Caste name	Menon
Subdivisions	Septs based on Tharavadu of descent.
Populated states	Kerala
Languages	Malayalam
Religions	Hinduism }}

Menon is a clan of the Nair community of Kerala, India, and was an honorific hereditary title to be used as an affix to the name and investituted by the Sāmudiri Rāja on certain members of ''Kiryathil'' and ''Akattu Charna'' classes of Nairs. Menons who belonged to the Kiriyathil were Vassals to the Kings. The most important of the Zamorin's samanthans (vassals) included Menons of Eranad . Some of them who belonged to other subdivision of this clan are devoted to administrative duties and involved writing and casting accounts. The recipient of the title held it lifelong or his family held it in perpetuity along the matrilineal line, depending on the amount of money known as ''Adiyara'' paid for securing the same and as soon as a person was dignified with this title he was presented with an ''Ola'' (palmyra leaf for writing on) and a style, the symbols of an accountant.

Subdivisions[link]

Menons are divided into three categories based on the services they render: Charna Menon, Menon Panicker, and Pattola Menon.

Notables[link]

References[link]

Category:Nair

Name	Anjali Menon
Birth date
Birth place	Calicut, Kerala, India
Death date
Alma mater	London Film School
Years active	1997-Present
Occupation	film director }}

Anjali Menon is an Indian film director. She directed the film ''Manjadikuru'' (''Lucky Red Seeds'') starring Prithviraj, for which she got the FIPRESCI award for the Best Malayalam film at 2008 International Film Festival of Kerala . In 2009, the film swept the awards at South Asian International Film Festival at New York, winning five Grand Jury Awards, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematographer & Best Emerging Talent.

She has also directed a short film, "Happy Journey", for the Malayalam anthology film, ''Kerala Cafe''.

Early life and education[link]

Born in Calicut, Kerala, Anjali grew up in Dubai. She did her high school education in Calicut and graduated with a degree in commerce from Providence Women's College, Calicut. She did post-graduation work in communication studies, specializing in TV production, in Pune. In 2000, she joined the London Film School, specializing in Film Direction, and was awarded overall distinction honors in editing, producing and directing film.

Career[link]

Anjali Menon started her career in 1997 with television, working on various documentaries, telefilms and program designing projects in India, the Middle East and UK, including, ''The Time to Blossom'', a documentary on Rubiya, a classical Indian dancer from Malappuram, ''Kalyani'', a tele-film on street children and ''Ila'', a dance film based on a world music track. In 2006 she started Little Films, a film production company in Mumbai.

She made her feature film debut with ''Manjadikuru'' (2008), the story a 10-year-old boy who returns to his village to attend the funeral of his grandfather. The film premiered at the 2008 International Film Festival of Kerala, where it won the FIPRESCI Award for best Malayalam film and Hassankutty award for best debutant Indian director.

Personal life[link]

, she is based in Mumbai, where she formed the Little Films company, though her family stays in Calicut.

Filmography[link]

''Manjadikuru'' (2008 / 2012)

''Kerala Cafe'' (2009) (segment ''Happy Journey'')

''Ustad Hotel'' (2012) (screenwriter)

Awards[link]

2008: International Film Festival of Kerala

*FIPRESCI award for the Best Malayalam film: ''Manjadikuru''

*Hassankutty Award for the Best Indian Debut director: ''Manjadikuru''

References[link]

External links[link]

Anjali Menion blog

'Cinema of Malayalam' profile

Little Films website

Category:Indian film directors Category:Malayalam film directors Category:Indian screenwriters Category:Malayalam screenwriters Category:Living people Category:Indian documentary filmmakers Category:People from Kozhikode Category:People from Dubai Category:People from Mumbai

ml:അഞ്ജലി മേനോൻ

name	Gautham Vasudev Menon
birth date	February 25, 1973
birth place	Ottapalam, Kerala, India
occupation	Film director, screenwriter, producer
years active	2001–present
nationality	Indian
spouse	Preethi
children	}}

Gautham Vasudev Menon (born 25 February 1973) is an Indian film director and producer, who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. He has also directed a few films in Hindi and Telugu languages which are remakes of his own Tamil films. Many of his films have been critically acclaimed, most notably his semi-autobiographical ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' (2008), romantic classic ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' (2010), his action-thrillers ''Kaakha Kaakha'' (2003) and ''Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu'' (2006). ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.

Early life and education[link]

Gautham was born to a Malayali father and Tamil mother on 25 February 1973 in Ottapalam, a town in Palakkad district of Kerala. Although, born in Kerala he grew up in Trichy. He did his schooling in Vailankanni Raj Mat. Hr., Sec School at K.K Nagar, Trichy and did his Mechanical Engineering in Mookambigai College of Engineering, Trichy, Tamil Nadu.

Career[link]

Early work, 2001[link]

Gautham Menon was a student of mechanical engineering at Mookambigai College of Engineering in the batch of 1993, and his time there inspired him to make his lead characters of ''Minnale'', ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' and ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'', students of the same course. He claims to have been inspired by films such as ''Dead Poet's Society'' and ''Nayagan'' and expressed his desire to his parents to change career path and become a filmmaker and consequently wrote his first film at his college hostel. His mother insisted he became an ad film maker by shooting various commercials and took an apprenticeship under filmmaker Rajiv Menon. He went on to work as an assistant director for ''Minsaara Kanavu'' in 1997, in which he also appeared in a cameo role.

