1.
Nyla Usha
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In this Indian name, Usha is a matronymic, not a family name, and the person should be addressed in the given name, Nyla Nyla Usha is an Indian film actress, model, anchor, and radio jockey. After working for nearly a decade as an RJ at Hit 96.7 in Dubai, Nyla was born to Gopakumar and Usha Kumari. She studied at Holy Angels Convent Trivandrum, and All Saints College, Nyla who started modelling at a young age because she was very tall at a young age and initially wished to be an air hostess but became a television presenter in various TV channels. In 2004 she moved to Dubai, United Arab Emirates and joined the radio station Hit 96.7 where she works as a radio jockey. In 2013, Nyla Usha debuted in the Malayalam film industry with Salim Ahameds Kunjananthante Kada, Salim Ahamed had known Nyla since she had interviewed him on several occasions in Dubai and offered her the lead female role. She played the role of Chithira, a woman who is going through an unhappy marriage, later that year she had her second release, Punyalan Agarbattis, in which she played a vibrant girl, similar to the real me. Since she could relate herself to the character, she used her own looks, although she had a major role in Kunjananthante Kada she said that it was her role in Punyalan Agarbathis that fetched her recognition. In April 2014, her film, Aashiq Abus Gangster was released. The film saw her play a modern Muslim girl and being paired opposite Mammootty again, later She Acted As a City Police Commissioner in Deepu Karunakarans Fireman. Where she paired opposite Mammootty again. She is hosting the Malayalam version of Minute to Win it in Mazhavil Manorama and she acted more movies with mega star mammootty Nyla Usha got married to Rona Rajan in January 2007, long before she entered film industry, and has a son Aarnav
2.
Alexx O'Nell
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Alexx ONell is an American-born actor and musician who is based in India and has appeared in films and television programs in English and Indian languages. His major feature films include Main Aur Charles, Cheeni Kum, Madrasapattinam, Joker, Chittagong and he later gained recognition as a contestant on the hugely popular Indian celebrity dance competition Nach Baliye. ONells first leading role in a big-budget production came with Madrasapattinam, late 2011 saw the release of the Hindi Language feature Jo Dooba So Paar with ONell in a supporting role. Finally, ONell starred in Bedabrata Pains much awaited Chittagong, released to overwhelming critical acclaim on October 12,2012, perhaps his most significant role to date, ONell appeared in a double-lead role in the multilingual Urumi, directed by acclaimed Indian director Santosh Sivan. Urumi released in markets in 2011 and 2012 and remains the second most expensive. The stage of completion and expected date for the English-language Vasco Da Gama are unknown. ONells next releases were the much awaited Malayalam films Gangster and Manglish both featuring ONell alongside South-Indian superstar Mammootty releasing in April and July 2014, respectively. Following a high-profile relationship with Indian actress Sweta Keswani, ONell, ONell and Keswani lived together in Mumbai, India until their separation in mid-2011. ONell began working at various jobs from an age and continued to change his career frequently throughout his adult life including working in counselling marketing and modelling. It was a firm called Lester Inc. After working in theater, and then briefly as a fashion / print model for brands like Hyundai and Lenovo and his most notable campaigns included Roma Switches, Panasonic Air Conditioners and Esys Computers as well as being the brand ambassador for Moulin Glaciere perfumes from 2006 to 2009. He also appeared in Kashyap’s music video Alvida and he is reported to have recorded with music directors The Meet Brothers, however none of his original music has released and other musical performances have been rare. Nevertheless, a June 2012 interview with Shama Sikander indicates that an album will release soon. Though Loins was his first film shot, his first cinematic release would be the dry Hindi comedy Cheeni Kum in which he appeared as a bumbling English waiter who takes the brunt of the boss’s ire. He holds the distinction of being the first non-Indian participant seen in a significant capacity on Indian national primetime television, among the few positive mentions, critics commented about the supporting cast, Alex O’Neil … and the rest lend fair support. His performance as a lover and sadistic police commissioner in 1940s colonial south India attracted praise from critics. Critics commented Alex O’Neill as the menacing Robert Ellis provides the ample antagonism, Madrasapattinam became the 4th highest grossing and the 8th most profitable film in its industry in 2010. Madrasapattinam was re-released as 1947 - A Love Story in Telugu in the south east of India in August 2011 to positive reviews from critics, the film also stars notable Indian actors Vinay Pathak and Rajat Kapoor
3.
Deepak Dev
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Deepak Dev is a jaffa native of Thalasserry in Kerala, grew up in Dubai. He studied at the Indian High School there and was learning Indian Carnatic music ever since his childhood days, later his interest switched mainly to the keyboard. He focused a lot on programing music and started working with reputed musicians like A. R Rahman, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Sandeep Chowta, Vidyasagar, Anu Malik and he started his career in Malayalam movies with Chronic Bachelor directed by Siddique. He says in an interview that he had almost given up on his career, soon after completing his graduation from Sacred Hearts College, Cochin. And soon after the time it happened, the Siddique-Lal duo called me to join their group for their shows in the United States. They wanted me to some music to fill the time in-between programs. As I got a chance to visit America, my intention was to get some job in the States like marketing, after that I came back to India I shifted base from Kerala to Chennai, that was in 1999. After few years I met Siddique and he asked me to music for his movie Chronic Bachelor. Deepak was born to Devraj Komath & Asha Dev based in Tellichery and he has a younger brother, Dixit Dev. Deepak married Smitha Girijan on 26 May 2002, the couple now live in Ernakulam with their two daughters, Devika and Pallavi
4.
Malayalam cinema
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Malayalam cinema is the Indian film industry based in the southern state of Kerala, dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Malayalam language. Malayalam films are released in India, and a handful of them have been released in the United States, Australia, Germany, the UK, works such as Marana Simhasanam and Vanaprastham were screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. Marana Simhasanam garnered the coveted Caméra dOr for that year, in 1982, Elippathayam won the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival, and Most Original Imaginative Film of 1982 by the British Film Institute. Rajiv Anchals Guru and Salim Ahameds Adaminte Makan Abu were Malayalam films sent by India as its official entries for the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards. Adoor Gopalakrishnan has won the International Film Critics Prize for his works such as Mukhamukham, Anantaram, Mathilukal, Vidheyan, Kathapurushan, and Nizhalkkuthu. Piravi won at least 31 international honors, including the Caméra dOr — Mention Spéciale at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, swaham won the Bronze Rosa Camuna at the Bergamo Film Meeting in Italy. The first 3D film produced in India, My Dear Kuttichathan, was made in Malayalam, the first CinemaScope film produced in Malayalam was Thacholi Ambu. During the early 1920s the Malayalam film industry was based in Trivandrum, although the industry started to develop. Later the industry shifted to Chennai, which then was the capital of the South Indian film industry, several media sources describe Kochi as the hub of the film industry, while Kerala government publications state that Trivandrum is the center. Active Malayalam film production did not take place until the half of the 20th century. With support from the Kerala state government production climbed from around 6 a year in the 1950s, to 30 a year in the 1960s,40 a year in the 1970s, to 127 films in 1980. The first cinema hall in Kerala, with a manually operated film projector, was opened in Thrissur by Jose Kattookkaran in 1907, in 1913, the first permanent theatre in Kerala was established in Ollur, Thrissur city by Kattookkaran and was called the Jose Electrical Bioscope. The first film made in Malayalam was Vigathakumaran, production started in 1928, and it was released in Trivandrum Capitol Theatre on 23 October 1930. It was produced and directed by J. C, Daniel, a businessman with no prior film experience, who is credited as the father of Malayalam cinema. Daniel founded the first film studio, The Travancore National Pictures Limited, a second film, Marthanda Varma, based on a novel by C. V. Raman Pillai, was produced by R. Sundar Raj in 1933. However, after only being shown for four days, the prints were confiscated due to a legal battle over copyright. The first talkie in Malayalam was Balan, released in 1938 and it was directed by S. Nottani with a screenplay and songs written by Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai. It was produced at Chennai in the state of Tamil Nadu
5.
