The unforgettable Rasikan moment that made Harimurali a familiar face

Film lovers are unlikely to forget the little boy in Rasikan who left audiences laughing by delivering a long dialogue even before Dileep could finish prompting him. Harimurali, who won the affection of Malayalis with that brief but memorable scene, has passed away unexpectedly, leaving cinema lovers in shock.

After Rasikan, he appeared in Annan Thampi as the younger version of Siddique’s character and later in Amar Akbar Anthony as Prithviraj’s younger brother. He also acted in a few television serials as a child artist. When he felt acting was affecting his studies, he stepped away from films and television. Harimurali later completed his higher education in Bengaluru and moved to the UAE. A few years ago, he returned to Kerala and worked as a VFX artist, while also pursuing editing and writing. He had once appeared on Manorama Online’s programme Ormayundo Ee Mukham, where he spoke about his brief acting career and life after cinema.

“My father is a theatre director and artist, so I grew up around theatre camps. Acting interested me from a young age. I first stepped on stage to say a single line, ‘Good morning teacher’, in a play written by my father’s friend,” Harimurali had recalled, adding that he was six when he acted in Rasikan, his first film.

The dialogue that brought him recognition, “Adhivathilum thurannu vannekkuvanu kadavaaval,” was not originally in the script. “Dileep added it during dubbing. If he hadn’t felt like saying that line, neither the dialogue nor I would have become a hit. Even today, that dialogue is my identity,” he said. Rasikan was also the debut film of both Harimurali and Samvrutha Sunil.

Harimurali said his decision to step away from acting was not just about studies. Having started acting at four-and-a-half, he struggled with the attention that came with being recognised. “Kids in my neighbourhood wouldn’t include me when they played, and even at school many kept their distance. They saw me differently,” he said. The public attention was also difficult to process at that age. Eventually, he decided to stop acting, though he said he would consider returning to cinema if the right opportunity came along.

He often spoke about Mammootty as an inspiration. “People ask me, Mammootty or Mohanlal? My answer is the same: as an actor, Mammootty; as a star, Lalettan,” he said. He once met Mammootty while dubbing for Annan Thampi, and years later the actor recognised him when they met again. “He remembers people so well. That is one of his most amazing qualities,” Harimurali had said.