P. J. Antony was an Indian stage and film actor. He received the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in Nirmalyam in 1974. He was also the first actor working in Malayalam cinema to receive the award. Antony is also a respectable figure in the professional play field, working with communist cultural and art bodies like the K.P.A.C. He also established his own theatre named Prathibha Theatres in Kochi. In his early 20's Antony served in the Royal Navy during World War II. Post war, he returned home and joined a workshop as an officer. It was in this period in which Antony got chance to work with professional play artists. Soon he would establish himself as a prominent figure in Malayalam plays with his skills in acting, writing and direction. He was directly associated with the K.P.A.C., a major professional political play theatre at that time. He later established two play theatres namely P. J. Theatres and Prathibha Theatres (which is still active). With the expertise in plays, Antony began his acting career. His debut film was Randidangazhi (1957), a film adaptation of Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai's novel with the same title. He won the National Film Award for Best Actor, (then known as the Bharath Award in 1974) for his performance as a velichappadu (an Oracle or medium between the Goddess and the worshipper in a Hindu temple) in Nirmalyam, directed by prominent literary figure, M. T. Vasudevan Nair. Antony was the lyricist and screenwriter for a small number of films. He also directed a film titled Periyar. Amal Neerad's Iyobinte Pusthakam had the famous director Aashiq Abu playing the role of P. J Antony.