Remembering Prem Nazir

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It’s on this day 21 years ago that Abdul Khaderaka Prem Nazir, the evergreen hero of Mollywood, left thousands of die-hard fans in tears. Born on April 7, 1926, in Chirayankeezhu, to Akkode Shahul Hamid and Asuma Beevi, little did he know that the gates of the Malayalam film industry lay wide open to embrace his acting talent. Nazir completed his formal education from Kadhinamkulam Lower Primary School, Sri Chithiravilasam School, S D College, Alappuzha, and Saint Berchman’s College, Changanassery. By the time he completed his education he had become an experienced drama artist.

It was on the sets of his first movie that Abdul Khader was renamed Prem Nazir by Thikkurussi Sukumaran Nair. He started acting in films under the banner of Excel Company. Most of his films were for the Udaya and Merryland studios. His first film ‘Marumakal’ (1952), directed by S K Chari and produced by Paul Kallungal, was critically acclaimed. Though 1952 saw 12 Malayalam releases, only ‘Marumakal’ became a box office hit. Nazir’s brother Prem Nawaz (Abdul Wahab) also acted in a few films. Although Nazir was the biggest hero of his time, it was his policy that if any of his films flopped, he’d act for free in the producer’s next film to compensate for the loss the producer had to endure.

How can any film buff forget Velayudhan in ‘Iruttinte Athmavu’, Balan in ‘Murapennu’, Govindankutty in ‘Asuravithu’, Sasi Kumar in ‘Bhargavi Nilayam’, Pottan Raghavan in ‘Adimakal’, Udayan in ‘Padayottam’, Jayadevan in ‘Muttathe Mulla’ and Gopi in ‘Pravaham’ among the scores of films he has acted in! 1979 was a special year for the actor as 39 of his films were released.

The record is yet to be broken by any actor in the industry. Nazir also holds the record for having acted in the most leading roles - about 700 films with 85 heroines.

Another record is for playing the pair along with actress Sheela. By 1975, they had starred together in 130 movies.

Other heroines he created hit films with are Jayabharathi, Miss Kumari, B S Saroja, Santhi and Vijaya Nirmala. A M Raja, P B Sreenivas and Kamukara Purushothaman lent their voice to Nazir in his song sequences before K J Yesudas started singing for him in 1965. Nazir’s association with Yesudas saw him scaling new heights in his career, gifting Malayalis a number of lovely melodies.

Many consider the Nazir - Yesudas combination of song sequences the best ever.

Nazir is popularly described as ‘nithyaharithanayakan’ (evergreen hero). Quite justifiable as he was acting as the hero even in his older years. His last film was ‘Dhwani’. Nazir won the Kerala State Special Jury Award in 1981.

He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1983 by the President of India in recognition of distinguished services of a high order to the nation in the field of acting.

The Prem Nazir Award was initiated in his memory in 1992 for excellence in contribution to the Malayalam cinema industry. Nazir wrote a book on the film characters he essayed, ‘Enne Thediyethiya Kathapatrangal’. Many consider his role as the mentally ill Velayudhan in the film ‘Iruttinte Atmavu’ his masterpiece. Written by M T Vasudevan Nair, the film provided Malayalam cinema with a new direction - that of low budget films. In spite of its large number of studio shots and overall theatricality, the film was so culturally rich that many of the episodes became archetypes for future Malayalam filmmakers dealing with family drama. It depicted the story of an imbecile finely portrayed by Nazir in a joint family with remarkable sensitivity and seriousness of purpose.

Nazir tried his hand at politics and joined the Congress but he never contested elections. A social reformer eager to give a helping hand to those in need, the actor was known for his magnanimity.

Through the versatility of acting portrayed in his films, the evergreen hero will live in our hearts forever.