Ratheesh (11 September 1954 – 23 December 2002) was an Indian actor best known for his work in

Malayalam cinema Malayalam cinema, also referred to as Mollywood, is a segment of Cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to producing films in the Malayalam, Malayalam language, primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands. It encompasses both th ...

. He was a native of Kalavoor in the

Alappuzha district Alappuzha district (), is one of the 14 Districts of Kerala, districts in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It was formed as Alleppey district on 17 August 1957, the name of the district being changed to ''Alapp ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, India. He performed villainous roles during the 1990s. He had acted in 158 films with directors such as K. G. George, I. V. Sasi,

Joshiy Joshiy (born 18 July 1952) is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema and also directed Tamil language, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu language, Telugu and Kannada-language films. Joshiy made his directorial ...

, P. G. Vishwambharan, Thampy Kannamthanam, Sreekumaran Thampi, Rajasenan,P.K.Joseph and Shaji Kailas. Unlike other villains of the time, Ratheesh captivated the Malayalam movie lovers with his charms and handsome looks.He attained superstardom for a brief while during the 80s.

Personal life

He was born to Puthenpurayil A. V. Rajagopalan and Padmavathiyamma at Kalavoor in the erstwhile State of Travancore–Cochin. He had two sisters, Sherly and Laila. He had his education from Sree Narayana College, Kollam and Sree Narayana College, Cherthala. He was married to Diana, who is the daughter of· Ex minister M.K. Hemachandran, on 11 September 1983. The couple have four children Parvathy, Padmaraj, Padma and Pranav. He died due to a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

at his home in

Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...

on 23 December 2002, aged just 48.

Career

Ratheesh started his career in the Malayalam film '' Vezhambal'' in 1977. But it was K. G. George who provided his big break through '' Ullkadal'' in 1979. He became a bankable star through I. V. Sasi's ''

Thusharam ''Thushaaram'' is a 1981 Indian Malayalam, Malayalam-language action film directed by I. V. Sasi, starring Ratheesh, Seema (actress), Seema, Rani Padmini and Jose (actor), Jose. Lyrics were written by Yusafali and the music score by Shyam. The f ...

'' in 1981. From 1981 to 1988 he was at the peak of his career, performing in films like '' Oru Mukham Pala Mukham'', ''

Ee Nadu ''Ee Nadu'' is a 1982 Indian Malayalam-language political film directed by I. V. Sasi, written by T. Damodaran and produced by N. G. John. The film stars Balan K. Nair with Mammootty, Ratheesh, and T. G. Ravi in supporting roles. The music s ...

'', '' Rajavinte Makan'', ''

Muhoortham 11.30 ''Muhurtham Pathinonnu Muppathinu'' is a 1985 Cinema of India, Indian Malayalam language, Malayalam film, directed by Joshiy. The film stars Mammootty, Ratheesh, Saritha and Jagathy Sreekumar in the lead roles. The film has musical score by Shya ...

'', '' Sangharsham'', '' Vazhiyorakazhchakal'', '' Aayiram Kannukal'', '' Abkari'', '' Unaroo'', ''Ithraym Kaalam'', ''

Uyarangalil ''Uyarangalil'' () is a 1984 Indian Malayalam-language thriller film directed by I. V. Sasi and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. It stars Mohanlal, Nedumudi Venu, Rahman, Ratheesh, Kajal Kiran and Swapna. The music for the film was provided by ...

'', ''Thanthram'', '' Akkachiyude Kunjuvava'', '' John Jaffer Janardhanan'', '' Innalenkil Nale'' and '' Ponthooval''. After 1988 he reduced the number of films in which he acted, he quit altogether after 1990. After a period of four years he made a comeback as the

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.Shaji Kailas Shaji Kailas (born 8 February 1965) is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Malayalam cinema. Shaji got a breakthrough with the comedy film '' Dr. Pasupathy'' (1990). He is best known for his action films with main ...

's ''

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

''. Throughout the 1990s, he did various villainous and character roles in films such as '' Kashmeeram'', '' Nirnayam'', '' Yuvathurki'', ''

19 April Events Pre-1600 *AD 65 – The freedman Milichus betrays Piso's plot to kill the Emperor Nero and all of the conspirators are arrested. * 531 – Battle of Callinicum: A Byzantine army under Belisarius is defeated by the Persians ...

'', and '' Gangothri''. In the 2000s, he was notable for his roles in ''

Ravanaprabhu ''Raavanaprabhu'' () is a 2001 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written and directed by Ranjith (director), Ranjith in his directorial debut. It is a sequel to the 1993 film ''Devaasuram'' written by Ranjith (director), Ranjith, d ...

'' and ''Danny''.

Filmography

As an actor

Malayalam

Tamil films

Produced films

* ''

Iyer The Great ''Iyer the Great'' is a 1990 Indian Malayalam-language psychological thriller film directed by Bhadran, starring Mammootty, Geetha, Shobana, Sukumari, and Devan. It was a commercial success upon release. M. S. Mani won the National Film A ...

'' (1990) * '' Chakkikotha Chankaran'' (1989) * '' Ente Shabtham'' (1986) * '' Black Mail'' (1985) * ''

Revenge Revenge is defined as committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Vengeful forms of justice, such as primitive justice or retributive justice, are often differentiated from more fo ...

'' (1985)

Television

*2001: ''Venalmazha'' (Surya TV) *2001 : ''Anna'' (Kairali TV)

References

Ratheesh at MSI

Ratheesh
at Internet Movie Database {{authority control Male actors from Alappuzha 1954 births 2002 deaths Male actors in Malayalam cinema Indian male film actors Actors from Alappuzha district 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors