Malayalam cinema, is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, Elippathayam won the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival, and Most Original Imaginative Film of 1982 by the British Film Institute. Rajiv Anchal's Guru (1997), Salim Ahamed's Adaminte Makan Abu (2011) and Lijo Jose Pellissery's Jallikkattu (2019) were Malayalam films sent by India as its official entries for the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards.
Hera Pheri is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by Priyadarshan and written by Neeraj Vora, starring Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty, Paresh Rawal, Tabu, Om Puri and Gulshan Grover. The film is a remake of 1989 Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking. It is the first instalment of the Hera Pheri franchise. The plot revolves around two tenants, Raju and Shyam and a landlord Baburao ganpatrao apte, in desperate need of money, chance upon a ransom call via a cross connection. They hatch a plan to claim the ransom for themselves.
Paresh Rawal is an Indian actor, comedian, film producer and politician known for his works notably in Hindi films, and Telugu, and a few Gujarati and a few Tamil films. He has appeared in over 240 films and is the recipient of various accolades. In 1994, he won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in the films Woh Chokri and Sir. For the latter, he received his first Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role. This was followed by Ketan Mehta's Sardar, which saw him playing the lead role of freedom fighter Vallabhbhai Patel, a role that got him national and international acclaim. He was honoured with Padma Shri from the Government of India in 2014.
In Harihar Nagar is a 1990 Indian Malayalam-language comedy thriller film written and directed by Siddique-Lal. The film, set in the fictional locality of Harihar Nagar follows four unemployed bachelors: Mahadevan (Mukesh), Govindan Kutty (Siddique), Appukuttan (Jagadeesh) and Thomas Kutty (Ashokan) and their attempts to woo their new neighbour Maya However, she is in town to investigate the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of her brother. It also stars Rizabawa, Kaviyoor Ponnamma and Rekha, with Suresh Gopi and Sai Kumar making cameo appearances. The music was composed by S. Balakrishnan.
Phir Hera Pheri is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language comedy film written and directed by Neeraj Vora. It serves as the sequel to Hera Pheri (2000) and second installment of the Hera Pheri franchise. It stars Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal reprising their roles from the previous film with Bipasha Basu, Rimi Sen, Johnny Lever and Rajpal Yadav. The plot follows, a twist of fate changes the lives of Raju, Shyam and Baburao when they get cheated by a fraudster Anuradha. They must now find another way to repay the loan taken from a dreaded gangster Totla Seth. The central plot takes inspiration from the 1998 film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and The Circus.
Mukesh Madhavan, known mononymously as Mukesh, is an Indian actor, film producer, television presenter, and politician who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically appeared in Tamil-language films. In a film career spanning four decades, he has acted in over 260 Malayalam films. His 1996 film Kaanaakkinaavu premiered at the IFFI and won the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration. He co-produced Kadha Parayumbol (2007), which won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value. He also produced the 2012 film Thattathin Marayathu, which is considered one of the defining films of the Malayalam New Wave.
Bhagam Bhag is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language comedy thriller film written and directed by Priyadarshan from the screenplay by Neeraj Vora. It was produced by Sunil Shetty and Dhilin Mehta. The film stars Akshay Kumar, Govinda and Paresh Rawal as leads alongside Lara Dutta, Rajpal Yadav, Jackie Shroff, Arbaaz Khan, Shakti Kapoor, Manoj Joshi, Razak Khan, Sharat Saxena and Asrani. The film adapted certain subplots of Malayalam film Mannar Mathai Speaking which itself was based on the 1958 movie Vertigo.
Sai Kumar, also credited as Saikumar, is an Indian actor who appears in Malayalam films. He is the son of Malayalam actor late Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair. He appears in both positive and negative roles. He notably plays the hero role in Ramji Rao Speaking, and the villain in Makkal Mahatmyam.
Siddique Ismail is an Indian film director, screenwriter, actor and producer who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. He made his directorial debut with the Malayalam movie Ramji Rao Speaking in 1989. As a screenwriter, he made his debut in the Malayalam movie Pappan Priyappetta Pappan in 1986. His last film to hit the screens was Big Brother.
