Kamaluddin Mohammed Majeed,

mononym A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. A mononym may be the person's only name, given to them at birth. This was routine in most ancient societies, and remains ...

ously known as Kamal, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in the

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 ...

. He was the former chairman of

Kerala State Chalachitra Academy Kerala State Motion Picture Academy is an autonomous non-profit institution based in Trivandrum, working under the Department of Cultural Affairs (Kerala), Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala. History It was founded in Augus ...

. Kamal made his directorial debut with the 1986 film '' Mizhineerppovukal''. In a career spanning over three decades, Kamal has directed over forty films. His films have won various

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 ...

and

Kerala State Film Awards The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...

, including for films such as '' Kakkothi Kaavile Appoppan Thaadikal'' (1988), '' Ulladakkam'' (1991), (1995), '' Niram'' (1999), '' Madhuranombarakkattu'' (2000), '' Meghamalhar'' (2001), ''

Nammal ''Nammal'' () is a 2002 Indian Malayalam romantic comedy-drama film directed by Kamal and written by Kalavoor Ravikumar. The film stars Jishnu and Sidharth Bharathan. It was the debut film of Sidharth Bharathan, Renuka, and Bhavana. The mus ...

'' (2002), ''

Perumazhakkalam ''Perumazhakkalam'' () is a 2004 Indian Malayalam-language drama film directed by Kamal and written by T. A. Razzaq. It stars Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Dileep, Vineeth, and Biju Menon. The film's music was composed by M. Jayachandran. T ...

'' (2004), ''

Karutha Pakshikal ''Karutha Pakshikal'' ( English: ''Black Birds'') is a 2006 Indian Malayalam-language family drama film written and directed by Kamal. It stars Mammootty, Meena, and Padmapriya. Plot Widower Murugan moves to Kerala with his three children an ...

'' (2006), and ''

Celluloid Celluloids are a class of materials produced by mixing nitrocellulose and camphor, often with added dyes and other agents. Once much more common for its use as photographic film before the advent of safer methods, celluloid's common present-day ...

'' (2013).

Early life

Kamal was born as Kamaluddin Mohammed Majeed.

Career

He started his career by writing the film '' Thrasam'', directed by Padiyan in 1981. He also worked as an associate director in the film. His first film was ''Mizhineer Pookkal'' in 1986 and to date, he has directed more than 43 movies, among which are two non-Malayalam movies, one each in Tamil and Hindi. Apart from his role as a director, Kamal has held several administrative posts within the Malayalam film industry. He had previously acted as the general secretary of the Malayalam Cine Technicians Association (MACTA) and has been an executive member of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy. He was elected president of the Kerala Directors' Union ( FEFKA) in 2012. His works include ''Unnikale Oru Katha Parayam, Kakkothikavile Appooppan Thadikal, Thoovalsparsham, Ghazal, Ulladakam, Ee Puzhayam Kadannu, Azhagiya Ravanan, Mazhayethum Munpe, Meghamalhar, Madhuranombarakaattu, Perumazhakkalam, Karutha Pakshikal, Khaddama'' and ''Celluloid''. His interest in film-making led him to enroll at the Kalabharathi Film Institute in

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 ...

. ''

'' (2013) is the biopic of J.C Daniel, the father of Malayalam cinema. Smitha at the entertainment site, oneindia.com, stated that the film is one of the best films made in recent times from Indian cinema. ''Aami'' is a biopic of poet and author

Kamala Surayya Kamala Surayya (born Kamala; 31 March 1934 – 31 May 2009), popularly known by her one-time pen name Madhavikutty and married name Kamala Das, was an Indian poet in English as well as an author in Malayalam from Kerala, India. Her fame in K ...

."When Vidya Balan totally transformed herself into Madhavikutty"
''Malayala Manorama''. Retrieved 4 July 2016.

