Manju Warrier

At school, Warrier was a talented dancer, and won many awards. She was conferred with the Kalathilakam in the Kerala Youth Festival for two years. She first appeared in a television serial Moharavam which was telecast on Doordarshan.[8]

In the first half of her on-screen career, Manju featured in 20 films over a three-year period with prominent directors producing a number of performances that earned her equal billing with some of the male leading actors in Malayalam.[9]

At the age of 17, she debuted in the film Sakshyam (1995).[10] Later at the age of 18, she acted in the movie Sallapam (1996), co-starring Dileep, whom she later married. Her performance in the movie Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu won a special mention from the jury for the National Film Awards. Her other films include: Kanmadam and Aaraam Thampuran with Mohanlal, Ee Puzhayum Kadannu and Kudamattam with her now ex-husband Dileep, Summer in Bethlahem, Pranayavarnangal, Pathram and Kaliyattam with Suresh Gopi, and Irattakuttikalude Achan, Kaliveedu, Thooval Kottaram and Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu with Jayaram. She won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in the movie Ee Puzhayum Kadannu. The film won three Kerala State Film Awards. In Kanmadam, she portrayed the role of a high-tempered blacksmith named Bhanu, which also starred Mohanlal. In her film Daya, Warrier's character is disguised as a man. Her role as the strong-willed Devika in Pathram was popular with audiences. It was the highest-grossing film of 1999 and played for over 250 days in theatres. Her last film before she took a sabbatical was Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu. Her portrayal of Bhadra, who takes revenge against Natesan who killed her parents, is considered her best acting performance to date. She was nominated at the National Film Awards but lost to Shabana Azmi. She was awarded the Special Mention (acting) for her performance.

On 24 October 2012, she performed Kuchipudi in the Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple.[11][12][13] Later in July 2013, she acted in a commercial with Amitabh Bachchan. Her comeback announcement was greeted with much fanfare by fans and the media.[14][15] She later appeared in many advertisements for Kalyan Jewellers alongside Amitabh Bacchan, Aishwarya Rai, Akkineni Nagarjuna, Prabhu Ganesan and Shiva Rajkumar. She recently published a book titled Sallapam.[16]

She made her return to cinema with Rosshan Andrrews's How Old Are You in 2014. Warrier played the character of Nirupama Rajeev, a UD clerk in the Revenue Department. The film received positive reviews from critics and was well-received by audiences and it became a blockbuster hit in the Kerala box office.[17] She received numerous accolades and became the goodwill ambassador for many ventures related to organic farming, inspired by her film.

Her next film was Sathyan Anthikad's Ennum Eppozhum which reunites her with Mohanlal after a gap of 17 years.[18] Her next project was Rani Padmini by Aashiq Abu along with Rima Kallingal, released in October 2015. The film did not fare well at the box office as it faced strong competition from other movies like Ennu Ninte Moideen and Amar Akbar Anthony. She acted in Jo and the Boy, her last release of 2015, as an animator. Her first full-length role in 2016 was Rajesh Pillai's Vettah, a mind-game thriller, in which she appeared in the role of a police officer. This film was a success, and she received numerous awards for the role.[19]

She acted in a Sanskrit stage drama based on Abhijñānaśākuntalam. The play was presented by the Sopanam Institute of Performing Arts & Research, founded by the late Kavalam Narayana Panicker, and was hosted by Swaralaya. Warrier debuted as a producer as well and the play was produced under her banner, Manju Warrier Productions.[20] Her next film was Karinkunnam 6S, in which she played the character of Vandana, a volleyball coach which was also a hit movie. She also sang a song for cancer patients for the show she hosted Kerala Can (Manorama News), written by Ratheesh Vega.

Her first release in 2017 was C/O Saira Banu where she played a post woman. The film also marked the comeback of Amala Akkineni in Malayalam after more than two decades. Her performance won great critical acclaim and the movie was a moderate grosser.[21] On 28 September, her next film Udaharanam Sujatha released in Kerala. It received positive reviews from critics and a warm response audiences.[22] She received great praise for her portrayal of Sujatha, mother of a tenth class student and a person who does multiple jobs to ensure a good life for her daughter and it was superhit in boxoffice . Her next release in 2017 was Villain, an emotional thriller where she appears as Dr. Neelima, an independent, idealistic woman and wife of Mathew Manjooran played by Mohanlal. The film went on to set the record for the highest first day collections for a Malayalam film. It received mixed response from critics and a positive feedback from the audience. Directors N. Lingusamy, Mysskin, Pandiraj, Thiru, and Suseenthiran were all positive about the film, particularly praising the actors' performances and the production. Soumya Rajendran wrote in her review for The News Minute - "It's lovely to see Manju Warrier and Mohanlal romancing on screen. The couple shares a palpable chemistry and the best scenes in the film undoubtedly belong to their shared moments. Although a brief role, Manju lights up the screen and the relationship between them comes across as genuine even though neither character is defined beyond a few broad strokes."[23]

