Malayalam Awards Asiavision Movie Awards 2016 - Cast & Crew

Asha Sarath, famous for her role in 'Kumkumapoovu', is a Malayalam serial actress hails from Perumbavoor, Ernakulam. She was born in Perumbavoor as a daughter of famous classical dancer Smt. Kalamandalam Sumathy. At a very young age, Asha was bought into the field of classical dance by her parents. She got trained in all forms of classical dance including: Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam as well. In college days, Asha always used to get prizes for her performances on classical dance. In 1992, she got first prize in All India Dance Fete held in Benares. She is married to Sarath a business entrepreneur in Dubai.

"Meena" needs no introduction in the Southern film industry. She is a terrific performer and had acted in some good films in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, and Kannada. Her performances in films including Bharathi Kannama, Avvai Shanmugi, Drishyam, Swathi Muthu, Rhythm, Porkkaalam, Rajeshwari Kalyanam, Sethupathi IPS, etc. were commendable. And now her child Nainika, who was born on 1st January 2011, is debuting with the "Vijay" starrer "Theri". It should be noted that Meena also debuted in the film industry as a child artist with the 1982 flick Nenjangal when she was six years old.

Aparna Balamurali is an actress in Indian cinema who predominantly acts in Malayalam movies. Her debut film was ‘Oru Second Class Yathra’ (2015)where she played the character of Vineeth Sreenivasan's lover. She appeared as the pair of Vineeth in flashback scenes This film was directed by Jexon Antony and Rejis Antony. After this movie, she was associated with another Malayalam movie ‘Maheshinte Prathikaram’. The film was produced by filmmaker Aashiq Abu, who directed films like 'Daddy Cool' and 'Salt N Pepper' and Dileesh Pothan directed the movie. In the movie, she not only played the role of a college student as Jimsy Augustine but also lent her voice for one song ‘"Mounangal" along with Vijay Yesudas. This film placed her in the list of recognition as an actress.

Manju Warrier is a South-Indian film actress, born on November 1, 1978, in Nagercoil, Tamil Nadu, to an accountant father and a homemaker mother. She completed her schooling from Chinmaya Vidyalaya and further from Chovva Higher Secondary School, both situated at Kannur. She graduated from SN College, Kannur. Manju was only seventeen when she made her debut in the film industry with ‘Sakshyam’, a classic Malayalam drama directed by Mohan.At the age of eighteen, she worked in ‘Sallapam’, a love story by Sundar Das. In the first three years of her career, she was awarded for her work in four major films. First is with the film ‘Ee Puzhayum Kadannu’, a drama thriller starring Dileep in the lead role, won her the Kerala State Film Award, Filmfare, and the Screen-Videocon Award.

Amy Jackson is the popular actress in India, who is a British by her nationality. Her full name is Amy Louise Jackson and she was born in the year 1992 to Alan and Marguerita Jackson. Amy Jackson’s father is working as a producer on the BBC. Amy chose to study English literature, philosophy, and ethics. At the age of 16, she started her career as a model.

Tamannaah Bhatia is a well known actress in Tamil and Telugu film industry with lots of fan following. Chand Sa Roshan Chehra was her first Hindi movie, in the year 2005. Her Telugu debut was Sri and the Tamil debut was Kedi. In Kedi, she did a negative role and the movie did not go well. It was also the debut movie for Ileana, the South Indian popular actress. Tamannaah Bhatia acted in Vyapari with director S.J.Suryah; but she did not get a good recognition. After she performed in Balaji Sakthivel’s Kalloori, she became notable. Her performance in that film was appreciated by everyone. Similarly, her Telugu film Happy Days was also a super hit and got her good name. Tamannaah Bhatia steadied her market by choosing good films.

Radhika Apte, an Indian actress was born on Sept 7, 1985. Radhika has acted in films in many languages ranging in Hindi, Marathi and many southern languages as well. She has also worked in a theatre group Aasakta. She was nominated for SIIMA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her Tamil film Dhoni. Her father Dr. Charudutt Apte is Pune’s leading neurosurgeon. She got married to musician Benedict Taylor in 2012. She had done her graduation in economics and mathematics from Fergusson College, Pune. She has learnt contemporary dance at London's Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.

