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About Mohanlal

Mohanlal Vishwanathan Nair (born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal (Malayalam:മോഹന്‍ലാല്‍) is an Indian film actor and producer who works mainly inMalayalam cinema. He has won four National Film Awards, nine Kerala State Film Awards, and ten Filmfare Awards. In 2001 the Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri for his contributions to Indian cinema. In 2009, he was granted the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonelby the Territorial Army, the first instance of an Indian actor receiving an honorary military rank. In 2010, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit bestowed an honorary doctorate upon him.


Golden period (1986-1995)

The period (1986–1995) is widely regarded as the golden age of Malayalam cinema with films characterised by detailed screenplays, lucid narration and fresh ideas narrowing the gap between art and commercial films. As a young talent on the rise, Mohanlal obtained roles that gave him ample scope to display a wide range of emotions and started some very fruitful associations with many of the better directors and writers in Malayalam cinema.

1986 was one of his best years. Sathyan Anthikad's T. P. Balagopalan M.A. got him his first Kerala State award for best actor. His role of an underworld don in Rajavinte Makan saw the emergence of Mohanlal as the superstar of Malayalam cinema.Rajavinte Makan was the block buster movie of the year 1986. In the same year, he played an asylum inmate in Thalavattom, a harassed house-owner inSanmanassullavarku Samadhanam, a journalist in M. T. Vasudevan Nair's Panchagni, a farm owner in love in Namukku Parkkan Munthiri Thoppukal and an unemployed youth forced to become a Goorkha in Gandhi Nagar 2nd street.

His association with the writer-director combination of Sreenivasan and Sathyan Anthikkad, who excelled in making socially hard-hitting satires, resulted in films such as Nadodikkattu, in which he played an unemployed youth and Varavelpu, in which he played a Gulf returnee who is welcomed back home to greedy relatives and a state with a hostile climate for entrepreneurs. Director Priyadarshan's musical comedies, notably Chithram and Kilukkam had him playing the typical Indian romantic hero and increased his popularity among the teenage movie-goers.



Mohanlal portrayed a real-life character in Devaasuram (1993), directed by I. V. Sasi and written byRenjith. The film went on to become a hit and a cult classic.
Thoovanathumbikal, in which he portrayed a person torn between his twin love interests, broke many stereotypes in Indian films, such as the leading man falling in love with a second woman immediately after he is rejected by the first. Amrithamgamaya was about a man who ends up at the house of a boy whom he had unknowingly killed in college during a ragging session. Thazhvaram was another notable film of this period.

The combination of writer Lohitha Das and director Sibi Malayil is considered to have produced some of his most haunting roles. His role of Sethu Madhavan, who dreams of becoming a police officer but ends up as a criminal in the film Kireedam, earned him a Special Jury award. His role in Bharatham, as a classical singer who is burdened by the jealousy and eventual death of his singer brother, earned him the Best Actor National Award the following year.

The 90s saw him continuing his success with more entertainers like His Highness Abdullah, in which he played a Muslim disguised as a Namboodiri to assassinate a royal. His other notable commercial movies during this period such as Midhunam, Minnaram and Thenmavin Kombath, continued the tradition of the 80s with well-written scripts and a rich set of characters. Devaasuram, written by Ranjith and directed byI. V. Sasi, set in the feudal atmosphere of central Kerala, was particularly noted for Mohanlal's portrayal of a proud, rich and brash young man who is slowly humbled by a chain of events. Director Bhadran'sSpadikam became a cult classic for the revolutionary way in which the stunts were picturised. Critically acclaimed films were few in number during this period and were mostly semi-entertainers like Manichitrathazhu.

This was also a period when the father-son duo of Thilakan and Mohanlal had a great impact on the Malayalam film industry and especially on fans of both actors.