Pranavam Arts International (formerly Pranavam Arts or Pranavams International) was an Indian film

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stat ...

and

distribution Distribution may refer to: Mathematics *Distribution (mathematics), generalized functions used to formulate solutions of partial differential equations *Probability distribution, the probability of a particular value or value range of a varia ...

company based in

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, 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 ...

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 ...

, founded in 1990 by Indian actor

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 ...

. Since then the company has produced a total of 11 films, including two of the most-expensive Malayalam films of its time—''

Kaalapani ''Kaalapaani'' () is a 1996 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical drama film written by T. Damodaran and directed by Priyadarshan. Set in 1915, the film focuses on the lives of Indian independence activists incarcerated in the Cellular Ja ...

'' (1996) and '' Vanaprastham'' (1999). ''Vanaprastham'' was selected at the

Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...

section at the

1999 Cannes Film Festival The 52nd Cannes Film Festival took place from 12 to 23 May 1999. Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg served as jury president for the main competition. Kristin Scott Thomas was the host for the opening and closing ceremonies. Belgian filmmakers ...

. The company has won a

National Film Award for Best Feature Film The National Film Award for Best Feature Film is one of the categories in the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in I ...

(''Vanaprastham'') and two

Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Film The Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Film is an award presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India to the second best film in Malayalam cinema. The awards are managed directly by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy under t ...

(''

Bharatham ''Bharatham'' is a 1991 Indian Malayalam-language musical drama film written by A. K. Lohithadas and directed by Sibi Malayil. It stars Mohanlal, Urvashi, Nedumudi Venu, Lakshmi, and Murali. The film was produced by Mohanlal through his pro ...

'' and ''Kaalapani''). The company's distribution division was called Pranamam Pictures.

History

The company was named after the word '' Praṇavaṁ'' and its logo contains a figure of

Nataraja Nataraja (/ n̪əʈəɾɑd͡ʒᵊ/ ,, ; , ''Naṭarājar'' Telugu: నటరాజు,''Naṭarāju''), also known as Adalvallan (), is a depiction of Shiva, one of the main deities in Hinduism, as the divine cosmic dancer. His dance is ca ...

. Pranavam Art's first production was the 1990 musical-drama film ''

His Highness Abdullah ''His Highness Abdullah'' is a 1990 Indian Malayalam-language musical drama film written by A. K. Lohithadas and directed by Sibi Malayil. It stars Mohanlal, Nedumudi Venu, Gautami, Sreenivasan, Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair and Mamukkoya. The ...

'' directed by

Sibi Malayil Sibi (; ;) is a city situated in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The city serves as the administrative headquarters of the district and tehsil of the same name. Etymology The origin of the town's name is attributed to Rani Sewi, a Hin ...

and written by

A. K. Lohithadas Ambazhathil Karunakaran Lohithadas (10 May 1955 – 28 June 2009) was an Indian screenwriter, playwright, film maker, and producer who worked in the Malayalam film industry. In a career spanning over two decades, his films have won a Nationa ...

, in which Mohanlal portrayed a

contract killer Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...

who disguise as a singer to infiltrate a palace for killing the head of the family. ''His Highness Abdullah'' became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of the year and was one of the biggest hits 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 ...

. The film won two

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 ...

. It was followed by another musical drama, ''

'' (1991), again from Malayil-Lohithadas team. The film was a critical and commercial success and won four

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 ...

and three National Film Awards, including the

and Mohanlal won the

National Film Award for Best Actor The National Film Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India instituted since 1967 to actors who have delivered the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film indus ...

. The team collaborated once again for a musical drama, ''

Kamaladalam ''Kamaladalam'' () is a 1992 Indian Malayalam-language musical drama film written by A. K. Lohithadas and directed by Sibi Malayil, starring Mohanlal, Murali, Vineeth, Nedumudi Venu, Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair, Monisha, Parvathy Jayaram a ...

'' (1992), which was also a critical and commercial success. In 1993, Pranavam produced the

Priyadarshan Priyadarshan Soman Nair (born 30 January 1957) is an Indian film director and screenwriter. He has worked primarily in Malayalam cinema, Malayalam and Hindi cinema, Hindi cinema since 1982, directing over 90 films in multiple Indian languages, ...

-directed comical family drama '' Mithunam'' starring Mohanlal and

Urvashi Urvashi (, ) is the most prominent apsara mentioned in the Hindu scriptures like the ''Vedas'', the epics ''Ramayana'' and ''Mahabharata'', as well as the ''Puranas''. She is regarded as the most beautiful of all the apsaras, and an expert danc ...

as a newly married couple struggling to find time for each other amidst continued issues in their disorganised

joint family An extended family is a family that extends beyond the nuclear family of parents and their children to include aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins or other relatives, all living nearby or in the same household. Particular forms include the stem ...

. The film was written by

Sreenivasan Sreenivasan (born 6 April 1956) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, dubbing artist and producer who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. Sreenivasan has starred in over 225 films. Sreenivasan wrote the screenplays of films such a ...

. In the following year, Mohanlal produced and starred in ''

Pingami ''Pingami'' () is a 1994 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film directed by Sathyan Anthikkad and written by Reghunath Paleri based on his own short story ''Kumarettan Parayaatha Kadha''. It was produced by Mohanlal through the company ...

