K S Sethumadhavan, the holy traveller of Malayalam cinema

Director KS Sethumadhavan, who passed away recently, is one of the first names in the list of those who have made a name for themselves in Malayalam cinema. His films liberated Malayalam cinema from the influence of Raja part films and created a visual universe of stories soaked in ‘Malayalamism’. For that he also used selected works by notable writers. It can be reasonably doubted whether the soul will be drained when the works that have won the hearts of the readers converted into films. But the director of Sethumadhavan knew very well what to take from the story and what to avoid. Many creative works including those of Thakazhi, Kesavadev, MT, Parappuram, Muttathuvarki, Ayyaneth and Pamman, who enriched the language, came into the film and all of them were signed by the director. The audience, who saw the never-before-seen sentimentality in those films, welcomed them with open arms. The best songs were also a feature of those films.

Each one of Palakkad native Sethumadhavan's films is a milestone in the history of cinema. About sixty best pictures are there. Along with their artistic excellence, they were also commercially successful. There are many young directors who have been trained under Sethumadhavan who have shown unprecedented elegance in the making of films. He found the actors and brought out their acting prowess through their excellent performances. Sathyan was given the best roles as an actor. Sathyan last acted in Sethumadhavan's Anubhavangal Palichakal. Kamal Haasan was portrayed as a child actor in Malayalam through the film Kannum Karalum and as a hero in Kanyakumari. Mammootty's first encounter as an actor was in Sethumadhavan's Anubhavangal Palichakal. Suresh Gopi came as a child actor in Sethumadhavan's Odayil Ninnum.

Sathyan, Nazir, Madhu, Sheela and Jayabharathi were active in Sethumadhavan's films. Superstar Prem Nazeer shocked the film industry by playing the villain in the movie Selena. He also made a super hit film titled Nale Namathai starring MGR. In the movie Ollathu Mati, even EMS showed his face. Sheela was given a more iconic role than Satyan in Oru Penninte Katha. No matter how great the players are, they will be perfectly disciplined when they come to Sethumadhavan's set. It was a must for him.

Karakanakkadal, Panitheeratha Veedu, Achanum Bappayum, Aranazhika Neram, VazhvemayamPunarjanmam, Odayil Ninnu, Oru Penninte Katha, Adimakal, Bharyamar Sookshikkuka, Ammayenna Sthree, Chattkkari, Anubhavangal Palichakal, Oppol and Venalkkinavukal are some of his immemorable works.
Apart from Malayalam, he has made films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and Sinhala. Sethumadhavan's film Marupakkam won the National Film Award for Best Picture for the first time in Tamil. His brother KSR is the producer of many of Sethumadhavan's films, starting with Jnanasundari. He also recently passed away.

The adjective 'gentleman' was always with Sethumadhavan. Absolute peace was always present on that face. Its fullness was also evident in character. Being able to see the sage Ramana Maharshi as a child deeply influenced his life.

Despite winning many national and state awards, he did not receive the Dada Sahib Phalke or the Padma Award. He didn't go after the awards and it didn't matter for him. KS Sethumadhavan was a perfected artist. He had always been our best friend and benefactor. We are deeply saddened by his demise.