Jeo Baby

☆ Save On Wikipedia ↗
Jeo Baby
Born
Thalanadu, Kottayam, Kerala, India
Occupations
  • Film director
  • screenwriter
  • actor
Years active2016–present

Jeo Baby is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor who works in Malayalam films.[1] His family drama film The Great Indian Kitchen (2021) won the 51st Kerala State Film Award for Best Film and he received the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay.[2]

Early life

He studied cinema at St. Joseph College of Communication, Changanacherry. During his final year, he directed the 2007 short film Secret Minds which discussed same-sex relationships. He, along with three other students (the producer and actors), were suspended and later expelled from the college, which alleged the film had "obscene scenes which were capable of misleading young minds" and that they had not gotten permission to shoot it on campus. However, Jeo Baby later stated that the film "did well at international film festivals".[3][4]

Career

Jeo Baby started his career in the entertainment industry by writing for Television sitcoms in 2010.[4] He was involved in scripting the initial episodes of popular television sitcoms Marimayam, 'Uppum Mulakum' and 'M80 Moosa'.

He made his directional movie debut through the Malayalam movie '2 Penkuttikal' which was released in 2016.[5] His second movie Kunju Daivam was released in 2017.[6] In 2020 he directed Kilometers and Kilometers which has Tovino Thomas playing the lead role. The movie didn't get a theatrical release due to COVID-19 pandemic & premiered directly on Malayalam satellite channel Asianet followed by an OTT release on Netflix.[7]

His fourth Malayalam film, The Great Indian Kitchen, which has Suraj Venjaramoodu & Nimisha Sajayan playing the lead roles, was directly released on 'NeeStream' OTT platform on 15 January 2021. The movie was later officially released on Amazon Prime.[8] The film was successful, with a Tamil remake being released in 2023 and a 2024 Hindi remake Mrs. (film).[9]

Jeo Baby stated that it had given him the confidence to take more risks for his own 2023 film Kaathal – The Core. Starring Mammootty (who also financed the film and decided to collaborate with Jeo Baby after watching The Great Indian Kitchen) and Jyothika in the lead roles, the film has been praised as a serious and sensitive drama about a panchayat candidate navigating societal reactions and his relationships after his wife outs him as gay to end their loveless marriage.[10]

Short film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2007Secret MindsScreenwriter1.Screened in Queer LGBT Film Festivals, Bangalore

2. Screened in International Queer Film Festival, Rice University, Houston

Television

Sitcoms

YearTitleRoleChannel
2011MarimayamScreenwriterMazhavil Manorama
2014M80 MoosaMedia One
2015Uppum MulakumFlowers TV

Filmography

As director and screenwriter

Year Title Credited as Role Notes
DirectorWriterActor
20162 PenkuttikalYesYesNo—N/a
2017Kunju DaivamYesYesYes [11]
2020Kilometers and KilometersYesYesYes [12]
2021The Great Indian KitchenYesYesNo—N/a [13]
2022 Freedom FightYesYesYes Anthology film;
segment: Old Age Home
Sreedhanya Catering ServiceYesYesYesSiby
2023Kaathal – The CoreYesNoYes Kuttayi's stepfather [14]

As actor

This is a list of films that he only worked as an actor.

YearTitleRoleNotes
2015Ain
2019Edakkad Battalion 06Villager
2021VarthamanamAdvocate
Kho-KhoMeenakshi's father
2022Chera
2023Purusha Pretham[15]
KollaS.I. Victor Sebastian[16]
PulimadaAgustine[17]
2024MandakiniSagar[18]
Swakaryam Sambhava BahulamRaveendran[19]
Jai MahendranHarichandranSonyLIV web series[20]
2025MaranamassJessy's father
Kerala Crime Files 2Aashraya InchargeJioHotstar web series[21]
Meesha[22]
KammattamSamuel OommenZEE5 web series[23]
Ithiri NeramSanal[24]
Krishnashtami: The Book of Dry LeavesBased on Vyloppilli's poem 'Krishnashtami'[25]
2026AthiradiSI Manichan[26]
As presenter

