When Mohanlal was announced as the recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest cinematic honour, a collective pride rippled through Malayalam households and across the diaspora. Yet the significance of this moment stretches far beyond Kerala. In celebrating Mohanlal, the nation has chosen to honour not just an actor, but a flag bearer of an art form, of a culture, and of Indian cinema itself.

A journey carved in characters
From his debut in Manjil Virinja Pookkal to his unforgettable roles in Kireedam, Bharatham, Vanaprastham and beyond, Mohanlal has been more than a performer. He has been a mirror to our lives. In his eyes we have seen vulnerability, in his silences we have found poetry, and in his presence we have discovered the extraordinary power of simplicity. He has played gods and everymen, kings and commoners, yet always with a grace that makes each role feel lived, not acted.

This ability to dissolve into character is what made Mohanlal more than a star. He became cinema’s everyman a vessel through which millions experienced their own struggles, joys, and contradictions. That is why his award feels so personal. It is not a crown bestowed on an individual, but a garland draped over generations of Malayalis who have found themselves in his art.

The flag bearer of Malayalam cinema
Mohanlal has carried Malayalam cinema on his shoulders to the world stage. In an industry known for realism, depth, and daring narratives, he has been the face that ensured Malayalam films were not just consumed locally, but celebrated globally. He turned a regional cinema into a national conversation, proving that great storytelling knows no linguistic barrier.

For decades, Kerala’s cinema has been its cultural ambassador. With Mohanlal at the forefront, it earned respect alongside giants like Satyajit Ray’s Bengal or Raj Kapoor’s Bombay. His Phalke Award is therefore not just recognition of one man, but of an entire tradition of cinematic excellence.

A symbol for Indian cinema
But Mohanlal is also more than a Malayali icon. He embodies the plurality of Indian cinema an art form that thrives in many languages and many styles, yet comes together under one flag. In recognising him, India has acknowledged that the strength of its film culture is not found in one industry alone, but in the mosaic of voices from every state and tongue.

In this sense, Mohanlal stands tall as a flag bearer of Indian cinema itself. He represents the quiet assurance that great art, rooted in local soil, can still speak a universal language.

A moment to inspire
For young actors, filmmakers and dreamers, Mohanlal’s Phalke Award is a reminder that humility and perseverance outlast spectacle. His journey shows that art anchored in truth will endure. For audiences, it is a celebration of what cinema can achieve not just entertainment, but empathy, connection, and memory.

As the lights dimmed on the award stage, what remained was not the applause but the feeling that something historic had been affirmed. Mohanlal’s honour is a national salute to the man, the craft, and the cinema he has carried for over four decades.

In him, Indian cinema has found its flag bearer. And in this moment, Indians everywhere can look to that flag, flying high, and know it belongs to them, to us all, and most fondly, to the one we call Lalettan.