'This actor once had higher market value than even Jagathy Sreekumar; he invited several prominent stars for his daughter's wedding, but only Mammootty attended'

Mala Aravindan is an actor Malayali cinema lovers can never forget. He began his career through theatre plays and entered films by chance. At one point, Mala Aravindan’s market value in the film industry was even higher than that of Jagathy Sreekumar. Now, veteran director Alleppey Ashraf has shared some lesser-known details about Mala's life through his YouTube channel.

“When the Kerala government introduced state awards for dramas, the very first award for Best Actor went to Mala Aravindan. He worked in theatre for nearly 15 years before moving to cinema. In the beginning, he only got small roles, and not many recognised him. But later, his popularity increased.

While working on my film Ninnishtam Ennishtam, Mala's market value was greater than that of Jagathy Sreekumar. Though he was a Hindu, he married a Christian woman. Once, when someone asked him which religion his children would follow, Mala replied that they would be raised in the 'Hindustani' tradition. He had invited many prominent figures from the film industry to his daughter's wedding. But except for one, none of them attended.

Actor Mammootty, who was busy shooting in Idukki, took a break and visited Mala's house at night along with his wife. Mala has said that the joy he felt that day was beyond words. He also said that what he expected from those he invited was not money, but support.

Like actor Thilakan, Mala Aravindan also faced a ban in the industry. The issue came up after he accepted an advance payment to act in a film directed by Vinayan. While many others who had taken advance payments later returned the money, Mala stood firm with just one line: 'Their father is not my father’ That line later became iconic when Mohanlal used it in a film and received thunderous applause,” Alleppey Ashraf said.