Gangster film
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Mob films — or gangster films — are a subgenre of crime films dealing with organized crime, often specifically with the Mafia. Especially in early mob films, there is overlap with film noir. The American movie The Black Hand is thought to be the earliest surviving gangster film. In 1912, D. W. Griffith directed The Musketeers of Pig Alley, critics have also cited Regeneration as an early crime film. Though mob films had their roots in such silent films, the genre in its most durable form was defined in the early 1930s and it owed its innovations to the social and economic instability occasioned by the Great Depression, which galvanized the organized crime subculture in the United States. The years 1931 and 1932 saw the genre produce three enduring classics, Warner Bros and those suffering from the Depression were able to relate to the gangster character who worked hard to earn his place and success in the world, only to have it all taken away from him. As the appeal and attraction of gangster movie stars such as Cagney, Robinson, Muni, during the early years of crime film, Scarface, arguably the most violent of gangster films created during the entire decade, particularly was the subject of criticism. This is illustrated by James Cagneys role as a law officer in the 1935 movie G Men and these pictures demonstrate the growing acceptance of crime films during the 1930s as long as criminals were not portrayed in a flattering light. It was now the law officers that the films attempted to glamorize, politics combined with the social and economic climate of the time to influence how crime films were made and how the characters were portrayed. Many of the films imply that criminals are the creation of society, rather than its rebel, the institution of Prohibition in 1920 led to an explosion in crime, and the depiction of bootlegging is a frequent occurrence in many mob films. However, as the 1930s progressed, Hollywood also experimented with the stories of the criminals and bank robbers, such as John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson. However, as the FBI increased in power there was also a shift to favour the stories of the FBI agents hunting the criminals instead of focusing on the criminal characters. In fact, in 1935 at the height of the hunt for Dillinger, many of the 1930s crime films also dealt with class and ethnic conflict, notably the earliest films, reflecting doubts about how well the American system was working. As stated, many films pushed the message that criminals were the result of a moral and economic society. In the 1970s there was a revival of mob films, notably with The Godfather and it was followed by two sequels, The Godfather Part II and The Godfather Part III. It also inspired other mob films such as The Valachi Papers, the 1983 remake of Scarface was not particularly well received at the time of its release, but over time it has come to be seen as a classic of the mob film genre. It went on to films such as King of New York. On the other hand, Sergio Leone shot an epic drama film Once Upon a Time in America, starring Robert De Niro
6.
T. G. Ravi
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T. G. Ravindranathan, popularly known as T. G. Ravi, is a Malayalam film actor, mainly noted for his roles as a villain. He along with Balan K. Nair played most of the roles in Malayalam cinema during the late 1970s. Ravi was born on 16 May 1944 in an, Ezhuthachan family in Moorkanikkara village, Thrissur, in present day Kerala, initially, he chose to pursue a career in engineering and undertook his degree course through Kerala University in Government Engineering College, Thrissur. He graduated in Mechanical Engineering in 1969, apart from involving in theatre arts, he also represented the University of Kerala in Football and Hockey. He was an artist at The All India Radio where he met Thikkodiyan and he is a noted industrialist and has been instrumental in developing Thrissur as a major base for the rubber based industries. He is the Managing Director of Suntec Tyres Limited and he has also served as the president of The Cochin Devaswom Board which controls the affairs of over 400 temples in Ernakulam, Thrissur and Palakkad districts. He was married to Dr. V. K. Subhadra, seema & Sajitha are his daughters-in-law. Milit, Rijraswa & Mitul are his grandsons and Minal is his granddaughter, Ravi began acting in the plays put up by the young men in his village, Moorkkanikkara, in Thrissur district. He also started acting in professional drama, Radio plays were popular in those days. Thikkodiyan introduced Ravi to Aravindan, a highly acclaimed Malayalam Director, but he didn’t get any offers to act after that, so he produced a film himself, Padasaram, in which he was, predictably, the hero. It flopped at the box office, but the two films he produced, Chora Chuvanna Chora and Chakara, did better. The role of Shaji in Chakara opposite Jayan established him as a villain, among those who noticed him was director Bharathan. He cast Ravi in the role of Kunjippalu in Parankimala, the villain who spoke in the Thrissur dialect proved to be the turning point in his career. After Parankimala, as Ravi starred in hits, including Ee Nadu, Iniyenkilum, Pathamudayam,1921, NH47. He quit acting when he was at his peak, as one of the villains of Malayalam cinema in the late 1980s. T. G. Ravi is now again as an actor. He restarted his career with Sibi Malayils venture Amrutham in 2006 and then made noted performances in Pakal, Cycle, Padasaram Chora Chuvanna Chora Chaakara T G Ravi at the Internet Movie Database T G Ravi at MSI
7.
Mammootty
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Mammootty is an Indian film actor and producer best known for his work in Malayalam cinema. In a career spanning three decades, he has acted in over 350 films. Mammootty was a lawyer by profession, after establishing himself as a lead actor in the 1980s, he got his major breakthrough with the commercial success of the 1987 film New Delhi. He has won 3 National Film Awards for Best Actor,7 Kerala State Film Awards, in 1998, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contributions towards the arts. He has also received honorary degrees from the University of Kerala in January 2010. Mammootty is the chairman of Malayalam Communications, which runs the Malayalam television channels Kairali TV, People TV and he is also the goodwill ambassador of the Akshaya project, the first district-wide e-literacy project in India. He is the patron of the Pain and Palliative Care Society and he has also been working with the Pain and Palliative Care Centre situated in Kozhikode, India. His father, Ismail, was a farmer and his mother, Fatima and he has two younger brothers, Ibrahimkutty and Zakariah and three younger sisters, Ameena, Sauda, and Shafina. Mammootty had his education from Govt. Later Mammoottys father shifted his family to Ernakulam in the 1960s and his school life was at St. Alberts School and Government School Ernakulam. He did his pre-university course at Sacred Heart College, Thevara and he attended Maharajas College, Ernakulam for his degree. He graduated with a LL. B. from Government Law College, Mammootty practiced law for two years in Manjeri. Mammootty married Sulfath on 1979 and has a daughter, Surumi, Mammoottys younger brother Ibrahimkutty is an actor in Malayalam films and Malayalam TV serials. Ibrahimkuttys son Maqbool Salmaan is also a film actor, Mammoottys debut was in the 1971 film Anubhavangal Paalichakal directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan. His second film was Kaalachakram, a 1973 Malayalam film directed by K. Narayanan, in 1979, he played his first lead role in Devalokam, directed by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. However, this film was never completed and his first release was the 1980 film, Vilkkanundu Swapnangal, directed by Azad, written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. Mammoottys first starring role in a film was the 1980 film Mela, written and directed by K. G. George Mammootty films of the 1980s include Sphodanam, Munnettam. In 1981, he got his first state award in the Best Supporting Actor category for his performance in Ahimsa and his performances included Aalkkoottathil Thaniye and Adiyozhukkukal
8.
