Nithi Anand
Thiruvananthapuram: The eagerly awaited Kerala State Film Awards (2022) are set to be revealed this Friday, and the competition is fierce, especially in the Best Actor category, where the top contenders include Mammootty, Kunchacko Boban, and Soubin Shahir.
Despite the jury completing their evaluations earlier, the winners were only decided on Thursday night to ensure the utmost confidentiality. The esteemed Minister for Cultural Affairs, Saji Cheriyan, will make the official announcements at 3 pm on Friday.
Originally scheduled for Wednesday, the awards’ announcement was postponed due to the Kerala government’s three-day mourning period following the passing of veteran Congress leader Oommen Chandy on Tuesday.
A total of 154 movies were submitted for consideration, including eight children’s films. The jury’s rigorous screening process commenced on June 19, led by renowned Bengali filmmaker and screenplay writer Gautam Ghosh as the jury chairman.
Mammootty’s powerful performance in ‘Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam’ positions it as a strong contender in both the Best Actor and Best Film categories. Meanwhile, Kunchacko Boban (Nna Thaan Case Kodu) and Soubin Sahir (Ela Veezha Poonchira) are also in the race for the Best Actor Award, alongside some promising newcomers.
Interestingly, the Best Actress award is anticipated to be claimed by fresh and emerging talents.
