Malayalam cinema close-knit structure of art house and commercial genre, says Mohanlal

Mumbai, May 1 (PTI) Veteran superstar Mohanlal on Thursday said Malayalam cinema has always struck a good balance between arthouse and commercial film genre, something that has only strengthened with the arrival of a new crop of filmmakers.

The "Drishyam" star was speaking at the "Legends & Legacies: The Stories That Shaped India’s Soul" session during the first World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) here.

Moderated by Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, the session was also attended by Telugu cinema star Chiranjeevi and veteran actor-MP Hema Malini.

When Kumar called Malayalam cinema the "intellectual soul" of Indian cinema, the actor thanked him for his praise.

Mohanlal, whose career spans over 47 years in cinema, said even arthouse Malayalam films have an element of entertainment in them and vice versa.

"From the very beginning, Malayalam cinema doesn't have... it's a thin line (between arthouse and commercial movies). It's a close-knit structure of art house and commercial success or entertainment cinema. It's well balanced. I had the chance to work with great directors. That time they called those films as art films. But even the art films had an entertainment value. And even the so-called entertainers had art in it.

"So in Malayalam, content wise, we are very rich. I had the chance of working with great directors like G Aravindan, Padmarajan, Bharatan and at the same time commercial directors like Priyadarshan. Now, content wise, (with the arrival of) the new directors. It's full of art. It's a beautiful piece of art," Mohanlal said.

At the session, Chiranjeevi said he has been passionate about acting since childhood.

"I used to dance and entertain in and around my family and friends, I was small and with their encouragement, I thought, yes, some talent was there with me. I finally took acting as my career and that's how I went to Chennai, then Madras.

"But there were already legendary actors like NT Rama Rao garu, Nageshwara (ANR) garu, Krishna garu... I wondered how I could get a chance to witness such stardom," said the actor, who studied at the Madras Film Institute.

The "Indra: The Tiger" star said he drew inspiration from his contemporaries and seniors like Mithun Chakraborty, Amitabh Bachchan, and Kamal Haasan.

"I had seen 'Mrigayaa' and he (Chakraborty) won the National Award for his acting. His acting was so natural, and he did a fantastic job... And for fights, I had seen 'Sholay'. Till then a lot of duplicates used to do stunts but I thought I should do all the stunts myself, however risky it was. I drew inspiration from Amitabh ji and for dance, it was Kamal, who is a little senior to me and was a fantastic dancer at that time," he added.

Actor Hema Malini, the BJP MP from Mathura, praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for promoting "a beautiful initiative" like WAVES 2025.

"He (Modi) always wanted this to happen. It is going to be very beneficial for the entertainment industry, films, art and culture. Everybody will benefit from this. I'm glad to be part of this programme," she said.

WAVES 2025, which began on Thursday, will run through Sunday. PTI RDS RDS BK BK