In 2018, Manju appeared in the lead role in the Kamala Surayya biopic Aami. Manjusha Radhakrishnan of Gulf News wrote in her review - "Warrier enters the frame much later, but seamlessly takes on the role of a woman on the cusp of a quarter-life crisis. The actress is in total command here. Surayya isn't an easy woman to play, but Warrier make her eccentricities alluring and charming."[24] Manoj Kumar R of The Indian Express complimented Manju delivered a 'knockout performance' - "It is, indeed, impressive to watch Manju Warrier play the role of a conflicted woman. Her conviction in the performance is what keeps our attention even when narration loses steam."[25] Her next film for release was the musical-romantic-comedy drama Mohanlal in which she played a die-hard fan of Mohanlal. Jan Varghese wrote in her review for BookMyShow - "Manju Warrier gives one of her better performances to date as Meenukutty. She carries the movie firmly on her shoulders with her almost flawless performance."[26] Her next release was the much-hyped fantasy drama Odiyan, in which she appeared alongside Mohanlal and Prakash Raj sporting different looks throughout the movie. In her review for Firstpost, Anna M. M. Vetticad said, "Warrier is uniformly good as the lonesome, long-suffering Prabha who has always known that her fate was written the moment she was born into a particular social class and often summons up the spirit to defy that written word."[27] Odiyan earned the highest opening-day collection for a film at Kerala box office and for a Malayalam film at worldwide box office. Odiyan also registered the highest opening weekend (14–16 December) collection for a Malayalam film at domestic and worldwide box office.

2019 was another milestone year for Warrier because she had three releases and all three of them were commercially as well as critically successful. Her first release in 2019 was Lucifer directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran in his directorial debut, written by Murali Gopy and featuring Mohanlal in the lead role as Stephen Nedumpally, alongside a supporting cast including Prithviraj Sukumaran himself, Vivek Oberoi, Tovino Thomas and Indrajith Sukumaran. Her performance in the film was considered to be the strongest in recent times with both critics and audiences showering praises. Complimenting her, Soumya Rajendran wrote in her review, "Manju Warrier is blessed with an extremely expressive face, and when she's upset, you can actually see her nostrils quiver. There's one scene when her face collapses as she hears Bobby's (Vivek Oberoi's) response to a question she poses, and you can see just what an actor can bring to the table when she knows her job."[28] Manjusha Radhakrishnan said in her review for Gulf News - "To watch top Malayali talent Manju Warrier as a grieving daughter of a political leader, who dies suddenly, leaving a political vacuum in her family and her political outfit, is pure gold. Warrier as a troubled mother and wife Priyadarshani – who unearths a string of dark secrets within her family circles – is heartbreaking. In limited screen-time, she comes across as a paragon of vulnerability and strength – an indication to the strength of her acting prowess."[29] She is one of the founding members of Women in Cinema Collective, the organisation for the welfare of women workers in the Malayalam movie industry and she was the only female actor in kerala having fans association and wellwishers in International level known as Manju Warrier Fans and Welfare Association International.[30] She made her Tamil debut with Asuran. She continued to receive critical acclaim for playing a sexual assault victim in Prathi Poovankozhi (2019). Baradwaj Rangan said in his review "The Film belongs to Manju Warrier. She lets you see, in a matter of seconds, the disbelief and shame and rage. Finally, it’s the rage that prevails"[31] Vishal Menon wrote in his review "Prathi Poovankozhi and Asuran serve as reminders that no one can play anger like Manju Warrier can."[32] Anna MM Vetticad, who gave the movie 2.5 stars said "It is a measure of Warrier’s arresting screen presence and acting, and the genuine concern Unni and director Rosshan Andrrews evidently have for women, that with all its flaws, Prathi Poovankozhi remains an engaging film."[33]