Redefining stardom

At an age when many fade into oblivion, Mammootty is casting aside his vanity and superstardom in a quest to portray diverse characters

In a soul-stirring scene from Kaathal —The Core, Malayalam superstar Mammootty leans forward, partially showcasing the contours of his broad, drooping shoulders. He clasps his chachan (father), played by R S Panicker, and finally breaks down inconsolably.

This terrifically unconventional “coming out of the closet” scene is staged with such dexterity by Jeo Baby, the director of path-breaking films like The Great Indian Kitchen and Freedom March, that it leaves audiences gobsmacked.

In Baby’s seventh directorial feature, Mammootty plays Mathew Devassy, a middle-aged man who is a closeted homosexual. It is a role that requires the actor to strip himself of every ounce of superstardom and be vulnerable in front of the camera. It is a huge gamble. The thespian, however, brings gravitas and grace to ace this role.

Kaathal —The Core, an understated film that constantly switches between family and courtroom drama, quietly dropped into theatres last month.

Mammootty had to face a series of hate campaigns before the film’s release. It was banned in several West Asian countries like Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, which have a sizeable Malayali population.

The actor remained unperturbed. He believed this film would bring about a change in the mindsets of people.

Earlier this year, Mammootty was cast as a cop who crisscrosses the country with a team of trusted lieutenants who are in hot pursuit of a gang of ivory smugglers. It is a far cry from the stereotypical moustache-twirling policemen that one associates with mainstream Malayalam cinema. The movie titled Kannur Squad ran to packed theatres across Kerala.

While 2023 saw Shah Rukh Khan’s commercial potboilers like Pathaan and Jawan, and Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal, a film that blatantly glorified toxic masculinity, rule the roost at the box office, it was Mammootty’s Kannur Squad and Kaathal – The Core that stood up to ripples of applause from fans and critics.

In 2022, the actor played a conservative, misogynistic character in the psychological drama Puzhu. Later that year, he teamed up with maverick director Lijo Jose Pellissery to headline Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam, a baffling tragicomedy for which he bagged his seventh Kerala State Award for Best Actor.

In recent times, few actors have displayed the appetite to don roles from such a dizzying array of genres as Mammootty. At 72, the age when most fade into oblivion, this three-time National Award-winning actor has decided to toss away his vanity and superstardom in his quest to play interesting and diverse characters.

In a recent interview with film critic Anupama Chopra, Jyothika, the female lead of Kaathal —The Core, gives a peek into Mammootty’s mindset and the reasons that drive him to play these diverse characters.

“During the filming of Kaathal —The Core, I asked Mammootty sir, why he chose to play this character?” Jyothika tells Chopra in the interview.

“Who is a hero? A hero is not someone who is just doing action and hitting people. He is someone who is trying to get into the skin of different characters,” was his response.

When most of his contemporaries like Mohanlal and Rajnikant are trying hard to appease their fans by playing the “alpha male” or essaying the routine hypermasculine roles, Mammootty is looking to surprise his audiences with his bold, off-beat choices.

Mammootty’s son Dulquer Salmaan, who is an accomplished actor himself, was recently asked about his father’s interesting filmography.

“I think he has reached a stage in his life where hits and flops don’t matter to him anymore. He has decided to have fun and enjoy himself as an actor,” Salmaan had said.

Mammootty continues to churn out four to five films every year and works around 12 hours every day.

Some time back, Hollywood actor Johnny Depp recalled a conversation he had with the legendary Marlon Brando.

“We only have so many faces in our pocket,” Brando would famously tell Depp, asking him to cut down on his acting assignments. It got Depp thinking.

There’s little chance, however, that Mammootty would be following Brando’s advice. With more than 425 films in six languages under his belt, Mammootty believes he still possesses numerous unexplored facets to his personality and craft.

After working with a bevy of top-draw directors such as P Padmarajan, K G George, Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Mani Ratnam in the 1980s and 90s and through the early aughts, Mammootty remains the favourite actor of several new-age directors.

Ratheena, the director of Puzhu, calls Mammootty “the most accessible actor in Kerala.”

Currently, he has around 10 films in the pipeline that are in various stages of production. After more than five decades as an actor, Mammootty is busy redefining the concept of stardom and the tropes of a hero.