Actor Ravikumar, who was popular as a romantic hero in Malayalam and Tamil films of the 1970s and 80s, passed away at a private hospital in Chennai on Friday morning. He was 71.
Born as the son of actor Bharathi and film producer K.M.K.Menon, who launched Sreekrishna Studio in Thiruvananthapuram — one of the first film studios in the Malayalam industry — Ravikumar grew up in a milieu where cinema became an automatic career choice. After featuring in smaller roles, his debut with a meaty role came in A.B.Raj’s Ullasa Yaathra (1975). Around the same period, he also debuted in Tamil in K.Balachander’s Avargal (1977).
He had an enduring partnership with filmmaker I.V.Sas. Ravikumar acted in over 80 of the director’s films. He was also a regular in J.Sasikumar’s films.
One of his memorable turns as an actor was in I.V.Sasi’s Avalude Ravukal, in which he played Babu, a college student, who falls in love with a sex worker and eventually marries her, overcoming opposition from the society around him. He endeared himself to the audience after acting on screen in some evergreen romantic melodies such as ‘En Swaram Poovidum’ and ‘Aayiram Maathalapookkal’ from Anupallavi (1979), ‘Pranayasarovara Theeram from Innale Innu’ (1977), ‘Sandhyathan Ambalathil’ from Abhinivesham (1977) and ‘Mizhiyilennum’ from Sakthi (1980).
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In an era dominated by Prem Nazir and Madhu and later by Jayan, Ravikumar was one of the second rung heroes who made a mark by playing meatier roles. He was much sought after for playing the youthful romantic hero roles in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In Tamil, he starred in popular films like Youth (2002) and Sivaji (2007). He was also active in television serials for a while. After being away from filmdom for long, he had appeared in a few films including CBI 5 (2022) and Aaraattu (2022)in recent years.
Published – April 04, 2025 02:50 pm IST
