37 years of ‘Rajavinte Makan’: The cult film that made Mohanlal a ‘Superstar’ overnight

Entertainment By Arjun Ramachandran 17/07/2023 Read the article

On 17 July 1986, seeds were sown for the birth of a new superstar in Malayalam. On the day, Rajavinte Makan (The King’s Son) starring Mohanlal was released in theatres.

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Mohanlal was only 26 when he acted in Rajavinte Makan. However, he pulled off the role of an underworld don with ease and elan.

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Directed by the late Thampi Kannanthanam, Rajavinte Makan had a theatrical run for more than 100 days and was remade in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Kannada languages.

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It had an ensemble cast, including Ambika, Suresh Gopi, and Mohan Jose. The base story was about the feud between gangster Vincent Gomas (Mohanlal) with home minister Krishnadas (Ratheesh).

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Ambika, the female lead, donned the role of Nancy, an advocate. She is an orphan and a single mother who loses her job due to Vincent Gomas. But they become friends later.

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Rajavinte Makan was written by eminent scriptwriter Dennis Joseph who died in 2021. The writer was instrumental in giving superhits to Mohanlal and Mammootty.

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Dialogues like “My phone number is 2255,” are still fresh in the minds of many people. All these factors made the movie a super hit, 37 years ago.

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Nevertheless, film buffs and even common audiences always considered Rajavinte Makan as the most popular flick of Mohanlal!

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