm Shanthi Oshaana	Jacob Tharakan
2016	Oru Muthassi Gadha	Himself
2017	Sunday Holiday	David Paul
2018	Kammara Sambhavam	Himself
	Ente Mezhuthiri Athazhangal	Augustine Theodorus
	Ennaalum Sarath..?	Peter
2019	Oru Nakshathramulla Aakasham	John Paul
2019	Mohabbathin Kunjabdulla
2020	Varane Avashyamund	Sivaprasad
2020	Gypsy	Muthaleef
2021	Kuttiyappanum Daivadootharum	Himself
2021	Kshanam	Himself	Cameo
2022	Nipah
2022	Haya	Dr. Sai Nath
2023	Imbam	Devan
2024	Oru Sarkar Ulpannam	Dasettan	^[18]
2024	Mandakini	Sudevan	^[19]

As Narrattor

Vellimoonga (2014)

Television

2012 :Vivel Big Break (Surya TV) as Judge
2018 : Nayika Nayakan (Mazhavil Manorama) as Judge
2018 : Makkal (TV series) (Mazhavil Manorama) as himself
2019: Comedy Stars season 2 (asianet) as Judge
2022: Wife is Beautiful ( Zee Keralam) as promo voice over
2023:Charithram Enniloode ( Safari TV) as host

Recurring collaborators

Music composer VidyaSagar has worked on 12 films out of Lal Jose's total 22 feature-length films. Sukumari had acted on 12 films, whereas Salim Kumar in 11 and Biju Menon in 9 and Dileep, Indrajith, Jagathy Sreekumar and Suraj Venjaramoodu appeared on 7 films. Dubbing artiste Sreeja Ravi works as heroine voice for many films.

Films	Dileep	Biju Menon	Indrajith	Samvrutha Sunil	Jagathy Sreekumar	Nedumudi Venu	Sukumari	Sreenivasan	Salim Kumar	Kunchako Boban	Vidyasagar	Suraj Venjaramoodu	Joju George	Sreeja Ravi
Oru Maravathoor Kanavu (1998)		Y				Y	Y	Y			Y			Y
Chandranudikkunna Dikhil (1999)	Y	Y					Y				Y			Y
Randaam Bhavam (2001)		Y				Y	Y				Y
Meesa Madhavan (2002)	Y		Y		Y		Y		Y		Y			Y
Pattalam (2003)		Y	Y		Y		Y		Y		Y		Y	Y
Rasikan (2004)	Y	Y		Y	Y		Y		Y		Y	Y		Y
Chanthupottu (2005)	Y	Y	Y				Y		Y		Y		Y	Y
Achanurangatha Veedu (2006)			Y	Y	Y				Y
Classmates (2006)			Y		Y		Y					Y		Y
Arabikkatha (2007)			Y	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y			Y
Mulla (2008)	Y	Y					Y		Y		Y	Y	Y	Y
Kerala Cafe (Puram Kazchakal) (2009)								Y
Neelathaamara (2009)				Y							Y
Elsamma Enna Aankutty (2010)			Y		Y	Y				Y		Y
Spanish Masala (2012)	Y	Y								Y	Y
Diamond Necklace (2012)				Y			Y	Y			Y
Ayalum Njanum Thammil (2012)				Y			Y		Y
Immanuel (2013)						Y	Y		Y
Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum (2013)										Y	Y	Y	Y
Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal (2013)	Y							Y				Y
Vikramadithyan (2014)
Nee-Na (2015)
Velipadinte Pustakam (2017)									Y
Thattumpurath Achuthan (2018)						Y				Y
Nalpathiyonnu (41) (2019)		Y
Meow (2021)									Y
Solamante Theneechakal (2022)											Y		Y

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References

↑ "On a road less taken". Deccan Herald . 16 November 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
↑ നീലത്താമരയുടെ നിറവില്‍, Interview – Mathrubhumi Movies Archived 19 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine . Mathrubhumi.com (2010-03-13). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.
↑ ലാല്‍ ജോസും ജീവിതവും തമ്മില്‍. mangalam.com (2013-01-10). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.
↑ Manorama Online. Manorama Online. Retrieved on 2015-06-22.
↑ "Lal Jose teams with Mammootty and Sreenivasan". Oneindia.in. 31 August 2009. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ "A director and a hit-maker". The Hindu . Retrieved 8 March 2019.^{[ dead link ‍]}
↑ "Lal Jose – Biography". Metromatinee. 10 July 2009. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
↑ "Meesa mints money". The Hindu . 25 July 2002. Archived from the original on 1 October 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ Sreedhar Pillai. (9 December 2009). Whither the heroine? Archived 25 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine . The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ Vijay George. (6 January 2006). "Reflection of society" Archived 25 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine . The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ Sreedhar Pillai (29 September 2009). "'Classmates,' a trendsetter". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 5 November 2006. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ "Arabikatha takes the cake". The Hindu . 15 July 2007. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
↑ "'Arabikatha' turns out to be a success tale". The Hindu . 18 July 2007. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
↑ P. M. (Undated). "‘Neelathamara' megahit again". The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.
↑ Mammotty, Kavya Madhavan bag Asiavision awards – Emirates 24|7 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine . Emirates247.com (2013-11-05). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.
↑ Soman, Deepa (18 November 2021). "Lal Jose's next directorial tells the story of women police personnel". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
↑ "Lal Jose to give debuts for 'Nayika Nayakan' stars, film pooja held in Kochi". Onmanorama. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
↑ Features, C. E. (2 March 2024). "Censor Board has 'Bharatha' removed from Oru Bharatha Sarkar Ulpannam". Cinema Express. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
↑ Features, C. E. (6 April 2024). "Althaf Salim-Anarkali Marikar starrer Mandakini gets a release date". Cinema Express. Retrieved 6 April 2024.