Gautham Menon launched a Tamil romantic film ''O Lala'' in 2000 with the project eventually changing producers and title into ''Minnale'' with Madhavan, who was at the beginning of his career, being signed on to portray the lead role. About the making of the film, Menon revealed that he found it difficult as the team was new to the industry with only the editor of the film, Suresh Urs, being a prominent technician in the industry. Menon had come under further pressure when Madhavan had insisted that Menon narrated the story to his mentor, Mani Ratnam, to identify if the film was a positive career move after the success of his ''Alaipayuthey''. Despite initial reservations, Menon did so and Ratnam was unimpressed; however Menon has cited that he thought that Madhavan "felt sorry" and later agreed to continue with the project. The film also featured Abbas and newcomer Reemma Sen in significant roles, whilst Menon introduced Harris Jayaraj as music composer with the film. The film was advertised as a Valentine's Day release in 2001 and told the tale of a young man who falls in love with the girl engaged to his ex-college rival and how he manages to get married to her. Upon release it went on to become a large success commercially and won positive reviews from critics with claims that the film had a lot of " lot of verve and vigour" and that it was "technically excellent".

The success of the film led to producer Vashu Bhagnani signing him on to direct the Hindi language remake of the film, ''Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein'', which also featured Madhavan with Diya Mirza and Saif Ali Khan added to the film. Menon was initially apprehensive but said it took "half an hour" to agree and against his intentions, the producer opted against retaining the technical crew of the original. He changed a few elements, deleted certain scenes and added some more for the version. However in comparison, the film gained poor reviews with a critic citing that "the presentation is not absorbing" though stating that he " handled certain sequences with aplomb"; the film subsequently went on to become a below average grosser at the box office. The failure of the film left him disappointed, with Menon claiming in hindsight that the film lacked the simplicity of the original with the producer's intervention affecting proceedings. In 2011, the producer of the film approached him to remake the film with the producer's son Jackky Bhagnani in the lead role, but Menon was uninterested with the offer.

Police duology, 2003–06[link]

Menon returned in 2003 by directing the realistic police thriller ''Kaakha Kaakha'' featuring Suriya, Jyothika and Jeevan in the lead roles. The film portrayed the personal life of a police officer and how his life is affected by gangsters, showing a different perspective of police in comparison to other Tamil films of the time. Menon revealed that he was inspired to make the film after reading of articles on how encounter specialists shoot gangsters and how their families get threatening calls in return, and initially approached Madhavan, Ajith Kumar and then Vikram for the role without success, with all three actors citing that they did not want to play a police officer. The lead actress Jyothika asked Menon to consider Suriya for the role, and he was subsequently selected after Menon saw his portrayal in ''Nandha''. He did a rehearsal of the script with the actors, a costume trial with Jyothika and then enrolled Suriya in a commando training school before beginning production, which he described as a "very planned shoot". The film consequently opened to very positive reviews from critics on the way to becoming another success for Menon, with critics labeling it as a "career high film". Furthermore, the film was described as for "action lovers who believe in logical storylines and deft treatment" with Menon being praised for his linear narrative screenplay.

Gautham Menon subsequently remade the film in the Telugu language for producer Venkata Raju and went on to claim that the new version was better than the previous version and that his new lead actor Venkatesh was more convincing that Surya in the role. The film also featured actress Asin and Saleem Baig in prominent roles and went on to earn commercial and critical acclaim with reviewers citing that "film redeems itself due to the technical excellence and masterful craft of Gautham", drawing comparisons of Menon with noted film makers Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma. In July 2004, Menon also agreed terms to direct and produce another version of ''Kaakha Kaakha'' in Hindi with Sunny Deol in the lead role and revealed that the script was written five years ago with Deol in mind, but the film eventually failed to take off. Producer Vipul Shah approached him to direct the Hindi version of the film in 2010 as ''Force'' with John Abraham and Genelia D'Souza, and Menon initially agreed before pulling out again. Menon and the original producer, Dhanu, also floated an idea of an English version with a Chechnyan backdrop, though talks with a potential collaboration with Ashok Amritraj collapsed.

Gautham Menon was then signed on to direct a venture starring Kamal Haasan and produced by Kaja Mohideen, and initially suggested a one-line story which went on to become ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'' for the collaboration. Kamal Haasan wanted a different story and thus the investigative thriller film, ''Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu'', was written with Jyothika, Kamalinee Mukerji, Prakash Raj, Daniel Balaji and Saleem Baig added to the cast. The film told another episode from a police officer's life, with an Indian cop moved to America to investigate the case of psychotic serial killers before returning to pursue the chase in India. During the shooting, the unit ran into problems after the producer had attempted suicide and as a result, Kamal Haasan wanted to quit the project. Menon subsequently convinced him to stay on as they had taken advance payments. He has since revealed that unlike Kamal Haasan's other films, he did not take particular control of the script or production of the film. The film however had gone through change from the original script with less emphasis on the antagonists than Menon had hoped and he also revealed that scenes for songs were forced in and shot without him. The film released in August 2006 and went on to become his third successive hit film in Tamil and once again, he won rave reviews for his direction. Menon later expressed interest in remaking the film in Hindi with Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role without the love angle, though the project fell through after discussions. In 2012, he re-began negotiations with producers to make a Hindi version of the film with Shahrukh Khan in the lead role. He has stated his intent on making a trilogy of police episode films, with a possible third featuring Vikram in the lead role.

