Veteran Malayalam film actress KPAC Lalitha has been appointed the chairperson of prestigious Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, under the Department of Culture.
Lalitha, 69, an inevitable presence in Malayalam cinema for the last several decades, is a known left sympathiser.
The names of the newly appointed heads of the state-run cultural institutions, including the Sangeetha Nataka Academy, was released by the Department of Culture in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
The ruling CPI(M) had earlier chosen the award-winning actress as its candidate in the Wadakkancherry constituency during the May 16 assembly polls. But, she stepped back from the fray following opposition from the local party workers.
Noted writer Vaisakhan and artist Satyapal have been appointed President of Kerala Sahitya Akademi and Lalithakala Akademi respectively, while movie editor Bina Paul Venugopal was named vice chairman of Kerala Chalachitra Akademi.
Prof V Karthikeyan Nair (Language Institute) and C J Kuttappan (Folklore Akademi) were among the other newly elected heads of cultural institutions.