Meera Jasmine
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Meera Jasmine, born Jasmine Mary Joseph, is an Indian actress from Thiruvalla, Kerala, who appears in South Indian cinema. The Hindu called her one of the few actors who could hold her own amongst stars, Meera Jasmine was born on 15 February 1982 in a Syrian Christian family in Kuttapuzha village, Thiruvalla, Kerala to Joseph and Aleyamma. She was the fourth of five children and she has two sisters, Jiby Sara Joseph and Jeny Susan Joseph, who has also acted in films, and two brothers, one of them, George worked as an assistant cinematographer. She completed her schooling in Bala Vihar, Thiruvalla and Marthoma Residential School and she appeared for her Higher Secondary Exams in March 2000. She had enrolled for a BSc degree in Zoology at Assumption College, Changanassery, Meera had initially wanted to study and become a doctor and never had dreamed of becoming a film star. She stated, I was just an ordinary girl, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine being in films. I had not acted even in school plays, I never was the artistic type, I never thought I could dance, and I had not even thought of myself as being beautiful. She also said that Lohithadas is like a figure and my guru. He initiated me into films with Soothradharan and I owe it all to him, Meera Jasmine made her debut in the Malayalam film Soothradharan. Her second film was Gramaphone, directed by Kamal, in which she appeared alongside Navya Nair and her role as a Jewish girl was appreciated by Malayalam critics. Her third film was Swapnakkoodu, a romantic comedy alongside Prithviraj, Kunchako Boban, Jayasurya and her performance was appreciated and the film was a high commercial success. Among the five characters, the one who scored the most was again Meera. She rose to fame in Malayalam cinema with the film Kasthooriman directed by her mentor Lohithadas, in which she enacted comedy and she received her first Filmfare award for her performance in Kasthooriman. The film was also a success at the box office, running for 100 days, the same year, she acted in T. V. Chandrans acclaimed Padam Onnu Oru Vilapam. She played a 15-year-old Muslim girl who was forced to marry a man, for which she was awarded a State Award. It was followed by her performance as Raziya in Perumazhakkalam alongside Kavya Madhavan, in the film Achuvinte Amma, she enacted the young, adorable character Achu. She then paired with Mohanlal in Rasathanthram and she played as a girl pretending to be a boy in the first half of the film. The film went on to become a commercial success and her next film with Dileep – Vinodayathra, which again was directed by Sathyan Anthikkad
9.
Rima Kallingal
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Rima Kallingal is an Indian model and film actress, predominantly appearing in Malayalam cinema. After being named First Runner-up in the Miss Kerala 2008 contest and she made her film debut in 2009 through the film Ritu and later appeared in Neelathaamara and continues to work in Malayalam films. Her notable roles include roles in City of God, Indian Rupee, Nidra,22 Female Kottayam, August Club, born in1984 Thrissur, Rima Kallingal began practising dancing when she was three years old. A dancer by profession, she has performed on national and international stages and she studied in Stanes Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School, Coonoor up to Fifth grade. She completed her schooling from Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Thrissur, passing out in 2001 and she holds a bachelors degree in journalism from Christ University, Bangalore. She is also skilled in Taekwondo, Chao and Kalari and she was a semi-finalist of the Asianet reality show Vodafone Thakadhimi. She moved to Bangalore to pursue a career and later participated in the Miss Kerala beauty pageant, in which be she became the first runner-up. She was spotted by director Lal Jose on a magazine cover, the project didnt materialise, but she was offered the lead female character of Varsha by director Shyamaprasad for Ritu, which eventually marked her acting debut. She was 25 when she acted in the film, in 2012, she acted in the film 22 Female Kottayam which became a big success, commercially as well as critically. She received praises and won awards for her portrayal of Tessa. She also won the Kerala State Government award for Best Actress, after 22 Female Kottayam she told that she had made some mistakes in her career and stated Yes, I have done a few films I never should have, but I am determined not to repeat those mistakes. In 2013, Rima turned television anchor with the Mazhavil Manorama show Midukki, following which the Kerala Film Chamber imposed a ban on her which was revoked later. Rima got married to director Aashiq Abu on 1 November 2013, in a ceremony held in Kakkand Registration office, Kochi in the presence of their close relatives. Aashiq and Rima, dressed in a way, came with their family. Aashiq and Rimas brothers signed the column of the marriage register and thus officially they became husband. After the function, they had arranged a small feast for their well-wishers, Rima has said that she would continue to act in films post marriage. I do not mix my personal and professional life, I will continue to act, she said. Rima said on a networking site prior to her wedding that she would not be wearing any gold for the function as a protest against the dowry system
10.
Salt N' Pepper
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Salt N Pepper is a 2011 Indian Malayalam romantic comedy film directed by Aashiq Abu and produced for Lucsam Creations by Sadanandan Rangorath. The film stars Lal, Asif Ali, Shweta Menon and Mythili in the lead roles while Baburaj, cinematography is by Shyju Kahild, whose debut was Traffic. The screenplay was written by Syam Pushkaran and Dileesh Nair, the film follows the love stories of two couples. The main characters are, Kalidasan, an archaeologist, Maya, an artiste, Meenakshi, an IELTS student, Manu, a happy-go-lucky management graduate. Food plays an important role in the story and the tagline of the film is ഒരു ദോസ ഉന്ദാക്കിയ കഥ oru Dosa undākkiya katha, the film has an original score by Bijibal, with three songs composed by Bijibal and the song Aanakkallan written and sung by Malayalam rock band Avial. The film was produced by Lucsam Cinema and released by Lal, principal production for the film started on 3 January 2011 and it was released in theatres on 8 July 2011 to positive reviews and good initial viewing figures. Salt N Peppers Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi remake rights have been bought by actor-director Prakash Raj and it was remade in Tamil as Un Samayal Arayil and was shot simultaneously in Telugu and Kannada as Ulavacharu Biriyani and Oggarane. Prakash Raj directed the remakes and appeared in the role playing Lals character while Sneha did the role of Shweta Menons character. Prakash is directing Hindi remake titled Tadka, Kalidasan works in the state archaeological department in Thiruvananthapuram and is a food lover. His only companion is his cook, Babu, Manu Raghav is Kalidasans nephew who comes to stay with him, while looking for a job. Kalidasan has a life until he gets a mis-dialled phone call from Maya. Maya rings to order a special Dosa from a restaurant, and their conversations do not go well at first, but a long-distance romance develops due to their common interest—cooking and food. Kalidasan is a born gourmet while Maya is indulging in activities in memory of her dead mother. Kalidasan starts to let Maya into the secrets of baking with a cake called Joans Rainbow. When they meet, neither Manu nor Meenkashi realise that the person is a substitute, since they introduce themselves as Kalidasan. Manu thinks that Kalidasan is actually in love with Meenakshi, while Meenakshi thinks that Maya is in love with Manu and they attempt to sabotage their older counterparts relationship by telling Kalidasan and Maya respectively that the person they met would be unsuitable for them. Kalidasan and Maya try to forget each other, but fail, however, they discover the truth and each others real identities during a chance encounter with a common acquaintance Pooja at the railway station. Thus Manu and Meenakshi calls Kalidasan and Maya respectively and narrate all the unknown to them
11.