External links

Lal Jose at IMDb

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[1] "On a road less taken". Deccan Herald . 16 November 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2019.

[2] നീലത്താമരയുടെ നിറവില്‍, Interview – Mathrubhumi Movies Archived 19 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine . Mathrubhumi.com (2010-03-13). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.

[3] ലാല്‍ ജോസും ജീവിതവും തമ്മില്‍. mangalam.com (2013-01-10). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.

[4] Manorama Online. Manorama Online. Retrieved on 2015-06-22.

[5] "Lal Jose teams with Mammootty and Sreenivasan". Oneindia.in. 31 August 2009. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[6] "A director and a hit-maker". The Hindu . Retrieved 8 March 2019.^{[ dead link ‍]}

[7] "Lal Jose – Biography". Metromatinee. 10 July 2009. Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2011.

[8] "Meesa mints money". The Hindu . 25 July 2002. Archived from the original on 1 October 2004. Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[9] Sreedhar Pillai. (9 December 2009). Whither the heroine? Archived 25 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine . The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[10] Vijay George. (6 January 2006). "Reflection of society" Archived 25 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine . The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[11] Sreedhar Pillai (29 September 2009). "'Classmates,' a trendsetter". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 5 November 2006. Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[12] "Arabikatha takes the cake". The Hindu . 15 July 2007. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2008.

[13] "'Arabikatha' turns out to be a success tale". The Hindu . 18 July 2007. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2008.

[14] P. M. (Undated). "‘Neelathamara' megahit again". The Hindu . Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[15] Mammotty, Kavya Madhavan bag Asiavision awards – Emirates 24|7 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine . Emirates247.com (2013-11-05). Retrieved on 2015-06-22.

[.3-16] Soman, Deepa (18 November 2021). "Lal Jose's next directorial tells the story of women police personnel". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 November 2021.

[.0-17] "Lal Jose to give debuts for 'Nayika Nayakan' stars, film pooja held in Kochi". Onmanorama. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2021.

[18] Features, C. E. (2 March 2024). "Censor Board has 'Bharatha' removed from Oru Bharatha Sarkar Ulpannam". Cinema Express. Retrieved 4 March 2024.

[19] Features, C. E. (6 April 2024). "Althaf Salim-Anarkali Marikar starrer Mandakini gets a release date". Cinema Express. Retrieved 6 April 2024.

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v t e Kerala State Film Award for Best Director
1969–1980	A. Vincent (1969) K. S. Sethumadhavan (1970-1972) M. T. Vasudevan Nair (1973) G. Aravindan (1974) P. A. Backer (1975) T. Rajeevnath (1976) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (1977) G. Aravindan (1978-1979) K. S. Sethumadhavan (1980)
1981–2000	G. Aravindan (1981) Bharathan (1982) Fazil (1983) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (1984) G. Aravindan (1985-1986) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (1987) K. P. Kumaran (1988) I. V. Sasi (1989) G. Aravindan (1990) Kamal (1991) Hariharan (1992) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (1993) Shaji N. Karun (1994) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (1995) Jayaraj (1996) T. V. Chandran (1997) Shyamaprasad (1998) Shaji N. Karun (1999) M. T. Vasudevan Nair (2000)
2001–2020	T. V. Chandran (2001) Sibi Malayil (2003) Shyamaprasad (2004) Blessy (2005) Lenin Rajendran (2006) M. G. Sasi (2007) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (2008) Hariharan (2009) Shyamaprasad (2010) Blessy (2011) Lal Jose (2012) Shyamaprasad (2013) Sanal Kumar Sasidharan (2014) Martin Prakkat (2015) Vidhu Vincent (2016) Lijo Jose Pellissery (2017) Shyamaprasad (2018) Lijo Jose Pellissery (2019) Sidhartha Siva (2020)
2021–present	Dileesh Pothan (2021) Mahesh Narayanan (2022)

v t e Filmfare Award for Best Malayalam Director
1972–1990	K. S. Sethumadhavan (1972) K. S. Sethumadhavan (1973) K. S. Sethumadhavan (1974) Bharathan (1975) Sreekumaran Thampi (1976) I. V. Sasi (1977) I. V. Sasi (1978) Bharathan (1979) Bharathan (1980) K. S. Sethumadhavan (1981) Balu Mahendra (1982) Balachandra Menon (1983) Bharathan (1984) Balu Mahendra (1985) Hariharan (1986) Pratap Pothen (1987) Padmarajan (1988) (1989) Bhadran (1990)
1991–2010	Sibi Malayil (1991) Sibi Malayil (1992) Shaji Kailas (1993) Hariharan (1994) Bhadran (1995) Sathyan Anthikad (1996) Jayaraj (1997) Sreenivasan (1998) Shyamaprasad (1999) Jayaraj (2000) Vinayan (2001) Lal Jose (2002) Sathyan Anthikad (2003) Blessy (2004) Blessy (2005) Rosshan Andrrews (2006) Babu Thiruvalla (2007) Ranjith (2008) Hariharan (2009) Ranjith (2010)
2011–present	Blessy (2011) Lal Jose (2012) Shyamaprasad (2013) Anjali Menon (2014) R. S. Vimal (2015) Dileesh Pothan (2016) Dileesh Pothan (2017) Lijo Jose Pellissery (2018) Senna Hegde (2022)