She started work in Hindi movies from her first small role in “Vaah Life Ho To Aisi” in 2005. In 2009 she did her debut in Marathi Industry from Gho Mala Asla Hava, she played the character of a village girl named Savitri and worked in some more films that year. She had worked in Vakratunda Swaha, which was filmed by Ashish Avikunthak over a period of 12 years. Also she played one of the lead roles in Anurag Kashyap's short film on eve teasing, That Day After Everyday which was released on YouTube in 2012. The main roles she played were in Rakht Charitra and in its second part. This year she did remarkable work in Badlapur and Hunterrr and got a lot of appreciation for that as well from Bollywood critics and her audiences. She is a very bold and fearless person as shown in her choice of films. She is working in multiple movies this year that are either being filmed or in post production phase.

Apart from movies she is also actively involved in theatre and has done many plays in Aasakta group and also in some other plays like Purnaviram, Matra Ratra . As stated by her she believes in experimental theatre and has plans to do an English play in London as well.

Sonam Kapoor, Daughter of Anil Kapoor and model Sunita Kapoor, is a Bollywood actress who was born in the suburb of Chembur, Mumbai on 9 June, 1985. The Kapoor family then moved to Juhu where Sonam Kapoor did her schooling and was raised. She is the eldest of her three siblings. Belonging to the oldest family in the industry "kapoors", she got her first break in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's movie- Saawariya . This was not new to her that she was offered such a movie, because she was offered Saawariya when she was just 17 but due to her weight she had to wait and after losing some she was finally ready to take up the movie.

Before she came into the Bollywood industry she was a waitress just to increase her pocket money. But this only lasted for a week. When she was young she did not have this perfect figure. Before she stepped in this line, she lost almost 30 kgs.

She has also been active in donating the needy. She participated in the International Indian Film Academy Charity Fashion Show. She also encouraged his followers to donate to Ogaan Cancer Foundation on the occasion of her birthday. She is very outspoken in media interactions. She is also frequently featured on fashion magazines like Stardus.

She is also been awarded as the "Superstar of Tomorrow-Female" for her first film Saawariya. This Beauty has also won The Best Actress in a Comedy or Romance for the movie Khoobsurat. She has also been honored as the NDTV Brand Ambassador of the Year and GQ Woman of the year Sonam Kapoor is the Celebrity endorser for brands Electrolux, Lux, Colgate, Signature and Mont Blanc.

She played a leading role in Raanjhanaa, for which she was really appreciated and was also nominated for the Best Actress Sonam Kapoor is in the Bollywood industry from the past 9 years and has done 13 movies by now.

Manikandan R Achari who was born in Thoppil, Tripunithura is an actor who has made his acting debut with a film named ‘Kammatti Paadam’ in which he played the role of Balan Chettan directed by Rajeev Ravi. ‘Kammatti Paadam’ was released in the year 2016. Manikandan R Achari is also a theater artist and has worked with theater groups like Lokadharmi and Bhasabheri.

The precious icon of the Indian music industry, Gopi Sundar has composed his soulful music for more than fifty movies to date. In 2014, he composed the songs & background score for the Malayalam movie "1983" and was awarded the National Award.the movie got a good critic rating of 3.5 out of 5.abrid shine, the debut director of the movie was awarded the Kerala State Awards in the category of the best debut director. Alongside the film bagged two more awards for the category of best & second best actor in the same award ceremony of 2014. He was born in Kochi & opted for joining the music industry for his career. Gopi has a good knowledge of instruments like Tabla & keyboard & has worked as a keyboard programmer in some of Bollywood hit films.

Vineeth Srinivasan is known to the music industry for his popular and hit song, Karale, karalinte. Being the son of film star Sreenivasan, he never had even thought of singing as a career. But of course, he likes popular Hindi songs and admires voice of K.J. Jesudas, Brad Paisley, and Udit Narayan.

Kabir Bedi is well known Indian television and film actor who had worked in multiple continents like US, many countries of US and India in all the formats i.e. Movies, Television and theatre. He has good command in multiple languages and also very much popular in Italy. His well-known and recognized performances includes but not limited to are role of Emperor Shahjahan in Taj Mahal, pirate in European TV miniseries named as Sandokan, and playing a villainous role in famous James Bond movies named as Octopussy.

He was born in family of freedom fighter where by his father is author and philosopher and his mother is British woman, who take part in ordination in Tibetan Buddhism. He began his career from the theater and progressed to be one of the leading personalities in bollywood. His growth can be judged by the fact that he is one of the first international actors from bollywood.