Kochi
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Kochi, also known as Cochin, is a major port city on the south-west coast of India by the Arabian Sea and the Laccadive Sea and is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of Kerala. It is often called Ernakulam, which refers to the specific district, occupied by the Portuguese in 1503, Kochi was the first of the European colonies in colonial India. It remained the seat of Portuguese India until 1530, when Goa was chosen instead. The city was occupied by the Dutch and the British. Kochi ranks first in the number of international and domestic tourist arrivals in Kerala. Kochi has been ranked the sixth best tourist destination in India according to a survey conducted by the Nielsen Company on behalf of the Outlook Traveller magazine. Kochi is the home to Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy, Kochi is also home for Keralas National Law School, The National University of Advanced Legal Studies. Ancient travellers and tradesmen referred to Kochi in their writings, variously alluding to it as Cocym, Cochym, Cochin, the Cochin Jewish community called Cochin as Kogin, which is seen in the seal of the synagogue which is still owned by the community. The origin of the name Kochi is thought to be from the Malayalam word kochu azhi, yet another theory is that Kochi is derived from the word Kaci, meaning harbour. The name Cochin implies co-chin, meaning like-China and it looked like China when the Chinese came to the region during the 14th century and installed Chinese nets. Accounts by Italian explorers Nicolo Conti, and Fra Paoline in the 17th century say that it was called Kochchi, after the arrival of the Portuguese, and later the British, the name Cochin stuck as the official appellation. The city reverted to a closer Anglicization of its original Malayalam name, Kochi and this change in name was challenged by the city municipal corporation but court has later dismissed the plea. Kochi was the centre of Indian spice trade for centuries, and was known to the Yavanas as well as Jews, Syrians, Arabs. Kochi rose to significance as a trading centre after the port Muziris around Kodungallur was destroyed by flooding of Periyar in 1341. The earliest documented references to Kochi occur in books written by Chinese voyager Ma Huan during his visit to Kochi in the 15th century as part of Admiral Zheng Hes treasure fleet. There are also references to Kochi in accounts written by Italian traveller Niccolò Da Conti, according to many historians, the precursor state to Kingdom of Kochi came into existence in early 12th century, after the fall of the Chera Kingdom. The reign of the Kingdom was hereditary, and the family ruled over the region was known as the Perumpadappu Swaroopam in the local vernacular. Portuguese navigator, Pedro Álvares Cabral founded the first European settlement in India at Kochi in 1500, from 1503 to 1663, Fort Kochi was ruled by Portugal
12.
Mangalore
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Mangalore, officially known as Mangaluru, is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is known as Kudla in Tulu, Kodial in Konkani, Maikāla in Beary and it is located about 352 kilometres west of the state capital, Bengaluru between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges. It is the headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western Karnataka. It developed as a port on the Arabian Sea—remaining, to this day, lying on the backwaters of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers, Mangalore is often used as a staging point for sea traffic along the Malabar Coast. The city has a climate and lies in the path of the Arabian Sea branch of the South-West monsoons. Mangalores port handles 75 per cent of Indias coffee and cashew exports, Mangalore was ruled by several major powers, including the Kadambas, Alupas, Vijayanagar Empire, Keladi Nayaks and the Portuguese. The city was a source of contention between the British and the Mysore rulers, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, eventually annexed by the British in 1799, Mangalore remained part of the Madras Presidency until Indias independence in 1947. The city was unified with the state of Mysore in 1956, Mangalore is the largest city in Dakshina Kannada district and is one of the most cosmopolitan non-metro cities of India. It is also the largest city in the Coastal and Malnad regions of Karnataka, besides being a commercial, industrial, educational, Mangalore city urban agglomeration extends from Ullal in the south to Mulki in the north, covering a distance of over 40 km. The citys landscape is characterised by rolling hills, coconut palms, freshwater streams, Mangalore was ranked Indias 13th and Karnatakas second most favourable destination for business. Mangalore will be developed as a city under PM Narendra Modis flagship Smart Cities Mission. Mangalore was named after the Hindu deity Mangaladevi, the deity of the Mangaladevi temple or a synonym of Tara Bhagvati of the Vajrayana Buddhist sect. According to local legend, a princess from Malabar named Parimala or Premaladevi renounced her kingdom and became a disciple of Matsyendranath, having converted Premaladevi to the Nath sect, Matsyendranath renamed her Mangaladevi. She arrived in the area with Matsyendranath, but had to settle near Bolar in Mangalore as she fell ill on the way, eventually she died, and the Mangaladevi temple was consecrated in her honour at Bolar by the local people after her death. The city got its name from the temple, one of the earliest references to the citys name was made in 715 CE by the Pandyan King Chettian, who called the city Mangalapuram. The city and the region was a part of the Pandyan Kingdom. Ramesh, President of the Place Names Society of India, Mangaluru was first heard in 1345 CE during the Vijayanagar rule, many shilashasanas of Vijayanagar period refer the city as Mangalapura. Even before that, during the Alupas period, it was referred to as Mangalapura, the city is well known as Mangaluru in Kannada, a reference to Mangaladevi
13.
