Srinivasan was a brilliant actor. But as a screenwriter he was even more brilliant.
When we talk about the greatest screenwriters of Malayalam cinema, the names of MT Vasudevan Nair, P. Padmarajan and AK Lohithadas come into discussion. Srinivasan should also be a part of that list.
True, he may not have written the greatest plays, romances or fantasies like him, he may not have dealt with as serious issues, his worlds may not have been as wide and diverse, or his plots may not have been as ground-breaking, but we have to admit one thing: he was a brilliant screenwriter and hardly anyone in Indian cinema understood the art of comedy writing as much as he did. And this was not some slapstick comedy that he wrote.
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He was the VKN of screenwriting. Malayalam language is lucky to have a writer like VKN, the man who made us laugh out loud while reading the book. Like PG Wodehouse.
Since not everyone is a reader, not every Malayali knows the genius of VKN. But everyone watches films. So they undoubtedly know Sreenivasan more as an actor.
As an actor, he has done excellent work in films, there is no doubt about that. Vadakkunokkiyanthram, Swaroopam, Thakarchenda And Ponmuttayidunna ThattanBut, other actors could have played those roles too, even if they weren’t as good as him, the point is that Swaroopamor a Ponmuttayidunna Thattan If there was no actor named Srinivasan then it would have been made.
However, there does not happen VadakkunokkiyanthramNo one else could have written a script that dealt with the psychological issues of an insecure man marrying an extremely beautiful woman, It might not be the most unusual subject, but the script is,
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Thalathil Dinesh’s life story is told through a series of incredibly comic scenes and dialogues that have become part of popular culture (this is the case for many Sreenivasan films). You can see a skilled craftsman at work in this script VadakkunokkiyanthramRight from the opening scene in which the hero writes a letter to a psychiatrist in a journal about his concerns about marrying a beautiful woman.
This film also marked his debut as a director. He directed only one more film, anxious brunetteOne of the best feminist films in Malayalam. This was a clever recap of the film he did as an actor – SwaroopamA brilliant but underrated work by KR Mohanan.
Srinivasan’s comedic talent is visible in almost every film he has written, although not all of his films have been in this category. Vadakkunokkiyanthram, Chintavishthaya Shyamala, Nadodikkattu, Sammanasullavarakku Samadhanam, Doore Doore Oru Koodu Koottam, Pavam Pavam Rajkumaran, Azhakiya Ravanaan, Mithunam, Sandesham Or Udayanu Tharam,
And there’s an element of unpredictability in the way he writes a comic scene. For example, remember Azhakiya Raavanan, an unusual romantic film directed by Kamal, which failed at the box office despite brilliant comedy and brilliant music by Vidyasagar, who was making his debut in Malayalam cinema.
There is this scene in which Mammootty comes around the corner and looks at Sreenivasan from close to his handsome face, and asks him, “Do you remember this face?” Srinivasan asks the hero who has just returned to his native village, “Have you acted in Hindi cinema?” Mammootty’s face lights up, but not for long, as tailor-turned-Malayalam-novelist Srinivasan’s character asks, “Worked as a dacoit?”
A lot is lost in translation here, one knows, but if you remember the scene, you will get an idea of ​​what a talented screenwriter Sreenivasan was. And he never had any ambition to write.
He was trained to become an actor at the MGR Film and Television Institute in Chennai, and turned to screenwriting because, in his own words, he was pressured by his good friend Priyadarshan, who told him that he could act only if he wrote scripts. the film was Odaruthammav Aalariyam,
Srinivasan has said that he had written a script long ago, but did not take any credit because the story was based on an old, overdramatized story suggested by the director. It was the right move from the man who rewrote the art of screenwriting in Malayalam cinema.
published – December 20, 2025 12:06 PM IST