Sheela conquered the Malayali heart the way no other heroine before or after her could.

The J.C. Daniel Award, the highest honour in Malayalam cinema, would not have gone to a more deserving artiste. She is only the second woman to get it, after Aranmula Ponnamma in 2005.

Sheela was Malayalam cinema’s sweetheart for a couple of decades. Like many other female actors, Sheela was celebrated more for her success in mainstream films.

Acting prowess

But whenever she got an opportunity, Sheela proved her acting prowess, be it in Kallichellamma, which won her the first of her three State Awards for the Best Female Actor; Chemmeen, Oru Penninte Katha, Anubhavangal Palichakal, Anubhavam, Velutha Kathreena, Aswamedham, Athithi, Vazhve Mayam and Makane Ninakku Vendi, in which she played Nazir’s mother.

In her second innings — that began after a gap of more than 20 years — too, she impressed the Malayali cineastes.

She won the State and National Awards for the Second Best Female Actor for Akale.

That was after carrying Manassinakkare, her comeback film, on her shoulders.

Her portrayal of an old Christian matriarch showed she had lost none of her abilities to charm the camera.

Sheela has been chosen for the award, the highest honour in Malayalam cinema, for her contributions to the film world.

The award comprising a cash prize of ₹5,00,000, a citation and plaque will be given away at a function here on July 27, Culture Minister A.K. Balan said.

The jury was chaired by filmmaker K.S. Sethumadhavan.

Sheela who debuted through the Tamil movie Paasam, began her career in Malayalam with Bhagyajathakam directed by P. Bhaskaran in 1962.

She scripted history and entered the Guinness book of records for acting as Prem Nazir’s heroine in 130 films.