From Her Arms to His Glory: The Unbreakable Bond Between Mohanlal and His Mother

Thiruvananthapuram: It was a world woven together by a mother and her son. Amid all the rush and demands of life, the son always found time for his mother. Whenever he spoke about her, Malayalis have often seen their beloved actor become deeply emotional. Such was the depth of their love.

When Mohanlal received the nation’s highest honour in cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the first place he went to share that achievement was his home at Elamakkara in Kochi, to see his mother who was resting there.

Later, at a press conference in Kochi, Mohanlal said:

“I went to my mother first. Isn’t that how it should be? My mother had the fortune to see this achievement, and I was fortunate to share it with her. She is not well now, but she understands everything. She finds it a little difficult to speak, but I can understand her when she does. She blessed me, and that blessing is always with me.”

At a recent public event as well, Mohanlal spoke fondly of his mother. He said he considered himself a blessed son, and that when he looks at elderly women, he often sees his mother’s face in them.

After suffering a stroke, Shanthakumari Amma had been bedridden for a long time. In an earlier interview, Mohanlal had shared movingly what it felt like to be with her during those days:

“My mother has been bedridden for a few years now. She used to talk a lot, but now she cannot speak. These days, we communicate mostly through our eyes. By looking into her eyes, I understand her love and affection. Sometimes she touches me lightly or nods her head. I have learned to understand a language even in those gestures. Just as my mother once fed me, I now feed her. She lies there watching my wife Suchitra and me eat. They say ‘to touch is to be present’. Through that touch, my mother seems to say many things without words. When I sit beside her like that, I feel a cycle of life being completed. I sense it, experience it. In that moment, I see myself, and I see human life itself.”