A talented actor gets his due at last

Sudheesh wins Supporting Actor Award

There is recognition for Sudheesh, finally.

Thirty four years after making a fine debut in Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Anantaram , he has won the State Award for the best supporting actor.

Few actors in Malayalam cinema have had to wait this long for an honour like this. Fewer have deserved as much.

In a career that has spanned over four decades, he has come up with some stellar performances, in films like

Aadhaaram and

Mudra . It was not often that he got such demanding, lengthy roles, though.

He was reduced to playing the hero’s friend or the young good-natured guy next door most of the time. Of late, however, he has been cast in more varied roles. Like he was in Ennivar and Bhoomiyile Manohara Swakaryam . It was for his performances in those films that he won the State Award.

“I am delighted that I am recognised for those two films, as both were excellent roles, vastly different from what I have been doing,” Sudheesh told The Hindu. “I played the heroine’s father in Bhoomiyile Manohara Swakaryam and as a politician with negative shades in Ennivar .”

He said he was happy that he was getting more such roles. “I knew that I was getting typecast,” he said. “But things began to change with Theevandi .”

Things could get even better for him now that he has joined that formidable list of supporting actors honoured with the State Award.