Film maker K.G. George.
| Photo Credit: H. Vibhu

Veteran Malayalam filmmaker K. G. George, 77, passed away at an old age home in Kakkanad on the outskirts of Kochi on September 24.

He was born in Pathanamthitta in 1946 and went on to complete a diploma at the film institute of India in Pune.

He made a series of critically acclaimed films during his nearly three-decades long career, winning several Kerala State film awards and the JC Daniel Prize instituted by the Kerala State Government.

His debut as a director ‘Swapnadanam’ was a commercial success and a critical achievement. He broke away constantly from the tried and tested song-and-dance sequences to discuss problems confronted in daily life.

Though he was active in the industry only for just over two decades, he left behind a bunch of films which are counted among the classics of Malayalam cinema, right from the investigative thriller ‘Yavanika’ (1982) to the political satire ‘Panchavadi Palam’ (1984) and the psychological thriller ‘Irakal’ (1985), all of which still continue to inspire new age filmmakers. Through ‘Lekhayude Maranam Oru Flashback’, based loosely on the circumstances that led to the death of actress Shoba, he had an inward look at the industry too.

He was initially an assistant to Ramu Kariatt and went on to be part of the breakaway trio with Bharathan and P. Padmarajan.

As a founder of new school of cinema narrative ‘Yavanikka’ (1982) and ‘Irakal’ (1986) along with ‘Panchavadippalm’ and ‘Aadaminte Variyellu’, established him among the all-time great directors in the Malayalam movie industry.

He is survived by his wife, playback singer Salma and two children.