KOLLAM:If there is any producer whose name will be written in golden letters in the history of Malayalam cinema, it will be none other than K Ravindranathan Nair, popularly known as ‘Achani Ravi’ or ‘General Pictures Ravi’.
Under Ravi’s General Pictures, two of Malayalam’s stalwart filmmakers Adoor Gopalakrishnan and G Aravindan presented a handful of films which not only brought kudos from the national-level but also from the international-level. As an acknowledgement to Ravi’s outstanding contributions to the Malayalam film industry, the State Government decided to honour him with the J C Daniel Award in 2008. Meanwhile, those who worked closely with him in the film industry opined that for this hardcore filmmaker, honours were many a slip between the cup and the lip.
According to them, those who took a first step into the film industry under his guidance went on to receive esteemed honours such as Padma awards. But the man who inspired a generation and toiled hard for making Malayalam film industry an acclaimed one, who was the reason for their laurels, was deprived of awards or recognition.
Underscoring the same, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that Ravindranathan Nair was eligible for higher recognitions and added that he understands the sentiments of Ravi’s friends and family regarding the same. The CM was delivering a talk during a function organised by Bharat Murali Cultural Centre for felicitating Ravindran Nair on Tuesday.
“Ravindranathan Nair had made outstanding contributions to the Malayalam film industry. He had won many awards, including the J C Daniel Award. But to me, his personality is a distinctive one. He was lauded as a successful filmmaker and a businessman. He is also a social crusader. He contacted me many times, not for any personal favour but for the social and cultural development of the district,” Chandy said.