'', a drama thriller directed by

Sathyan Anthikkad Sathyan Anthikad is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and lyricist who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema. In a career spanning five decades he has directed more than 50 films, been the lyricist for 12 films and been the scriptwriter ...

, in which he played Captain Vijay Menon who investigates the trail of a murder. ''Pingami'' was not a success in the theatres, but over the years, the film has achieved a

cult following A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...

. The period drama ''

'' was released in 1996, directed by Priyadarshan. It was based on the life of Indian freedom fighters incarcerated in the

Cellular Jail The Cellular Jail, also known as Kālā Pānī (), was a British colonial prison in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The prison was used by the colonial government of India for the purpose of exiling criminals and political prisoners. Many ...

in the

Andaman and Nicobar Islands The Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a union territory of India comprising 572 islands, of which only 38 are inhabited. The islands are grouped into two main clusters: the northern Andaman Islands and the southern Nicobar Islands, separated by a ...

during

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. With a budget of ₹2.5 crore, it was then the most-expensive Malayalam film. The film won seven Kerala State Film Awards (including Second Best Film and Best Actor for Mohanlal) and four National Film Awards. Lohithadas wrote and directed Pranavam's seventh production, '' Kanmadam'' (1998), a drama set in a remote village in

Palakkad Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...

, where a stranger (portrayed by Mohanlal) reaches to hand over the belongings of a man he accidentally killed. The film was a critical and commercial success. In the same year, the company produced a detective comedy, ''

Harikrishnans ''Harikrishnans'' is a 1998 Indian Malayalam-language mystery buddy comedy film written and directed by Fazil. The film was produced and distributed by Suchitra Mohanlal under the production company Pranavam Arts, starring Mohanlal and Mammo ...

'', starring Mohanlal and

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-language films. He has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, ...

as two attorneys investigating a murder. The film was made on a budget of ₹2.5 crore, making it one of the most-expensive Malayalam films at the time. It was also a commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing film of the year. However, the film fell into controversy and company faced legal trouble for releasing two different endings of the film, one of them not certified by the

Central Board of Film Certification The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory Motion picture content rating system, film-certification body in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of ...

, the board sent notice for violating The Cinematograph Act. Eventually, the unapproved alternate ending (in which Meera gets to marry Hari) was to be pulled off from theatres to settle the issue. In 1999, the company produced the action thriller ''

Olympiyan Anthony Adam ''Olympian Anthony Adam'' is a 1999 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written and directed by Bhadran. It stars Mohanlal, Meena and Nassar with Jagathy Sreekumar and Seema in supporting roles. The film was produced by Mohanlal t ...

'' directed by Bhadran. Mohanlal played Varghese Antony IPS, a cop who is tasked with investigating a terrorist attack that require him to go undercover as a physical trainer in a

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

. The film was a moderate success at the box office. In the same year, the company co-produced the Indo-French period drama '' Vanaprastham'' directed by Shaji N. Karun and produced by

Pierre Assouline Pierre Assouline (born 17 April 1953) is a French writer and journalist. He was born in Casablanca, Morocco to a Jewish family. He has published several novels and biographies, and also contributes articles for the print media and broadcasts for ...

. It was the second

international co-production A co-production is a joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint vent ...

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

. The film depicted the mental agony of a

Kathakali ''Kathakali'' (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: Kathakaḷi ) is a traditional form of Indian Classical Dance, and one of the most complex forms of Theatre of India, Indian theatre. It is a play of verses. These vers ...

dancer, Kunjikuttan, played by Mohanlal. With a budget of ₹3.8 crore, ''Vanaprastham'' was then the most-expensive Malayalam film. It was the first Indian film made in

Panavision Panavision Inc. is an American motion picture equipment company (law), company founded in 1954 specializing in cameras and photographic lens, lenses, based in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk a ...

format. ''Vanaprastham'' was selected at the ''

'' section of the

. The film won three

, including

Best Feature Film Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

and Best Actor for Mohanlal, and six Kerala State Film Awards (including

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 ...

and Best Actor for Mohanlal). After an 11-year hiatus, the company returned to production in 2010. The company's name was updated to Pranavam Arts International and co-produced the

Major Ravi Major A. K. Raveendran SM (born 13 June 1958) is a retired officer of the Indian Army, former National Security Guard commando, film actor and film director predominantly works in Malayalam cinema and some films in Tamil and Hindi. He was aw ...

-directed military film ''

Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...

''. It was based on the hijacking of the

Indian Airlines Flight 814 Indian Airlines Flight 814, commonly known as IC 814, was an Indian Airlines Airbus A300 that was Aircraft hijacking, hijacked on 24 December 1999 by five members of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen. The passenger flight, en route from Tribhuvan Internat ...

while en route from

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

in 1999.

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is often considered one of the greatest, most accomplished and commercially successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.* * * * * With a cinemati ...

appeared in the film alongside Mohanlal, and it was his maiden Malayalam film. ''Kandahar'' was the third installment in the Major Mahadevan film series. However, unlike its predecessors, the film received negative critical response and under-performed at the box office.

Filmography

Produced

Distributed

Mohanlal distributed films in

under the company Pranamam Pictures (or Pranamam Movies). The following is an incomplete partial list of films:

References

External links