His famous stage shows includes Othelo, Tughlaq, The vultures and The Far Pavilion. His bollywood movies are Taj Mahal, Khoon Bhari Maang, Kacche Dhage, Main Hoon Na. His role as Shah Jahan in Taj mahal and a dacoit in Kacche Dhage is very good. As far as his Hollywood career is concerned the movies are Octopussy, The Beast of War, Andata Ritorno. In Octopussy, he had a villainous role and being very famous for his style and arrogance. He had acted in many TV series and few of the well-known are The Bold and Beautiful, Sandokan, Forbidden Territory, On Wings of Eagle, Red Eagle, The Lost Empire, Highlander etc.

He is married four time and also father of 3 children. As he is active supporter for freedom in Burma, he is also the official ambassador of Burma Campaign UK.

Shane Nigam is a Malayali actor. He is the son of the renowned actor and mimicry artist, Abi. Owing to the paternal connection, Shane has always been a part of the Cinema right from childhood. He attended the Vidya Mandir Bhavan school in Ernakulam for his primary education. He is at present pursuing a degree in BE (Bachelor of Engineering) and is in the final semester. Rajagiri College of Engineering and Technology is where he studies.

Sijoy Varghese is a versatile performer in Malayalam cinema. He has been an indefatigable creative force for the past two decades whether it is shooting a commercial advertisement for television or associating himself as an actor or screenwriter thus keeping impact in several celluloid films at one go. Back to his creativity, he has taken his first three chapters of film – acting, assistant scriptwriter, and assistant director in his kitty and grew up as the founder of leading advertising agencies, marketers & brands in TV commercials in Mumbai.

A firebrand script-writer, actor, director, and producer, that’s Renji Panicker for you. He made his debut with movie ‘Bhattacharya IPS’ in 2005. He started his career as a journalist after getting his post graduate degree in it. He, with Shaji Kailas, has given gem of movies to the Malayalam industry. He is also the managing director of the Malayalam newspaper Metrovarthaa. He was born on 21 January 1958 to Keshava Panicker and Laalamani at Nedumudi, Alleppey.

Gokul Suresh is an upcoming Indian actor who is currently working in the Malayalam cinema. Gokul is the son of the famous Keralite actor Suresh Gopi and Radhika Nair. After finishing his school, Gokul took admission at Christ University, Bengaluru where he opted for a course in Business Administration (B.A.)in Tourism. During his college days, Gokul decided to follow Suresh’s footsteps and made his debut from Muddhugauv, his first Mollywood (Malayalam) project.

Tovino Thomas is a well-known face in the Malayalam Film Industry. He is an eminent model and actor in Mollywood. He has a huge female fan following owing to his muscular physique and smart personality. He was voted as the most desirable man in the newspaper Kochi Times, a subset of the Times of India. He was born into a Roman Catholic family in Irinjalakuda, Kerala. His father, Ellikal Thomas, is an advocate, and he has an elder brother, Tingston, and a sister, Dhanya. Tovino studied in Irinjalakuda at the Don Bosco High School and then moved to Coimbatore to finish his college. He obtained his graduation degree in engineering, majoring in the field of electronics in Coimbatore from the Tamil Nadu College of Engineering. After finishing college, he started working as a software engineer at Cognizant Technology Solutions for a few years. Thomas is a fitness freak and has been modeling since his college days. He has also done endorsements for a few top brands of Kerala such as Silver storm Theme Park in Athirappilly, Indulekha Hair Care Oil, and a few others. He has also done a few short films among which his roles in Grisaille and Jaalakam were appreciated widely. Sajeevan Anthikad spotted him upon seeing these short movies and advertisements and cast him in his first movie Prabhuvinte Makkal in the year 2012.

Aju Varghese is an Indian film actor, born to Varghese PK and Celiene Susan in the year 1985. He has a younger sister named Anju. He was born in Thiruvalla city located in Kerala. Aju completed his schooling in Rajagiri High School and further continued his studies in Bhavan’s Vidyalaya located in Ernakulum.

Nivin Pauly is predominantly a Malayalam actor. Born on 11 October 1984, his debut film was Malarvaadi Art Club. The direction of this film was by Vineeth Sreenivasan and production by Dileep. Some of the other films of Nivin Pauly include Bangalore Days, Thattathin Marayathu, Premam, Oru Vadakkari Selfie etc..The films 1983 and Bangalore Days fetched him the Best Actor Award from Kerala State Film Award. Nivin holds a degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering. He is happily wedded to Rinna Joy since 2010, and they are blessed with a boy. Before taking up acting as his profession Nivin was working in Infosys for two years.