Siddique–Lal are a screenwriter and director duo, consisting of Siddique and Lal. They were active together in Malayalam cinema during 1986–1995. They were initially assistant directors to director Fazil. Particularly known for making films in the comedy genre, the films that came out of the partnership include Ramji Rao Speaking (1989), In Harihar Nagar (1990), Godfather (1991), Vietnam Colony (1992), and Kabooliwala (1993). All of these films were some of the biggest hits in Malayalam cinema and many of them have a cult following in Kerala. The duo broke off in 1993, but later continued their association by Lal producing some of the films directed by Siddique. The duo reunited again after two decades in 2016 to co-write the film King Liar which was directed by Lal.
Vijayaraghavan is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. He is known for his character roles. He is the son of drama and cinema artist N. N. Pillai.
Mayavi is a 2007 Indian Malayalam-language action comedy film directed by Shafi and written by the Rafi Mecartin duo, starring Mammootty in the title role with Sai Kumar, Manoj K. Jayan, Salim Kumar, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Gopika, Vijayaraghavan and Santhosh Jogi in supporting roles. It was a commercial success and was remade in Tamil as Vallakottai in 2010, starring Arjun Sarja which was directed by A. Venkatesh.The film was a major commercial success and was the highest grossing movie of the year.
Mannar Mathai Speaking is a 1995 Indian Malayalam-language comedy thriller film produced and directed by Mani C. Kappan and written by Siddique-Lal. The stars Mukesh, Innocent, Sai Kumar, Vani Viswanath, Biju Menon, Geetha Vijayan, K. P. Ummer, Kaviyoor Ponnamma, Janardhanan, Indrans, Vijayaraghavan, Sukumari, Harisree Ashokan and Cochin Haneefa. It is a sequel to the 1989 film Ramji Rao Speaking, and is followed by Mannar Mathai Speaking 2 (2014). Vani Viswanath made her debut in this film as a leading actress.
Pachakuthira (transl. Grasshopper) is a 2006 Indian Malayalam-language comedy drama film directed by Kamal and written by T. A. Shahid from a story by Dileep, starring Dileep in dual role and Gopika and Salim Kumar in supporting role.
S. Balakrishnan was an Indian film score composer and music director who worked mainly in Malayalam cinema. Best known for his association with the director duo Siddique-Lal, he has scored some of the all-time hit songs in late 1980s and early 1990s.
Maaro (Violent But Silent) is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film directed by Siddique. It stars Nithiin and Meera Chopra in the lead roles. The film has been shot in 2005; and in 2006, the film was shelved. Now, after a very long time, to cash in on director Siddique's recent success with Bodyguard, the film was slated for 2011 release. The music is scored by Mani Sharma. The film was remade in Tamil as Sadhu Miranda, which ended up releasing three years prior to Maaro.The film is loosely based on the director's own 1995 Malayalam film Mannar Mathai Speaking which was based on the 1958 movie Vertigo.
Mamas Ramachandran, better known as Mamas, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and caricaturist. He made his directorial debut in 2010 with Paappi Appacha.
Mannar Mathai Speaking 2 is a 2014 Indian Malayalam-language comedy thriller film directed by Mamas K. Chandran. It is a sequel to the 1995 comedy Mannar Mathai Speaking and the third installment in the celebrated Ramji Rao franchise. Actors Innocent, Mukesh, Sai Kumar, Biju Menon, Vijayaraghavan and Janardhanan reprised their roles; while Aparna Gopinath, Shammi Thilakan and a few others are also included in the cast. The film features original music & background score composed by Rahul Raj.
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter. Priyadarsan movies are mostly known for their comedy but he did an artistically historical epic film about freedom fighters in India known as Kaalapani and his epic period drama is Kancheevaram. In a career spanning almost three decades, Priyadarshan has directed over 90 films in several Indian languages, predominantly Malayalam and Hindi, besides six in Tamil, and two in Telugu. Though he began his career in Malayalam cinema in 1984, Priyadarshan was active mainly in Hindi cinema for 2001–2010. In 2013, he announced Rangrezz would be his last Hindi film for a while; and he is shifting focus to Malayalam Cinema.
Hera Pheri is a series of Indian comedy films. The first film is directed by Priyadarshan and produced by A.G. Nadiadwala, the second film was directed by Neeraj Vora while third will be directed by Farhad Samji and produced by Firoz A. Nadiadwala. The first film of the series was the remake of the Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking which was based on the 1971 TV movie See The Man Run while the second film's central plot takes inspiration from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and the circus sequences were taken from the Charlie Chaplin film The Circus. The series stars Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty and Paresh Rawal in lead roles. The third installment of the series is in development.
