Abdul Hameed Muhammed Fazil (born 4 February 1949), known mononymously as Fazil, is an Indian film director, film producer, screenwriter and actor who works 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 addition to directing a handful of

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 ...

films. He made his directorial debut with the 1980 film ''

Manjil Virinja Pookkal ''Manjil Virinja Pookkal'' () is a 1980 Indian Malayalam-language romantic thriller film produced by Navodaya Appachan under Navodaya Studio and written and directed by Fazil (director), Fazil. It stars Shankar (actor), Shankar, Mohanlal and P ...

''. His popular films include '' Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku'' (1983), '' Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu'' (1984), '' Poovinu Puthiya Poonthennal'' (1986), '' Manivathoorile Aayiram Sivarathrikal'' (1987), '' Ente Sooryaputhrikku'' (1991), '' Pappayude Swantham Appoos'' (1992), '' Manichitrathazhu'' (1993), '' Harikrishnans'' (1998). His 1993 film ''Manichitrathazhu'' won the

National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. He won the Best Director award at the 13th Kerala State Film Awards for his 1984 film ''Ente Mamattukkuttiyammakku''.

Early life

His father wanted him to be a doctor, but in school and college, extracurricular activities dominated his time. He wrote plays and staged them with his friends;

Nedumudi Venu Kesavan Venugopal (22 May 1948 – 11 October 2021), better known by his stage name Nedumudi Venu, was an Indian actor and screenwriter from Kerala, who predominantly worked in Malayalam cinema. He acted in more than 500 films, primarily in M ...

was his college mate while he was in S.D. College,

Alappuzha Alappuzha (, आलप्पुळ) or Alleppey is a municipality and town on the Laccadive Sea in the southern Indian state of Kerala. It is the district headquarters of the district, and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvana ...

, and this group was perhaps the first mimicry team that entertained crowds. "I used to mimic stars like Sathyan,

Prem Nazir Prem Nazir (born Abdul Khader; 6 April 1926 – 16 January 1989) was an Indian actor known as one of Malayalam cinema's definitive leading man, leading men of his generation. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential actors in the hist ...

Sivaji Ganesan Villupuram. Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001), better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, was an Indian actor and film producer. He was mainly active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th centur ...

and Govindankutty." He completed his graduate and post-graduate degrees in economics from the department of economics at S.D. College in Alappuzha.

Film career

Since the early 1980s, Fazil has directed 31 movies. His debut was with the Malayalam film ''

'', produced by Navodaya Appachan, which was also

Mohanlal Mohanlal Viswanathan (; born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal, is an Indian actor and filmmaker who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema, Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically appeared in Tamil cinema, Tamil, Hin ...

's first theatrical movie. Fazil has a knack for spotting talent. He introduced some of the biggest names in films in South India: * Mohanlal in Manjil Virinja Pookkal * Nadia Moidu in Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu * Baby Shalini in Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku *

Kunchacko Boban Kunchacko Boban (born 2 November 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in the Malayalam film industry. He is referred to as Chackochan, and during the early 2000s, he was called "chocolate boy" because of his romantic image. He ...

in Aniyathipravu *

Nagma Nagma Arvind Morarji (born Nandita Arvind Morarji; 25 December 1974), known mononyomusly as Nagma. is an Indian politician and former actress. She gained prominence as a leading actress in the 1990s and appeared in films across various India ...

was introduced in south Indiam film with Fazil's Killer (Telugu) *

Khushbu Khushbu Sundar (born Nakhat Khan; 29 September 1970) is an Indian politician, actress, film producer and television personality. She is known for her work predominantly in Tamil cinema, Tamil language films and in a few Telugu cinema, Telugu ...

started her south journey with his Varusham Padhinaaru * Fahadh Faasil in Kaiyethum Doorath With numerous Malayalam films, as well as several Tamil films and one Telugu film, Fazil has won the most number of State awards for the best film with popular appeal and aesthetic value.

Personal life

Fazil has two sons, Fahadh Faasil and Farhaan Faasil, and two daughters. Fahadh and Farhaan are both actors working primarily in the Malayalam film industry. Fahadh is married to actress Nazriya Nazim.

Filmography

Directed films

Produced films

* ''All films are in Malayalam, unless otherwise noted.''

As writer

As actor

Awards

National Film Awards The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

* 1993 –

National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment The National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India, and was constituted in the year 1975. This is one of th ...

for '' Manichitrathazhu''

Kerala State Film Awards

* 1993: Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value – '' Manichithrathazhu'' * 1986: Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value – '' Ennennum Kannettante'' * 1984: Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value – '' Nokketha Dhoorathu Kannum Nattu'' * 1983: Best Film – '' Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku'' * 1983: Best Director – '' Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku'' * 1980: Best Film with Popular Appeal and Aesthetic Value – ''

Filmfare Awards South The Filmfare Awards South are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, Malayalam cinema and Kannada cinema. They are presented by ''Filmfare'' magazine of The Times Group. When it was intr ...

* 1985: Best Director in Tamil for '' Poove Poochooda Vaa''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fazil 1949 births Living people Film directors from Alappuzha district Malayalam film directors Tamil film directors Kerala State Film Award winners Malayali people Filmfare Awards South winners 21st-century Indian people Artists from Alappuzha Film producers from Kerala Businesspeople from Alappuzha Writers from Alappuzha 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Malayalam screenwriters Screenwriters from Kerala Directors who won the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment National Film Award Indian Muslims