Goa
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Goa /ˈɡoʊ. ə/ is a state in India within the coastal region known as the Konkan in western India. It is bounded by Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the east and it is Indias smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Goa is Indias richest state, with a GDP per capita two and a half times that of the country, Panaji is the states capital, while Vasco da Gama is its largest city. The historic city of Margao still exhibits the influence of the Portuguese. Goa is a former Portuguese province, the Portuguese overseas territory of Portuguese India existed for about 450 years until it was annexed by India in 1961. Goa is visited by large numbers of international and domestic tourists each year for its beaches, places of worship and it has rich flora and fauna, owing to its location on the Western Ghats range, a biodiversity hotspot. In ancient literature, Goa was known by names, such as Gomanchala, Gopakapattana, Gopakapattam, Gopakapuri, Govapuri, Govem. In the 3rd century BC, Goa was known as Aparantha and is mentioned by the Greek geographer Ptolemy, in the 13th century, the Greeks referred to Goa as Nelkinda. Other historical names for Goa are Sindapur, Sandabur, and Mahassapatam, Goas history goes back 20, 000–30,000 years. The rock art engravings exhibit the earliest traces of life in India. Upper Paleolithic or Mesolithic rock art engravings have been found on the bank of the river Kushavati at Usgalimal. Petroglyphs, cones, stone-axe, and choppers dating to 10,000 years ago have been found in places in Goa, such as Kazur, Mauxim. Evidence of Palaeolithic life is seen at Dabolim, Adkon, Shigao, Fatorpa, Arli, Maulinguinim, Diwar, Sanguem, Pilerne, difficulty in carbon dating the laterite rock compounds poses a problem for determining the exact time period. Early Goan society underwent radical change when Indo-Aryan and Dravidian migrants amalgamated with the aboriginal locals, in the 3rd century BC, Goa was part of the Maurya Empire, ruled by the Buddhist emperor, Ashoka of Magadha. Buddhist monks laid the foundation of Buddhism in Goa, between the 2nd century BC and the 6th century AD, Goa was ruled by the Bhojas of Goa. The rule later passed to the Chalukyas of Badami, who controlled it between 578 and 753, and later the Rashtrakutas of Malkhed from 753 to 963, from 765 to 1015, the Southern Silharas of Konkan ruled Goa as the feudatories of the Chalukyas and the Rashtrakutas. Over the next few centuries, Goa was successively ruled by the Kadambas as the feudatories of the Chalukyas of Kalyani, in 1312, Goa came under the governance of the Delhi Sultanate. The kingdoms grip on the region was weak, and by 1370 it was forced to surrender it to Harihara I of the Vijayanagara empire, the Vijayanagara monarchs held on to the territory until 1469, when it was appropriated by the Bahmani sultans of Gulbarga
14.
Rajasthan
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Rajasthan is Indias largest state by area. Elsewhere it is bordered by the other Indian states, Punjab to the north, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to the northeast, Madhya Pradesh to the southeast, and Gujarat to the southwest. Rajasthan is also home to two national reserves, the Ranthambore National Park in Sawai Madhopur and Sariska Tiger Reserve in Alwar. The state was formed on 30 March 1949 when Rajputana – the name adopted by the British Raj for its dependencies in the region – was merged into the Dominion of India. Its capital and largest city is Jaipur, also known as Pink City, other important cities are Jodhpur, Udaipur, Bikaner, Kota and Ajmer. Parts of what is now Rajasthan were partly part of the Vedic Civilisation, kalibangan, in Hanumangarh district, was a major provincial capital of the Indus Valley Civilization. Matsya Kingdom of the Vedic civilisation of India, is said to roughly corresponded to the state of Jaipur in Rajasthan. The capital of Matsya was at Viratanagar, which is said to have named after its founder king Virata. Bhargava identifies the two districts of Jhunjhunu and Sikar and parts of Jaipur district along with Haryana districts of Mahendragarh, bhargava also locates the present day Sahibi River as the Vedic Drishadwati River, which along with Saraswati River formed the borders of the Vedic state of Brahmavarta. Manu and Bhrigu narrated the Manusmriti to a congregation of seers in this area only, the Indo-Scythians invaded the area of Ujjain and established the Saka era, marking the beginning of the long-lived Saka Western Satraps state. Gurjars ruled for many dynasties in this part of the country, up to the tenth century almost the whole of North India, acknowledged the supremacy of the Gurjars with their seat of power at Kannauj. The Gurjar Pratihar Empire acted as a barrier for Arab invaders from the 8th to the 11th century, the chief accomplishment of the Gurjara Pratihara empire lies in its successful resistance to foreign invasions from the west, starting in the days of Junaid. Majumdar says that this was acknowledged by the Arab writers. He further notes that historians of India have wondered at the progress of Muslim invaders in India. Traditionally the Rajputs, Jats, Meenas, REBARI, Gurjars, Bhils, Rajpurohit, Charans, Yadavs, Bishnois, Sermals, PhulMali, all these tribes suffered great difficulties in protecting their culture and the land. Millions of them were killed trying to protect their land, a number of Gurjars had been exterminated in Bhinmal and Ajmer areas fighting with the invaders. Meenas were rulers of Bundi, Hadoti and the Dhundhar region, hem Chandra Vikramaditya, the Hindu Emperor, was born in the village of Machheri in Alwar District in 1501. Hem Chandra was killed in the battlefield at Second Battle of Panipat fighting against Mughals on 5 November 1556, maharana Pratap of Mewar resisted Akbar in the famous Battle of Haldighati and later operated from hilly areas of his kingdom
15.
Oneindia
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Oneindia. com is an Indian online portal founded by BG Mahesh owned by Greynium Information Technologies Pvt. Ltd. The website provides news updates, sports events, travel, entertainment, business, lifestyle, videos, the portals owner, Rajesh Jain, acquired it through Netcore. BG Mahesh is the current managing director, oneindia has portals in several Indian languages, including Kannada, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Gujarati and Malayalam. The company also owns the online classified advertising portal Click. in. Oneindia. com has a number of channels for such as Filmibeat. com, Boldsky. com, Thatscricket. com, Gizbot. com, Careerindia. com, Nativeplanet. com, Drivespark. com
16.
Vishu
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Vishu is the Hindu new year festival celebrated in the Indian state of Kerala and nearby Tulunadu region of Karnataka. The festival follows the cycle of the lunisolar Hindu calendar as the first day of month called Medam. It therefore always falls in the middle of April in the Gregorian calendar on or about 14 April every year, the same day, many Hindus elsewhere observe new year as well but the festival is called Vaisakhi or other names. Vishu literally means equal, and in the context it connotes the completion of spring equinox. The festival is notable for its solemnity and the lack of pomp. The festival is marked by family time, preparing colorful auspicious items, in particular, Malayali Hindus seek to view the golden blossoms of the Indian laburnum, money or silver items, and rice. The day also attracts firework play by children, wearing new clothes and the eating a meal called Sadya. The Vishu arrangement typically includes an image of Vishnu, typically as Krishna, people also visit temples like Sabarimala Ayyappan Temple or Guruvayur Sree Krishna temple to have a Vishukkani Kazhcha in the early hours of the day. The day of Vishu is often considered as the first day of the Malayali Hindu calendar, Vishu signifies the suns transit into the Meda Raasi. The Malayalam word kani literally means that which is seen first, the traditional belief is that ones future is a function of what one experiences, that the new year will be better if one views auspicious joyful things as the first thing on Vishu. Therefore Malayali Hindu women spend the day before preparing a setting, usually a tray and this setting is the first thing they see when they wake up on the Vishu day. She then releases the blindfold so one can see the setting, the Sadhya is a major part of all Kerala festivals. However, special dishes called Vishu Kanji, Thoran and Vishu katta are more important on the new year day, the Kanji is made of rice, coconut milk and spices. Vishu katta is a delicacy prepared from freshly harvested rice powder, for Thoran, the side dish, there are also mandatory ingredients. Other important Vishu delicacies include Veppampoorasam and Mampazhappulissery Even temple offerings called bewu bella, include a mix of sweet jaggery, bitter neem, the tradition of buying of new clothes for the occasion of Vishu is called Puthukodi or Vishukodi. There is also a tradition of elders giving money to younger ones or dependents of the family. Another tradition is of giving alms and contributing to community charity, the Vishu new year day is celebrated elsewhere but called by other names. It is called Vaisakhi by Hindus and Sikhs in north and central India, however, this is not the universal new year for all Hindus
17.
