Quick Info→
Wife: Indira Raju
Hometown: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
Age: 69 Years
Some Lesser Known Facts About Maniyanpilla Raju
- In childhood, he was a big fan of Kethel Restaurant’s chicken. He once sold a tap of his house to buy chicken from there. He even sold his school books to buy a dish from the restaurant.
- Since his school days, he has been friends with the Indian actor Mohanlal.
Maniyanpilla Raju in his younger days
- In the 1970s, he acted in many Malayalam films like ‘Light House’ (1976), ‘Neethipeedam’ (1977), ‘Mudramothiram’ (1978), ‘Mattoru Karnan’ (1978), and ‘Maalika Paniyunnavar’ (1979).
Maalika Paniyunnavar
- Some of his Malayalam films from the 1980s are ‘Maniyan Pilla Adhava Maniyan Pilla’ (1981), ‘Bheeman’ (1982), ‘Pinnilavu’ (1983), and ‘Oru Muthassi Katha’ (1988).
Oru Muthassi Katha
- After appearing in the film Maniyanpilla Adhava Maniyanpilla, he got the name Maniyanpilla.
- He went on to work in many Malayalam films including ‘Adhwaytham’ (1991), ‘Njan Salperu Ramankutty’ (2004), ‘Kunjaliyan’ (2012), ‘Shikkari Shambhu’ (2018), and ‘Gu’ (2024).
Gu
- Apart from acting, he has also produced various Malayalam films like ‘Vellanakalude Nadu’ (1988), ‘Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu’ (1999), ‘Black Butterfly’ (2013), ‘Finals’ (2019), ‘Maheshum Marutiyum’ (2023), and ‘Gu’ (2024).
Maniyanpilla Raju on the sets of a film
- He has acted in a few Malayalam TV shows such as ‘Laksharchana’ (1995), ‘Akshayapatram’ (2001), ‘Kadamattathu Kathanar’ (2004), and ‘Mahatma Gandhi Colony’ (2007).
Kadamattathu Kathanar
- In 2019, his son opened a restaurant, Be@Kiwizo in Kannur, Kerala’s first restaurant to use robots to serve customers. Raju is a co-partner in the business.
Maniyanpilla Raju at his son’s restaurant
- Raju has judged a few seasons of Malayalam comedy TV shows like ‘Comedy Super Show’ (Flowers TV), ‘Comedy Stars Plus’ (Asianet Plus), ‘Comedy Stars Season 2’ (Asianet), and ‘Comedy Stars’ (Asianet).
Maniyanpilla Raju in Comedy Star Plus
- He has also hosted a few Malayalam TV shows like ‘Laughing Villa’ (Surya TV), ‘Malayali Durbar’ (Amrita TV), and ‘Jambanum Thumbanum’ (Asianet Plus).
Malayali Durbar
- In 2024, he was roped in for the Malayalam web series ‘Jai Mahendran.’
