KOCHI: Veteran screenwriter John Paul, who along with the likes of directors Bharathan, Padmarajan and Mohan, helped reinvent Malayalam cinema in the late '70s and '80s by harnessing powerful visual storytelling to visceral and thought-provoking themes, passed away on Saturday. Paul (72) was under treatment for various ailments for some time.
With no formal literary training or background, Paul's original and rivetting screenplays were derived from his all-consuming passion for cinema, whose wide-eyed student he remained to the very end. Ardent learner as he was, the ever-accessible Paul was also a mentor to some of the biggest names in the Malayalam movie industry.
