Veteran Filmmaker KS Sethumadhavan Passes Away; Malayalam Cinema Pays Tribute

Veteran filmmaker KS Sethumadhavan is no more. The 90-year-old breathed his last today (December 24, Friday) morning at his residence in Chennai. As per the reports, KS Sethumadhavan, who is best known for his works in Malayalam cinema, has been suffering from an age-related illness for a very long time.

The National award-winning filmmaker is survived by his wife Valsala Sethumadhavan and children, Santhosh, Uma, and Sonu Kumar. KS Sethumadhavan, who bid goodbye to his film career in 1995, was leading a retirement life with his wife Valsala in the Directors Colony of Kodambakkam, Chennai. The final rites of the senior director are expected to be held today.

KS Sethumadhavan was born in 1931 as the son of Subrahmanyam and Lakshmi in Palakkad, Kerala. After finishing his graduation in Biology from the Victoria College, Palakkad, he made his entry into the film industry as an assistant director in the 1951-released Ramanadhan directorial Mamayogi. He made his directorial debut in 1961 with the Sinhalese film Veera Vijayam. Sethumadhavan made his entry into the Malayalam film industry in the same year, with the film Gnana Sundari. His last outing as a director was the 1995-released Telugu film, Stri.

The veteran filmmaker has won several awards and accolades in his filmmaking career that exceeded over 3 decades, including 10 National Film Awards, 8 Kerala State Film Awards, 4 Filmfare Awards South, a Nandi Award, and the prestigious JC Daniel Award. His son Santhosh Sethumadhavan had made his directorial debut in 2021, by remaking KS Sethumadhavan's renowned work Chattakkari.

KS Sethumadhavan introduced some of the finest talents including the veteran actor Kamal Haasan in his first role as an adult, in the popular film Kanyakumari. He has also associated with the Malayalam superstars Mammootty and Mohanlal in several films, including the 1985-released superhit Aviduthe Pole Ivideyum. The director also introduced veteran actor Jagathi Sreekumar to the cinema.

The renowned celebs of the Malayalam film industry took to their official pages and paid tribute to KS Sethumadhavan. Have a look...