THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With his restrained, calculated performance of Kodumon Potti, Mammootty has bagged his fourth national award in the best actor chart. The laurel is noted for two reasons --- Mammootty joins Amitabh Bachchan to win the maximum number of Swarna Kamal for the best actor, and the Malayalam film industry breaks a 13-year hiatus to win the prestigious award again. The last time Malayalam struck this gold was in 2013 when Suraj Venjarammoodu won it for Perariyathavar.
In 1989, when Mammootty won it first for his portrayal as Chandu Chekavar, the manipulator-warrior of the northern ballads (Vadakkan Paattukal), it was another ice-breaker. Malayalam was winning the award after a gap of nine years. Before that, it used to land in Malayalam’s kitty once every three years ---P J Antony (for Nirmalyam in 1974), Bharat Gopi (Kodiyettam in 1977) and Balan K Nair (in 1980 for Oppol).
When Mammootty finally won the honour for his titanic performances in Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha and Mathilukal, it ended the chatter among cinephiles of those years about why Mammootty or Mohanlal were not being considered for the coveted award despite being stalwart actors.
And since 1989, Malayalam films have been almost a regular in the ‘Best Actor’ category, with Mohanlal winning it shortly after in 1991 for Bharatham and in 1999 for Vanaprastham, Suresh Gopi in 1997 for Kaliyattam, Balachandra Menon in Samantharangal in 1997, Murali in 2002 (Neythukaran), Salim Kumar in 2010 (Adaminte Makan Abu), and then Suraj Venjarammoodu. In between, Mammootty kept repeating his magic, winning in 1994 for Ponthanmada and Vidheyan, and Babasaheb Ambedkar in 1999.
M F Thomas, acclaimed film critic, feels the award this year is a welcome relief from the monotonous mediocrity reflecting in the award choices of late. Also, the number of awards apart and the impact of Mammootty’s performance both deserve acclaim, he notes.
“Considering how small the Malayalam film industry is as compared to Hindi, that Malayalam has bagged 14 awards is a great feat. From P J Antony to Mammootty now, the line-up has been exemplary, and can be easily compared to some of the best in the world,” he says.
Bramayugam was one of Mammootty’s towering performances, and so also its technical treatment, he claims.
“It was a myth that was changed into a reality with astonishing magical touch. Mammootty literally breathed life into it with tremendous dexterity. Another of his stellar performances was Vidheyan, though each of his award-winning characters is worthy of mention,” he says, adding “Bramayugam’s expertise is the reason we included it in many of our film society screenings. I would also mention the other winners from Malayalam in different categories. All of them have set the standard of Malayalam apart.”