Malayalam megastar Mammootty is one of the most popular actors in the country. The actor, who is lovingly called Mammookka by his fans, recently spoke about the origin of his "megastar" title and his long-standing career.
Mammootty on being called the megastar
In a conversation with Khalid Al Ameri, Mammooty called Dubai his second home and shared that it was in Dubai where he was first called ‘megastar.’ “My first visit to Dubai was in 1987 for a show and they gave me a title – the megastar. Only Dubai press gave me that title, nobody else from India,” he said in the interview.
When asked how it feels to be called a megastar, the actor replied, “Megastar is just a title that people gave me out of love and respect. I am not carrying it myself, I am not enjoying it also. Mammookka is the name I love.”
About the dream of being an actor
The actor also shared that he dreamt of becoming an actor ever since he saw his first film as a child. “I wanted to become an actor when I was 7-8 years old. So that feeling, that passion started till I got into the film industry. By the time I had completed my studies, I became a lawyer. I was practicing. I got married. Then only I could get into films,” he said.
Speaking about his wife Sulfath's reaction to his career shift, Mammootty shared, “Initially, she was a little reluctant to it. But naturally, when I… She loves me. Naturally, she will love my likes also. I’m in the film industry for the last 42 years, she was suffering me.”
Mammootty and Sulfath got married in 1979.
Humility on legacy
When asked how he wanted the world to remember him, Mammootty said, “But how long will they remember me? One year? Ten years? Fifteen years? Finished. Don’t expect people to remember you till the end of the world. That won’t happen to anybody. Great people are remembered very very very less. Only very few people are remembered. I am one among thousands of actors. How can they remember me for more than a year? There’s no hope for that. Once you are not in the world, how will you know about you? Everybody thinks that they are going to be remembered till the end of the world. No.”
With recent films like ‘Bramayugam’ and ‘Kaathal – The Core,’ Mammootty remains a powerhouse in the Malayalam film industry, celebrating over four decades in cinema.