THRISSUR: The national awards didn’t deserve Mammootty and no one could compete with his portrayal of Koduman Potti in the film Bramayugam, chairman of the state film awards jury Prakash Raj said on Monday.
Justifying the jury’s selection of Mammootty, whom he referred to as Mammookka, as best actor at a time when many young actors are also vying for the honour, Prakash Raj told reporters that being a senior actor cannot be a disqualification for the award “In fact, there is a lot that young actors can learn from senior actors, including Mammootty,” he said. To a question on whether politics played a role in denying Mammootty the national award, the noted actor responded that it was clear for all to see. “It became certain when some random ‘files and piles’ received the recognition.”
While extending the invite to chair the jury, according to Prakash Raj, the state government promised not to interfere in the decision making. He said that though Malayalam movies are well appreciated across the country, only 10% of films that were submitted for the awards met the necessary standard. “This should change -- there is a huge expectation from Malayalam films.”
He added that crafting a movie like Manjummel Boys from a true story was no simple task and the team did well.
To a question on Vedan being selected best lyricist, he said that Vedan stood out with his song and his selection was a break with tradition.
Prakash Raj urged the state government to appoint a committee to scrutinise films to receive public funding. “It is taxpayer money and funds should be sanctioned to films that meet a certain quality. It is definitely a great gesture to empower people to do films,” he added.