Personal details
- Birth Date: 1979-09-12
- Birth Location: Thrissur, Kerala, India
- Parents: Jose Pellissery
- Professions: Director, Actor, Writer
Lijo Jose Pellissery, man, that guy’s a total wild card in Malayalam cinema. First off, he didn’t even start out in film—he actually has an MBA from some fancy management institute in Bangalore. Can you imagine sitting through those boring business lectures and then deciding, “Eh, I’ll just go make movies instead”? Absolute legend move. He got his hands dirty as an assistant to this ad filmmaker, Manoj Pillai, which is kinda the classic “pay your dues” path, I guess. Did a bunch of short films, probably just to see if he could bend the rules of storytelling a bit. And then boom, in 2010, he jumps in with Nayakan—his first feature. Not your regular, run-of-the-mill debut either. Next up, he goes all-in with City of God, and that one’s got a hyperlink narrative, meaning the story bounces around between different characters and plots. Not everyone can pull that off, but Lijo? Oh, he just does it and moves on. His filmography’s like a crash course in “How to Not Be Boring.” Amen, Angamaly Diaries (which, by the way, has one of the craziest single-shot scenes ever), Ee. Ma. Yau, Jallikattu (that movie’s basically a fever dream), Churuli, and Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam. Each one just does its own thing, no apologies. Awards? Yeah, he’s got those too. Kerala State Best Director, Silver Peacock for Ee. Ma. Yau and Jallikattu. Not bad for a guy with a business degree, right?
reference nLijo Jose Pellissery, son of the legendary Jose Pellissery, is a name that gets cinephiles buzzing—especially in the Malayalam film industry. The guy’s got this wild reputation for storytelling that’s both offbeat and super intense, never really following the usual playbook. Think chaotic narratives, characters that are a little bit broken (in a good way), and visuals that stick with you way after the credits roll. He’s the mastermind behind films like “Angamaly Diaries,” where he threw in, what, a 12-minute single take? Total flex. And then there’s “Jallikattu”—that movie literally got India’s attention at the Oscars. Lijo doesn’t just make movies; he crafts experiences where you’re almost forced to sit up and pay attention. If you’re tired of cookie-cutter cinema, his work is like a jolt of black coffee—bold, unpredictable, and absolutely not for everyone, but that’s kinda the point.
September 12, 1979
Konidela Ram Charan
Thrissur, Kerala, India
Jose Pellissery and Surekha
45 years old