References

  1. Anand, Shilpa Nair (30 October 2017). "The Unrelenting Storyteller". The Hindu. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  2. "51st Kerala State Film Awards: The complete winners list". The Indian Express. 16 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  3. Bourke, Amy (15 May 2007). "Students suspended for gay film". PinkNews. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  4. Anand, Shilpa Nair (30 October 2017). "The unrelenting storyteller". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 November 2023 – via www.thehindu.com.
  5. "Tovino, Amala pitch in for 2 Penkuttikal". Times of India. 3 January 2016.
  6. "Baby's Little God". The Deccan Chronicle. 22 February 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  7. "Tovino's movie 'Kilometers and Kilometers' postponed in wake of COVID-19 outbreak". 10 March 2020 – via Manorama Online.
  8. "Suraj Venjaramoodu starrer 'The Great Indian Kitchen' for OTT Release". Mathrubhumi. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  9. "Sanya Malhotra's 'The Great Indian Kitchen' Hindi remake titled 'Mrs'; to premiere at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival". The Hindu. 8 November 2023. Archived from the original on 26 February 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024 – via www.thehindu.com.
  10. Ramnath, Nandini (28 November 2023). "How Jeo Baby's risky 'Kaathal' fell into place: 'Once Mammootty agreed, everything became easy'". Scroll.in. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  11. "National award winner 'Kunjudaivam' has a quiet release". Times of India. 20 February 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  12. "'Kilometers and Kilometers' is an out and out entertainer-Director Jeo Baby". Times of India. 30 March 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  13. "Suraj, Nimisha Film 'The Great Indian Kitchen' to release on January 15". The New Indian Express. 12 January 2021.
  14. "Mammootty and Jyothika roped in for Jeo Baby's next". 18 October 2022.
  15. "Purusha Pretham Movie Review: Gritty procedural with an even blend of the comic and morbid". Cinema Express. 24 March 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  16. "Kolla movie review: This Rajisha Vijayan-Priya Varrier starrer will make you yell at the screen for conspicuously missing good opportunities". The Indian Express. 9 June 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  17. "Joju's Pulimada gets a release date". Cinema Express. 6 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  18. "Althaf Salim-Anarkali Marikar starrer Mandakini gets a release date". Cinema Express. 6 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
  19. Santhosh, Vivek (31 May 2024). "Swakaryam Sambhava Bahulam Movie Review: A dismal experience trivialising women's woes". Cinema Express. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  20. Cris (12 October 2024). "Jai Mahendran: Saiju Kurup's Malayalam web series is a pretty enjoyable entertainer". The News Minute. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  21. "Kerala Crime Files 2: Trailer of the Aju Varghese-starrer shows a investigative team's frantic search for CPO Ambili Raju". OTTplay. 28 May 2025. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
  22. Anand, Shilpa Nair (25 July 2025). "Director-actor Jeo Baby talks about his outing as an actor in 'Meesha' and being an actor in other directors' films" – via www.thehindu.com.
  23. "സീ5ല്‍ മലയാളത്തില്‍ ഇതാദ്യം..റിലീസിനൊരുങ്ങി ക്രൈം ത്രില്ലര്‍ സീരീസ് കമ്മട്ടം – MALAYALAM CRIME SERIES KAMMATTAM". ETV Bharat (in Malayalam). Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  24. "Roshan Mathew-Zarin Shihab starrer Ithiri Neram gets a release date". Cinema Express. 27 October 2025. Retrieved 2 November 2025.
  25. "Jeo Baby to headline film based on Vyloppilli's poem 'Krishnashtami'". Cinema Express. 9 March 2025. Retrieved 12 April 2025.
  26. "Athiradi, Basil Joseph-Tovino Thomas film, gets OTT premiere date". Cinema Express. 5 June 2026. Retrieved 25 June 2026.