Experimentation and success, 2007–08[link]

His next project, ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'', based on the novel ''Derailed'' by James Siegel, featured Sarath Kumar and Jyothika in the lead roles and was released in February 2007. Initially the lead role was offered to Kamal Haasan who passed the opportunity, while actors Cheran and Madhavan declined citing date and image problems respectively. Menon met Sarath Kumar at an event where he cited he was looking to change his 'action' image and Menon subsequently cast him in the lead role. During production, the film ran into further casting trouble with Simran dropping out her assigned role and was replaced by Shobana after another actress, Tabu, also rejected the role. Shobana was also duly replaced by a newcomer, Andrea Jeremiah to portray the character of Kalyani in the film. The film was under production for over a year and coincided with the making of his previous film which was largely delayed. The film initially opened to positive reviews with a critic citing that Menon is "growing with each passing film. His style is distinctive, his vision clear, his team rallies around him and he manages to pull it off each time he attempts". However the film became a financial failure for the producer, Venu Ravichandran and in regard to the failure of the film, Menon went on to claim that Sarath Kumar was "wrong for the film" and that he tweaked the story to fit his image; he also claimed that his father's ailing health and consequent death a week before the release had left him mentally affected.

His next release, ''Vaaranam Aayiram'', saw him re-collaborate with Suriya, who played dual roles in the film. The film illustrates the theme of how a father often came across in his son's life as a hero and inspiration, and Menon dedicated the film to his late father who had died in 2007. The pre-production of the film, then titled ''Chennaiyil Oru Mazhaikaalam'' began in 2003, with Menon planning his a romantic film with Suriya as a follow up to their successful previous collaboration, ''Kaakha Kaakha''. Abhirami was signed and then dropped due to her height before a relatively new actress at the time Asin was selected to make her debut in Tamil films with the project. The first schedule of the film began in January 2004 in Visakhapatanam and consequently romantic scenes with Suriya and Asin were shot for ten days and then a photo shoot with the pair. The film was subsequently stalled and was eventually relaunched with a new cast including Divya Spandana, Simran and Sameera Reddy in 2006 with Oscar Ravichandran stepping in as producer, who opted for a change of title. Menon has described the film as "autobiographical and a very personal story and if people didn’t know, that 70% of this [the film] is from my life". The film's production process became noted for the strain and the hard work that Suriya had gone through to portray the different roles with production taking close to two years. The film released to a positive response, with critics heaping praise on Suriya's performance while claiming that the film was "just a feather in Gautam's hat" and that it was "hardly a classic". The film was made at a budget of 15 crore rupees and became a commercial success, bringing in almost 22 crore rupees worldwide. It went on to become Menon's most appreciated work till date winning five Filmfare Awards, nine Vijay Awards and the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil for 2008 amongst other accolades.

2010 onwards[link]

In 2010, Menon made a return to romantic genre after nine years with the Tamil romantic film ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'', starring Silambarasan and Trisha Krishnan. The film explored the complicated relationship between a Hindu Tamil assistant director, Karthik, and a Syrian Christian Malayali girl, Jessie and their resultant emotional conflicts. The film featured music by A. R. Rahman in his first collaboration with Menon whilst cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa was also selected to be a part of the technical crew. Menon cited that he was "a week away from starting the film with a newcomer" before his producer insisted they looked at Silambarasan, with Menon revealing that he was unimpressed with the actor's previous work. The film was in production for close to a year and throughout the opening week of filming, promotional posters from classic Indian romantic films were released featuring the lead pair. Prior to release, the film became the first Tamil project to have a music soundtrack premiere outside of India, with a successful launch at the BAFTA in London. Upon release, the film achieved positive reviews, with several critics giving the film "classic" status, whilst also become a commercially successful venture. Reviewers praised Menon citing that "credit for their perfect portrayal, of course, goes to Gautam Menon. This is one director who's got the pulse of today's urban youth perfectly" and that "crafted a movie that will stay in our hearts for a long, long time." The film was simultaneously released with a Telugu version, titled ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' featuring a fresh cast of Naga Chaitanya and debutante Samantha in the lead roles. Like the Tamil version, the film won critical acclaim and being given "classic" status from critics. Both films also went on to become large commercial successes, and the films have received awards from award committees.

Menon had also made progress over the previous two years directing the psychological thriller ''Nadunisi Naaygal'' featuring his assistant and debutant Veera Bahu and Sameera Reddy in the lead roles. Menon claimed that the film was inspired by a true event from the USA, while also claiming that a novel also helped form the story of the film. During the making, he explicitly revealed that the film was for "the multiplex audience" and would face a limited release, citing that "it will not cater to all sections of the audience". He promoted the film by presenting a chat show dubbed as ''Koffee with Gautham'' where he intereviewed Bharathiraja and Silambarasan, both of whom had previously worked in such psychological thriller films with ''Sigappu Rojakkal'' and ''Manmadhan''. The film, which was his first home production under Photon Kathaas and did not have a background score, told the story of a victim of child abuse and the havoc he causes to women, narrating the events of a particular day. The film opened to mixed reviews with one critic citing it as "above average" but warning that "don’t go expecting a typical Gautham romantic film" and that it "is definitely not for the family audiences", while criticizing that "there are too many loopholes in the story, raising doubts about logic". In contrast another critic dubbed it as an "unimpressive show by star director Menon, as it is neither convincing nor appealing, despite having some engrossing moments".

