Padiyath Kochumoideen Kunjalu (1930 22 May 2000), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Bahadoor, was an Indian actor who appeared in

Malayalam film Malayalam cinema, also referred to as Mollywood, is a segment of Indian cinema dedicated to producing films in the Malayalam language, primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands. It encompasses both the mainstream film industry ...

s, primarily in comedic roles. He, along with

Adoor Bhasi K. Bhaskaran Nair (1 March 1929 – 29 March 1990), professionally credited by his stage name Adoor Bhasi, was an Indian actor and film director. He was mostly cast as a sidekick to protagonists, particularly Prem Nazir. His comedic roles were w ...

, were the two major comedians in

Malayalam cinema Malayalam cinema, also referred to as Mollywood, is a segment of Cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to producing films in the Malayalam, Malayalam language, primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands. It encompasses both th ...

in the 1960s and 1970s. Bahadoor also appeared in character roles and in professional plays. Bahadoor has won three Kerala State Film Awards, including two Second Best Actor and a Best Comedian.

Early life

Bahadoor was born as P. K. Kunjalu in 1930 in Kodungalloor, near

Thrissur Thrissur (, ), Renaming of cities in India, formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the List of most populous urban agglomerations in Ke ...

Kingdom of Cochin The kingdom of Cochin or the Cochin State, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It originated in the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until i ...

(present day

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, India). As one of the nine children of Padiyath Blangachalil Kochumoideen and Khadeeja. Out of his eight siblings, seven were sisters. His family was financially poor and the seven young women added to the burden as the

social system openly supported dowry at that time. He had affinity towards plays from very young age itself. He passed 10th Standard with First Class and joined Farook College, Calicut for Intermediate. He could not complete his studies due to financial troubles and had to start working for a living. He found his first job in a private bus as the bus conductor. He still wished to be an actor. He met Thikkurussi Sukumaran Nair through a relative. Thikkurussi gave him the chance to act in films and renamed him Bahadoor.

Career

Bahadoor made his debut with a minor role in ''Avakasi'' (1954). At that time he also acted in Akashavani and amateur-professional plays and got established as a good actor. Bahadoor got his first break with his role as ''Chakkaravakkan'' in Neela Production's '' Padatha Painkili''. The film, which went on to become a big hit, marked Bahadoor's presence in the industry. He along with

formed a box office ruling combination and the duo is being compared to

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American double act, comedy duo during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957) ...

. Bahadoor became the hero in ''Neelisali'' and ''Mucheettu Kalikkarante Makal''. Bahadoor found time for acting in plays as well. He partnered a play production theatre which made blockbuster plays like ''Manikyakkottaram'' and ''Ballatha Pahayan''. These plays were later made into feature films by him. In his entire career he appeared in a

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

film '' Sathya'' starring

Kamal Haasan Parthasarathy Srinivasan (born 7 November 1954), known professionally as Kamal Haasan, is an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Considered as one of the most accomplished actors of Indian Cinema, Haas ...

, which was his only appearance in a non-Malayalam film, he played a supporting role as the father of Haasan's character. Bahadoor started a

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of grey. It is also known as greyscale in technical settings. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, ...

processing studio in

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the largest and ...

named K. C. Lab. But the studio's establishment was ill-timed as films were shifting to colour. This caused financial troubles for Bahadoor and finally the studio was taken over by people to whom Bahadoor was indebted. Bahdoor also started a film distribution company only to face failures. He produced few films all of which failed at the box office. Even with his commercial debacles from the industry, he could meet his family's monetary requirements and mark his presence in the field of acting. Bahadoor was last seen in Lohithadas's '' Joker''. He did the role of a mentally ill veteran joker in a circus camp. The film was released shortly after his death.

Personal life

He was married to Jameela. The couple have three children, Siddhiq, Muhammed and Rukiya. During his final days, Bahadoor suffered various health ailments, like

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

hypertension Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a Chronic condition, long-term Disease, medical condition in which the blood pressure in the artery, arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms i ...

and

high cholesterol Hypercholesterolemia, also called high cholesterol, is the presence of high levels of cholesterol in the blood. It is a form of hyperlipidemia (high levels of lipids in the blood), hyperlipoproteinemia (high levels of lipoproteins in the blood), ...

. Failing health made him leave the film industry. But, he returned through the film '' Joker''. On 22 May 2000, Bahadoor was hospitalized after chest pain and died due to internal bleeding in his brain caused by a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

Awards

; Kerala State Film Awards: * Second Best Actor – 1973 – ''Madhavikutty'' * Second Best Actor – 1976 – ''Aalinganam'', ''Thulavarsham'' * Best Comedian – 1972 – Various films

Selected filmography

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

References

External links

A short biography
(in Malayalam)
An article published in Janayugam
(in Malayalam) *
Bahadoor at MSI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bahadoor 1930 births 2000 deaths Indian male film actors Actors from Thrissur district Male actors from Kerala Kerala State Film Award winners Male actors in Malayalam cinema 20th-century Indian male actors Malayalam comedians Indian male comedians 20th-century Indian comedians Male actors from Thrissur