Malayala Manorama
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Malayala Manorama is a daily morning newspaper, in Malayalam language, published from Kottayam in the state of Kerala, India by Malayala Manorama Company Limited. It was first published as a weekly on 22 March 1890, the Malayalam title Manorama roughly translates to entertainer. It is also the second oldest newspaper in Kerala in circulation, after Deepika, according to World Association of Newspapers, as of 2011, it holds a position as the fifth most circulating newspaper in the world. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations 2013 figures, it is the third largest circulating newspapers in India, the Malayala Manorama Company is a private LLC corporation owned by the Kandathil family of Kottayam. Malayala Manorama Company was incorporated by Kandathil Varghese Mappillai at Kottayam on 14 March 1888, the company started with one hundred shares of Rs 100 each. The investors paid in four equal instalments, with the first instalment, the company brought a Hopkinson and Cope press, made in London. A local craftsman, Konthi Achari, was hired to make Malayalam types for the imported press, Mappillai had worked for a year as editor of Kerala Mitram, a Malayalam newspaper run by Gujarati businessman Devji Bhimji, in Cochin. First issue of Malayala Manorama published on 22 March 1890 from M. D Seminary Kottayam and it was a four-page weekly newspaper, published on Saturdays. The weekly newspaper became a bi-weekly in 1901, a tri-weekly on 2 July 1918, in 1938, Travancore state proscribed Malayala Manorama daily. Mammen Mappillai was convicted and imprisoned on charges of corruption and fraud, Malayala Manorama re-commenced regular publication in 1947. On K. C. Mammen Mappillas death, his eldest son K. M, cheriyan took over as the Editor-in-Chief in 1954. Malayala Manorama was produced in an edition in the central Kerala town of Kottayam with a circulation of 28,666 copies. However, by the late 1950s, Manorama steadily increased circulation and overtook Mathrubhumi in circulation, the struggle between Malayala Manorama and Mathrubhumi demonstrated the forces that would drive the expansion of Indian regional newspapers. The contest also illustrated the difficulties if expansion had to rely on Gutenberg-style printing as with the case of Manorama, comparison of circulation Malayala Manorama and Mathrubhumi In 1962, Mathrubhoomi launched its second edition in Kochi. The new edition sent Mathrubumi to a circulation of 170,000 copies by 1964,19,000 more than its rival, with Mathrubhoomis circulation rising, it became a compulsion for Manorama to expand its reach, and consequently, introduce new technology. The competition set off a struggle for more readers, faster equipment. Manorama launched its centre at Calicut, Malabar in 1966 with a cast-off press from the papers base at Kottayam. But in the run-up to that event, it had installed an offset press at Kottayam, by 1970, it was the leading daily in Kerala
18.
Sify
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Sify Technologies Limited played an important role during the early spread of Internet and e-commerce in India. It is listed on NASDAQ as SIFY since 1999, in November 1999, Sify paid ₹122.2 crore for a 24. 5% stake in IndiaWorld Communications. Later, it acquired the shares for ₹325.4 crore on 30 June 2000. In 2000, Sify sponsored the India Olympics team, in March 2001, Sify made an agreement with Makemytrip to run Sifys travel portal. In January 2002, Sify announced prizes for most emails sent under a 6-week contest called Sify Greenmail, Sify used to run the i-way chain of Internet cafes. In 2002, Sify introduced wireless last mile connections with speeds up to 256 kbps, by August 2003, it had over 1,000 i-Way cyber cafes in India. In December 2003, Sify launched video-conferencing facilities in its Internet cafes, in 2004, Sify, with Level Up Games, launched a MMORPG. In June 2004, the Supreme Court of India set a precedent regarding domain names in the Satyam Infoway Ltd. v. Sifynet Solutions Pvt. Ltd. lawsuit. In November 2005, Satyam sold its remaining 31. 61% shares in Sify to Infinity Capital Ventures, homepage Corporate site Cloud & Managed Services Telecom Services Data Centre Services
19.
International Business Times
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The International Business Times is an online news publication, that publishes seven national editions and four languages. The publication, sometimes called IBTimes or IBT, offers news, opinion, IBT is one of the worlds largest online news sources, IBTs 2014 media kit claims that its online properties receive 40 million unique visitors each month. Its 2013 revenues were around $21 million, IBTimes was launched in 2005, it is owned by IBT Media, and was founded by Etienne Uzac and Johnathan Davis. Its headquarters are in a former Newsweek office in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, founder Etienne Uzac, a native of France, came up with the idea for the global business news site while a student at the London School of Economics. He found that the strongest business newspapers had a focus on the U. S and Europe, Uzac recruited Johnathan Davis to join him in the enterprise. In late 2005, Uzac and Davis moved to New York to launch the site, with Uzac primarily focused on business strategy, on August 4,2013, IBT Media, the owner of IBTimes, announced its purchase of Newsweek and newsweek. com from IAC/InterActiveCorp. The purchase did not include The Daily Beast, peter S. Goodman, previously the executive business editor and global news editor of The Huffington Post, became the editor in 2014. From March to July 2016, IBT laid off an estimated 30 percent of its editorial staff and this period marked a new era for the company as it expanded into branded content and events with its sister publication Newsweek. At the same time, Dev Pragad who had started the EMEA business in 2009 was promoted from managing director of Europe to global CEO of Newsweek and this was followed in January 2017 by the appointment of Alan Press in the “newly-created, strategic role of President”. In late 2011, Google allegedly moved the outlets articles down in search results in response to search engine optimization activity. An internal IBT memo allegedly advised IBT journalists on how to re-work a story already done. Some people have been just re-posting the exact same story, with a new headline, similarly, employees told The Guardian in 2014 that that at times they seemed to operate more as content farms demanding high-volume output than a source of quality journalism. At least two journalists were threatened with firing unless traffic to their articles increased sharply. In 2016, IBT hired John Crowley, the Wall Street Journals Europe, Middle East and Africa digital editor, according to The Guardian, “Crowley said his focus would be on helping the site break exclusives, in-depth storytelling and new forms of digital journalism. He said IBT was putting together a UK business desk and hiring an audience team. ”Crowley stated We are not a service or so-called paper of record. But I have a vision of where I want to take a site, weve got to have a USP. make ourselves distinctive in journalistic terms. The standard of content on IBTimes. co. uk has notably improved in recent years with reputable papers such as The Times quoting exclusive content from the publication, sports and entertainment coverage often gets pick up in the British press and on the BBC. In early 2017, International Business Times UK joined a partnership along with the likes of Bloomberg, Channel 4, Media Matters also criticized IBT for publishing an article with the headline Is Climate Change Real
20.
