Nilambur Balan

Nilambur Balan Biography

Nilambur Balan was a film actor associated with Malayalam cinema. He was a stage actor in the 1960s prior to his entry in films. He appeared in offbeat films of 1970s and also played supporting roles in 1960s and 1970s. He has acted in more than 50 movies. One of his famous roles is award winning film, Chuvanna Vithukal – a socio-political drama directed by P. A. Backer and produced by Salam Karassery. The film had a theatre release in 1978 and he played a lead role. Sankupushpam is yet another memorable role he played on screen. His wife Vijayalakshmi is a state award winning stage actress. He has directed one film - Anyarude Bhoomi. Nilumbur Balan Award was instituted in his memory in 1998 and Santha Devi, Nilambur Ayisha, Mamokoya etc are among its recipients.

Nilambur Balan hailed from Nilambur of Kozhikode district, Kerala. Vatakara was his exact place of birth. At a young age, because of his passion towards acting and theatre, he joined theatre. He was a stage actor for many years before he got his first break on celluloid in the 1960s. He married stage actress and his co-star Vijayalakshmi in 1957. They started a drama troupe, Kalithara and acted together in many plays. As an actor, Murappennu (1965) was his first credited role.

He appeared in Malayalam movies like Asura Vithu, Olavum Theeravum, Kuttedathi, Maram, Chuzhi, Ajayanum Vijayanum, Chattambikalyani etc mostly playing supporting roles. He died on 4 February 1990. He was survived by his wife and three children - Santhosh, Vijayakumar and Asha. He was fully active in film scene till his death, and his last film Moonnilonnu was posthumously released in 1996 after a delay.

Published: February 27, 2019

Updated: February 27, 2019