Veteran Mollywood actor Mamukkoya passes away in Kozhikode at 76
Veteran Mollywood actor Mamukkoya passes away in Kozhikode at 76
Even as the Malayalam Film Fraternity have not got over the sad demise of veteran actor Innocent, now yet another set back in the death of another veteran actor Mamukkoya in Kozhikode, Kerala.
Over a long career spanning five decades, the actor has appeared in about 400 films, in most of which he played comic characters that spoke in his unmistakable Kozhikodan slang.
Mamukkoya, is one amongst Malayalam cinema’s finest and most popular comedians of all time. Sadly, the cruel hands of death has snatched him away at 76. He succumbed to a cardiac arrest at a private hospital in Kozhikode on Wednesday.
Infact, on Monday, he had collapsed amid a football tournament at Kalikavu in Malappuram district. He was given first aid by the trauma care volunteers and was rushed to a hospital at Wandoor, but was later shifted to a private hospital in Kozhikode where he breathed his last.
Though he had made his debut in the 1979 film Anyarude Bhoomi, it was a few years later that he rose to stardom, with his superb performances in films like Doore Doore Oru Koodu Koottam, Gandhinagar 2nd Street, Sanmanassullavarkku Samadhanam and Nadodikkattu.
In Nadodikkattu, his portrayal of Gafoor, the small-time conman who puts two unemployed youths played by Mohanlal and Sreenivasan on a boat to Chennai after making them believe it was actually Dubai, was brilliant and it made him hugely popular. The film went on to earn a reputation as one of the greatest comedies ever in Malayalam cinema. The role may have been small, but it became as iconic as the main characters in the film – Dasan and Vijayan.
Mamukkoya soon established himself as one of those dependable and hugely talented character actors of Malayalam cinema. He featured in several memorable films made in the 1980s and 90s, the golden period of Malayalam cinema.
He was an accomplished character actor.Though he had been typecast as the funny man from Malabar, in films like Perumazhakkalam, he showed his range as an actor. In that moving drama directed by Kamal, he portrayed an unfortunate old man with finesse and earned a special mention for his performance at the Kerala State Film Awards.
His most recent film is Sulaikha Manzil.
News input KV Raman