Future ventures, 2012–present[link]

Menon returned to Bollywood with the Hindi language remake of his film, ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'', titled ''Ekk Deewana Tha'' with Prateik Babbar and Amy Jackson playing the lead roles. The film was a box office failure, with Menon admitting that he "got the casting wrong". Furthermore, he has expressed that he is likely to restart his long-delayed project ''Chennaiyil Oru Mazhaikaalam'' with reports emerging that he may begin the film again with a fresh cast. Another film, a home production ''Thuppariyum Anand'' has also been announced with Menon stating that he has completed the script and handed copies to Aamir Khan and Kamal Haasan, in the hope that either will do the film. However Ajithkumar was choosen for the film in 2012. Menon is also currently directing a trilingual romantic film titled as ''Neethaane En Ponvasantham'' in Tamil, ''Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu'' in Telugu and ''Assi Nabey Poore Sau'' in Hindi. While Jiiva, Nani and Aditya Roy Kapoor play the lead roles in their respective languages, Samantha plays the female lead in all three versions. Furthermore in July 2011, his production house revealed that he had agreed to direct ''Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru'', a detective story set in United Kingdom, with Vijay in the lead role. This venture will be a joint production of Photon Kathaas, Eros International and Future Film Production (UK). Meanwhile Menon has gone on to confirm that he will direct a television weekly serial featuring Parthiban in the lead role as a police officer.

Filmography[link]

''Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein'' ''Kaakha Kaakha'' ''Gharshana'' ''Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu'' ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'' ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' ''Nadunisi Naaygal'' ''Ek Deewana Tha'' ''Neethaane En Ponvasantham'' ''Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu'' ''Assi Nabey Poore Sau''

Year !! Title !! Language !! Notes
2001	''Minnale''	Tamil language>Tamil
2001	|	Hindi language>Hindi
2003	|	Tamil	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil
2004	|	Telugu language>Telugu
2006	|	Tamil
2007	|	Tamil
2008	|	Tamil	National Film Award for Best Feature Film in TamilVijay Award for Favourite DirectorNominated—Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil
2010	|	Tamil	Nominated—Vijay Award for Best DirectorNominated—Vijay Award for Favourite DirectorNominated—Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil
2010	|	Telugu	Nandi Award for Best Screenplay WriterNominated—Filmfare Award for Best Director – Telugu
2011	|	Tamil
2012	|	Hindi
2012	|	Tamil	Filming
2012	|	Telugu	Filming
2012	|	Hindi	Filming

As a producer[link]

Gautham Menon Anjana Ali Khan ''Ek Deewana Tha'' Gautham Menon Ram (director) Prem Sai ''Yohan Adhyayam Ondru''

Year !! Film !! Director !! Cast !! Notes
rowspan="2"	2011	''Nadunisi Naaygal''	|	Veera Bahu>Veera, Sameera Reddy
''Veppam''	|	Nani (actor)>Nani, Karthik Kumar, Nithya Menon, Bindu Madhavi
rowspan="4"	2012	|	Gautham Menon	Prateik Babbar, Amy Jackson
''Neethane En Ponvasantham''	|	Jiiva,Samantha Ruth Prabhu>Samantha	Filming
''Thanga Meengal''	Ram ||	Ram, Padmapriya	Filming
''Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum''		Jai, Abhinaya |>Filming
rowspan="1"	2013	|	Gautham Menon	Vijay (actor)>Vijay	Pre-Production

Awards, Nominations and Honours[link]

;Awards

Vijay Award for Favourite Director for ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' (2008)

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil for ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' (2008)

Nandi Award for Best Screenplay Writer for ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' (2010)

;Nominations

Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for ''Kaakha Kaakha'' (2003)

Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Tamil for ''Kaakha Kaakha'' (2003)

Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' (2008)

Vijay Award for Best Director for ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' (2010)

Vijay Award for Favourite Director for ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' (2010)

Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' (2010)

Filmfare Award for Best Director - Telugu for ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' (2010)

;Honours

Rotary Club of Chennai - Honoured for Creative Excellence (2010)

References[link]

External links[link]

Category:Indian film directors Category:Tamil film directors Category:Malayali people Category:Indian people Category:Living people Category:People from Kerala Category:1973 births Category:National Film Award winners

ta:கௌதம் மேனன்

name	Nithya Menen
birth name	Nithya Menen
birth date
birth place	Bangalore, Karnataka, India
occupation	Actress, playback singer
yearsactive	2008–present
parents	}}

Nithya Menen () is an Indian film actress, who works mainly in the Malayalam film industry. She has also acted in Telugu, Tamil and Kannada films and tried playback singing.

Early life[link]

Nithya Menen was born in Goa into a Malayali family and studied journalism at the Manipal Institute of Communication. Her father's family is from Calicut and her mother's is from Palakkad. She once said in an interview that she never wished to become an actress but a journalist as she was "an idealist", but felt journalism was "not what it used to be". She then decided to become a filmmaker as she could express her ideas "better through films", and enrolled for a course in cinematography at the FTI Pune. During the entrance examination, she met Nandini Reddy, who "brainwashed" and convinced her to take up acting. Nandini Reddy would later turn director and sign Nithya for the lead female role in her first project.

