The Indispensable Nemeses of Mohanlal

A look back at the most influential villains of Mohanlal movies

Yesterday I watched the latest Malayalam movie starring Mohanlal titled Thudarum (Will Continue). While I felt it was an ordinary movie that made good use of the actor in a role that he could effortlessly sleepwalk through, it's turning into a money spinner thanks to the public, who are experiencing a 'Mohanlal Famine' as he was giving back-to-back misfires for some time now. When I say it's an ordinary movie, there is an element that's extraordinary in it.

'George Sir' or CI George Mathan, portrayed by Prakash Varma, is the trump card that the makers of the movie played to allure the audience. Effortlessly exuding evil in every moment he is in and masking it with a devilish smile, George smothers the protagonist 'Benz' Shanmugan till he decides to push back. Standing against a veteran actor like Lal in a star vehicle that is intended to reverse the ill fortune of the star, this newcomer manages to bring out a revelatory performance.

But this is not new for Mohanlal. In an era when the movie stars don't want to make themselves challenged onscreen, this superstar has consistently given space for antagonists to become equal partners in the game. If you see his filmography, it's easy to find many actors catapulted into cult fame just by being the antagonist to Mohanlal. Many dialogues of such characters have become part of pop culture.

Mohanlal himself started his journey as an antagonist. As the sadistic Narendran in Manjil Virinja Pookkal (The Flowers That Bloomed in Snow), he made a mark. After a few more movies where he portrayed villainous characters, he started doing the boy-next-door kind of movies, which were immensely popular, even when often venturing into the darker territory. I've always felt that as an actor, Lal needs a strong partner as a supporting character, heroine, or antagonist to truly shine. This helps the person opposite him also to find their own pinnacle.

Another aspect that I noticed is that it is in those movies that Mohanlal portrays shades that are more grey; the antagonist shines more. In Thudarum, though his character is portrayed as a simplistic, ordinary person, there is a streak of wild brutality that comes out only when he is cornered. In many of the other movies that you will read ahead, the case is similar.

I've compiled a list of the top ten antagonists of Mohanlal, who, according to me, counter him, or are let to counter him, tooth for tooth, in landmark Malayalam movies. For keeping it within ten, I had to omit some performances that were really good, like Sekharankutty in Irupatham Noottandu (Twentieth Century), Daddy Girija in Pulimurukan, and Cheriya Nambiar in Naran (The Human) and go for those characters that attained a cult status among Malayalee movie enthusiasts.

Krishnadas in Rajavinte Makan (The Son of the King)

In a gangster movie that established Mohanlal as a superstar of Malayalam cinema, actor Ratheesh did a powerful role that is as prominent as the hero. Ratheesh, who used to be a hero and was on the verge of being cast into oblivion, acted as Krishnadas, a corrupt home minister who double-crossed Mohanlal's character, Vincent Gomas. The handsome antagonist and nemesis of Gomas even has a romantic song picturized on him with the heroine. The iconic climax leaves us doubting who is the real hero.

Keerikkadan Jose in Kireedam (The Crown)

If Ratheesh was a beloved former hero, Mohan Raj, who essayed the role of Keerikkadan, was an unknown face and an urgent replacement for Predeep Sakthi, who didn't turn up for the shoot. He had worked with Lal before in Munnam Mura (The Third Degree). In a movie about the loss of innocence of a young man, Keerikkadan was a brutal force that forever kept him immersed in violence. Even when he isn't present on screen, he pervades the atmosphere of the movie like evil. The actor was forever known by the screen name after the release of the movie.

Fabien in Season

Season, directed by Padmarajan, was a disaster of a movie. As a small kid, I badly wanted to watch it in the theater, but it left the movie halls within days. My reason was the villain Gavin Packard, who made an indelible mark on all the kids who saw the previous Mohanlal movie Aryan, in which he played a local gangster who snatched Lal's gold chain and made him fight him on a ring to retrieve it. But Season was a different breed, which was years ahead of its time. A non-linear revenge movie set in Kovalam and prison, it has Gavin playing Fabien, a European psychopath, who deceives and kills the friends of Jeevan, who is arrested wrongly. Gavin gives his character a certain charm and amiability which guises his deceptive nature.

Raghavan in Thazvaram (The Valley)

Thazvaram, helmed by Bharathan, is Kerala's own Western. Mohanlal's character Balan is in search of Raju, who lives in a remote village as Raghavan. What begins as a simple revenge drama soon becomes a game of survival between two men equally motivated to kill the other. In one of the most stylistic climaxes that I have seen, the two confront each other for a fight to the death in the valley circled by vultures. Salim Ghouse, who was already an acclaimed actor, made his debut in Malayalam with this movie and slid inside a role that was tailor-made for him.

