Historic journey of the complete actor
Sathyan Anthikad, one of the directors who gave Mohanlal his best roles, recently said that Mohanlal is an actor whose acting he never gets tired of watching. As for the audience, Mohanlal is an actor whose acting they never get tired of watching. Malayalees who have accepted every character Mohanlal has played are eagerly waiting for his upcoming films. Malayalees feel a closeness to Mohanlal that they have never felt with any other actor. Mohanlal is such an actor who has blended with the hearts of Keralites. That is why Malayalees accept every recognition he receives as an honour bestowed upon a member of their own family.
When our Mohanlal receives the country's highest film award, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, from President Draupadi Murmu today, it will be one of the greatest honours received by Malayalam cinema. Renowned film director Adoor Gopalakrishnan was the only Malayalam film director to receive this rare honour. Although Mohanlal made his debut in front of the camera in the film 'Thiranottam' directed by his friend Ashok Kumar, it was his role as the antagonist Narendran in 'Manjil Virinja Pookkal', directed by Fazil and produced by Navodaya Appachan in 1980, that made Lal well-known to Malayalees. Since then, there has been no need to look back. That antagonist rose to fame and made his presence known to the film world.
That triumphant journey, which continued in South Indian languages and Bollywood, continues unabated even today. Mohanlal, who has won five National Awards and nine State Awards, was honoured by the country with the Padma Bhushan award. The characters played by Mohanlal are still seen by the audience repeatedly, as if they are eternally amazed. Countless roles. More than 360 films in an acting career that is approaching half a century. If you ask the audience which of these they liked the most, they will be confused. How many characters do they have to think about? Whether it's TP Balagopalan, Sethu disguised as a Gurkha, Vincent Gomez, Sethumadhavan, Gopi, Kunjukuttan, Anandan, Aadu Thoma, Mangalassery Neelakandan, Jayakrishnan, Nandagopal, Vishnu, Satyanathan, Sunny, Ramesh, Sreenivasan, Stephen Nedumpally, Benz, Sandeep Balakrishnan, etc!
Mohanlal is a person who maintains complete simplicity in life. In a press conference held the other day after learning about the award, he dedicated this award to Malayalam cinema. He spoke about the role of people, from light boys to directors, those who walked with him, and his family. He advised that when you climb to the top, you should not forget those who are below, and if you do so, there will be no one with you when you come down. A divine blessing radiates from Mohanlal to those around him, not only when he acts but also when he speaks. Kerala Kaumudi has a long-standing relationship with him. We wish our beloved Mohanlal all the best on this historic occasion.