Career[link]

Nithya Menen appeared first on screen as a child artiste when she was ten in the Indian English language film, ''Hanuman'' (1998), playing the younger sister to Tabu's character. The 2008 off-beat film ''Aakasha Gopuram'', directed by National Film Award-winning director K. P. Kumaran, marked her debut in a leading role, in which she was paired with Mohanlal. She was in the midst of her 12th class exams when she was offered the role, after Mohanlal had spotted her on the front cover of a tourism magazine. Her performance was well received, with critics writing that she shows "sparkle in her debut venture" and "makes her entry in an impressive role", though the film, based on the Norwegian play ''The Master Builder'', got mixed reviews and was a financial failure. She next made her Kannada debut with the film ''Josh''. She essayed a supporting role in the film, which received rave reviews, and became a commercial success as well, with her performance garnering her a nomination in the Best Supporting Actress category at the 57th Filmfare Awards South.

In 2011, her first release was Nandini Reddy's romantic comedy ''Ala Modalaindi'', which was Nithya's maiden Telugu venture as well. The film opened to favorable reviews by critics and turned out to become a sleeper hit, while Nithya received critical praise for her performance. ''Idlebrain''s Jeevi in his review cited that she "epitomized Nitya character with her fabulous performance", "looks beautiful in all kinds of dresses" and was "the best debut in recent years of Telugu cinema after Samantha in ''YMC''", while another critic wrote that she was a "charming find" and "...quite the Genelia replacement that our cinema so badly needs right now." She eventually won the Nandi Award for Best Actress for her performance. Further more, she also sang two songs for the soundtrack album of the film, tuned by Kalyani Malik. Nandini Reddy, later, went on to describe Nithya as "the discovery of the decade". Following ''Ala Modalaindi'', she starred in Santosh Sivan's historical fiction ''Urumi'' as part of an ensemble cast. She portrayed a Chirakkal princess named Bala, playing the love interest of Prabhu Deva's character, which gained positive remarks, with a Sify review claiming that she "looks pretty and is a scene stealer". Nithya quoted that much of her character was based on "Santosh's perception of who I am", with Sivan stating that he had written that role for her and that only she could play it. She next appeared in ad-filmmaker Jayendra's bilingual venture ''180''/''Nootrenbadhu'', made and released in Tamil and Telugu, in which she played a photo journalist named Vidhya. She described the character as "bubbly, full of life, nosey, wide-eyed and innocent in life" and to be similar to herself. Later the year, she was seen in Sibi Malayil's ''Violin'' in Malayalam and the Gautham Menon-produced ''Veppam'' in Tamil.

She is currently working on half-a-dozen projects; ''Karmayogi'', a Malayalam adaptation of Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' is in post-production stages, while she is currently shooting for the Telugu romance film ''Ishq'' with Nitin Reddy and ''Aidondla Aidu'' in Kannada, for which she had sung and also choreographed one of the songs, titled "Payasa". She has signed on two Malayalam projects, T. K. Rajeev Kumar's ''Thalsamayam Oru Penkutty'', in which she portrays a village woman whose daily life is filmed and broadcast as a reality show for a month, and ''Usthad Hotel'' to be directed by Anwar Rasheed.

Filmography [link]

''Seven O' Clock'' ''Akasha Gopuram'' ''Josh (2009 Kannada film) Jiya Nithya Sofia ''Apoorvaragam'' Asna ''Ala Modalaindi'' Bala rowspan="2" Angel Revathy ''Ishq (2011 film) Manjula Ayyapan Moonumani Mythili

Year
1998	Hanuman (1998 film)>Hanuman''	|	English language>English	Cameo appearanceAs child artiste
2005	|	Anu	Kannada language>Kannada
2008	|	Hilda Varghese	Malayalam language>Malayalam
rowspan="4">2009	Josh'' ||	Meera	Kannada	Nominated, Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress – Kannada
''Vellathooval''	|	Malayalam
''Kerala Cafe''	|	Malayalam	(segment ''Happy Journey'')
''Angel John''	|	Malayalam
rowspan="2"	2010	|	Nancy	Malayalam
''Anwar (2010 film)	Anwar''	|	Malayalam
rowspan="7"	2011	|	Nithya	Telugu language>Telugu	Nandi Award for Best Actress
''Urumi (film)	Urumi''	|	Malayalam
''180 (2011 Indian film)	180''	Vidya ||	Telugu
''180 (2011 Indian film)	Nootrenbadhu''	Tamil language>Tamil
''Violin (film)	Violin''	|	Malayalam
''Veppam''	|	Tamil
''Makaramanju''	|	Malayalam
rowspan="8"	2012	Ishq'' ||	Priya	Telugu	Super Hit
''Thalsamayam Oru Penkutty''	|	Malayalam
''Karmayogi (2012 film)	Karmayogi''	|	Malayalam
''Aidondla Aidu''	|	Kannada	Filming
''Ustad Hotel''	|	Malayalam	Filming
''Okkadine''	|	Telugu	Filming
''Bachelor Party (2012 film)	Bachelor Party''	|	Malayalam	Filming
''Myna (2012 film)	Myna''	|	Kannada	Filming

