An actor, director, playback singer, producer, and distributor who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema, Mohanlal Vishwanath is a face that needs no introduction. Being one of the most admired and regarded as one of the greatest Indian actors in history, Mohanlal has had one glorious career so far, from having worked in over 340 films spanning over a career of four decades. Though he appears sporadically in Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam movies, he has also worked in other language movies.
Mohanlal Vishwanath was born on May 21st, 1960 to Vishwanath Nair and Santhakumari in the village of Elanthoor, Kerala. Growing up in Thiruvananthapuram, Latettan completed his high school and his bachelor’s of commerce degree from Mahatma Gandhi College Thrivunanthpuram. His first role was as a sixth grader for a stage play called “Computer Boy” in which he played a ninety-year-old man.
Mohanlal made his acting debut in his produced 1978 movie “Thiranottam” where he played a mentally disabled servant. Though the movie faced severe censorship issues and wasn’t release for another 25 years. He moved on and in 1980, he was cast as the lead antagonist role in Fazil’s “Manjil Virinja Pookkal”. The film did well and became a major success, introducing Mohanlal to several other antagonist roles which he excelled at. By 1983, he was credited in 25 feature films playing all villainous characters. After playing the antagonist for so many movies, Sasikumar’s “Ivide Thudangunnu” changed his image from the villain to a hero with a good heart. After that Mohanlal played a variety of roles in films made by some of the best makers in the industry like Padmaranjan, Bharathan, Lohithadas, Hariharan amongst others.
In a career spanning over four decades and still going, Lalettan has both won and received numerous competitions and honors. He is the owner of five National Film Awards for Best Actor, Nine Kerala State Film Awards, and Filmfare South Awards. His accolades don’t just end here, in 2001, the Government Of India honored him with the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honor in the country followed by the Padma Bhusan, the third-highest civilian honor in 2019 for his contribution to the arts and the industry.
He was also conferred with the honorary Doctor Of Letters by the Sree Sankaracharya University Of Sanskrit in 2010 followed by the University Of Calicut in 2018. Back in 2008, while playing a role of an Indian Army Officer for the film Kurukshetra, Mohanlal had expressed his interest in joining the Territorial Army Of India. However, it could not be possible as no man above the age of 42 could be eligible for the volunteer force. But on July 9, 2018, he was formally inducted into the Territorial Army Of India in the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel by the then Army Chief Deepak Kapoor, making Lalettan the first actor to receive that honor. In 2012 he also received a black belt in Taekwondo from Kukkiwon South Korea, making him again the first South Indian to receive that honor.
On the occasion of the fan-favorite Latettan’s birthday, Saregama celebrates his contribution and wishes him a healthy and prosperous life ahead.
Now you can stream and enjoy all your favorite Mohanlal songs on Saregama and Saregama Carvaan Malayalam. Saregama Carvaan Malayalam is a portable digital music player that comes with a pre-loaded 5000 evergreen Malayalam film songs, devotional songs, and Carnatic music you can listen to without internet and ad breaks. It also comes with striking features like Bluetooth, FM/AM radio, USB, and AUX connectivity to enjoy your personal collection of songs.