No one except Mammootty believed in film as it ‘looked like Tamil masala’; it earned 10x its budget, dethroned Mohanlal’s box office record

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In fact, even actor Rahman, who played a key role in Rajamanikyam, initially felt that the film would not work. Like him, the rest of the cast had little expectation for the movie, primarily because it resembled Tamil films. The only person who was certain it would be a big success was Mammootty himself, Rahman once told Truecopy Think. And needless to say, the Malayalam megastar’s prediction was spot on; Rajamanikyam turned out to be one of the biggest hits the industry had seen until then.

Mammootty in director Anwar Rasheed’s Rajamanikyam. (Credit: IMDb)

Unlike the savarna heroes often found in Malayalam films, who wore their patrilineality on their sleeves and idolised their fathers’ elitist identity, Bellary Raja was born out of wedlock to a woman, Muthulakshmi Ammal (Chitra Shenoy). Throughout the movie, it’s never revealed who his biological father is. Also, during her second marriage to Raja Rathnam Pillai (Sai Kumar), Muthulakshmi is pressured by her family to hide the fact that she is already a mother. This breaks Raja’s heart, prompting him to run away and eventually start a life of his own until he is found by Pillai.

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Throughout Rajamanikyam, Raja, an uneducated man, is depicted as an emotionally fragile person who has no shame in tearing up, even in public, especially when something happens to his loved ones, and he carries the sadness of never having experienced parental love as a child.

Director Anwar and writer TA Shahid went one step further by making him a buffalo farmer, not offering Raja anything sophisticated. He spoke in the Thiruvananthapuram slang, previously used by filmmakers only for comedic purposes, and wore flashy clothes. He often cracked jokes and found happiness in having harmless fun with his people, completely shattering all conventions of mainstream Malayalam heroes.

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However, the movie became an instant hit, and audiences quickly flocked to theatres to see Rajamanikyam and his stylish antics. Made on a reported budget of Rs 2.30 crore, the Mammootty-starrer ended up grossing Rs 25 crore, becoming the first Malayalam film to cross that mark, according to Asianet News, thus dethroning Mohanlal’s Narasimham (2000) as the highest-grossing film till then.

Watch Rajamanikyam trailer here:

The movie also features Manoj K Jayan, Ranjith, Padmapriya Janakiraman, Bheeman Raghu, Sai Kumar, and Cochin Haneefa in key roles. Although Mammootty has done over 400 films in his five-decade career, Rajamanikyam remains a fan favourite. In fact, many of his dialogues have become part of everyday Malayalee vocabulary, with the most notable ones being:

* “Yevan puliyaanu ketta”

* “Valathaattu nikkeda”

* “Antharaas kuntharaas, avantammeda… thalle kalippu theeranillallu!”

* “Ninakkithinu maasakkooliya divassakkooliya?”

* “Intrillu aayittollu, intrillu aayittolle”

* “Varkeycha, nammade vandeelu nenjinullil neeyanu thenaanu kuliraanu Fathima, enna paattukalokke ille?”

* “Oru paayiraathrikku oru maniyara vaalilu muttiyappalanu ee chwodyam njan aadhyoyittu kekkanath: aaranu nee entharaanu ninakku vyendathennu”

* “Nammalilley!”