Sathyan (November 9, 1911–June 13, 1971) whose original name is Sathyaneshan Nadar was a Malayalam movie actor of yesteryears. He was known for his versatile and natural acting, when compared to his colleagues who at that time essentially followed the drama-style rendering of the dialogues. He was a double-Kerala State Film Award winning Malayali actor. He is considered as one of the superstars in Malayalam cinema in the 50s and 60s.

Before starting his acting career, Sathyan was a soldier and also an Inspector with the then Travancore State Police. During the communist riots in 1947-1948, Sathyan was the Inspector at Alleppey North Police Station. He is supposed to have crushed the riots quite mercilessly.

In 1952, Sathyan’ first film got released. The film was titled Athmasakhi and it earned him recognition in the industry. Sathyan rose to fame with the legendary Neelakkuyil (1954). The film was also a milestone in Malayalam film history. It was the first film to have an authentic Malayalam story. The film was written by renowned literary figure Uroob and directed by Ramu Karyat-P. Bhaskaran duo. The songs in the film written by P. Bhaskaran and set to tunes by K. Raghavan were superhits. The film became the first Malayalam film to win national recognition when it was awarded the Rajat Kamal (Silver Lotus Award). The film’s success at the box office raised Sathyan and his co-star Miss Kumari to stardom. Sathyan’s career was influenced by great directors like K. S. Sethumadhavan, A. Vincent and Ramu Karyat. Sathyan’s roles in various films directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan like Pappu in Odayil Ninnu, Jayarajan in Daham, Prof. Sreeni in Yakshi and the pratogonist in Vazhve Mayam were well appreciated. Sathyan’s other major performances include those in Snehaseema, Nair Pidicha Pulival, Mudiyanaya Puthran, Bharya, Sakunthala, Kayamkulam Kochunni, Adimakal and Karakanakadal. Sathyan is considered as one of the most talented actors the Malayalam film industry ever had. His role in “Chemmeen”, the poignant love story set against the background of the coast of Alappuzha did not win him the best actor award for the year, but is one of the most popular roles of his career. He acted in over 150 Malayalam films and 2 Tamil films.

Sathyan won the first Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor in 1969. He was posthumously awarded the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor in 1971 for his performance in Karakanakadal.

Awards established in his name

1. Sathyan National Award: An award instituted by the Sathyan Foundation to honour various persons from the field of cinema.

· Winners: Nedumudi Venu (2006), K. S. Chithra (2007)

2. Sathyan Award: An award instituted by Kerala Cultural Forum. The award carries a sum of Rs. 10000 and a plaque.

· Winner: Innocent (2007)

3. Sathyan Memorial Film Award: An award instituted by Sathyan Memorial Arts and Sports Club. The award is given in various fields including Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Anti-heo, Best Comedian, Best Newcomer and Best Singers (Male and Female) taking the last years performance into consideration.

· Winners:

2007
Actors: Prithviraj, Kavya Madhavan
Anti-hero: Siddique
Supporting actors: KPAC Lalitha, Narain
Comedian: Bindu Panikar
Newcomers: Vinu Mohan, Bhama
Singers: Madhu Balakrishnan, Manjari

Sathyan memories through photos