Manjilas Ouseph Joseph (15 January 1929 – 8 January 2016) was a

Malayali The Malayali people (; also spelt Malayalee and sometimes known by the demonym Keralite) are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group originating from the present-day state of Kerala and Union Territory of Lakshadweep in India, occupying its south ...

film producer. He produced over 30 films in the 1960s and 1970s, including

Yakshi Yakshinis or Yakshis (, , Prakrit: ) are a class of female nature spirits in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain religious mythologies that are different from Devas and Asuras and Gandharvas or Apsaras. Yakshinis and their male counterparts, the Yaks ...

Adimakal ''Adimakal'' () is a 1969 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan and produced by M. O. Joseph. The film stars Sathyan, Prem Nazir, Sheela and Sharada. The film had musical score and songs composed by G. Devarajan. It ...

Devi ''Devī'' (; ) is the Sanskrit word for 'goddess'; the masculine form is Deva (Hinduism), ''deva''. ''Devi'' and ''deva'' mean 'heavenly, divine, anything of excellence', and are also gender-specific terms for a deity in Hinduism. The concept ...

, Chattakkari,

Anubhavangal Palichakal ''Anubhavangal Paalichakal'' () is a 1971 Malayalam-language film scripted by Thoppil Bhasi and directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan. It is based on the novel of the same name written by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai. The film stars Sathyan, Prem Naz ...

, and

Punarjanmam ''Punarjanmam'' () is a 1972 Indian Malayalam-language erotic thriller film starring Prem Nazir and Jayabharathi. The film is directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan and is based on a case study published by famous atheist and psychiatrist A. T. Kovoor ...

. He received two

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 ...

for Best Malayalam Film. His films also received awards, including the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam.

Early life

Joseph was born on 15 January 1929 and grew up 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 ...

. His father was the manager of the Jose Theatre, which was started by Kattukkaran Varunny Joseph. He studied at St. Thomas College and later graduated with a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

from the Sacred Heart College in

Ernakulam Ernakulam () is the central business district of the city of Kochi, Kerala, India. It is the namesake of Ernakulam district. The eastern part of Kochi city is mainly known as Ernakulam, while the western part of it after the Venduruthy Bridge ...

, where his father was employed by the

Shenoys Theatre Shenoys Theatre is a five-screen multiplex cinema hall in the South Indian city Kochi, Kerala. Located in the Mahatma Gandhi Road, it was opened in 1969 as a single-screen theatre. Until its temporary closure in 2015 for the renovation works, ...

. Upon completing his education, Joseph's father recommended that he assist T. E. Vasudevan, who was involved in the distribution and production of films under the banner of Associated Pictures, as an apprentice.

Career

Joseph joined Vasudevan in 1950 with an initial salary of per month ($31.50 per month in 1950 USD). Associated Pictures was in a financial partnership with the Shenoys.

Vasudevan Vasudevan is a given name and surname. Notable people with the name are: Given name * Vasudevan Baskaran, former field hockey player from India * Gobichettypalayam Vasudevan Loganathan (1954–2007), Indian-born American professor at Virginia Tec ...

later launched his own business by starting JayaMaruthi Pictures, with Joseph joining him. Joseph moved to

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

(now Chennai) in 1951 to manage the regional business of Associated Pictures. His initial foray into

independent filmmaking An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, in ...

was through a partnership with P. Balthazar and NV Joseph, under the production company Navajeevan Films. The first film, ‘

Naadan Pennu ''Naadan Pennu'' is a 1967 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan and produced by M. O. Joseph. The film stars Prem Nazir, Sathyan, Sheela and Jayabharathi. Later this movie is remade in Telugu as Premajeevulu. Supersta ...

’ was released in 1967. It was directed by

K. S. Sethumadhavan Kurukkalpadam Subrahmanyam Sethumadhavan (15 May 1931 – 24 December 2021) was an Indian film director and screenwriter who worked predominantly in Malayalam cinema. He also directed films in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Telugu. Since the early ...

. During the 1960's and 1970's, Joseph produced films under the Manjilas banner, working with directors such as

, Thoppil Baasi, and

I. V. Sasi Irruppam Veedu Sasidaran (28 March 1948 – 24 October 2017) was an Indian film director who made over 110 films predominantly in Malayalam, in addition to Tamil and Hindi languages. In 2015, he was awarded the J. C. Daniel Award, the highest a ...

Contributions to Malayalam film industry

Joseph was a founder member of the Malayalam Chalachitra Parishad, an organization supporting film artists and their families. He also contributed to fundraising efforts for the Parishad. He was a founder member of the management committee of

Asan Memorial College of Engineering and Technology Asan Memorial College of Engineering and Technology is a College of Engineering that is located in Thandarai, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of ...

Personal life

In 1953, M. O. Joseph married Kunjamma Joseph. They had five children.

Filmography

A list of M. O. Joseph's films.

Awards

Filmfare Award for Best Film - Malayalam ''Filmfare'' is an Indian English-language fortnightly magazine published by Worldwide Media. Acknowledged as one of India's most popular entertainment magazines, it publishes pieces involving news, interviews, photos, videos, reviews, events, ...

- ''

'' (1969) *

- '' Vazhve Mayam'' (1970)

Death

Joseph died on 8 January 2016 at his home in San Thomas,

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

References

External links

Legendary producer M O Joseph passes away

M.O.Joseph - Producer Manjilas - Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joseph, M. O. 1929 births 2016 deaths Malayalam film producers 20th-century Indian businesspeople Film producers from Thrissur Malayalam cinema