Sheela ), is a Malayalam film actress from India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. She, along with Prem Nazir

Prem Nazir

Abdul Khader , better known by his stage name Prem Nazir , was an Indian film actor. He is considered one of the all time super stars in Malayalam cinema...

, holds the world record

Guinness World Records

Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...

 for acting in the largest number of films (107) together as heroine and hero. In 2005 she won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress

National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress

The National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress winners:...

 for her role in the Malayalam film Akale. She has also acted in numerous films with Madhu

Madhu (actor)

Madhavan Nair , commonly known by his stage name Madhu is an actor in Malayalam cinema. He was a prominent lead actor during the 60s and 70s. He has also directed and produced films, and at one time he owned Uma film studio.-Early life:...

, Sathyan

Sathyaneshan Nadar

Manuel Sathyaneshan Nadar commonly known by his stage name Sathyan, was an Indian film actor known for his work in Malayalam cinema. He has won the Kerala State Film Award twice and is renowned for his acting skills...

, Jayan

Jayan

Krishnan Nair , better known by his stage name Jayan , was an Indian film actor, former sailor, stunt performer and 1970s style icon. He worked in Malayalam cinema, a sector of the Indian movie industry...

 and M. G. Soman

M. G. Soman

M. G. Soman was an actor in Malayalam film. He was considered to be one of the superstars in Malayalam cinema along with Sukumaran and Jayan during the 1970s. He was born in Tiruvalla, Travancore...

 and several film stars.

Early life

Sheela was born in a Syrian Christian

Syrian Malabar Nasrani

The Syrian Malabar Nasrani people, also known as Saint Thomas Christians, "'Nasrani Mappila'" and Nasranis, are an ethnoreligious group from Kerala, India, adhering to the various churches of the Saint Thomas Christian tradition...

 family in Trissur, Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

.

Film career

Sheela made her debut in Paasom opposite MGR

M. G. Ramachandran

Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran , popularly known by his initials , was an Indian film actor, director, producer and politician....

. Her first film in Malayalam was Bhagyajathakom, with Sathyan

Sathyaneshan Nadar

Manuel Sathyaneshan Nadar commonly known by his stage name Sathyan, was an Indian film actor known for his work in Malayalam cinema. He has won the Kerala State Film Award twice and is renowned for his acting skills...

. The next two decades saw her essay roles in more than 475 films totally in various languages such as Tamil, telungu and Kannada and Malayalam. Very Famous Films such as Chemmeen

Chemmeen

Chemmeen is a 1965 Malayalam romantic drama film based on the highly acclaimed novel of the same name by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai and directed by Ramu Kariat from a screenplay by S. L...

, Kallichellama, Velutha Kathreena

Velutha Kathreena

Velutha Kathreena is a 1968 Malayalam film directed by Sasikumar based on the famous novel of the same name written by Muttathu Varkey. The heroine centric film stars Sheela, Prem Nazir and Sathyan in the lead roles.-Plot:...

, and Vazhve Mayam

Vazhve Mayam

Vazhve Mayam is a 1970 Malayalam film directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan. Sathyan plays the lead role of the protagonist. The film also has Sheela, Sankaradi, K. P. Ummer, Bahadoor, Adoor Bhasi, K. P. A. C. Lalitha, Khadeeja, Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai, C. A. Balan, Kuttan Pillai and Philomina...

were a few among them. She has won many awards such as Kerala State Film Awards, the Lux award and the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement award.

Her name, along with Prem Nazir

Prem Nazir

Abdul Khader , better known by his stage name Prem Nazir , was an Indian film actor. He is considered one of the all time super stars in Malayalam cinema...

's name figures in the Guinness Book of World Records

Guinness World Records

Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...

, for acting together consecutively in 107 films. In the 70s and 80s, Sheela's tried her hand at directing as well. She directed two films, Yakshaganom and Shikarangal. She wrote the story, script, and screenplay for Shikharangaland Yakshaganom, which was also remade in Tamil. Besides films, she has directed a tele-film Ninaivukale neengividu in which Jayabharathi

Jayabharathi

Jayabharathi is a popular Malayalam film actress who started her career in late 1960s. She is a two-time winner of the Kerala State Film Award for best actress....

 acted. She acted with Kamal Hassan in films like Vishnu Vijayam

Vishnu Vijayam

Vishnu Vijayam is a 1974 Malayalam-language Indian feature film directed by N.Shankaran Nair, starring Kamal Haasan, Sheela, Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair, and Ambarish.-Plot:...

 and eeetta as heroine. She acted as Akhilandeswary in the 2005 blockbuster Chandramukhi

Chandramukhi

Chandramukhi is a 2005 Indian horror, comedy and drama film directed by P. Vasu and produced by Ramkumar Ganesan. With a few deviations, it is a remake of Vasu's 2004 Kannada film Apthamitra, which was in-turn a remake of the 1993 Malayalam film Manichithrathazhu...

 alongside Rajinikanth. She has also authored a book, titled Kuilinte Kooduand many short stories. She is a very good painter and her oil paintings and portraits were commendable.

Sheela returned to acting, playing main role in Sathyan Anthikkad

Sathyan Anthikkad

Sathyan Anthikad is an Indian film director and screenwriter known primarily for his family based Malayalam films.He has created many critical and commercially successful films, especially when working with Sreenivasan as the scriptwriter...

's Manassinakkare. The film was a huge hit, and her performance was critically acclaimed. Sheela bagged the Kerala State Film Award

Kerala State Film Award

The Kerala State Film Awards are the most prestigious film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Chalachitra Academy since 1998 on behalf of the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala, India....

 for best supporting actress in the film Akale.

Personal life

She was married to Tamil actor Ravichandran

Ravichandran (Tamil actor)

Ravichandran was a Tamil film actor who played lead roles in Tamil movies of the 1960s and 1970s. He has also acted in supporting roles in some recent Tamil movies, and had also directed a number of films.- Life :...

. She has a son George (alias Vishnu), who acts in Tamil serials and few Malayalam movies.

Awards

National Film Awards

National Film Awards

The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it is administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.Every year, a national panel...

:

• Best Supporting Actress
  National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress
  The National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress winners:...
  
   - 2005 - Akale

Kerala State Film Awards:

• Best Actress
  Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
  The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress winners:-References:**...
  
   - 1969 - Various Films
• Best Actress
  Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
  The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress winners:-References:**...
  
   - 1971 - Various Films
• Best Actress
  Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress
  The Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress winners:-References:**...
  
   - 1976 - Anubhavam
• Second Best Actress
  Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actress
  The Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actress winners:-References:**...
  
   - 2004 - Akale

Asianet Film Awards

Asianet Film Awards

The Asianet Film Awards is the most prominent award ceremony for Malayalam films presented annually by Asianet, a Malayalam-language television network from the south-Indian state of Kerala. The awards ceremony has been instituted to honour both artistic and technical excellence in the Malayalam...

• 2007 - Best Lifetime Achievement Award

External links

|-
|-
! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" | National Film Award
|-
|-