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.
Pulloottupadathu Bhaskaran alias as P. Bhaskaran, was an Indian Malayalam language poet, lyricist of Malayalam film songs, and filmmaker. He penned more than 3000 songs for about 250 films. He also directed 44 Malayalam feature films and three documentaries, produced six feature films, and acted in several movies. For his overall contributions to Malayalam cinema, he was awarded J. C. Daniel Award by the Government of Kerala.
Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai (1900–1979) was a Malayalam dramatist, poet, screen play writer and actor who was well known in the role of Ashaan in Kavyamela. He was born in 1900 in Muthukulam, a small village near Haripad in Alappuzha District, Kerala, India. Known as the Akshara Guru of Malayalam talkie films, he wrote the screenplay and dialogues of Balan, the first Malayalam talkie and Jeevithanauka, the first box office hit in the Malayalam film industry. He is also the author of about 55 dramas and dozens of film stories and screenplays. In 1968, he acted in Viruthan Shanku, the first full-length comedy in Malayalam cinema directed by P. Venu. He acted in around 150 Malayalam films and wrote Tatathaka Parinayam Kathakali. An award named Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai Puraskaram has been instituted by Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai Samraka Samithi in honour of him.
K. Bhaskaran Nair, professionally credited by his stage name Adoor Bhasi, was an Indian actor and film director. He was mostly cast as a sidekick to protagonists, particularly Prem Nazir. His comedic roles were widely appreciated in Malayalam films of the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Bhasi has also done leading and character roles. He directed three Malayalam films in the late 1970s. Bhasi is also known for his eloquent speeches in fluent English. He has won Kerala State Film Awards, including two Best Actor and one Second Best Actor.
Kachinamthoduka Puthiyapurayil Ummer known as K. P. Ummer was an Indian actor from Thekkepuram quarter of Kozhikode, Kerala, India. He was active in the Malayalam cinema from the early sixties until the late nineties.
Roja Ramani is an Indian actress who predominantly worked in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films. She was a child actor and her debut movie was Bhakta Prahlada (1967) for which she received National Film Award for Best Child Artist. She was popular during the 1970s and early 1980s and has acted in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Odia movies. She worked in 400 films as a dubbing artiste. She is an active member of BlueCross and is involved in several social service activities.
Paravoor memana Kanakku Chembakaraman Parameswaran Chandrashekara Menon, better known by his screen name Sankaradi, was an Indian actor. He was a veteran Malayalam comedian and character artist, who had over 700 Malayalam films to his credit. He dominated the Malayalam film scene in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s as a comedian along with Adoor Bhasi and Bahadoor. Later, he switched to character roles.
Kovelamudi Surya Prakash Rao (1914–1996) was an Indian film director, producer, actor and cinematographer known for his works in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Hindi films. In 1977 he won the Filmfare Award for Best Director – Kannada for Ganda Hendthi. In 1995, Rao received the Raghupathi Venkaiah Award for his contributions to Telugu cinema. He is the father of noted Telugu director K. Raghavendra Rao and is the uncle of another noted director K. Bapayya.
Vadakkekarayil Koran Bharathan, better known as Paravoor Bharatan was an Indian actor who acted in Malayalam films. He started his career in movies during the 1950s. Bharathan is known as a versatile actor and has played a variety of roles including negative roles, character roles and comedy roles.
Manavalan Joseph was a Malayalam film actor. He is an actor who worked in many movies during the 1950s and 1960s. He died in 1986
T. R. Omana is an Indian actress in Malayalam films. She mainly acts in supporting roles and mother roles. She has acted in more than 500 films.
Shubha is an Indian actress who acted prominently in Malayalam films. She was a lead actress during the late 1970s and early 1980s. She also acted in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Hindi films. She was the second lead in the cult Kannada classic Naagarahaavu (1972). For this, she received Karnataka State Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for the year 1972–73.
Kottayam Santha was an Indian actress and dubbing artist best known for her work in Malayalam cinema. She has acted in more than 300 films. She had also acted in several TV serials like Valayam, Krishnakripasagaram etc. She dubbed for almost 1000 films. She was the voice for Seema in almost all her Malayalam films.
N. Govindan Kutty was an Indian actor who worked in the Malayalam film industry. He has appeared in around 100 films, acting mainly in villain roles.
Khadeeja was an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was one of the prominent lead actress during the late 1960s and 1970s in Malayalam. In 1968, she acted in Viruthan Shanku, the first full-length comedy in Malayalam cinema directed by P. Venu. She was born in Odakaali in Perumbavoor, Kerala, a Muslim girl who had suffered a lot for learning dance in Kalamandalam. She acted in more than 50 movies.
Vanchiyoor Radha is an Indian actress in Malayalam movies. She was one of the prominent supporting actresses in late 1960s and 1970s in Malayalam movies. She has acted in more than 50 movies.
P. Venu, was an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter, and lyricist with over 20 films to his name. His directorial venture Udhyogastha in 1967 was the first-ever multi-star cast film of south India. His work in Malayalam cinema was significant and most influential, covering all themes and genres over a career spanning more than 40 years. His most recognized film C.I.D. Nazir, in 1971, revolutionized movie-making in the investigative genre in Malayalam cinema. Following this film's commercial and critical success, he came up with two more in the series - Taxi Car in 1972 and Prethangalude Thazhvara in 1973, as the first investigative sequels in Malayalam cinema. His last film, Parinamam released in 2003, won an honour for the Malayalam cinema on the global stage by winning the Best Screenplay Award at the Ashdod International Film Festival in Israel. In 2005, he was bestowed the Kala Prathiba by the Kerala Film Critics Association for his contribution to the Malayalam cinema. He was also an active member of MACTA. He published his book titled Udyogastha Muthal in 2010, reminiscing his life as a filmmaker and his experiences in the film industry.
Kollam G. K. Pillai was an Indian actor in Malayalam cinema. He acted in more than 50 films. He handled character roles and comedy roles during the 1970s and 1980s. He died on 30 January 2016.
Snehicha Kuttathinu is a 1985 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by P. K. Joseph and produced by T. K. Balachandran. The film stars Prem Nazir, Ratheesh, Santhosh and Shubha. The film has musical score by A. T. Ummer.
K. Narayanan is an Indian film director, editor, and art director who has worked predominantly in Malayalam cinema. Since his debut in 1953, he has edited more than 200 films across Malayalam and Tamil.
