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. It is the fourth biggest film industry in India, following Bollywood, Tollywood, and Kollywood. Malayalam cinema includes the commercial film industry, sometimes known as Mollywood, as well as independent cinema made in Malayalam.They are well known for making commercial films like Aavesham,ARM,Lucifer, and Pulimurugan as well as realistic movies like Kumbalangi Nights,Joji and Maheshinte Prathikaram.
Hariharan is an Indian film director who has directed over 50 Malayalam films. His movies mainly revolve around the cultural and relational aspects of a typical Keralite society. His most notable works include Sharapancharam (1979), Panchagni (1986), Idavazhiyile Poocha Mindappoocha (1979), Amrutham Gamaya (1987), Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha (1989), Sargam (1992), Parinayam (1994) and Pazhassi Raja (2009) which has won him wide critical acclaim. In 2019, he was awarded the J. C. Daniel Award, Kerala government's highest honour for contributions to Malayalam cinema.
Kaviyoor Ponnamma was an Indian actress who appeared in Malayalam films and television. She began her career performing in theatre dramas before foraying into cinema. She also acted in TV serials and commercials and had playback singing credits in few films.
Madhupal Kannambathu is an Indian actor, director, and screenwriter who works in Malayalam cinema. Madhupal made his acting debut with Kashmeeram in 1994 and his directorial debut with Thalappavu (2008), which was about Naxal Varghese and won several awards in 2008.
P. V. Jagadish Kumar, better known mononymously as Jagadish, is an Indian actor, screenwriter, and television presenter. He has starred in over 400 Malayalam films and two Hindi films. He is best known for his comic and character roles. Jagadish starred in over 50 films as the lead actor during the 1990s. He was one of the bankable lead stars in Malayalam cinema during the 1990s.
Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja is a 2009 Indian Malayalam-language epic period drama film based on the life of Pazhassi Raja, a king who fought against the East India Company in the 18th century. The film was directed by Hariharan, written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair and produced by Gokulam Gopalan. It stars Mammootty in lead role with an ensemble supporting cast. The music score and soundtrack were created by Ilaiyaraaja, while its sound design is by Resul Pookutty.
Siddique Mamathu (born 1 October 1962), known mononymously as Siddique, is an Indian actor and producer, who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. Along with appearing in over 350 Malayalam films, he has also acted in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi language films. He is known for having played a wide range of starring and supporting roles, including comic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes and villains.
Sargam is a 1992 Indian Malayalam-language musical drama film written and directed by Hariharan and produced by his wife, Bhavani Hariharan. Chowallur Krishnankutty wrote the dialogues. The film features Vineeth, Manoj K. Jayan, and Rambha, while Nedumudi Venu, Soumini/Srikanya, Urmila Unni, V. K. Sriraman, Thilakan, and Oduvil Unnikrishnan play supporting roles. Shaji N. Karun did the cinematography, while Bombay Ravi composed the soundtrack and M. S. Mani handled the editing. This movie was a blockbuster and the third highest-grossing movie of the year. It won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and three Kerala State Film Awards: Best Director (Hariharan), Second Best Actor, and Best Music Director. It was remade in Telugu as Sarigamalu with Vineeth, Manoj K. Jayan, and Rambha reprising their roles.
Sadhana is an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was a leading actress during the late 1960s and 1970s in Malayalam and Tamil movies. She has acted in more than 100 movies.
Kunnel Joseph Joseph, better known by his stage name, Jose Prakash was an Indian actor and singer who worked in Malayalam cinema. He was a singer turned actor who had appeared in more than 300 films mostly in antagonist roles. He was awarded with the J. C. Daniel Award in 2011, a day before he died aged 86. In a career spanning for around 40 years, he is known for portraying some of the iconic villain characters in the Malayalam film industry. Later, he switched to character roles in the mid 90s.
Ravi Vallathol was an Indian actor, mainly noted for his acting in many famous serials, including the first serial in Malayalam.
Sopanam is a 1994 Malayalam drama film directed by Jayaraj, starring J. V. Somayajulu, Manoj K. Jayan, Chippy in lead roles. Scripted by Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri, this film tells the story of a singer who loves his teacher's daughter.
C. V. Balakrishnan is an Indian writer of Malayalam literature. His novels and short stories encompass the emotional issues related to mass culture, sexual politics, fate of the marginalised and institutionalised religions. An author of more than 60 literary works along with a few film scripts and film criticisms, his best known work is the novel Ayussinte Pusthakam. He received the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award thrice and the Kerala State Film Award for Best Book on Cinema in 2002 for Cinemayude Idangal. In 2014, he won the Padmaprabha Literary Award.
Narayanan Kutty or Kalabhavan Narayanankutty is a Malayalam film actor. He has acted in more than 300 films. He handles mainly comedy roles.
Poovankery Francis Mathews is an Indian author of Malayalam literature and a screenplay writer in Malayalam film and Television industries. A Winner of a National Film Award for Best Screenplay and multiple State television and other literary awards including the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Novel and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Story, he is known for his original style of writing. Literary works such as Muzhakkam, Kadalinte Manam, Adiyalapretham, Iruttil Oru Punyalan, and Chaavunilam and screenplays such as Sararaanthal, Mikhayelinte Santhathikal, Megham, Kutty Srank and Ee.Ma.Yau are his major works.
Ajith Kollam was an Indian actor, who predominantly appeared in Malayalam cinema. He had acted in more than 500 films in all South Indian languages. He mainly acted in villain roles. He acted in the Tamil movie Airport (1993).
An International Local Story is a 2019 Indian Malayalam-language comedy film directed by Harisree Ashokan. The film is about the friendship between five friends and features Rahul Madhav, Aswin Jose, Deepak Parambol, Dharmajan Bolgatty, Bijukuttan, Surabhi Santosh, Mamitha Baiju, Manoj K. Jayan and Tini Tom in substantial roles.
K. G. Jayan was an Indian Carnatic singer, musician, and music director from Kerala. Known for his devotional songs, Jayan composed more than 1,000 songs for Tamil and Malayalam films. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2019, the fourth highest civilian award in India.
Sarigamalu is a 1993 Indian Telugu-language musical drama film directed by Kranthi Kumar and written by Hariharan. It is a remake of Hariharan's 1992 Malayalam film Sargam. The film stars Vineeth, Manoj K. Jayan, and Rambha, while J. V. Somayajulu, P. J. Sarma, and Tanikella Bharani play supporting roles.
