MusicSince the 80s, Chithra has been omnipresent in the world of Malayalam film music. Her entry was perfectly timed — she came at a time when the old guard of singers had mostly left the film music scene and a new generation of musicians had emerged.Ks Chithra / Facebook‘Angopangam’, the semi classical song in the hugely popular film Devasuram (1993) is a favourite among the fans of Ks Chithra, often called the Vanampadi (nightingale) of Malayalam music. But the song has a backstory that many don't know — music director Mg Radhakrishnan had initially hired another singer for it. But when it turned out that the singer didn't possess the skills to pull off such a complex composition, Chithra was brought in, and the song was recorded in a single take. “She was flawless, a singing monster if one may call her that,” recalled singer Mg Sreekumar, who is also the late composer's brother.
- 8/19/2023
- by MariaR
- The News Minute
TributeBichu, who died on Friday, gave to Malayalam cinema many of its most celebrated songs – he was known for coining catchphrases and weaving magic with lyrics.CrisBichu Thirumala / Courtesy - Sumanbichu / WikiCommons / CCBYSA4In a room in Hotel Ranjith in the Madras of late 1980s, director Kamal, working on his second film, sat with his music composer and lyricist. He told them the title of the film – Unnikale Oru Kadha Parayam (Little ones, I will tell you a tale) – and the story. He asked for a song for the movie to begin with. Ousepachan, a meticulous composer, opened his harmonium and sang a tune. Immediately from a corner of the room, Bichu Thirumala, the lyricist, sang, “Unnikale oru kadha parayam…”. Kamal and Ouseph laughed, it was a perfect fit to the tune. But that was not hard, that was the film title. Ouseph sang the tune for the second line...
- 11/27/2021
- by Cris
- The News Minute
InterviewThe film that introduced Mohanlal to the Malayalam cinema audience had many firsts, all of which proved successful.CrisFazil and Mohanlal's first appearance in the filmChristmas morning began with a bunch of different wishes for director Fazil. Actors, directors and technicians were calling him to wish him for Christmas along with two anniversaries: the day his first film Manjil Virinja Pookkal was released 40 years ago, and the day his masterpiece Manichithrathazhu came out 27 years ago. One of them introduced Mohanlal to the Malayali audience as a young promising villain, the other simply went on to add another laurel to his already proven career of a decade and more. In an interview with Tnm, Fazil speaks about that first film, Manjil Virinja Pookkal, popping up as it did like an unusual flower with a bunch of new talents and unconventional ideas. Fazil was new, all three of his main actors — Shankar the hero,...
- 12/26/2020
- by Cris
- The News Minute
Flix FlashbackThe Fazil film, which came out 35 years ago, was remade in Tamil as ‘Poove Poochuda Vaa’ and became an even bigger hit.Anand Kumar RSYouTube screenshotMalayalam cinema has always had the reputation of being close to realism while other language cinema, with the exception of perhaps Bengali, was seen as tilted towards fantasy and larger than life stories. Once in a while, amidst such realistic cinema in Malayalam, came films like Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu (Nkn) – a comedy caper which bordered on fantasy. Directed by Fazil, the film hit the theatres quietly in October 1984. 35 years since, when one looks back, it is obvious that Fazil in just his fifth film had ventured into uncharted territories. For starters, the premise was simple yet novel, exploring an intimate relationship between a grandmother and a granddaughter. It’s the way in which the director, who also wrote the script, wove some great moments...
- 10/27/2019
- by Vidya
- The News Minute
MollywoodThe director who has made quite a few popular films in the past, will be seen in Prithviraj’s ‘Lucifer’ and Priyadarshan’s ‘Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham’.Digital NativeIt seems director Fazil who has made some very popular films both in the Malayalam and Tamil film industries, is now turning his focus into acting. He is playing an important role in the film Lucifer, the directorial debut of actor Prithviraj, and also in Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham, directed by Priyadarshan. Both films have Mohanlal playing the lead. Fazil has in fact played small roles especially in his own movies in the past. He appears as the friend of Mohanlal in the movie Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu, in a short but significant role. He is seen as a passerby in the Tamil and Malayalam version of Ente Sooryaputhrikku, with Amala in the lead. He has made landmark movies in his career that began with the movie Manjil Virinja Pookkal,...
- 1/25/2019
- by Cris
- The News Minute
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