Mohanlal: The God of Mollywood and sculpture of classic mannerisms

When asked about whether still interested in acting, he smiled and said “Acting was never in my mind at the start. It just happened and even now, I am not sure that I will remain in this field for long. I may end my acting career after my next movie itself, if my mind tells me to.” Mohanlal, one of the prominent actors in the southern state of Kerala, is a humongous creator of emotions among the people of the state. This answer has created a talk on the movie goers of Kerala and has risen tension over the fact that there will come a day when this legend will leave this great stage for good.

SIIMA addressed Mohanlal as the God Of Mollywood.

Before Cinema

Born in 21st May 1960, Mohanlal Viswanathan is the second son of Viswanathan Nair and Santhakumari. His schooling was in Trivandrum and had a degree in Bachelor of Commerce. Before coming to the acting field, Mohanlal practiced wrestling and he was the Kerala state wrestling champion for the years 1977 and 1978. His crossover from the wrestling arena to the front of camera happened in 1978 when he acted in his first movie ‘Thiranottam’ which was never released. Later in 1980, he debuted as a fully fledged antagonist in ‘Manjil Virinja Pookkal’. After that, he donned many more antagonist roles until the year 1984, in the film ‘Poochakkoru Mookkuthi’ where he showed the world that he could also do comic roles.

The Big-Ms:

Mohanlal’s rise as a lead actor is seen by the movie observers as a changing phase of the Malayalam film industry. In the 1980s and 1990s, he along with his other competitive partner, Mammootty contributed for about 80-90% of movies’ successes. The two actors have acted in mostly 90% of the total movies released in this period. By 2018, Mohanlal has crossed his movie count to 300, while Mammootty is reaching out for the 400 mark. The impact they created in the cinemagoers during that period is tremendous in such a way that the emergence of other actors was minimal and could not match the potentials these two held. It was only after 1990 that other actors set their firm foot on the Industry that is ruled unanimously by the Big-Ms, as denoted by the public.

The Charismatic Lal:

The rise of Mohanlal as a popular actor was gradual. In the movies that came after 1985, he acted in many different roles where he put on a charismatic persona. This helped people to notice his arrival very quickly. The movies that Mohanlal did at those time depicted the ordinary Malayali (people of Kerala) with splendid real-life mannerisms and it became a talk quickly. The character he played in the movie ‘T.P Balagopalan M A’ where his character, being the only educated person in his family tries to find ways to manage the household and at the same time, tries to earn for his sister’s marriage. The film reflects an ordinary household at that period and the character still shows a flamboyancy even now. This charisma which he exerts in every role he plays did wonder to the people who watched him. His popularity sky-rocketed and his boy-next-door image accelerated him in a big way. Even without any effort from his side, Mohanlal was emerging as a promising actor. His other roles include C.I.D Dasan in ‘Nadodikaattu’, where he sided with Sreenivasan, from where a new comic combo emerged. He then teamed up with his schoolmate Priyadarshan for many laugh riot movies. Their movies like ‘Kilukkam’ and ‘Chithram’ are still considered as classics of Malayalam. His On-screen presence began to be appreciated from that time onwards.

Mohanlal’s career never was surrounded just by comedy roles. Parallely, he acted in many subject oriented movies which began to appear in the early 90s.  His role in ‘Kireedom’ and its sequel ‘Chenkol’ as an ordinary man turned thug because of situations was a ripple. His acting was well appreciated by critics as well as the award jury at the national level. Later in the movie ‘Bharatam’, he acted as a character with different emotions that helped him to bag his first national award for best actor. After that, his movies include ‘Kalapani’ where he donned the role of a freedom fighter in British India, ‘Vanaprastham’ where he played a Kathakali artist to perfection and got the national award for best actor for the second time in his career. His collaboration with the director Blessy in the 21st century is considered as a gift for the public. He acted in movies like ‘Thanmatra’ and ‘Pranayam’. In the former, he acted as an Alzheimer’s patient and in the later, he donned the role of a handicapped person. His acting was well received by both critics and audience and marked the return of Mohanlal.

The Lal-Factor:

When everyone was overwhelmed by what Mohanlal can do, he took another ‘Avatar’ which converted some people into hardcore fans. Everything started in 1986 when the movie ‘Rajavinte Makan’ was released. The movie marked his entry into the superstar league. In 1993, he acted in a cult movie ‘Devasuram’ which is still his best avatar till date. In that movie, he played a thug with no sentiments over anything and the story of how life changes when everything around him falls apart. The movie was well-received by the audience and Mohanlal’s dialogue deliveries were noted. In 1997, through the movie ‘Aaram Thamburan’, he firmed his idea of going ahead with mass masala films. In 2000 came the monster movie ‘Narasimham’ which transcended every other movies of the genre and also, unfortunately become the source of Mohanlal’s downfall in the upcoming years. He played many similar roles and critics and audiences rebelled. After some years, he declared that he would not go behind such movies anymore and try to be on the limits.

The Comeback:

After a long setback, in 2013, Mohanlal again showed that he is still the king of the Industry. On December 19th, the movie ‘Drishyam’ released. The movie came with very fewer expectations and soon took over the entire industry like a storm. People rushed to theatres after a long time to see their favourite star in a neat and tidy role. During that period, Kerala saw what this man could do even at this age. The movie went on to cross many borders where Malayalam movies have never gone before and that too, with a Stirling speed. The next movie ‘Oppam’ did a great job in the box office. But the miracle was yet to come. In 2016, ‘Pulimurugan’ released and rest is history. The Lal-factor became active and the movie sky rocketed in Malayalam box office. It crossed the 100cr mark even before everyone realised what is happening. The success of the movie gave rise to new hopes in the film industry. They dreamt new dreams and assured that everything is possible from then on. From there, this small south Indian industry began to count money and ready for the competition that would be put forth by its neighbours.

Even though Mohanlal was so much criticized for portraying the superhuman roles, the love for him never ceased. The audience never missed the chance to see their beloved star on the screen. They rushed whenever they could and criticised his selection when the situation demanded. Every single move that Mohanlal took raised some the talk around the state. During a pole by CNN, Mohanlal was selected as Kerala’s cultural icon because of the impact he created on the public. Government of India awarded him the Padmasree, the fourth highest civilian award for his contribution to Indian film. Later, He was ranked Luetinent Colonet in the territorial army seeing the impact he can make in the youths of the present.

In Kerala, everything revolves around movies and no one day will go in an individual’s life without the reference of Mohanlal or his any character. Like mentioned before, People will always find a way to love him and appreciate him or in worse scenarios, criticize him to the fullest.