Mohanlal reveals he got only eight days to train for ‘Karnabharam’, reflects on some of his best-loved performances

Screen icon Mohanlal, who recently received the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, described Kunjikuttan—the protagonist in the acclaimed film Vanaprastham—as the finest role of his career. He shared that during the filming, a 92-year-old Kathakali artist guided him in perfecting the Poothanamoksham sequence, which went on to receive widespread critical acclaim.

The veteran artist had encouraged Mohanlal to synchronise his expressions with the rhythm of the madhalam, elevating his performance. Mohanlal recounted this memorable experience in an interview with Doordarshan after receiving the Dadasaheb Phalke Award.

He also revealed that he trained only for eight days before performing the Sanskrit play ‘Karnabharam’ directed by Kavalam Narayana Panicker. In an interview with DD, Mohanlal reflected on some of his best-loved performances.

Interestingly, Vanaprastham was not only a landmark film for its artistic merit but also for its international collaboration—Mohanlal, who played the lead, also produced the film, making it the first Indian production to partner with the French. Recalling his experience attending the Cannes Film Festival with director Shaji N. Karun, Mohanlal said, “We heard our national anthem and saw our flag flying there. It was a moment of pride. Kathakali is a three-dimensional art form. To become a great Kathakali artist, you need at least 40 to 50 years of training. It's like wine—it matures with time. Perfection comes only with repeated performances.”

In Vanaprastham, Mohanlal was the only actor without a formal background in Kathakali. All the other performers were trained Kathakali artists. “They were with me throughout. They corrected me, trained me, and supported me. You cannot perform Kathakali in just one day. But somehow, everything came together like magic. I played characters like Ravanan, Arjunan, and Hanuman. No one dares to do that casually. Even if it’s shown for just 30 seconds or two minutes on screen, the preparation is immense. You have to get fully dressed and embody the role.”

“While performing Poothanamoksham, a 92-year-old Kathakali master called me aside and said, ‘Lal, try to bring the emotions of the maddalam onto your face.’ He was unknowingly guiding me, and I could feel an inexplicable energy taking over. It was as if the blessings of the other artists were carrying me through the performance,” Mohanlal said. Noted Kathakali artist Keezhpadam Kumaran Nair had played the role of Mohanlal’s guru in ‘Vanaprastham.’ It was Kalamandalam Balasubramanyan who trained the actor for the iconic role.

Mohanlal also spoke about the unique challenge of performing in the Sanskrit play Karnabharam—despite not knowing the language. He recalled staging the play at the iconic Kamani Auditorium at the National School of Drama in Delhi. “When Kavalam Narayana Panicker sir approached me with the idea, I expressed my doubts. I told him, ‘I don’t know the language.’ But he simply said, ‘You can do it, Lal.’ That belief was his blessing,” Mohanlal recalled.

He trained for just eight days and memorised the entire script. “Usually, stage plays require weeks of rehearsals and continuous performance practice. But in my case, I just memorised all the dialogues. It wasn’t easy at all. If you simply read the text, you can finish it in three minutes—but performing it on stage takes nearly two hours.”

Describing Karnabharam as a highly stylised play, Mohanlal added: “You have to sing, dance, and embody the deep emotional layers of Karna. The performance is physically and emotionally demanding. Karnabharam is a 2,000-year-old play written by Bhasa, and yet Kavalam sir had the confidence in me to bring it to life.”

The actor recalled that the audience gave him a standing ovation after he performed the play at the Kamani auditorium and even requested him for another performance. Then, the actor performed the play in Mumbai too. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t do it in Kerala. Narayana Panicker sir had passed away. We were planning to do Vikramorvashiyam, a beautiful play by Kalidasa. But, we couldn’t do it. I don’t think I can do Karnabharam again. Recently I was reading its script and wondered, ‘My God! How did I do it’? Luckily, Manoj Joshi had shot Karnabharam, and hence I had the chance of watching it. It is now available on Youtube,” Mohanlal said.