Awards[link]

2012: Thikkurissy Foundation Award for Most Popular Actress

References [link]

External links [link]

Category:Indian actors Category:Indian film actors Category:Malayali actors Category:Tamil film actors Category:Kannada film actors Category:Living people Category:1988 births Category:Malayalam film actors Category:Manipal University alumni

ml:നിത്യ മേനോൻ

name	Biju Menon
birth date	September 09, 1970
birth place	Thrissur, Kerala, India
residence	Kochi, India
occupation	Actor
years active	1995 - present
spouse	Samyuktha Varma
parents	Madathil P.N. Balakrishna Pillai, Malathi Amma
imdb id	0579756
awards	}}

Biju Menon is an Indian film actor who has mainly worked in Malayalam cinema, along with a couple of Tamil and Telugu films. He appears mostly in supporting roles, but has also acted in antagonistic roles. He made his debut in 1995 in ''Puthran''.

Menon is noted for his performances in films such as ''Mannar Mathai Speaking'' (1995), ''Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu'' (1997), ''Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu'' (1999), ''Madhuranombarakattu'' (2000), ''Meghamalhar'' (2001), ''Shivam'' (2002), ''Marykkundoru Kunjaadu'' (2010) and ''Ordinary'' (2012).

Acting career [link]

Biju Menon started his acting career through Malayalam television serials such as ''Ningalude Swantham Chanthu'' and ''Mikhayelinte Santhathikal''. He made his debut in films with ''Puthran'', the sequel of ''Mikhayelinte Santhathikal''. He acted in a number of movies as villain and second hero. During the second half of nineties, he was considered to be the superstar in making. But most of the films with Biju Menon as hero failed in box office though his roles as second hero were very popular. He acted with Suresh Gopi in a number of super hit movies like ''Pathram'', ''F. I. R.'', and ''Chinthamani Kolacase''. During the later 1990s and early 2000s he appeared in a few offbeat movies with directors like T. V. Chandran, Lenin Rajendran, and Kamal in the films ''Mazha'', ''Madhuranombarakkattu'', ''Anyar'', and ''Meghamalhar''.

He is considered to be one of the favorite actors of director Lal Jose, as he has appeared in the majority of movies directed by him, including ''Oru Maravathoor Kanavu'', ''Chandranudikkunna Dikhil'', ''Randaam Bhavam'', ''Rasikan'', ''Chanthupottu'', ''Pattalam'' and ''Mulla''.

In 1997, he won the Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actor for his role as Akhilachandran in ''Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu''. He also acts as an antagonist in Tamil films as well and has been successful in films like ''Majaa'' and ''Thambi''.

Personal life [link]

Menon was born on September 9, 1970 to Madathil PN Balakrishna Pillai and Malathi Amma. He has four brothers: Soman, Suresh, Rajendran and Sreekumar. He is married to the former Malayalam actress Samyuktha Varma, who co-starred with him in ''Mazha'', ''Madhuranombarakkattu'' and ''Meghamalhar''.The couple has a son born on 14 September 2006.

Awards[link]

kerala_state_film_awards">Kerala State Film Awards

2010 - Second Best Actor - ''T. D. Dasan Std. VI B''

1997 - Second Best Actor - ''Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu''

kerala_film_critics_awards">Kerala Film Critics Awards

2010 - Best Supporting Actor - ''Marykkundoru Kunjaadu, Gadhama''

asianet_film_awards">Asianet Film Awards

2001 - Best Star Pair Award - ''Meghamalhar'' (with Samyuktha Varma)

2000 - Best Supporting Actor - ''Millennium Stars''

1999 - Best Supporting Actor - ''Pathram, Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu''

filmfare_awards_south">Filmfare Awards South

2010 - Best Supporting Actor - ''Marykkundoru Kunjaadu''

Vanitha Film Awards[link]

2010 - Best Supporting Actor - ''Marykkundoru Kunjaadu''

Filmography [link]

Malayalam [link]

2000s[link]

''Mallu Singh 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011 2011 2011 2011 Mohanlal, Suresh Gopi, Dileep (actor) 2011 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 2009 2009 2009 2009 2009 2008 2008 2008 2008 2007 2006 2006 2005 Dileep (actor) 2004 2004 2004 Suresh Gopi, Siddique (actor) 2003 Jayaram, Janardhanan (actor) 2003 Jyothirmayi, Siddique (actor) 2003 Mammootty, Tessa, Innocent (actor) 2003 Mammootty, Rambha, Indraja, Lalu Alex, Janardhanan (actor) 2002 2002 2002 Saikumar (Malayalam actor) 2001 2001 2001 2001 2001 2001 2000 2000 Suresh Gopi, Tabu (actress) 2000 2000 2000

