Sathyan (born Cheruvilakathu Veetil Manuel Sathyanesan Nadar; 9 November 1912 – 15 June 1971) was an Indian actor known for his work 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 ...

. Known for his own style and versatility in acting, Satyan was one of the pioneers of realistic acting in

Indian film industry The cinema of India, consisting of Film, motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various #Cinema by language, film indus ...

. He is respectfully called Sathyan Master. He was also a soldier in the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

and later a police officer with the

Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...

State Police. Sathyan served as an officer in the

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After the war he joined the Travancore state police as an inspector in late 1940s. During this time he got interested in acting and acted in amateur stage plays. He made his debut film in 1952 film Athmasakhi and rose to stardom with the critically acclaimed film Neelakuyil in 1954. He dominated the Malayalam film industry over two decades ( 1952 – 1971) along with his contemporary

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 ...

. He is remembered for his performances in ''Anubhavangal Palichakal'' (1971), '' Karinizhal'' (1971), '' Kadalpalam'' (1969), ''Yakshi'' (1968), ''Odayilninnu'' (1965), ''

Udhyogastha ''Udhyogastha'' is a 1967 Indian Malayalam film, directed by P. Venu and produced by P. K. Devadas and P. S. Das. The film stars Prem Nazir, Sathyan, Madhu and Sharada in the lead roles. The film was scored by M. S. Baburaj. Plot Vimala is ...

'' (1967), '' Veettu Mrugam'' (1969), ''Vazhvemayam'' (1970), ''Oru Penninte Kadha'' (1971), '' Karakanakadal'' (1971), ''Pakalkinavu'' (1966), ''Ningalenne Communist Akki'' (1970), ''Kayamkulam Kochunni'' (1966), '' Sarasayya'' (1971), ''Rowdy'' (1966), '' Mooladhanam'' (1969),'' Chemmeen'' (1965), '' Ammayenna Sthree'' (1970), ''Kuttavali'' (1970), ''Crossbelt'' (1970), '' Adimakal'' (1969), '' Thacholi Othenan'' (1964), '' Aadyakiranangal'' (1964) and '' Mudiyanaya Puthran'' (1961). Sathyan won the Best Actor Award at the inaugural Kerala State Film Award ceremony for his double role in '' Kadalpalam''. He won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor again in 1971 for his film '' Karakanakadal''.

Personal life

Sathyan was born in Aramada, Thiruvananthapuram on 9 November 1912. His parents' names were Manuel and Emily. The eldest of five sons, his younger brothers were Chellayya, Neshan, Devadas, and Jacob. His family were Nadar Christians who belonged to the Anglican Church ( C.I.B.C.) (later Church of South India ( C.S.I.). Their family home in Aramada was called Cheruvilakathu Veettil. Sathyan passed the ''Vidwan'' exam, equivalent to

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

before joining St. Joseph's Higher Secondary School, Trivandrum as a teacher. After some time, he got job as a clerk in the Kerala Secretariat and worked there for about a year. He joined the army in 1941 and got posted as a

Commissioned Officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent ...

of the

Viceroy of India The governor-general of India (1833 to 1950, from 1858 to 1947 the viceroy and governor-general of India, commonly shortened to viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom in their capacity as the Emperor of ...

. He served the

British army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

(now

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

) and

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British Empire, British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. Unlike the ...

(now

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

) during the

period. After finishing his term in the army, he returned home and joined the then Travancore State Police as a police inspector. During the Punnapra-Vayalar uprising in 1946, Sathyan was the inspector at Alappuzha North Police Station. Sathyan was married to Jessy until his death in 1971. They have three sons: Prakash, Satheesh and Jeevan.

Entry to films

Sathyan's entry into the field of acting started during his tenure as the police officer. At that time he acted in several amateur plays and that experience made him more interested in acting. His entry to film industry was accidental. He got introduced to a film musician Sebastian Kunjukunju Bhagavathar during his tenure as Inspector in Alappuzha North Police Station. The musician introduced Sathyan to various film personalities and one producer promised to cast him in a film; however, Sathyan did not get any calls from the producer. Sathyan came to know about a film that Kaumudi Chief Editor and his neighbour K. Balakrishnan were planning. He met Balakrishnan and the latter was impressed by Sathyan. Balakrishnan cast him as the protagonist in the film written and produced by him, titled ''Thyagaseema''. The then Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mary Arputham, objected to Sathyan acting in the film. Sathyan resigned from his job to act in this film and shortened his name to Sathyan from Sathyaneshan. However, the film was dropped. ''Thyagaseema'' was also incidentally the first film for

. In 1952 P. Subramaniam established Neela Productions. He happened to see the rushes of ''Thyagaseema'' and was impressed by Sathyan's performance. Subramaniam invited Sathyan to act as hero in his first film ''Athmasakhi'' (1952) which was Sathyan's first release.

Film career

Rise to stardom

In 1952, Sathyan's first film got released. The film was titled '' Athmasakhi'' and it earned him recognition in the industry. Sathyan rose to fame with the legendary '' Neelakkuyil'' (1954). The film was also a milestone in Malayalam film history. It was the first film to have an authentic Malayalam story. The film was written by renowned literary figure

Uroob Parutholli Chalappurathu Kuttikrishnan Karunakara Menon, popularly known by his pen name Uroob (1915 – 1979) was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature. Along with Basheer, Thakazhi, Kesavadev, and Pottekkatt, Uroob was counted amon ...

and directed by Ramu Karyat- P. Bhaskaran duo. The songs in the film written by P. Bhaskaran and set to tunes by K. Raghavan were superhits. The film became the first Malayalam film to win national recognition when it was awarded the ''Rajat Kamal'' ( Silver Lotus Award). The film's success at the box office raised Sathyan and his co-star Miss Kumari to stardom.

