Tinsel town: The year of the underdogs

While Nivin Pauly stamped his place in the industry, Biju Menon delivered one of the biggest hits of 2014

December 27, 2014 09:50 am | Updated 09:50 am IST

Kochi. Kerala, 19/12/14. Biju Menon in 'Vellimoonga'. Photo: Special Arrangement

Kochi. Kerala, 19/12/14. Biju Menon in 'Vellimoonga'. Photo: Special Arrangement

In 2014, Mollywood witnessed the emergence of an unlikely star.

After offering glimpses of his potential in previous years, Nivin Pauly finally stamped his place in the industry and in the hearts of the audience with three back-to-back hits. The only actor to rake in moolah at each of his box-office outings during the year, Nivin Pauly delivered solo-hits in 1983 and Om Shanthi Oshana , and followed it up with the multi-starrer Bangalore Days .

Biju Menon was another actor who had a memorable year as Vellimoonga proved to be one of the biggest hits of the year, and perhaps, the biggest in his career spanning more than two decades. Released with minimum fuss, the film slowly set the cash registers ringing as word of mouth spread. The Biju Menon-Kunchacko Boban lucky combo returned to the screens with Bhayya Bhayya , but the film wasn’t as successful as their previous films.

It was a year of both hits and misses for Prithviraj, who had set the box-office on fire the year before. While his Sapthamasree Thaskaraha and 7th Day were hits, London Bridge and Tamaar Padaar sunk without a trace.

Jayasurya experimented with various roles as he turned blind cricketer in Happy Journey , a menacing villain in Iyyobinte Pusthakam , a cold-blooded professional killer in Seconds and a victim of clinical tests in Apothecary. Not all of them were successful though. The actor also delivered flops such as Lal Bahadur Shastri , Mathai Kuzhappakkaranalla and Aamayum Muyalum .

Fahad Fazil had a forgettable year going by the lofty standards he had set in 2013. The biggest disappointment was One by Two that promised a lot while God’s Own Country and Money Ratnam were ordinary. Iyyobinte Pusthakam , which saw him in an action hero avatar, and Bangalore Days were his only winners.

It was one of the worst years of Dileep’s acting career as he reeled from back-to-back duds in Ringmaster , Avatharam and Villaliveeran .

Dulqer Salman had two hits in Bangalore Days and Vikramadityan , while his performance in Njan was appreciated.

Salala Mobiles and Samsaaram Arogyathinu Haanikaram were outright failures.

Kunchacko Boban made his presence felt with average flicks such as Polytechnic , Law Point , and Bhayya Bhayya besides playing second fiddle in Manju Warrier’s comeback vehicle and runaway hit How Old Are You . The fate of his new release Cousins alongside Indrajith is yet to be sealed.

Except for his notable turnouts in Sapthamasree Thaskaraha and Apothecary in addition to the minor role in Vellimoonga , Asif Ali had an uneventful year.

It was one of the worst years for Indrajith as his Masala Republic and Naku Penta Naku Teka failed to create a ripple at the box-office and Angels met with average success.

Except for the critically acclaimed Munnariyippu and the moderately successful Varsham , Mammootty’s remaining five movies were a washout with Gangster being the biggest flop. Manglish , Rajadhiraja and Balyakaalasakhi did his credibility little good. Mr. Fraud , Koothara , and Peruchazhi turned out to be the kind of films an actor of Mohanlal’s calibre could be hardly proud of.

Things were no different for Suresh Gopi and Jayaram. Critically acclaimed roles in Apothecary and Swapaanam respectively were the only saving grace for both of them.

Salam Kashmir starring both of them disappeared in the wink of an eye. Suresh Gopi’s The Dolphins and Jayaram’s Ulsaha Committee , Njangalude Veettile Athithikal and Mailanchi Monchulla Veedu did them no good either.

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