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, India. In 1982, Elippathayam won the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival, and Most Original Imaginative Film of 1982 by the British Film Institute. The film Marana Simhasanam has won the prestigious Caméra d'Or at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.
Shaji Neelakantan 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.
Vanaprastham: The Last Dance is a 1999 Indo-French psychological drama period film in Malayalam-language that was directed by Shaji N. Karun. It was produced by Pierre Assouline and co-produced by Mohanlal. The screenplay was written by Karun and Raghunath Paleri based on a story by Assouline. It features Mohanlal in the lead role, with Suhasini Maniratnam, Mattannur Sankarankutty Marar, Kalamandalam Gopi, Venmani Haridas, and Kukku Parameshwaram in supporting roles. The film's music was composed by Zakir Hussain.
Piravi is a 1989 Indian Malayalam-language drama film directed by Shaji N. Karun. It stars Premji, Archana and Lakshmi Krishnamurthy. The film is based on the life of professor T. V. Eachara Warrier, whose son, a student in Regional Engineering College, Calicut, was killed in police custody during the National Emergency Period of 1976. The film's music was composed by G. Aravindan and Mohan Sithara. Piravi received widespread critical acclaim upon release. The film was screened and very well received at many film festivals and won at least 31 awards, including the Caméra d'Or — Mention Spéciale at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival. It also won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film at the Indian National Film Awards in 1989.
Kadhavaseshan is a 2004 Malayalam mystery drama film written and directed by T. V. Chandran, starring Dileep and Jyothirmayi in the lead roles. Veteran Bengali actress Gita Dey made a special appearance. It was the first movie in the 2002 Gujarat Riots trilogy by the director, the second one being Vilapangalkkappuram and the third and final one being Bhoomiyude Avakashikal. The narratives of all these films begin on the same day, 28 February 2002, that is, on the day after the Godhra train burning in Gujarat. The film was released on November 11 on the Eve of Diwali.
K. Surendran, better known by his stage name Indrans, is an Indian actor and former costume designer, who appears in Malayalam films. He started his film career as a costume designer and actor in 1981 and got a breakthrough in 1994 with the comedy movie CID Unnikrishnan B.A., B.Ed. Indrans was popular for his comedy roles in the 1990s and 2000s.
Indrans Jayan is an Indian film costume designer working predominantly in Malayalam films. He won the National Film Award for Best Costume Design in 2009 and 2010. Born in Kumarapuram, Trivandrum, he is the cousin of the Malayalam film actor Indrans. He has worked as costume designer for close to 300 films.
Swapaanam is a 2014 Indian Malayalam film directed by Shaji N. Karun and produced by M. Rajan for Horizon Entertainments. The film features Jayaram and Kadambari in the lead roles, alongside Siddique, Vineeth, Lakshmi Gopalaswamy in supporting roles. The music was composed by Sreevalsan J Menon, while the script was written by Harikrishnan and Sajeev Pazhoor, based on Shaji’s own story. The film was screened in the Dubai International Film Festival.
Wilson Joseph, professionally credited as Siju Wilson, is an Indian actor and producer, who works in Malayalam films. He won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Film for his debut production Vasanthi (2019).
M. J. Radhakrishnan was an Indian cinematographer working mainly in Malayalam films. He got National film award 2018 as best cinematographer for his work on Malayalam movie Oolu. He won Kerala State Award for Best Cinematography 7 times, equal with Mankada Ravi Varma. Earlier he worked as a still photographer and then as an associate to cinematographer turned director Shaji N. Karun. His important works included Deshadanam (1996), Karunam (1999) Naalu Pennungal (2007), Veettilekkulla Vazhi (2010) and Akasathinte Niram. His films were screened at several prominent film festivals around the world including Cannes, Shanghai, Cairo, Montreal, Telluride, Jeonju, Toronto, Chicago, Rhode Island and Rotterdam. One of his works, Marana Simhasanam, won Caméra d'Or in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. Another film Veyilmarangal won Golden Goblet award for Outstanding Artistic achievement at Shanghai International Film Festival 2019. He worked on over 117 feature films and several documentaries and worked with some of the prominent Indian filmmakers including Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Murali Nair, Shaji N. Karun, TV Chandran, Dr. Biju, Jayaraj and Renjith. He mostly worked on arthouse films and was known for his natural lighting styles. In a career spanning more than two decades, he worked with a number of young film makers, mostly in their maiden ventures. Film Kalamandalam Hyderali 2019, directed by Kiran G. Nath was his last completed work as director of photography.