IMDb
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In 1998 it became a subsidiary of Amazon Inc, who were then able to use it as an advertising resource for selling DVDs and videotapes. As of January 2017, IMDb has approximately 4.1 million titles and 7.7 million personalities in its database, the site enables registered users to submit new material and edits to existing entries. Although all data is checked before going live, the system has open to abuse. The site also featured message boards which stimulate regular debates and dialogue among authenticated users, IMDb shutdown the message boards permanently on February 20,2017. Anyone with a connection can read the movie and talent pages of IMDb. A registration process is however, to contribute info to the site. A registered user chooses a name for themselves, and is given a profile page. These badges range from total contributions made, to independent categories such as photos, trivia, bios, if a registered user or visitor happens to be in the entertainment industry, and has an IMDb page, that user/visitor can add photos to that page by enrolling in IMDbPRO. Actors, crew, and industry executives can post their own resume and this fee enrolls them in a membership called IMDbPro. PRO can be accessed by anyone willing to pay the fee, which is $19.99 USD per month, or if paid annually, $149.99, which comes to approximately $12.50 per month USD. Membership enables a user to access the rank order of each industry personality, as well as agent contact information for any actor, producer, director etc. that has an IMDb page. Enrolling in PRO for industry personnel, enables those members the ability to upload a head shot to open their page, as well as the ability to upload hundreds of photos to accompany their page. Anyone can register as a user, and contribute to the site as well as enjoy its content, however those users enrolled in PRO have greater access and privileges. IMDb originated with a Usenet posting by British film fan and computer programmer Col Needham entitled Those Eyes, others with similar interests soon responded with additions or different lists of their own. Needham subsequently started an Actors List, while Dave Knight began a Directors List, and Andy Krieg took over THE LIST from Hank Driskill, which would later be renamed the Actress List. Both lists had been restricted to people who were alive and working, the goal of the participants now was to make the lists as inclusive as possible. By late 1990, the lists included almost 10,000 movies and television series correlated with actors and actresses appearing therein. On October 17,1990, Needham developed and posted a collection of Unix shell scripts which could be used to search the four lists, at the time, it was known as the rec. arts. movies movie database
21.
Daddy Cool (2009 Malayalam film)
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Daddy Cool is a 2009 Malayalam film starring Mammootty, Richa Pallod and Master Dhananjay. The film was the debut of Aashiq Abu. The locations are Kochi and Hong Kong, the story line of the film is the escapades of a cricket crazy kid, all of eight years and his father, a cop. Antony Simon is a crime branch CI, but prefers to spend his time fooling around with his son Aadi, and being a Crime Branch police officer, his rather laid-back attitude is not appreciated by his peers and superiors. Richa Pallod portrays his wife who finds this irritating, the father-son duo becomes friends with the famous national cricketer Sreekanth when they save him from some street fight. Once while the duo was out for shopping, Adhi saw a man with the gun. Simon turns back and shoots him but he kills the wrong person, Simon now faces murder charges and is suspended from duty. Later that day, Aadhi is found missing, Simon being a cop, the entire police force in the district is in search. The rest of the film is how Simon fights the gang, official website Daddy Cool at the Internet Movie Database
22.
22 Female Kottayam
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22 Female Kottayam, also known as 22FK, is a 2012 Malayalam-language Indian thriller film directed by Aashiq Abu and starring Rima Kallingal and Fahadh Faasil in the lead roles. It was set and filmed in Bangalore, the story concerns the travails of 22-year-old nurse Tessa from Kottayam who was raped and who takes revenge on her tormentors. The revenge scene is inspired from War Witch and it released on 13 April 2012, and received positive reviews from critics. It was also received at the box-office. Rima Kallingal won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress for the film, Tessa is a nursing student in Bangalore with plans of traveling to Canada for a career. She meets Cyril from the travel consultancy agency working towards setting up her visa and they soon fall in love and start living together. Tessa loves him all her heart and takes their relationship. One day while at a pub, a guy misbehaves with Tessa, the guy tries to take revenge on Cyril and searches for him. Cyril goes into hiding with the help of his boss Hegde, Hegde arrives at Cyrils home to inform Tessa about the situation. Then he asks her plainly Can I have sex with you, a shocked Tessa is then brutally attacked and raped. When Cyril finds out what happened, he becomes violent and wants to kill Hegde, Tessa calms him down saying that she does not want to make the incident worse than it is, she instead wants to get to Canada at the earliest. Once Tessa recovers from her injuries, Hegde visits her again to ask for forgiveness and he comes while Cyril is not around and rapes her for a second time. Tessa decides not to travel abroad and plans to murder Hegde, Cyril discusses the situation with his boss who suggests killing Tessa and appoints Cyril to do it. Cyril traps her by putting drugs in her bag. The police arrest Tessa and she is imprisoned, while Tessa calls out for help, she finds Cyril simply walking away from her, which is when she realises Cyril set her up. Cyril relocates to Cochin and runs a modeling agency, while in prison Tessa meets Zubeida who is sentenced for murder. Through Zubeidas criminal world connections Tessa realizes that Cyril, is a pimp and was cheating her along with the support of his boss Hegde. Zubeida and Tessa bond well with other, and Zubeida moulds a criminal mindset within her for the strength and courage needed to strike back at Cyril
23.
Da Thadiya
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Da Thadiya is a 2012 Malayalam romantic comedy film directed by Aashiq Abu, and starring Sekhar Menon, Sreenath Bhasi and Ann Augustine in the lead roles. The cast also includes Nivin Pauly, Arundathi Nag, Maniyanpilla Raju, the film was produced by Anto Joseph in association with OPM cinema. DJ Sekhar Menon who had worked as the same in around 500 stages makes his debut as an actor. The film released on 21 December 2012 to mixed to positive reviews from critics, as part of the movies promotional activities, free tickets were offered toil appeared in the posters of this film. The film tells the story of an obese youth named Luke John Prakash. His close pal is his cousin, a video jockey, Luke comes from a wealthy family, and his grandfather, Prakash was once mayor of Kochi and formed his own political party. Since childhood, Luke was in love with another girl named Ann Mary Thadikkaran. One day, Ann Marys parents get a transfer to Ernakulam, many years later, Ann Mary comes back to meet Luke in his house and surprisingly she has lost weight. One day, Ann Mary takes Luke to a restaurant and he falls and breaks the chair. Realizing she is not so fond of his obesity, Luke embarks on an Ayurvedic treatment run by Rahul Vaidyar to lose weight, one day, Luke escapes from the Ashram to meet Ann Mary on a Christmas Eve. There he is shocked to realize that Ann Mary is the agent of the Ashram, Luke finds out that she is in love with Rahul Vaidyar, who upon seeing him with Ann Mary, does a special punch that brings Luke to the ground. Rahul insults his figure, and says that he is a machine that produces feces. Luke joins his fathers political party Prakashan Parakkatte and finally becomes a mayor of his place, Ann Marys father comes to meet Luke in the Mayors office. He is shocked to realize that Rahul Vaidyar is a person and he is making money by decreasing the self-esteem of many people through advertisements. Luke beats Rahul badly and warns him to stop his business, the story comes back to the present as Luke is waiting for Ann Mary in the beach. Ann Mary says sorry to Luke and proposes to him, but to everyones surprise Luke rejects her proposal telling her that he is not her dream boy. The song Enthanu Bhai which was released in YouTube in November was a tremendous success. There has been allegations that the song was inspired by Sneha Khanwalkars songs Yere. Aashiq Abu is not perturbed by these allegations
24.