Personal life

Kamal's son, Jenuse Mohamed, made his debut as a film director in 2015 with the Malayalam film '' 100 Days of Love''. In April 2020, reports surfaced that an aspiring Mollywood actress had sent the director a

legal notice Notice is the legal concept describing a requirement that a party be aware of legal process affecting their rights, obligations or duties. There are several types of notice: public notice (or legal notice), actual notice, constructive notice. ...

on 26 April 2019, accusing him of sexually assaulting her after promising her a role in his film. Kamal said he suspected a former Chalachitra Academy employee to be behind the recent

exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website * ''Exeposé'', a student-run newspaper of the University of Exeter Film and TV F ...

, and, terming the allegations baseless, intended to defame him.

Filmography

As director

*''Note: all of his films are in Malayalam, except otherwise noted.''

As associate director

As screenwriter

Awards and nominations

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 ...

* 2005– Best Film on Other Social Issues for ''

'' * 2007– Best Film on Family Welfare for ''

'' * 2013– Best Feature Film in Malayalam for ''

Kerala State Film Award The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a cinema of kerala, motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs (Kerala), Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and sin ...

* 1991

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * As ...

for '' Ulladakkam'' * 1995 Best Popular Film for ''

Mazhayethum Munpe ''Mazhayethum Munpe (Before it Rains)'' is a 1995 Malayalam romantic drama film directed by Kamal and written by Sreenivasan. The film stars Mammootty, Shobhana and Annie and in the lead roles. The plot is centered upon a college professor ...

'' * 2000 Second Best Feature Film for '' Madhuranombarakkattu'' * 2001 Second Best Feature Film for '' Meghamalhar'' * 2001 Best Screen Play for '' Meghamalhar'' * 2002 Best Popular Film for ''

'' * 2013 Best Film for ''

''Kerala State Film Awards 2013 Announced: Best Actor :Prithviraj, Best Film: Celluloid – FWD Life , The Premium Lifestyle Magazine ,
Fwdlife.in (14 December 2015). Retrieved on 19 December 2016.

Kerala Film Critics Association Awards The Kerala Film Critics Association Awards are presented annually by the Kerala Film Critics Association to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Malayalam language film industry of India. The awards were instit ...

Source:"കേരള ഫിലിം ക്രിട്ടിക്‌സ് അവാര്‍ഡ് 1977 - 2012"
Kerala Film Critics Association. Retrieved 25 January 2023. * 1995 Second Best Film for ''

'' * 1996 Second Best Film for '' Ee Puzhayum Kadannu'' * 1999 Second Best Film for '' Niram'' * 2001 Best Film for '' Meghamalhar'' * 2002 Second Best Film for ''

'' * 2004 Best Film for ''

'' * 2004

for ''

'' * 2006 Best Film for ''

'' * 2006

for ''

'' * 2010 Best Film for ''

Khaddama ''Khaddama'' () is a 2011 Indian Malayalam-language survival drama film co-written and directed by Kamal. It stars Kavya Madhavan in the lead role and was produced by P. V. Pradeep under the banner of Anitha Productions. The film features songs ...

'' * 2010

for ''

'' * 2012 Best Film for ''

'' * 2012

for ''

Asianet Film Awards The Asianet Film Awards is an award ceremony for films presented annually by Asianet, a Malayalam-language television network from the south-Indian state of Kerala. Asianet says an awards ceremony has been instituted to honour artistic and ...

* 2001: Asianet Film Award for Best Director- '' Meghamalhar''

References

External links

* * Kamal's memoirs serialised in '' Madhyamam Weekly''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamal Living people Malayalam film directors People from Thrissur district Film directors from Thrissur Film producers from Thrissur 20th-century Indian screenwriters Writers from Thrissur 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Malayalam screenwriters Screenwriters from Kerala Directors who won the Best Film on Family Welfare National Film Award Directors who won the Best Film on Other Social Issues National Film Award Male actors from Thrissur Year of birth missing (living people) Kerala Film Critics Awards winners