Thiruvananthapuram: Some actors are like aged wine. As they grow older, they may look more fresh and charismatic and Malayalam megastar Mammootty is such an actor for whom age seems to be just a number. As the hero turned 70 years old on Tuesday, he is still busy with a handful of new projects and amazing movie buffs with his incredibly young and fresh looks. 


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People from various walks of life including politicians, cultural leaders, who's who of Mollywood and his fans around the globe have flooded the social media platforms with wishes besides sharing their amusement about the stunning looks of the septuagenarian actor. 


All major local dailies came with centre-spread pages paying tribute to the ace actor while television channels aired special groups to mark his 70th birthday. Despite the coming and going of several young actors, Mammootty's position as the megastar is still intact with over 400 films in various languages including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and English besides Malayalam in a career spanning over five decades. 


Three national awards, seven state and 13 film fare awards, Padma Shri and two honorary doctorate degrees were the proof for his acting excellence and mass fan following. Wishing him on his 70th birthday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hailed Mammootty as a "unique genius" who has made the glory of Malayalam cinema known across the borders. 


"He is a person who wants to be rated as an actor and has an extraordinary commitment towards art. It is this attitude towards art and life that enabled Mammootty to reach the heights he stands today," he said in a Facebook post. The Chief Minister also said he conveyed his greetings directly to the "Vidheyan"actor after calling him over phone. Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, V D Satheesan posted a photo of him with the eminent actor on the social media and conveyed birthday greetings to the hero whom he called as the 'completion of Malayalees' heroic concept'. 


Superstar Mohanlal, who had already talked several times about his fondly relationship with Mammootty whom he affectionately calls as "Ichakka", posted a video message in his twitter handle. "Dear Ichakka, happy birthday...This is the day for celebration to me also as it is the birthday of my elder brother," he said. He said Mammootty was a person who had always been with him in his happiness and sorrows throughout the life with the affection of a brother. 
It is a blessing to live during the time of such a rare genius, the "Drishyam" actor added. 


Young actor Prithviraj conveyed the birthday greetings posting one of the latest photos of Mammootty, who could be seen in a super handsome look defying his age. An actor of both class and mass, Mammootty had made several movies immortal with his extraordinary genius in his 50 years of career which include "New Delhi", "Thaniyavarthanam", "Oru Vadakkan Veera Gatha", "Oru CBI Dairy kurupuu", "Kazhcha", :Mathilukal, "Vidheyan", Pondan Mada", "Kutty Sranku", "Paleri Manikyam Oru Pathira Kolapaathakam" and so on. 


His hit movies, which triggered a wave in the theatre, included "The King' 'Raja Manikyam", Pokkiri Raja", "Mayavi", "Thuruppu Gulan", "Annan Thambi" and so on. Rajnikanth--starrer movie "Thalapathi" and "Kandukonden Kandukonden" were among his blockbuster Tamil movies. 


His associations with critically acclaimed directors including Adoor Gopalakrishnan, KG George and T V Chandran and hit-makers like I V Sasi, Joshi, Ranjith, Anwar Rasheed and so on had always created magic on the screen. Debuted with the 1971 movie "Anubhavangal Palichakal, Mammootty's latest films that hit the theatres were "The Priest" and "One", both released this year. 


Besides movies, the actor is also doing several charity initiatives through his organisation "Care and Share International Foundation".