Malayalam cinema
Malayalam cinema, also referred to as Mollywood, is a segment of Indian cinema dedicated to producing films in the Malayalam language, primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands. It encompasses both the mainstream film industry and independent Malayalam films. Known for its strong storytelling, powerful performances, and social themes, Malayalam cinema has received critical acclaim and is often regarded as one of India's most notable film industries.
The first Malayalam feature film was Vigathakumaran, a silent film directed and produced by J. C. Daniel. Production started in 1928, and it was released at the Capitol Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram on 23 October 1930. The first talkie in Malayalam was Balan directed by S. Nottani. During the 1920s, the Malayalam film industry was based in Thiruvananthapuram, although the film industry started to develop and flourish by the late 1940s. Later the industry shifted to Madras. By the late 1980s, the industry returned to Kerala, establishing Kochi as its hub with most production and post-production facilities located there and most of the film stars including Mammootty and Mohanlal living in the city.
As of 2024, Malayalam cinema has earned numerous accolades at the National Film Awards, including 14 for Best Actor, 6 for Best Actress, 13 for Best Film, and 13 for Best Director. Malayalam cinema garnered international recognition, with Elippathayam winning the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival, and being named the Most Original Imaginative Film of 1982 by the British Film Institute. Additionally, Marana Simhasanam won the prestigious Caméra d'Or at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.
Several Malayalam films have been India's official entries for the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards, including Rajiv Anchal's Guru, Salim Ahamed's Adaminte Makan Abu, Lijo Jose Pellissery's Jallikkattu and Jude Anthany Joseph's 2018. Other globally acclaimed films include Chemmeen, which received a Certificate of Merit at the Chicago International Film Festival, and a gold medal at the Cannes Film Festival for Best Cinematography. Swaham won the Bronze Rosa Camuna at the Bergamo Film Meeting in Italy. Malayalam cinema has also produced India's first 3D film, My Dear Kuttichathan. The first CinemaScope film produced in Malayalam was Thacholi Ambu.
History
Active Malayalam film production did not take place until the second half of the 20th century: there were only two silent films, and three Malayalam-language films before 1947. With support from the Kerala state government production climbed from around 6 a year in the 1950s, to 30 a year in the 1960s, 40 a year in the 1970s, to 127 films in 1980.Origins 1928
The first cinema hall in Kerala, with a manually operated film projector, was opened in Thrissur by Jose Kattookkaran in 1907. In 1913, the first permanent theatre in Kerala was established in Thrissur town by Kattookkaran and was called the Jose Electrical Bioscope, now Jos Theatre.The first film made in Malayalam was Vigathakumaran. Production started in 1928, and it was released at the Capitol Theatre in Thiruvananthapuram on 23 October 1930. It was produced and directed by J. C. Daniel, a businessman with no prior film experience, who is credited as the father of Malayalam cinema. Daniel founded the first film studio, The Travancore National Pictures Limited, in Kerala. A second film, Marthanda Varma, based on the novel by C. V. Raman Pillai, was produced by R. Sundar Raj Nadar in 1933. However, after only being shown for four days, the film prints were confiscated due to a legal battle over copyright.
The first talkie in Malayalam was Balan, released in 1938. It was directed by S. Nottani with a screenplay and songs written by Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai. It was produced by Modern Theatres at Salem in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu. Balan was followed by Gnanambika in 1940, which was directed by S. Nottani. Then came Prahlada in 1941, directed by K. Subramoniam of Madras and featuring Guru Gopinath and Thankamani Gopinath.
Until 1947 most Malayalam films were made by Tamil producers, P. J. Cherian was the first Malayali producer to venture into this field after JC Daniel Nadar. PJ Cherian produced Nirmala in 1948 with Joseph Cherian and Baby Joseph his son and daughter-in-law as hero and heroine. He also cast many other family members in other roles, trying to break the taboo that noble family people do not take up acting. Nirmala is the first movie which introduced play-back singing in the Malayalm filim industry. P.J. Cherian introduced play-back singing in Malayalam cinema. The lyrics of the film written by G. Sankara Kurup became popular.
Udaya Studios' Vellinakshatram was the first movie with audio to be made completely in Kerala.
1950s
Malayalam cinema has always taken its themes from relevant social issues and has been interwoven with material from literature, drama, and politics since its inception. One such film, Jeevitha Nouka, was a musical drama that spoke about the problems in a joint family.In 1954, the film Neelakuyil captured national interest by winning the President's silver medal. It was scripted by the well-known Malayalam novelist Uroob, and directed by P. Bhaskaran and Ramu Kariat.