Nivin’s selection for the Malarvaadi Arts Club was not that easy. He was not one among the shortlisted actors for the audition, but when one person eventually left, Nivin was provided with a chance. Later he became an actor. From then on, Nivin worked in the movies Sevenes and Metro and some short roles in Spanish Masala and Traffic. He also worked in the music video Nenjodu Cherthu. This was a great hit in YouTube. It was the 2012 flick Thattathin Marayathu which was a turning point in Nivin’s career. It was a great hit and he was labeled the present youth sensation. Directors like Sathyan Anthikad, Aashiq Abu, Rajesh Pillai and Shyamaprasad directed Nivin. Neram was the debut film of Nivin in Tamil. Later he acted in some Malayalam films, including Bangalore Days.

The beard is a regular in some of Nivin’s films. Nivin has worked with his colleague Dileep in several Malayalam films. Nivin confesses that he was good at knowing dialogues of films by heart and telling them just like the original. Before taking up acting Nivin had no stage experience and he knew only to dance. Nivin focuses on giving his best to his films.

The Pauly Family Tree (Infographic Family Tree)

R K Suresh was born on May 19, 1980, in Chennai. He is a well-known film producer as well as an actor. He completed his Business Administration and worked in hotel industries, realtors, media, etc. His experience in the field of import and export as well as his previous exposure to media and entertainment especially film distribution, re-authoring cinema production, etc., helped him develop his business into diversified business verticals. He got married during 2009. He is a strong follower of his ethics, who helped the organization to adopt a working culture of international standard where the sense of frolics and enjoyments has a strong presence.

Ram Charan is a famous Tollywood actor and an entrepreneur. He is the son of legendary actor, Megastar Chiranjeevi and Surekha Konidela. He was born on 27 March, 1985 in Madras, now Chennai. He has two sisters namely Sreeja and Sushmita. He is the nephew of famous Indian producer, Allu Aravind. He married Upasana Kamineni, vice-chairman of Apollo group. Born with silver spoon in mouth, Ram Charan started his career with the movie Chirutha directed by Puri Jagannadh. The movie is a blockbuster and he has gained good marks for his movie. His next movie, Magadheera changed the dimensions of Tollywood box office. Directed by S.S.Rajamouli and Chiranjeevi playing a cameo role, Magadheera has been an industrial hit and has collected 70 crore collections in 2009.

Indian-American playback singer and music producer Sid Sriram was born 19 May 1990 in Chennai. He spent his childhood in Fremont, California. Sid graduated from Mission San Jose High School. After that, he admitted in the Berklee College of Music and completed his graduation in Music Production and Engineering. He is famous for his musical collaboration with A. R. Rehman and Bharata Natyam dancer, Pallavi Sriram (sister).

Seenu Ramaswamy better known as Seen in the Tamil Film Industry is a talented actor of Indian Film Industry. He comes from the camp of famous cinematographer as well as director of Tamil film industry Balu Mahendra. The actor entered into Tamil Industry with the movie Koodal Nagar which starred popular actor Bharat as a lead actor; Bhavana and pretty Sandhya was also seen in the movie. He marked his second movie as Thenmerku Paruvakaatru.

Vijaya Gurunatha Sethupathi was not born with silver spoon. Neither did he have a family background that had deep roots in cinema field. He was rejected even for the role of a junior artist. But it was his hard work and continuous struggle, that made him a star that he is today.

 He ventured into modelling for a while, mostly doing print ads. His debut in Kya Mast Hai Life won him a total of 7 different awards for his performance, which definitely helped with improving and extending his popularity. Later his role of Anant, yet another teenager in the series' Navya' won his much praise. Apart from other supporting roles, Shaheer Sheikh is currently working on Mahabharata, yet another series for which he has already received much deserved fame, and great reviews. So far this has been the most demanding role yet; For the role of Arjun, he has had to put in hours, into a very strict fitness routine to build agility, strength and endurance. 

In his personal life, Shaheer is a great fan of photography and music, having acquired the skills of the former from his early days at modelling. He is also known around his sets for his cooking abilities and sharing them with his colleagues. It is being speculated that Shaheer has fallen in love, but the mystery still remains as to whom the lucky girl may be. These speculations have arisen from some of his recent tweets that seemed like, they had a hidden message.