Actor Madhu has in recent times preferred quiet birthdays, the ones which slip away without even him noticing it. However, on his 84th birthday, his home in Kannammoola had quite a few visitors, and those who could not make it were all ringing him up.
“All this is because the media had carried stories on my birthday. Otherwise, even I would not have noticed it,” he says, as yet another phone call interrupts the conversation. Several of his colleagues from the industry, including actors Mohanlal and Siddique, had called up to wish him on Saturday morning.
In a film career spanning over five decades, he has made a mark not just in acting, but has shone as a director and producer. But a film career was nowhere in his scheme of things when he started working as a Hindi lecturer at a college in Nagercoil.
But soon he joined the National School of Drama, which became a stepping stone to Malayalam Cinema, making his debut in the 1963 film Ninamaninja Kalpadukal , directed by N.N. Pisharody.
The role that he is still remembered for, that of the lovelorn fish trader Pareekutty in the National award winning film Chemmeen , came two years later. Even at the heights of commercial success, he chose to act in independent cinema, becoming part of films like Adoor Goapalakrishnan's Swayamvaram , that heralded the new wave in Malayalam cinema and P.N. Menon’s Olavum Theeravum , yet again playing the role of a tragic hero.
His fame also crossed the boundaries of the State, acting in the 1969 Bollywood film Saat Hindustani . In 1970, he ventured into direction with Priya . At the turn of the millennium, he turned his attention to television, starring in a few television serials, even while remaining active in cinema.
“I am currently acting in a television serial. But, since I am not able to move around much due to a swelling on the leg, I could not complete the dubbing,” he says.
For someone who has won numerous accolades over the years, the drawing room of his home is devoid of a single trophy or even a photograph of his.
“Why should people see my photograph or my awards, when I am here and they can directly talk to me?” he asks, when someone points this out.