Peak time

Sathyan's career was influenced by great directors like K. S. Sethumadhavan, P. Venu, A. Vincent and Ramu Karyat. Sathyan's roles in various films directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan like ''Pappu'' in '' Odayil Ninnu'', ''Jayarajan'' in ''Daham'', ''Prof. Sreeni'' in '' Yakshi'' (first psychological thriller in Malayalam) and the pratogonist in '' Vazhve Mayam'' were well appreciated. Sathyan's other major performances include those in ''

'', '' Snehaseema'', '' Nairu Pidicha Pulivalu'', '' Veettu Mrugam'', '' Mudiyanaya Puthran'', '' Bharya'', '' Shakuntala'', ''Kayamkulam Kochunni'', '' Adimakal'' and '' Karakanakadal''. His famous title character 'Othenan' in the film '' Thacholi Othenan'' became highly popular among the masses. His role in '' Chemmeen'', the poignant love story set against the background of the coast of Alappuzha did not win him the best actor award for the year, but is one of the most popular roles of his career. He acted in over 150

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 ...

films and two Tamil films. Sathyan won the first

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 ...

for Best Actor in 1969 for the double role in Kadalpalam.

Final films

Vazhve Mayam, Anubhavangal Paalichakal, Karakanakadal which won high critical acclaim were among his final films. Other releases were ''Bhikara Nimishankal'', ''Aranazhikaneram'' and '' Oru Penninte Katha'' (as Madhavan Thambi). Sathyan died before completing the movie 'Anubhavangal Paalichakal.' It is said that the expressions of Sathyan in the song 'Pravaachankanmare' in that movie is real because of the pain he suffered in real life. It is also said that, the final scenes of Sathyan in the movie are made with a dupe and the crying scene of

Sheela Sheela Celine (born 24 March 1945) is an Indian actress and director who appears predominantly in Malayalam cinema. Paired with Prem Nazir, they hold the Guinness World Record for acting in the largest number of films (130) together as heroine ...

in the climax is real because of the departure of Sathyan in real life. He was posthumously awarded the

for Best Actor in 1971 for his performance in ''Karakanakadal''.

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, ...

and Suresh Gopi debuted in film as child artists in Sathyan's movies. Mammootty in Anubhavangal Paalichakal and Suresh Gopi in Odayil Ninnu.

Death

Sathyan died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

after fighting it for a year and four months on 15 June 1971 at Madras. He was aged 58 at the time of his death. His body was taken back to his native place Thiruvananthapuram, and was buried with full state honours. Thousands attended his funeral. His wife outlived him for 16 years, dying in 1987. His eldest son Prakash Sathyan died on Vishu day in 2014.

Accolades and legacy

Sathyan was a prominent actor to be considered as a superstar in Malayalam film industry after

Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair (16 October 191611 March 1997) was an Indian poet, playwright, script writer, lyricist, orator, film director and actor, though he is best known as an actor in Malayalam cinema. He is the recipient of Padma Shri fr ...

. During the late 1950s and the whole of the 1960s, he and

formed a bipolar industry with a considerable number of films starring at least one of them. He won the inaugural Kerala State Film Award for best actor in 1969 & again posthumously in 1971. There is a Sathyan Memorial Art Gallery 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 ...

Awards and recognition

Kerala State Film Awards: *1969: Best Actor – '' Kadalpalam'' (First State Award receiver) *1971: Best Actor – '' Karakanakkadal'' Film Film Awards: *1969: Adimakal

Popular roles

Below are a few of the most popular & critically praised characters played by Sathyan: * Neelakuyil (1954) – Sreedharan Nair * Thacholi Othenan (1964) – Othenan * Odayil Ninnu (1965) – Pappu * Chemmeen (1965) – Palani * Yakshi (1968) – Sreeni * Kadalpalam (1969) – Double Role * Mooladhanam (1969) – multistarrer with Nazeer * Vazhve Mayam (1970) – Sudhi * Karinizhal (1970) – Colonel * Anubhavangal Paalichakal (1971) – Chellappan * Karakanakadal (1971) – posthumous state award winner

Memorials

Awards established in his name

'' Sathyan National Film Award (Sathyan Foundation) '': An award instituted by the "Sathyan Foundation" a charitable organization formed with the basic objective of perpetuating the memory of veteran actor Sathyan by his children and grand child. The "Sathyan National Film Award" is presented annually to an eminent personality of Indian cinema. Memento, certificate and Rs. 25000/- are given as award for the awardees. *Winners: Murali, Thilakan, P. Bhaskaran, Balachandra Menon, Kalabhavan Mani, Sheela, Nedumudi Venu, Dileep, K. S. Chithra, K.J Yesudas, Kalabhavan Mani, Madhu, Sharada, Suresh Gopi, M. Jayachandran, Sreekumaran Thampi, Jerry Amaldev. ''Sathyan Award'': An award instituted by the Kerala Cultural Forum. The award carries a sum of Rs. 10000 and a plaque. *Winner: Innocent (2007) ''Sathyan Memorial Film Award'': An award instituted by the Sathyan Memorial Arts and Sports Club. The award is given in various fields including Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Anti-Hero, Best Comedian, Best Newcomer and Best Singers (male and female), taking the last year's performances into consideration.

Filmography

Malayalam

1950s

1960s

1970s

Tamil

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sathyan Male actors from Tamil Nadu 1912 births 1971 deaths Kerala State Film Award winners Male actors in Malayalam cinema Indian male film actors 20th-century Indian male actors People from Nagercoil Deaths from leukemia in India Indian Christians