Palappurathu Keshavan Surendranatha Thilakan was an Indian film and stage actor who appeared in over 200 Malayalam films. Thilakan was known for his elaborate method acting, realistic and spontaneous appearances and is considered to be one of the greatest actors in Malayalam Cinema.
Balakrishnan Nair, more popularly known as Balan K. Nair was an Indian actor known for his roles in Malayalam cinema. Although he appeared as a villain in most films, he was also noted for his performances in strong character roles. He emerged as one of the top villain of Malayalam cinema in the second half of the 1970s and played some of the best villain characters in Malayalam films during that period. He won the National Film Award for Best Actor in 1981 for his performance as Govindan in the film Oppol.
Kaviyoor Ponnamma is an Indian actress who appears in Malayalam films and television. She began her career performing in theatre dramas before foraying into cinema. She has also acted in TV serials and commercials and has playback singing credits in few films. Ponnamma is a four-time Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actress winner. Her sister Kaviyoor Renuka was also an actress. Often called as the Mother to all actors, she has acted as mother of almost all actors in her career panning over decades. At the age of 20, she played the mother of Sathyan and Madhu in the 1965 movie Thommente Makkal. She gained critical acclaim for acting as the mother of the actor Mohanlal.
Manjeri Narayanan Nambiar was an Indian actor who worked predominantly in Tamil cinema, known mostly for his villain roles in an eight decade long career. He has also appeared in a few Malayalam films.
Gopynathan Velayudhan Nair, popularly known by the stage name Bharat Gopy, was an Indian actor, producer, and director. Considered one of the greatest actors in the history of Indian cinema, Gopy was one of the first actors to be associated with the New Wave cinema movement in Kerala during the 1970s.
N. N. Pillai was an Indian playwright, actor, theatre director, orator, screenplay writer, lyricist and an I.N.A Freedom fighter. : in INA - Indian National Army). He has been given the title “Nadakacharyan” of Malayalam Theatre. through his contributions to theater as a playwright, director, actor and a producer.
Maheshwari Amma, better known by her stage name K. P. A. C. Lalitha, was an Indian film and stage actress who worked primarily in the Malayalam film industry. She started her acting career with Kerala People's Arts Club, a theatre collective in Kayamkulam, Kerala. In a career spanning five decades, she starred in over 550 films.
Aranmula Ponnamma was an Indian actress known for her roles as mother of the protagonist in numerous films in a career spanning over five decades. She is widely described as a mother figure in Malayalam cinema. In 2005, she was honoured with the J. C. Daniel Award, Kerala government's highest honour for contributions to Malayalam cinema.
Kodiyettam is a Malayalam-language film written and directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan. The film stars Bharat Gopy in the lead role. Notable smaller roles were played by K. P. A. C. Lalitha, Kuttyedathi Vilasini, Azeez and Adoor Bhawani. The film depicts the life of Shankaran Kutty, a carefree simpleton who eventually rises to be a mature, responsible adult. The title of the film translates to 'Ascent' which symbolizes the growth of Shankaran Kutty.
Jagathy N. K. Achary (1924–1997) was an Indian dramatist and writer who also worked in Malayalam films. He was known for his plays and screenplays. He is the father of actor Jagathy Sreekumar.
N. Krishna Pillai was an Indian dramatist, literary critic, translator and historian of Malayalam language. Known for his realism and dramatic portrayal of psycho-social tensions, Pillai's plays earned him the moniker, Kerala Ibsen. He was a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Drama, Odakkuzhal Award, Vayalar Award and Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award, besides other honours. The Kerala Sahitya Akademi inducted him as a distinguished fellow in 1979.
Ravi Vallathol was an Indian actor, mainly noted for his acting in many famous serials, including the first serial in Malayalam.
Vayala Vasudevan Pillai was a Malayalam-language playwright from Kerala, India. He was the disciple of eminent playwright G. Sankara Pillai. He directed over 40 plays. Some of his popular plays include Viswadarsanam (1977), Thulaseevaram (1979), Agni (1982), Rangabhasha (1984), Varavelpu (1985), Kuchelagadha (1988), The Death of Nestling (1992), Suthradhara, Ethile... Ethile? (1993), Kunji Chirakukal (1994), and Swarnakokkukal (1999).
Mathar Ramakrishnan Gopakumar is an Indian film, television and theatre artist from Kerala. He began his acting career through Malayalam stage plays and later in tele-films and television serials and into films. In his career spanning over four decades, Gopakumar has acted in a wide variety of roles and has worked in both art house and mainstream films. He is mainly noted for his role as Thommi in the 1994 movie Vidheyan.
Mavelikkara Ponnamma was an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was one of the prominent supporting actress in late 1970s and 1990s in Malayalam movies. She is noted for her performance in Ulladakkam (1991), Aakasha Kottayile Sultan (1991) and Ennodu Ishtam Koodamo (1992).
P. K. Narayana Pillai, better identified as Sahitya Panchanan P. K. Narayana Pillai, was an Indian literary critic, essayist, scholar, grammarian and poet of Malayalam language. One of the pioneers of literary criticism in Malayalam, he wrote more than 25 books which include Panchananante Vimarssthrayam, a critique of the writings of Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan, Cherusseri Namboothiri and Kunchan Nambiar and two books on Malayalam grammar, Leghuvyakaranam and Vyakarana Pravesika. He was a judge of the High Court of Kerala, a member of the Sree Moolam Popular Assembly and the founder president of the Samastha Kerala Sahithya Parishad.
Karakulam Chandran is a Malayalam language drama, television serial, film actor and drama director from Kerala, India. He has directed 118 plays and acted in over fifty plays. He has also acted in 88 television serials and five movies. He has won more than eighty state level awards, including the state award for best drama director, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award for Best Drama Director (2008), the State Government's special jury award for best serial actor (2015) and the Ramu Karyat Award for outstanding contribution (2008).
V. T. Murali is an Indian playback singer and music critic from Kerala. He is known for many songs including the song "Othu palliyilannu nammal" composed by Padma Shri K. Raghavan from the movie Thenthulli directed by National award-winning director K. P. Kumaran. He was a former board member of Kerala State Film Development. Corporation. He is also the president of K Rakhavan master Award foundation As a music critic, Murali has written 12 books.
Tonnakkal Peethambaran is a Kathakali exponent from Kerala, India. He has been honored with several noted awards including the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award 2003, Sangeet Natak Akademi Award 2011 and Kerala State Kathakali Award 2014.
Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award is an award given by the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, an autonomous organisation for the encouragement, preservation, and documentation of the performing arts of Kerala, set up by the Department of Cultural Affairs of the Government of Kerala. Instituted in 1962, the awards are given in the categories of music, dance, theatre, other traditional arts, and for contribution/scholarship in performing arts. The award consists of Rs. 30,000, a citation and a plaque. The recipients of the award are also conferred the title Kalasree.
