M. P. Michael (born 2 December 1958), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Lal, is an Indian actor, director, screenwriter, producer and distributor who predominantly works in

Malayalam cinema Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, '' Elippathaya ...

. He has also appeared in

Tamil films Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...

and in a few

Telugu films Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, H ...

. Lal has won several awards, including a National Film Award – Special Mention for acting (2012), two

Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor is an honour, begun in 1969, presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India to an actor for best performance in a Malayalam film. Until 1997, the awards were managed directly by the Depart ...

(2008, 2013), and a Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Malayalam (2008). He is the owner of Lal Media Arts, a

post-production Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments. Th ...

studio.

Early life

Lal was born as Michael to the late M. A. Paul and the late Philomina, as their eldest son. He received his schooling at St. Augustine's High School, Ernakulam. His brother Alex Paul is a music composer in the

Malayalam film industry Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, '' Elippathayam ...

and his son Jean is a movie director in the same industry.

Career

He started his career as a mimicry artist in

Kalabhavan Kalabhavan ( lit. "The House of Arts"), also known as Cochin Kalabhavan, is a centre for learning performing arts in Kochi, India. ''Kalabhavan'' is notable and known for being the first organized performing mimicry group in Kerala and which p ...

, along with his childhood friend Siddique, who would later team up as Siddique-Lal to make many films. Lal and Siddique began their film career working as

assistant director The role of an assistant director on a film includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, and maintaining order on the set. They also have to tak ...

s to Fazil in ''

Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu ''Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu'' () is a 1984 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by Fazil, and starring Mohanlal, Nadhiya, Padmini. The film features original songs composed by Jerry Amaldev and background score by J ...

''. Siddique-Lal production had never been dependent on star value or superstar formula that was witnessed in those days in Malayalam cinema. They had always opted out from casting

Mohanlal Mohanlal Viswanathan (born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal, is an Indian actor, film producer, playback singer, film distributor, and director who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically app ...

Mammootty Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail (; born 7 September 1951), known mononymously by the hypocorism Mammootty (), is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam films. He has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, H ...

. Ultimately, both of them had changed their thoughts later and when their fourth production film was to get launched, Siddique-Lal had opted for Mohanlal and made '' Vietnam Colony'' (1992) which did wonders in the box office too. The duo again had combined in their fifth production and made '' Kabooliwala'' (1994), which was also a success. After that, both decided to part ways as a director pair and Lal turned producer with the Siddique-directed

-starrer ''

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

''. Lal debuted in acting with a villain role as Paniyan in

Suresh Gopi Suresh Gopi (born 26 June 1958) is an Indian actor, politician, playback singer and television presenter. He works predominantly in Malayalam cinema and has also appeared in some Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Bollywood films. Suresh made his acti ...

-starrer ''

Kaliyattam ''Kaliyattam'' ( en, The Play of God) is a 1997 Indian Malayalam-language tragedy film directed by Jayaraaj. It stars Suresh Gopi, Lal (in his acting debut), Manju Warrier, and Biju Menon. The film is an adaptation of William Shakespeare's pl ...

'', directed by Jayaraj. ''Kaliyattam'' was a new take on ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cyp ...

'', where Lal played Paniyan, the character standing for

Iago Iago () is a fictional character in Shakespeare's ''Othello'' (c. 1601–1604). Iago is the play's main antagonist, and Othello's standard-bearer. He is the husband of Emilia, who is in turn the attendant of Othello's wife Desdemona. Iago ha ...

. He runs a film post-production company named as Lal Media Arts,

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of ...

. The year 2009 saw his comeback again as a director. He directed the sequel to '' In Harihar Nagar'' named '' 2 Harihar Nagar'', which got released and was declared a hit. For his performance in the 2012 film ''

Ozhimuri ''Ozhimuri'' () is a 2012 Indian Malayalam-language period drama film, directed by Madhupal and written by Jeyamohan and starring Lal, Mallika, Asif Ali, Bhavana and Shweta Menon in lead roles. The original songs and background score were com ...

'', he won the National Film Award – Special Mention. He was the winner of two state film Awards for Best Actor in ''

Thalappavu ''Thalappavu'' (literal meaning: turban or headgear, which is a symbol of power, status and protection) is a 2008 Malayalam language period thriller film based on the events related to Naxal Varghese and Police Constable P. Ramachandran Nair, d ...

'' (2008), ''

Ayaal ''Ayaal'' is a 2013 Malayalam film directed by Suresh Unnithan. Lal, Lena, Ineya and Lakshmi Sharma play the lead roles. The story, screenplay and dialogue of the film is written by Dr. K. Ampady. The film is produced by Madhusoodanan Mavelikar ...

'' (2013) and '' Zachariayude Garbhinikal'' (2013). Lal, who also plays an important role in

Karthi Karthik Sivakumar (born 25 May 1977), better known by his stage name Karthi, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil cinema. He has won three Filmfare Awards South, an Edison Award, a SIIMA Award and a Tamil Nadu State Film Aw ...

's '' Sulthan'' (2021) and also heaped praise on

Mari Selvaraj Mari Selvaraj is an Indian film director and author who works in the Tamil film industry. He worked as an Assistant Director for director Ram, He made his directorial debut with ''Pariyerum Perumal'', which opened to positive reviews and receive ...

for '' Karnan'' (2021). Despite being given the most uni-dimensional character in the story '' Taanakkaran'' (2022), the actor effortlessly carries the role and leaves arguably more impact than in his previous outing.

Personal life

Lal is married to Nancy and they have two children— Jean Paul Lal and a daughter. Jean Paul is a

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

Awards

Filmography

Actor

Director, writer

Producer, distributor

Other crew credits

*1987: ''

Manivathoorile Aayiram Sivarathrikal ''Manivathoorile Aayiram Sivarathrikal'' (English: The 1000 Sivarathries of Manivathoor) is 1987 Malayalam film, starring Mammootty and directed by Fazil. It was the last film of the eminent music director M. B. Sreenivasan, who died less than ...

'' – Script supervisor and

(as

Siddique–Lal Siddique–Lal are a screenwriter and director duo, consisting of Siddique and Lal. They were active together in Malayalam cinema during 1986–1995. They were initially assistant directors to director Fazil. Particularly known for making film ...

)

References

External links

*
Lal Actor/ Director SNP Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lal Malayalam film directors Male actors from Kochi 1958 births Living people Kerala State Film Award winners Malayalam screenwriters Male actors in Malayalam cinema Indian male film actors Filmfare Awards South winners Indian male screenwriters Film directors from Kochi 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors Male actors in Telugu cinema Film producers from Kochi Screenwriters from Kochi 20th-century Indian film directors 21st-century Indian film directors 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Malayalam film producers 20th-century Indian male writers 21st-century Indian male writers Special Mention (feature film) National Film Award winners