Malayalam cinema truly had a stellar year in 2024. When the industry refrains from desperately chasing box office milestones by mimicking other states' cinema, it delivers exceptional content—and, impressively, some of these films turn out to be massive hits. Talk about having your cake and eating it too! Among the year’s offerings were incredible movies that left a lasting impression, such as Rahul Sadasivan's visually striking Bramayugam, Chidambaram's gripping survival thriller Manjummel Boys, and Jithu Madhavan's delightful gangster comedy Aavesham. Even though it belongs to Malayalam cinema only because of technicalities, let's not forget Payal Kapadia's Grand Prix won All We Imagine as Light. Year-Ender 2024: Mammootty, Mohanlal, Urvashi, Fahadh Faasil and More - 15 Standout Performances That Redefined Malayalam Cinema This Year!

Of course, readers may notice some glaring omissions in this list (a few of which are included in the honourable mentions as populist picks). This is due to my personal idiosyncrasies, for which you’re welcome to troll me on social media. For instance, while the world is enamoured with Girish AD's addictive romcom Premalu, I enjoyed parts of it, particularly the comedy and the performances, but felt the film didn’t hit all the sweet spots.