The Top Malayalam Actresses of 2012

Malayalam movies have always been hero-centric. But even then, some actresses gave spectacular performances in 2012.

Here is our pick of the five actresses who made a mark last year.

Rima Kallingal

Film: 22 Female Kottayam

In Aashiq Abu's 22 Female Kottayam Tessa K Abraham is a nurse who wants to go abroad. While working in a hospital in Bangalore she falls for a young man and her life changes forever.

In the role of a lifetime, Rima Kallingal brilliantly enacted the agony of a young girl, who was brutally raped and sent to jail under false charges. The agonies she underwent made her stronger and she retaliated in a manner that could be an inspiration for girls faced with sexual harassment. 

Rima came up with another good performance in Nidra but the film failed to make much impact at the box office.

Film: Bavuttiyude Namathil

Though officially the film was in the name of Bavutty, the story belonged to Vanaja. With effortless style and a 'Neeleswaram accent', Kavya Madhavan played to perfection the role of a housewife who is neglected by her husband. 

Her life takes a dangerous turn when a wily guy turns up one fine day, rekindling memories of an old romance that had a tragic end.

Kavya portrayed the anguish of a genuine woman in a spectacular way in this film directed by G S Vijayan and scripted by Ranjith.

Film: Molly Aunty Rocks

Molly Aunty is a confident middle-aged woman who lives all alone in a sleepy village in Palakkad, where she works as a bank clerk. Her happy-go-lucky life is disturbed when an egoistic income tax officer locks horns with her.

Revathy played the title role in Ranjith Sankar'sMolly Aunty Rockswith great panache.

She was also good as a single mother in Father's Day.

Film: My Boss

In the role of Dileep's boss in Jeethu Joseph's My Boss, Mamta Mohandas was impressive. The film went on to become one of the top grossers in Malayalam in recent times.

Mamta was also seen in a few other roles. In a year when she went on record saying that her marriage was not really going well, she made quite an impact in filmdom.

Film: Ithra Maathram

Swetha Menon played the 38-year-old housewife Sumithra, who is dead and whose life is being unveiled through the eyes of people close to her. Ithra Maathram, directed by K Gopinathan based on Kalpetta Narayanan's novel, was appreciated at film festivals.

It wasn't that challenging a role for the terrific actress that Swetha is, but then the whole story was based on her character.

Swetha was also good in Ivan Megharoopan, which deserved more appreciation than it received. Her performance was the only consolation in an otherwise eminently forgettable film, Tatsamayam Oru Penkutty.