Sajeev Pazhoor is an Indian screenwriter, novelist and director in Malayalam cinema. He is known for his movie Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum starring Fahadh Faasil and directed by Dileesh Pothan. He made his debut in Malayalam film industry with Swapaanam(2013) directed by Shaji N. Karun. He had scripted and directed more than 80 Documentary film.
Kismath is a 2016 Indian Malayalam-language romantic drama film written and directed by debutante Shanavas K Bavakutty. The film stars Shane Nigam as Irfan and Shruthy Menon as Anita, two star-crossed lovers from different religious backgrounds. It is produced by Rajeev Ravi under the banner of Pattam Cinema Company, and in association with LJ Films and Akbar Travels.
Shane Nigam is an Indian actor who appears in Malayalam films. Having made his debut in a credited role with the 2013 road film Neelakasham Pachakadal Chuvanna Bhoomi (2013), he went to receive wider attention for his performances in various successful drama films Kismath (2016), Parava (2017), Kumbalangi Nights (2019), Ishq (2019), Bhoothakaalam (2022), and RDX: Robert Dony Xavier (2023).
Kani Kusruti is an Indian actress and model. She first gained recognition in 2009 with the film Kerala Cafe, where her performance was critically acclaimed. Kani won the Best Actress at Kerala State Film Awards in 2020 and the Best Actress Award at the Moscow International Film Festival for her performance as Khadeeja in the film Biriyaani.
The Dolphins is a 2014 Indian Malayalam-language comedy-drama film directed by Diphan, written by Anoop Menon and produced by M C Arun. It stars Suresh Gopi, Anoop Menon and Meghana Raj in the lead roles.
Valiyaperunnal is a 2019 Indian Malayalam language romantic crime comedy-drama film, the first film directed by Dimal Dennis. It was scripted jointly by Dennis and Thasreeq Abdul Salam. The film has Shane Nigam in the lead role, along with Himika Bose, Joju George, Soubin Shahir, Vinayakan, Alencier Ley Lopez, Captain Raju and Dharmajan Bolgatty in other pivotal roles. The movie was released on 20 December 2019 in India and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Esther Anil is an Indian actress who works primarily in the Malayalam-language films. She debuted her career as a child artist through the film Nallavan in 2010. She is best known for her role as Anumol George (Anu) in the 2013 drama-thriller film Drishyam and its sequel Drishyam 2, as well as Oolu in the 2020 fantasy film Oolu. Esther has won Kerala Film Critics Association Awards for the Best Child Artist in 2016. She reprised her role from Drishyam in the Telugu and Tamil remakes, Drushyam and Papanasam (2015), respectively. She played the heroine in the unreleased Tamil film Kuzhali. She played the lead role in Johaar, a Telugu film featuring debutantes.
Biriyaani is a 2020 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by Sajin Baabu. It features Kani Kusruti and Shailaja Jala in the lead roles. The film won NETPAC award for best film in 20th Asiatica Film Festival in Rome, Jury prize for Best Film at Banglore International Film Festival, best film at the Caleidoscope Indian Film festival, Boston etc. Actress Kani Kusruti won the best actress at the BRICS competition section of the 42nd Moscow Film Festival, best actress at the Caleidoscope Indian Film festival, second-best actress award at the Imagine Film Festival in Madrid, Spain, and the 2019 Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress at Kerala State Film Awards for her performance in this film.
Sajin Baabu is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer, who works in Malayalam cinema. He made his directional debut with Unto the Dusk in 2014. He is noted for his latest movie Biriyaani which bagged numerous awards, including the NETPAC award for best film at ASIATICA, Rome, Italy. He is the winner of Special Jury mention for Direction for his movie Biriyaani at the 67th National Film Awards