Newspaper Boy contained elements of Italian neorealism. This film is notable as the product of a group of amateur college filmmakers. It told the story of a printing press employee and his family being stricken with extreme poverty.
The music took a turn away from the trend of copying Tamil and Hindi songs. The poets Tirunainaarkurichy Madhavan Nair – Thirunaiyarkurichy, P. Bhaskaran, O. N. V. Kurup, and Vayalar Ramavarma rose up in this period as film lyricists. Brother Lakshmanan, Dakshinamurthy, K. Raghavan, G. Devarajan, M. S. Baburaj, and Pukhenthey Velappan Nair started a distinct style of Malayalam music. Kamukara Purushotaman, Mehboob, Kozhikode Abdul Kader, AM Raja, P. B. Sreenivas, K. P. Udayabhanu, Santha P. Nair, P. Leela, S. Janaki, P. Susheela, B. Vasantha, Renuka, and Jikki were the most prominent singers of the 1950s. The drama artist and school teacher Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai lent many of his skills to the cinema in this period.
1960s
, one of the directors of Neelakuyil, went on to become a successful director in the 1960s and 1970s. P. Bhaskaran directed many acclaimed and hit films in the 1960s and 70s. The cameraman of Neelakkuyil, A. Vincent, also became a noted director of the 1960s and 1970s. Notable films of this decade include Odayil Ninnu, Bhargavi Nilayam, Chemmeen, Murappennu and Iruttinte Athmavu.Malayalam cinema's first colour film was Kandam Bacha Coat.
Chemmeen, directed by Ramu Kariat and based on a novel of the same name by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, went on to become very popular and became the first South Indian film to win the National Film Award for Best Feature Film.
Most of the films of the 1960s were animated by the nationalist and socialist projects and centered on issues relating to caste and class exploitation, the fight against obscurantist beliefs, the degeneration of the feudal class, and the break-up of the joint-family system.
In the 1960s, M. Krishnan Nair, Kunchacko and P. Subramaniam were the leading Malayali producers. Thikkurusi Sukumaran Nair, Prem Nazir, Sathyan, Madhu, Adoor Bhasi, Bahadur, S.P. Pillai, K.P. Ummer, Kottarakara Sreedharan Nair, Raghavan, G.K. Pillai, Muthukulam, Joseprakash, Paravur Bharatan, Muthayya, Shankaradi, Govindankutty, K.R. Vijaya, Padmini, Ragini, Sharada, Sheela, Ambika, Jayabharathi, Arumula Ponnamma and Sadahna were among the more popular actors active in this period.
During the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Kunchacko made significant contributions to Malayalam cinema, both as a producer and as director of some notable movies. He started Udaya Studios in Alappuzha in 1947, reducing the travel to Madras for film crew and actors. This boosted Malayalam film production in Kerala.
Many directors sprang up in this period. P.N. Menon made Rosy and later Chemparanthi. G. Aravindan and Adoor Gopalakrishnan also started work in the 1960s and became famous later.
1970s
The 70s saw the emergence of a new wave of cinema in Malayalam. The growth of the film society movement in Kerala introduced the works of the French and Italian New Wave directors to the discerning Malayali film enthusiasts. Adoor Gopalakrishnan's first film, Swayamvaram, brought Malayalam cinema to the international film arena. In 1973 M. T. Vasudevan Nair, who was by then recognised as an important author in Malayalam, directed his first film, Nirmalyam, which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film. G. Aravindan followed Adoor's lead with his Uttarayanam in 1974. K. P. Kumaran's Adhithi was another film that was acclaimed by the critics. Cinematographers who won the National Award for their work on Malayalam films in the 1970s were Mankada Ravi Varma for Swayamvaram, P. S. Nivas for Mohiniyattam, and Shaji N. Karun for Piravi. John Abraham, K. R. Mohanan, K. G. George, and G. S. Panikkar were products of the Pune Film Institute who made significant contributions.During the late 1970s, some young artists started seeing Malayalam cinema as a medium of expression and thought of it as a tool to revitalise society. A noted director, Aravindan, was famous in Kerala as a cartoonist before he started making films. His important movies include Kanchana Sita, Thampu, Kummatty, Chidambaram, Oridathu, and Vasthuhara.
The 1970s also saw the emergence of the notable director P. G. Viswambharan with his debut film Ozhukinethire and the mythical film Satyavan Savithri, which were well accepted.
Also, commercial cinema in this period saw several worker-class themed films which mostly had M. G. Soman, Sukumaran and Sudheer in the lead followed by the emergence of a new genre of pure action-themed films, in a movement led by Jayan. However, this was short-lived, and almost ended when Jayan died while performing a stunt in Kolilakkam.