Monday Jun 29 2009, trivandrum

Lohithadas passes away

Noted writer-director Lohithadas, the writer of Malayalam movie masterpieces such as ‘Kireedam’, ‘Thaniyavarthanam’ and ‘Bharatham’ and the director of the award-winning ‘Bhoothakkannadi’, died on June 28, at a private hospital in Kochi. He was 54.

Ambazhathil Karunakaran Lohithadas (A. K. Lohithadas) belonged to the august league of Malayalam filmmakers that featured big names such as M.T Vasudevan Nair, Bharathan, KG George and Padmarajan.

Lohi’s best movies had Sibi Malayil as the director; ‘Thaniavarthanam’, ‘Kireedam’, ‘His Highness Abdullah’ and ‘Kamaladalam’ became genre-defining commercial classics. Lohi also did memorable movies with Bharathan (‘Amaram’ and ‘Padheyam’).

His directorial debut, ‘Bhootakkanadi’, made him a known name among award juries the world over, but the flicks that followed were devoid of the famed “Lohithadas Signature”.

Considered to be an actor’s director, Lohithadas’s works gave superstars such as Mammootty and Mohanalal ample space to showcase their volcanic talent.