Chennai: Actor and director Pratap Pothan passed away. He was 69 years old. He was found dead in his flat in Chennai. Pratap Pothan entered cinema in 1978 through Bharatan’s Arava. Acted in more than 100 movies including Takara, Lori, Chamaram. He also played lead roles in films like Ayaal Tom Namim Kekham, 22 Female Kottayam, Bangalore Days and Idukki Gold.
Pratap Pothan has also acted in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films. He has directed 12 films in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu languages. Ritubhedam, Oru Yatramozhi and Daisy were directed by Pratap Pothan in Malayalam.
Pratap Pothan was an actor who once amazed with his unique acting style. He was born on February 15, 1952 to Kulatungal Pothan and Ponnamma Pothan in Thiruvalla. Pratap Pothan used to act in plays with his friends during his college days. He was also interested in painting. But later Shraddha shifted to acting. After graduating with a BA in Economics, he joined an agency in Mumbai as a copywriter in 1971. Later, following working in various companies, he came to the cinema.
Pratap Pothan, who was in the theater group Madras Players, saw the acting skills of Pratap Pothan and brought him to the cinema world in 1978 with his film Aaravam. In 1979, he became the hero in Bharat’s own film Takara and in 1980 in Chamaram. Takara is Pratap Pothan’s best movie of all time. He also won the Filmfare Award for Best Malayalam Actor for his performance in these two films.
Prathap Pothan also gained attention in Tamil with his acting in the films Neshte Killate, Panneer Pushpanam, Moodupani and Varumain Kanara Sivappu. He acted in many films as hero, sub-hero and character actor. Prathap Pothan’s directorial debut is a Tamil film Oru Kathal Kathai. This is in 1985. In 1987, he directed the film Ritubhedam in Malayalam. He also directed the film Daisy in 1988. The story, screenplay and dialogues of the Malayalam super hit film Daisy were written by Pratap Pothan himself. In 1997, he directed the film Oru Yatramozhi with Mohanlal and Sivajiganesan in the lead roles.
In 2005, he made his comeback in Malayalam with Mohanlal’s Tanmatra. Later, he played notable roles in films like 22 Female Kottayam, Aayal Tom Namim Kemku, Idukki Gold and Bangalore Days.