Idukki Gold (film)
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The film was released on 11 October 2013 The movie starts with Michael, who resides in Czech Republic returns to India to meet up with his estranged schoolmates Madan, Antony, Ravi and Raman. He puts up an advertisement in the local newspaper, Ravi and Madan who have still contact with each other notice Michael’s advertisement and decide to meet him. Upon meeting Michael, Ravi and Madan reminisce about their school lives, eventually they decide to go on a road trip to locate the rest of their friends Antony and Raman and visit their school. Throughout the movie, they have added their childhood clips and narrated what had happened in their school life, the whole movie is divided into five parts 1. The movie focuses on their teenage and their current life, Ravi being an easygoing guy became a photographer after graduation with very few clients. Madan had a successful life becoming a planter but was forced to divorce his wife as they had no children and was very unhappy, the crew finally finds Antony living a normal quiet life as a restaurant manager. Antony decides to join the trip and they continue their journey to pick up their final member Raman who used to be a core communist. After few hardships they find Raman but in a baffled situation, Raman being a widower with a single son falls in love with one of his co workers but he learns that her marriage is already fixed. On the night of her marriage Raman and Manju elope together with the help of his son and his friends arrange the marriage and Raman joins the road trip. The flashbacks tells us how the boys used to get drunk, smoke up marijuana and beedi and had fun bunking classes, the title of the movie was obtained from the actual Marijuana known as Idukki Gold, which these boys had smoked up as teens. They go in search for this so prominent Idukki Gold and the takes on to a serious note when they are met with an accident. But they find out that they are held captive by Behnnan whom these boys had a fight with as kids, Behnnan was a helper boy at an estate near their school. The boys were caught by the Principal for smoking and they thought Behnnan was the one who sold them out and they beat up Behnnan and leave him there half dead. Sharika C. of The Hindu commented, Even for all its glitter - stunning visuals, soulful music and stellar performances - the film fails to strike gold. Veeyen of Nowrunning. com rated the film 2. 5/5 and said, Idukki Gold does disseminate a heavy scent that enthralls you, and yet which is never intoxicating enough to leave you blissfully smashed. Sify. coms reviewer gave the verdict as average and wrote, We are ready to accept a movie without a conventional or a hard-hitting storyline, but the film never really succeeds beyond a point in that way and Aashiq Abu tries his best by packaging the whole film deliciously. Idukki Gold at the Internet Movie Database
25.
5 Sundarikal
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5 Sundarikal is a 2013 Malayalam romantic anthology film. It contains five stories on love about five types of women. The stories are directed by Shyju Khalid, Sameer Thahir, Aashiq Abu, Amal Neerad and Anwar Rasheed, the film was produced by Amal Neerad Productions. The music directors are Gopi Sundar, Bijibal, Prashant Pillai, the film reached theatres on 21 June. A promo song by popular Kochi-based rock band Black Letters was also released, the featurette Sethulakshmi is an adaptation of M. Mukundans short story Photo while Kullande Bharya is based on a Chinese story, The Tall Woman and Her Short Husband by Feng Jicai. Sethulakshmi, a girl, has a hobby of collecting the photos of newly married couples from newspaper. She has a friend and he comes to know about her keen interest in taking photos. Once they decide to go to a studio nearby for taking their photos, two strangers, Isha and Jinu meet in a house for a similar cause in a New Year eve. The two have a conversation and then a series of twists and turns happen, the short film tells the love story of a married couple living in a hill station. After materializing their love affair through register marriage, Gauri and Jonathan Antony choose the place to begin their married life, jo is crazy about trekking while Gauri is a dancer and teaches the art to her students. On the eve of their anniversary, a tragedy occurs which changes their life. A newly- wed couple comes to stay in an apartment, the husband played by Jinu Ben who is only 5 feet 1 inches is shorter than his extremely tall wife played by the 6 feet tall young new comer Reenu Mathews. This gives a chance to their neighbours to gossip about them, as the couple lives happily, they expect their baby to add to the joy. But destiny has something else in store for them, the whole film is pictured in the point of view of a person who is bed-ridden after an accident. It is reminiscent of the photographer in wheelchair observing his neighbors in Alfred Hitchcock Rear Window, a businessman, Ajmal, faces a row of events during his journey from Malappuram to Kochi. His affectionate wife tries to keep him awake during the drive by asking a few tricky questions, the night journey becomes an eventful one and changes the course of his life. The first film Sethulakshmi was by cinematographer Shyju debuting as a director in the film, the film was an adaptation of the story Photo by M. Mukundan. Two child artists, Baby Anikha and Chethan, played the lead in his segment, tamil theatre actor Somasundaram, who acted in Aaranya Kaandam was signed to play a photographer in the film, setting foot into Malayalam films
26.
Rani Padmini (film)
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Rani Padmini is a 2015 is a coming of age Indian Malayalam film directed by Aashiq Abu, starring Rima Kallingal and Manju Warrier in the lead. Produced by the company Fort Entertainment, the script was written by Syam Pushkaran and Ravisankar. The music score was composed by Bijibal and it is a portrayal of journey towards amative awakening of two women from different backgrounds with a blend of feminism. The film pays homage to Narendra Prasad, the film was released on 23 October 2015. Padmini, a married woman, goes to Manali, Himachal Pradesh to meet her car rallyist husband Giri to resolve a personal conflict. Rani is a tomboy brought up in North India and she is running away from a wanted criminal Raja who has posed a threat to her life. Rani and Padmini meet on a bus and a memorable journey starts with pleasantness of simple interpersonal relations, together they try to find Giri while simultaneously trying to evade capture by Rajas gang. Filmmakers Lal Jose, Anwar Rasheed and Sameer Thahir were present at the function along with actors Shekhar Menon, Sana Althaf, Maqbool Salmaan and Siddique. Talking about the subject in an interview, Actress Manju said that and it is visual treat with a lots of humor in a feminine tone and celebration of all-rounder aspect of womens capability, who can care, comfort and in even dire situations be a guiding force. Apart from Kerala, the film was extensively in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh. The first look poster was released on 23 July, the first official trailer released on 9 October. Veeyen of Nowrunning. com wrote that Aashiq Abus go-girl tour-de-force is syrupy without ever being saccharine and its a film with actress proofed script for re-entry and strengthening of yesteryear female leads in Mollywood. It is intriguing with retrospection, and bolstered by a sharp planning, paresh C Palicha of Rediff. com stated that the film is an entertainer, and that director Ashiq Abu takes up the gamble of making a film with no male superstar. The film collected ₹38 lakh on its first day of release and it grossed ₹2.85 crore in 14 days. The songs were released by the music label Muzik 247 on 14 October, featuring four tracks, the music was composed by Bijibal with lyrics written by Rafeeq Ahammed and Nellai Jayantha. The first video song titled Varu Pokaam Parakkaam was released on September 28, the song features childhood of Rani and Padmini
