First Published Apr 23, 2022, 5:37 PM IST
HThe departure of screenwriter John Paul (29 October 1950 – 23 April 2022) is another milestone in Layala cinema. He was the screenwriter of over a hundred films that influenced many generations. John Paul is also an experienced screenwriter who has worked with directors including Bharathan, Mohanan, IV Sasi, Sethumadha and Joshi. Through his memoirs ….
He wrote the script for the movie ‘Njan, Njan Maatram’ directed by IV Sasi. In 1980, he wrote the screenplay for Bharathan’s Chamaram. Following Chamaram’s commercial success, John Paul quickly grew into a busy screenwriter.
The following year, in 1981, the film was made up of eight screenplays written by John Paul. From then until 1997, he painted hundreds of paintings.
KG George and John Paul.
Most of the films were financial successes. John Paul has been out of the Malayalam film industry since the 1990s.
John Paul, who wrote the screenplay for Manjeera Dhwani in 1997, later took up his pen in 2009. At that time he was writing the script for the movie Vellathuval for IV Sasi. In the same year, he wrote the screenplay for Viji Thampi’s film Nammal Thammil.
He will return to the film industry in 2019 after a ten – year hiatus. He also wrote the screenplay for the movie Pranayameenukalude Kadal starring Kamal.
The last screenplay he completed was Raju Abraham’s Tresa Had a Dream, which he completed in 2020. He had said at the time that he did not go into a vacuum when the film left him.
When MK Sanu Mash visited John Paul, who was in the hospital.
He said he was able to do a lot of research and other topics during this time. Media students were able to tell the film. He also said that the film discussions of many young directors have been energized.
John Paul and Bharathan.
John Paul recalled at the time that many people would come for screenplay discussions during this period and skipped over topics that were not suitable for him. Even though Malayalam cinema has been gifted with so many great films, John Paul always wanted to act like an ordinary person. That is why he lived in a rented house until his death.
An old-fashioned picture of John Paul.
He had previously said that he did not see film as a shortcut to making money. John Paul proudly said that despite doing so many movies, he has no guilt or shame in saying that he is still living in a rented house at the age of seventy-two.