Carlos in Indrajaalam (The Magical Illusion)

Indrajaalam is a forgotten movie today. It's dated by today's standards, and no one counts Kannan Nair as any challenge to Mohanlal as a character. But the movie saw the birth of an extremely talented actor who was synonymous with villainy for years. Rajan P. Dev, while receiving accolades for the role of Kochu Vava in the super hit drama Kattukuthira (The Wild Horse), was not selected to portray the same character in its movie adaptation. But Dennis Joseph and Thampi Kannanthanam gave him a new lease on life when they cast him to portray Carlos, an underworld gangster, in their movie. Indrajaalam was a hit only of its time, but Rajan P. Dev, who portrayed Carlos, elevated himself as an evergreen antagonist.

Mundakkal Sekharan in Devaasuram (Of Gods and Demons)

Napoleon was already a star in Tamil cinema when he starred in Devaasuram as the main antagonist. The movie told the story of a feudal feud between two families, and Napoleon gave a nuanced performance as Mundakkal Sekharan. The character is so famous among Malayalees that whenever we remember the name of the protagonist, Mangalassery Neelakantan, automatically Mundakkal Sekharan also plays in our minds. Both characters were brought to the screen again in Ravanaprabhu (Overlord Ravana), but the movie was nowhere near the original.

Kulappulli Appan in Aaram Thampuran (The Sixth Lord)

Aaram Thampuran is an extended version of Devaasuram where the existential issues faced by the protagonist are ironed out completely to exhibit a hero who is a near deity. To counter him, Renjith, the same person who scripted Devaasuram, made the antagonist a demonical figure, without the mortal nuances displayed by Sekharan. With a contemptuous smile and a devious make-up, Narendraprasad does a convincing but wholly unrealistic brutal patriarchal figure. The movie that exploited the aura of Mohanlal was a tremendous success among the public, and credit should also go to Appan, who strongly balanced the narrative with his insensitivity, deception and general anti social behavior.

Bhadran in Balettan

If you see the career graph of Mohanlal, there are general chaos at some points. When it seems to have hit rock bottom, a marginally good movie comes out, which brings all his longtime fans to cinemas. Balettan was such a film that released when we all felt that Mohanlal had cashed in all his goodwill. The movie itself is a very ordinary story of a good Samaritan who falls on bad times due to his good deeds. While we feel that the movie has covered all its blind spots, Bhadran enters. Even without Bhadran, the movie would be mostly the same. But debutant Riyaz Khan brings a surprise element to the table. By taunting and threatening Balettan played by Mohanlal in a weird accent and handsome looks, this character throws a curveball at the viewers. The movie was surprisingly not remade into other Indian languages because they felt Bhadran, the antagonist, dominated the movie.

Constable Sahadevan in Drishyam

Drishyam was an unexpected box office blitzkrieg. It was advertised as a family drama, and no one suspected it to turn into what it is. In a story about a man who is trying to safeguard his family from the entire police force and judiciary, it is a lowly constable whom the audience abhorred. The jealous, corrupt policeman who is behind Georgekutty in each of his steps to protect his dear ones tries to frame him with every trick from in and out of the books. Kalabhavan Shajohn, who used to be a minor comedian, gave the performance of his life as Sahadevan, and all of us invariably hated him in that role.

Bobby in Lucifer

Lucifer was a political drama about the growing influence of the drug trade on politics. While Mohanlal portrayed a politician called Stephen Nedumpalli with a mysterious past, Bobby is another mysterious character. Played by the Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi, Bobby is the evil son-in-law of the dead patriarch of a political family. The ever-smooth-talking, calm antagonist manages to rise to the top using the promise of political funding, while managing to throw Stephen out of his path. Vivek portrayed Bobby with blood-chilling precision, and in a movie inhabited with a long array of characters, he stands apart.

While acknowledging the talents of the actors featured in this list, we should also salute the dubbing artists who voiced some of them. If not for Vineeth's smooth sound for Bobby or Shammi Thilakan's baritone for Mundakkal Sekharan and Raghavan, we couldn't imagine how impactful the performances may be.

If we closely inspect the list, we can see that some of the actors were debutants and some came from industries outside Kerala. Most of them found increased recognition, and some were catapulted into fame. It is interesting to see that the Malayalam industry ensures author-backed powerful roles for its antagonists, and even established stars like Mohanlal give them all the space to shine.