About - Shri Kalanilayam Krishnan Nair
It all started from the fire. ‘The Fire of desire’ to create a extravagant theatre, which till then nobody had even thought of. The thought was totally out-of-the-box, thinking of an era when even electricity was not common. A theatre of 4500 sqft, an auditorium to accommodate 250 spectators, huge sets and properties, audio equipments, maininting a team of 250 artists were a few of the many challenges that had to be dealt with. With a very strong vision, finally the dream became a reality. On January 26th 1963, Mannath Padmanabhan inaugurated the permanent theatre Kalanilayam at Thiruvananthapuram. “Kurukeshtra” was the first play. The audience sat spellbound with the magical experience. The creation was of a maestro, and the spectators called him as “Kalanilayam Krishnan Nair” – the founder of Kalanilayam.
A native of Thiruvananthapuram Krishnan Nair was born to Bhaskara pillai and Ammukutty on 26th June 1917. At an early age itself, his interest was in directing dramas and as a result in 1935, “Kalanilayam Nadana Sabha” was formed. From there the wings were speared. He gave more emphasis on technical and visual beauty, the craft he delivered was technically more advanced than the films of that time. He was also the founder and Editor of “Thaniniram” newspaper. A film distribution company in the name “Jeevan Pictures”, was formed to distribute feature films. The magic continued till the legend passed away in the year 1980.
About - Kodungallur Ammini Amma
Kodungallur Ammini Amma,the legendary actress of Kalanilayam theatres was born in 1927 in Kodungallur as the second daughter to Thrikkulasekharam Sankaran and Meenakshi Amma. She started learning music at a younger age from Kodungallur Kalari. This made her path into drama and her maiden one was Pookari.Later she acted in many dramas,including Thikkurissi's Maya and Mahathi. Her talents came into full blossom when she joined in Kalanilayam theatres. The golden era of Kalanilayam began when she became wife of Kalanilayam Krishnan nair and that led to the birth of many epic dramas like Guruvayoorappan, Jesus Christ, Ilayidathurani, Kayamkulam Kochunni, Raktharakshas, Devadasi, Tajmahal, Umminithanka etc. She has brought lives to all her roles as Kurooramma, Vazhappilli Janaki, Kunjara, Helen, Krishnakumai, Revarani etc. through her subtle way of acting, graceful appearance and dialogue delivery. She brought out memorable characters on stage for more than 35 years in more than 50000 stages. Her beautiful dramatic saga came to an end at the demise of Kalanilayam Krishnan Nair in 1980. She led a retired life in her home in Kodungallur till she died on 26 February 2017. She proved her calibre in acting in some movies like Prasanna, Vanamala, Neelakuyil etc. She received many honours and appreciation. Travancore Devaswam Board, Travancore Royal family and Bombay Malayali Association honoured her with Gold medals. She received grand recognition and honour in her native place by Kodungallur pauravali in January 2016.
About - Jagathy N. K. Achary
Jagathy N. K. Achary was a Malayalam dramatist and writer who also worked in Malayalam films. He was known for his plays and screenplays. He wrote many plays for the radio, crossing over to writing more than twenty plays for professional theatre and subsequently films. Many of his screenplays were published and enacted by amateur theatre groups all over Kerala.
During the 1960s-70s, Kalanilayam revolutionised Malayalam theatre, with its dramas like Raktharakshass, Kayamkulam Kochunni, Kadamattathu Kathanar, Iravikkodu Pillai, Naradan Keralathil, Taj Mahal, Sree Guruvayoorappan and Alavudinum Athbhuthavilakkum, all simultaneously with his illustrious career in films. He penned story, screenplay and dialogues for more than 24 Malayalam movies and also experimental films such as Sexilla Stundilla, Paathirapattu etc. He also wrote films with strong female characters in the 60s and 70s.
About - Anantha Padmanabhan
Anantha Padmanabhan is the son of late kalanilayam Krishnan Nair and late Kodungallur Ammini Amma. He revived Kalanilayam theatres on 23 June in 2003 along with the reputed film actor Jagathy Sreekumar in Cochin. He staged Raktharakshas, Kadamattathu Kathanar, Kayamkulam Kochunni and Naradan Keralathil with the timely changes in presentation and plot in all parts of Kerala and was appreciated by many. He remade Raktharakshas in Tamil and staged it in many places in Tamil Nadu. In 2014, he started Kalanilayam Stage Crafts, and was the Creative Director of Hidimbi - an arrow from the past which centres around the theme of women empowerment. Hidimbi was staged in all major cities of Kerala and India. Anantha Padmanabhan received appreciation from Kerala Social Mission on Womens Day from Smt. K.K Shylaja teacher. In 2019, he restarted Kadamattathu Kathanar in association with Chavara Matrimony with hi tech modifications and staged it many places. When Kerala was affected by floods, he formed Kalanilayam Foundation with John Paul, noted script writer, as the mentor and guide. In order to provide relief to the theatres affected by floods, he started Salkala (a 10 days Drama Fest). Seminars, theatre workshops were held and the services of veterans in the field of theatre were honoured and remembered. He organised Film Appreciation Workshop in association with Chalachitra Academy in Kochi in November 2019. Under his leadership Kalanilayam Foundation is bringing out NJAN, a drama based on Kochuseetha, a famous poem by Vallathol Narayana Menon in 2021.
About - Jagathy Sreekumar
Jagathy Sreekumar is a versatile Indian film actor who has starred in over 1400 Malayalam films in a career spanning almost four decades. Widely regarded as one of the greatest comedians in Malayalam cinema of all time, he is also known for his highly nuanced character roles. He is the son of acclaimed dramaturge and writer, the late Jagathy N. K. Achary. Jagathy Sreekumar won five Kerala State Film Awards among numerous other awards for his roles in various films. He has also directed two films and written screenplays for two more. With 1,070-odd Malayalam films to his credit, he is reckoned as one of the most prolific actors in the industry. In 2003 along with Sri. Anantha Padmanabhan, Jagathy Sreekumar revived the dramas by starting Kalanilayam Drama vision.
