Late Malayalam actor Shanawas could never hit the mark despite 'Prema Geethangal'

Dubai: Shanawas, the Malayalam film actor who died late on Monday (August 4), seemed to have everything going for him when he started out in the early 1980s.

But, somehow, he just could not make things work.

Here are the facts - the only son of Malayalam cinema's beloved Prem Nazir makes his debut as the lead in 1981's romantic drama Prema Geethangal, which was directed by Balachandra Menon.

At a time, when Menon was coming up with successive hits and had won a committed following with his family-oriented themes.

And 1981 was supposed to be the turn for newcomers to make it big in Indian cinema - There was Kamal Haasan in Ek Duuje Ke Liye in his first outing in a Hindi movie, Sanjay Dutt in Rocky and Kumar Gaurav in Love Story. At the time, Shanawas was mentioned as one of the debutants to watch out for.

He did have everything going for him.

Opposite Shanawas was Ambika, in the midst of becoming the most sought after heroines in South Indian cinema in the early 1980s.

Check out the music in Prema Geethangal - four melodies scored by Johnson and which became instant hits. (One of them - Nee Nirayoo Jeevanil Pulakamaa rendered by Yesudas - has listeners to this day and is popular on the various star singer shows.)

Yes, Shanawas disappointed - many put it down to being burdened by over expectations in his first outing. But to film critics, Shanawas' acting skills exuded woodenness at the best of times - and dragged the film down.

More roles followed, and then became more of walk-on parts in films where his father Prem Nazir acted. When the Mammootty-Mohanlal duo took over Malayalam cinema from the mid-1980s, Shanawas' roles turned less obscure.

He would turn up for the occasional roles in Malayalam films, but a lot of his time was spend in the UAE, where had his circle of friends. He was always approachable - always ready to talk about his time in films as a hero. Of course, Prem Nazir always loomed big in those conversations about memories.

So, Shanawas departs - and it does feel that with just a bit of luck and some acting chops, he could have had a longer innings in Malayalam cinema.

But life and cinema play by its own rules.