Mammootty’s Padma Bhushan honours a career built on constant reinvention

The Padma Bhushan often goes to film personalities for the scale of their careers. In Mammootty’s case, the honour reflects something more specific. It recognises a body of work defined by repeated reinvention rather than sustained visibility.

Mammootty has spent over five decades in Malayalam cinema, appearing in more than 400 films. That span alone is exceptional, but duration has never been the most interesting aspect of his journey. What sets him apart is the way he has repeatedly questioned his own position as a star, especially at moments when comfort would have been the logical choice.

There have been phases when Mammootty dominated the industry, and others when his choices seemed trapped in repetition. In the years leading up to the last decade, several of his films failed to make an impact, both commercially and critically. These were largely shaped by familiar narrative structures and predictable character arcs. For a senior actor with an established fan base, this phase could have easily turned into a long plateau.
Instead, Mammootty altered course.

The shift was not immediate or smooth. ‘Peranbu’ marked an early turning point, with Mammootty playing a single father negotiating guilt, helplessness, and emotional distance. The performance was stripped of spectacle and driven by internal conflict. Even when films like ‘Mamangam’, ‘Shylock’ and ‘One’ did not sustain momentum, the intent behind his choices was already visible.

That intent found broader resonance with ‘Bheeshma Parvam’. While the film reconnected Mammootty with mass audiences, it did so without reverting to excess. His presence was controlled, authoritative, and restrained. More importantly, it gave him the freedom to take bigger artistic risks that followed.

Those risks defined his recent phase. In ‘Puzhu’, Mammootty portrayed a casteist man whose moral rigidity made him deeply unlikable. The film demanded that viewers sit with discomfort rather than admiration. ‘Rorschach’ placed him at the centre of a psychological narrative built on ambiguity and obsession.

In ‘Kaathal – The Core’, he dismantled long-held ideas of masculinity by portraying a gay man with empathy and emotional clarity. ‘Bramayugam’ pushed him into the world of folklore and horror as Kodumon Potti, while ‘Kalamkaval’ cast him as a serial killer without offering narrative redemption.

Few actors who command Mammootty’s stature choose roles that risk alienating their core audience. Fewer still do so repeatedly.

This capacity for reinvention has surfaced before. In the 1980s, after a series of professional setbacks, Mammootty recalibrated his career with ‘New Delhi’, a film that reshaped his screen persona and restored his standing. The pattern has remained consistent. When one version of Mammootty exhausts itself, another emerges, informed by self-assessment rather than nostalgia.

Mammootty’s career began in 1971 as a background artist in KS Sethumadhavan’s ‘Anubhavangal Paalichakal’. By 1981, he had established himself as a leading actor with ‘Thrishna’, directed by IV Sasi and written by MT Vasudevan Nair. His subsequent rise was rapid and prolific, including a record 35 films as a lead actor in 1986. Over time, awards followed, including three National Film Awards for Best Actor, numerous Kerala State Film Awards, and the Padma Shri.

The Padma Bhushan, then, recognises more than volume or visibility. It honours an actor who consistently treated stardom as a responsibility rather than a shelter. Mammootty did not allow his legacy to calcify into repetition. He expanded it through risk, discipline, and refusal to remain static. That quality, more than any milestone, explains why this honour belongs to him.