Famous Personalities from Thrissur

The centrally-located city of Thrissur in Kerala, is famous for a number of reasons. Not only is it considered the Cultural Capital of Kerala due to its spiritual, cultural and religious leaning throughout history, but it’s also considered a sacred region, being home to the country’s first Church and Mosque and also to Guruvayur, a famous Hindu pilgrimage center. The popular Thrissur Pooram festival, the largest Hindu temple festival in Kerala, also takes place here.

Thrissur is also well-known as the finance capital of Kerala, being the head office of 4 regional banks as well as several Chit Funds. It’s famous for its gold ornaments and silk sari showrooms too. Aside from these, Thrissur has many famous personalities who have contributed in one way or another to Kerala too. Here is a look at some of them:

Chelat Achutha Menon – He was the Chief Minister of Kerala for two terms, serving the state from 1969 till 1977. He left behind a legacy of having initiated a number of institutions and development projects in Kerala. Till recently, he was the only politician to hold the record of being the CM of Kerala for two consecutive terms.

Gopika – Born as Girly Anto to Syro-Malabar Catholic parents in Thrissur, Gopika started off her career as a model before moving on to become a movie star. Though she has acted in more than 35 Telugu, Kannada and Tamil movies, she predominantly acts in Malayalam movies.

Biju Menon – He is a movie actor who made his debut in 1995 and has gone on to star in over 100 Malayalam movies along with a few Tamil and Telugu movies too. He mostly appears in supporting roles, but has taken on the mantle of lead and villain roles in a few movies.

M. Leelavathy – She is a well-known Malayalam writer, educationist and literary critic. During her long illustrious literary career, she has taught at various colleges and has been the recipient of several awards including the Kendra Sahithya Academy Award. She retired as the principal of Government Brennen College, Thalassery. She is a contemporary of luminaries such as K.M. George, N. Krishna Pillai and P.K. Balakrishnan.

Kochouseph Thomas Chittilappilly – He is an Indian business magnate, philanthropist, humanist and a writer too. He is the Chairman and Managing Director of V Guard industries Limited as well as a renowned chain of amusement parks called Wonderla. Chittilappilly is also the founder of the not-for-profit organization, K. Chittilappilly Foundation that is engaged in philanthropic and charitable activities. Government of India has also bestowed the national Rashtriya Samman award to him.

Justice P. Janaki Amma – Though born in a small village in Thrissur in 1920, she went on to conquer the world of law by becoming just the second female High Court judge in India on 30th May 1974. This was a rare achievement in those days. She served in this position till her retirement in 1982. She was a career-oriented woman and remained a spinster till her death in 2005.

Bharathan – A maestro with many hats, he has played many roles in the art world, including being a movie director, art and music director as well as being an artist, a lyricist, a sculptor and a poster designer. One of his major achievements was founding a school of movie making in Malayalam cinema.

Yusuff Ali M.A. – He is an Indian businessman with business interests spread out across the globe. Managing Director of the EMKE Lulu Group of Companies based in Abu Dhabi, he owns the Lulu hypermarket chain comprising of 120 outlets. He is currently the 24th richest Indian and the 737th wealthiest person in the world, according to a recent Forbes publication.

The list of luminaries from Thrissur is much longer than this, and to get to be a part of such an inspiring heritage, maybe it’s time you settled down in Thrissur too! For those on the lookout to buy apartments or villas in Thrissur, look no further than the prime properties offered by the prestigious Vishraam builders.

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