Sl. No: !! Year !! Film !! Co-stars !! Director !! Character !! Notes
84	2012	|	Unni Mukundan, Kunchako Boban, Samvrutha Sunil		Karthi
83	|	''Mayamohini''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Lakshmi Rai, Mythili	Jose Thomas	Balachandran
82	|	Ordinary (film)>Ordinary''	Kunchacko Boban, Asif Ali, Ann Augustine	Sugeeth	Suku	Super hit
81	|	''Spanish Masala''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Kunchacko Boban	Menon
80	|	Venicile Vyapari (2012 film)>Venicile Vyapari''	Mammootty,Kavya Madhavan,Poonam Bajwa	Ajayan	Hit
79	|	''Snehaveedu''	Mohanlal, Sheela		Balachandran
78	|	''Ulakam Chuttum Valiban''	Jayaram, Samvrutha Sunil
77	|	Seniors (2011 film)>Seniors''	Jayaram, Manoj.K.Jayan, Kunchako Boban		Philip Edikulla
76	|	Christian Brothers (film)>Christian Brothers''	Dileep, Sarath Kumar ||		Hariharan Thampy
75	|	''Khaddama''	Kavya Madhavan		Radhakrishnan
74	|	''Arjunan Saakshi''	Prithviraj Sukumaran		Aby Abraham
73	|	''Marykkundoru Kunjaadu''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep		Jose
72	|	''Pranchiyettan and the Saint''	Mammootty, Kushboo, Priyamani		Joppan
71	|	''T. D. Dasan Std. VI B''			Nandakumar Pothuval
70	|	''Janakan ''	Mohanlal		Monai
69	|	''Aagathan''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep		Dr.Sudhi
68	|	''April Fool''	Jagadish, Siddique (actor)>Siddique		Sharath
67	|	Daddy Cool (2009 Malayalam film)>Daddy Cool''	Mammootty, Richa Pallod		Roy alex
66	|	''Red Chillies''	Mohanlal		Stalin
65	|	''Kaana Kanmani''	Jayaram, Padmapriya		Rajeevan
64	|	''Parayan Marannathu''	Lakshmi Sharma		Chandrasekharan
63	|	Robinhood (2009 film)>Robinhood''	Prithviraj Sukumaran		Nandakumara Menon
62	|	''Vilapangalkkappuram''			Dr. Gopinath
61	|	''Crazy Gopalan''
60	|	Twenty:20 (film)>Twenty:20''			ASP Jacob Eraly
59	|	''Kurukshetra''			Major Rajesh
58	|	''Arasangam''			Manoj/Martin Jayapal
57	|	Agaram (film)>Agaram''			Varma
56	|	''Janmam''
55	|	Baba Kalyani (film)>Baba Kalyani''			CI Thomas
54	|	''Chandupottu''	Dileep, Indrajith Sukumaran, Gopika, Lal||	Lal Jose	Freddy
53	|	''Rasikan''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Samvrutha Sunil	Lal Jose	Kapil Dev
52	|	''Perumazhakkalam''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Salim Kumar, Vineeth, Meera Jasmine, Kavya Madhavan, Mamukkoya	Kamal	John Kuruvila
51	|	''Agninakshathram''	Siddique, Jagathi Sreekumar, Saikumar ||	Kareem	Aniyan Thamburan
50	|	Ivar (film)>Ivar''	Janardanan, Bhavana ||	T. K Rajeev Kumar	Pambu Jose
49	|	''Anyar''	Siddique, Lal ||	Lenin Rajendran	Suraj Nambiar
48	|	Pattalam (2003 film)>Pattalam''	Innocent, Indrajith, Saikumar ||	Lal Jose	Benny
47	|	''Chronic Bachelor''	Janardanan, Mukesh ||	Siddique
46	|	''Sesham''	Jayaram, Geethu Mohandas	T. K Rajeev Kumar
45	|	''Onnaman''	Mohanlal, N. F. Varghese, Lalu Alex, Ramyakrishnan	Thampi Kannanthanam
44	|	Shivam(film)>Shivam''	Saikumar, N. F. Varghese, Nandini, Rajan P. Dev ||	Shaji Kailas	Bhadran K. Menon
43	|	''Praja''	Mohanlal, Manoj K. Jayan, N. F. Varghese, Vijayaraghavan (actor)>Vijayaraghavan	Joshiy	Arjun
42	|	Dubai (2001 film)>Dubai''	Mammootty, N. F. Varghese, Cochin Haneefa, Anjala Zaveri, Nedumudi Venu, Janardhanan (actor)>Janardhanan	Joshiy	Kiran Pothan Cherian
41	|	''Meghamalhar''	Samyuktha Varma, Siddique (actor)>Siddique, Sreenath	Kamal (director)>Kamal	Rajeeev Menon
40	|	''Achaneyanenikkishtam''	Kalabhavan Mani, Lakshmi Gopalaswami, Mohanlal	Sureshkrishna
39	|	''Paadam Onnu Kumarante Kudumbam''
38	|	''Randaam Bhavam''	Suresh Gopi, Thilakan, Lal (actor)>Lal, Nedumudi Venu	Lal Jose
37	|	''Karunam''	Vavachan, Eliyamma	Jayaraj
36	|	Cover Story (2000 film)>Cover Story''	Tabu, Nedumudi Venu, Siddique ||	G.S. Vijayan	ACP Anand S. Nair
35	|	''Madhuranombarakattu''	Samyuktha Varma, Kavya Madhavan, Sreenivasan (actor)>Sreenivasan	Kamal (director)>Kamal
34	|	''Mazha''	Samyuktha Varma, Thilakan, Lal (actor)>Lal	Lenin Rajendran	Sastrigal
33	|	''Millennium Stars''	Jayaram, Suresh Gopi, Kalabhavan Mani	Jayaraj	Shivan

1990s[link]

