Manjeri Narayanan Nambiar (7 March 1919 – 19 November 2008) was an Indian actor who predominantly worked in Tamil cinema,[1] renowned for his portrayals of villainous characters.

Some of the famous ones include Enga Veettu Pillai, Aayirathil Oruvan, Nadodi Mannan, Naalai Namadhe, Padagotti, Thirudathe, En Annan, Kaavalkaaran and Kudiyirundha Koyil.

Manjeri Narayan Nambiar[4] was born on 7 March 1919 at Kandakkai near Mayyil in Cannanore (Kannur) in North Malabar region of Kerala.

He learnt discipline here which is according to him the major life skill at Madurai Bala nada vinodha kana sabha.

His arresting performance in films such as Manthiri Kumari, Velaikaari, Ayirathil Oruvan, Thillana Mohanambal, Missiyamma and Nenjam Marappadillai paved way for a very successful career that spanned over five decades.

After becoming popular in Tamil films he started his own drama troupe called Nambiar Nataka Mandram.

M.N.Nambiar was that rare contradictory personality - a cruel, charming villain on the silver screen while being a very pious man in real life.

He has had a long association with the temple, and visited the shrine more than 65 times over the last half a century; this has led to him being called Maha Guruswamy.

"He was a villain only when the camera got rolling...otherwise, he’d always keep us laughing with his ready wit," "In ‘Nenjam Marappadillai,’ he plays a really old man...the makeup would take hours together, but he would be extremely patient.