‘Not doing any magic myself, but something comes my way’: Mammootty receives his 4th National Award

Reacting to his latest national recognition, Malayalam cinema's beloved actor Mammootty expressed deep gratitude for receiving his fourth National Film Award for Best Actor, reflecting on his journey and craft.

“As usual, it's very inspirational for every performer to get recognised by the nation. I am very fortunate to have my fourth national award for best actor. It’s been a long journey with a lot of people behind me and supporting me – my directors, my writers, my co-actors and producers, and the people who were appreciating me. And I am very happy that I could entertain them for such a long time, and I hope that I could do more and more times. I can only assure you that I will be working very hard to be there,” Mammootty said.

Speaking about his approach to roles and his award-winning performance in ‘Bramayugam’, he said that he prioritises the script over the specific character and avoids heavy preparation before arriving on set.
 

“I choose the script, then the role. I don't do much preparation. When I am set for the first day, I get something; I don't know what magic it is. I am not doing any magic myself, but something comes my way luckily. This (Kodumon Potti) was not what the director structured or brought to me—that was something else. I sat with the make-up man and costume designer, then I could become the character. And I thank my director for that mind, make-up man, costumer and of course the cameraman, because it's a black-and-white film. It's my first black-and-white film; long, long ago I did a cameo in a black-and-white film,” he added.

Directed by Rahul Sadasivan and released in 2024, ‘Bramayugam’ also starred Arjun Ashokan, Sidharth Bharathan and Amalda Liz. Set against the backdrop of 17th-century Kerala, the film seamlessly blended folk horror, mythology and folklore. The film's cinematographer, Shehnad Jalal, was also honoured at this year's National Film Awards.