Achankunju

Achankunju Biography

Achankunju was a talented actor of Malayalam cinema in the 1980s. He was a theatre artist before his foray to films. Though his career was short, he has given some memorable performances, mostly as a character artist apart from a few leading roles. Frequently associated with parallel cinema, he received Kerala State award for best actor for the 1980 movie, Lorry directed by critically acclaimed director Bharathan. He portrayed the pivot role of Velan in the movie, most notably his debut film. This talented actor died on 16 January 1987 at the age of 56 at Kottayam, at the peak of his career. He excelled as an actor in rough villager roles. His powerful voice attributed a lot to his successful career.

Achankunju was born in 1930 in Kacherikkadavu of Kottayam district. He was married to Achamma and had two children. Born into a poor family, he worked at Kottayam boat service house during day time as an employee and was quite active at night as a stage actor. Though he had to work hard for the family, his passion to acting prompted him to find time for drama activities as well. It’s his sincerity and hard work which helped him to groom himself to be a talented actor.

“Vidi” in 1953 was his first play as a stage actor. Later he worked as an artist with Kerala’s leading professional drama troupe KPAC for long 30 years. In 1980, he received his first break to celluloid through Bharathan’s Lorry, which bagged him State award for best actor. Later he played numerous character roles on screen leaving his distinct mark; Ambili Ammaavan, Ee Nadu, Chaatta, Meena maasathile sooryan and Padayottam to mention a few. He was a late find to Malayalam film industry and though his career was very short, he gave a few characters for Malayalam screen which no other actor can replace!

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Updated: January 17, 2016