Navodaya Studio is a film production studio in the Malayalam language

Malayalam language

Malayalam , is one of the four major Dravidian languages of southern India. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India with official language status in the state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry. It is spoken by 35.9 million people...

 film industry

Film industry

The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...

 of India. It was established in 1976 by Maliampurackal Chacko Punnoose, who is also known by the name Navodaya Appachan. The filming studio is located in Kakkanad

Kakkanad

Kakkanad is a region in the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. This is the part of Kochi where much of its IT industry is based in. It is also the administrative headquarters of the District of Ernakulam ....

, Kochi

Kochi

-Places:* Kochi, a city in the state of Kerala, India, formerly known as Cochin* Kingdom of Cochin, a former feudal city-state on Malabar Coast, India** Fort Kochi, one of the three main urban components which constitute the present day city of Kochi, Kerala, India...

.

History

The studio was founded by Apachan in 1976, after he parted ways with his brother Kunchacko

Kunchacko

Kunchacko was a Malayali Indian film producer and director who heavily influenced the Malayalam film industry by redefining the commercial film scenario. His venture Udaya Studios influenced the gradual shift of Malayalam film industry from its original base of Madras, Tamil Nadu to Kerala...

's Udaya Studio. The first film Kadathanattu Makkam produced by Navodaya studio was directed by Appachan himself. The second film Thacholi Ambu

Thacholi Ambu

Thacholi Ambu is a 1978 Malayalam film starring Prem Nazir, Sivaji Ganesan and Jayan. Directed and produced by Navodaya Appachan, it was the first cinemascope film of South India. Prem Nazir played the title role in the film.-Cast:...

was the first cinemascope film in South India. It was followed by Padayottam

Padayottam

Padayottam is a 1982 Malayalam film directed by Jijo Punnoose, produced by Navodaya Appachan, and starring Prem Nazir, Madhu, Mammootty, Mohanlal and Shankar. It was the first movie in South India to be indigenously shot in the 70 mm film format...

, which was the first 70 mm film

70 mm film

70mm film is a wide high-resolution film gauge, with higher resolution than standard 35mm motion picture film format. As used in camera, the film is wide. For projection, the original 65mm film is printed on film. The additional 5mm are for magnetic strips holding four of the six tracks of sound...

 in India. The post production work of Sholay

Sholay

Sholay is a 1975 Indian action-adventure film produced by G.P. Sippy and directed by his son Ramesh Sippy. It is considered among the greatest films in the history of Indian cinema. Released on 15 August 1975, it stars Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bhaduri and...

, the first 70 mm production in India was done in the United Kingdom. But for Padayottam, the works were done at Prasad Labs, Kerala. In 1982, India's first 3D film, My Dear Kuttichathan

My Dear Kuttichathan

My Dear Kuttichathan is a 3D Malayalam film and the first 3-D film made in India. The movie was produced by Maliampurackal Appachan of Navodaya studio in Kerala....

was released. Apart from these landmark films, Navodaya also produced numerous hit films in Malayalam including Tacholi Ambu,My Dear Kuttichathan 3D 'Manjil Virinja Pookkal

Manjil Virinja Pookkal

Manjil Virinja Pookkal is a 1980 Malayalam film produced by Navodaya Appachan and directed by Fazil, starring Shankar, Poornima Jayaram, and Mohanlal in the main roles. This film was one of the biggest hits of the year and was a major landmark in the career of director Fazil. The songs were...

, Padayottam

Padayottam

Padayottam is a 1982 Malayalam film directed by Jijo Punnoose, produced by Navodaya Appachan, and starring Prem Nazir, Madhu, Mammootty, Mohanlal and Shankar. It was the first movie in South India to be indigenously shot in the 70 mm film format...

, Chanakyan

Chanakyan (film)

Chanakyan is a 1989 Malayalam film directed by T K Rajeev Kumar, and starring Kamal Haasan, Jayaram and Urmila Matondkar.-Plot:...

,

The studio was later renovated in 2000's welcoming the needs of the television industry. Appachan's sons Jijo Punnoose and Jose Punnoose has taken over the functioning.

Appachan, along with the Navodaya Studios, was awarded the J. C. Daniel Award

J. C. Daniel Award

The J. C. Daniel Award is an annual award given by the Government of Kerala. The Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala instituted the award in honour of J. C. Daniel in 1992. The award, a part of the Kerala State Film Awards is to honour lifetime achievements and outstanding...

in 2011.