''Chandranudikkunna Dikhil'' 1999 1999 1999 1998 1998 Sreenivasan (actor) 1998 1998 Mammootty, Mohini (Tamil actress) 1998 1998 1998 Jayaram, Lena Abhilash, Siddique (actor) 1997 1997 1997 1997 1997 1997 1996 Suresh Gopi, Ramya Krishnan, Rajan P Dev, K. B. Ganesh Kumar 1996 1996 1996 1996 Janardhanan (actor) 1996 Dileep (actor) 1996 1996 1996 1996 1995 1995 1995 Mukesh (actor) 1995 1995 1995

Sl. No: !! Year !! Film !! Co-stars !! Director !! Character
33	1999	| Dileep, Kavya Madhavan, Lal, Samyuktha Varma ||	Lal Jose
32	|	F.I.R (1999 film)>F.I.R''	Suresh Gopi, Indraja, Rajiv, Narendra Prasad	Shaji Kailas	Gregory
31	|	''Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu''	Manju Warrier, Thilakan, Abbas (actor)>Abbas	T. K. Rajeev Kumar	Uthaman
30	|	''Pathram''	Suresh Gopi, Manju Warrier, Murali (Malayalam_actor)>Murali	Joshi (director)>Joshi	Firoz Mohammed
28	|	''Chitrashalabham''	Jayaram, Devan (actor)>Devan, Jomol	K.B. Madhu	Dr.Sandeep
29	|	''Mangalya Pallakku''	Sreenivasan, Jagadish, Kasturi ||	Vinod Roshan		Dinesh
28	|	''Oro Viliyum Kathorthu''	Mukesh (actor)>Mukesh, Suma	V. M. Vinu	Kesavan Kutty
27	|	''Oru Maravathoor Kanavu''	Mohini, Sreenivasan ||	Lal Jose	Michael
26	|	''Pranayavarnangal''	Suresh Gopi, Praveena, Divya Unni	Sibi Malayil
25	|	''Sidhartha''	Mammootty, Nedumudi Venu, Thilakan, Jagadeesh	Jomon	Sethu
24	|	''Sneham''	Siddique, Jomol, Kasturi ||	Jayaraaj	Sasidharan Nair
23	|	''Kaliyattam''	Suresh Gopi, Lal (actor)>Lal, Manju Warrier	Jayaraaj	Kanthan
22	|	''Innalekalillathe''	Manju Warrier, Srividya	George Kithu
21	|	''Asuravamsam''	Manoj K. Jayan, Siddique (actor)>Siddique, Rajan P. Dev, Narendra Prasad	Shaji Kailas	Jayamohan
20	|	''Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu''	Jayaram, Manju Warrier, Balachandra Menon	Kamal (director)>Kamal	Akhilachandran
19	|	''Manasam''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Srividya	C.S. Sudesh	Jayadevan
18	|	''Kudamattom''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Kalabhavan Mani, Manju Warrier	Sundardas
17	|	''Mahathma''	Ganeshan, Devan ||	Shaji Kailas	Mustafa
16	|	''Udhyanapalakan''	Mammootty, Kaveri (actress)>Kaveri, Kalabhavan Mani	Harikumar	Mohan
15	|	''Azhakiya Ravanan''	Mammootty, Bhanupriya, Sreenivasan (actor)>Sreenivasan	Kamal (director)>Kamal	Sharath
14	|	''Dilliwala Rajakumaran''	Jayaram, Manju Warrier, Kalabhavan Mani	Rajasenan	Veerendran
13	|	''Kanjirappally Kuriachan''	Janardhanan, Madhu, Lalu Alex ||	Jose Thomas
11	|	''Manthrika Kuthira''	Dileep, Mohini, Manoj K. Jayan ||	Viji Thampi
10	|	''Malayala Masam Chingam Onnu''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Prem Kumar, Harisree Ashokan	Nizar
9	|	''Man of the Match''	Vani Viswanath, Ratheesh	Joshy Mathew	Rajendran
8	|	''Sathyabhamakkoru Premalekhanam''	Chandini, Indrans, Prem Kumar	Rajasenan
7	|	''Ee Puzhayum Kadannu''	Dileep (actor)>Dileep, Manju Warrier	Kamal (director)>Kamal	Gopi's friend, who secretly loves Anjali's deaf sister
6	|	''Karma''	Suresh Gopi, Ranjitha, Thilakan	Joemon
5	|	''Aadyathe Kanmani''	Jayaram, Sudha Rani	Rajasenan	Padmarajan
4	|	''Mannar Mathai Speaking''	Mukesh, Saikumar ||	Mani C. Kappan	Mahendra Varma
3	|	''Samudayam''	Madhu (actor)>Madhu	Ambili
2	|	Highway (1995 film)>Highway''	Suresh Gopi, Bhanupriya	Jayaraaj	Pavitran
1	|	''Puthran''	Rohini	Jude Attipetti

Tamil [link]

''Porkkalam''

''Arasangam''

''Thambi''

''Majaa''

''Aran''

''June R''

''Alibaba''

Telugu [link]

''Ranam''

''Khatarnak'' (2007)

References [link]

Category:Malayali actors Category:People from Thrissur Menon,Biju Category:Living people Category:Kerala State Film Award winners Category:1970 births Category:Malayalam film actors Category:Filmfare Awards South winners

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