K. B. Ganesh Kumar

Keezhoote Balakrishna Ganesh Kumar (born 25 May 1967) is an Indian actor, television host, and politician who is serving as the Minister for Transport of Kerala since December 2023 and previously from 2001 to 2003.

Ganesh was born in a Hindu Nair family as the son of former minister R. Balakrishna Pillai and Valsala Kumari in Kollam, Kerala on 25 May 1967.

He was an alumnus of Government Arts College, Thiruvananthapuram.

He made his debut as an actor in the film Irakal (1985) directed by K. G. George.

He has starred in over 100 Malayalam films, performing a variety of roles.

Ganesh Kumar made his debut in the 1985 Malayalam film Irakal directed by K. G. George.

The film was adjudged the second best film for the year.

Over the years he made his a mark on the silver screen as a supporting actor, performing a variety of roles during the last two decades.

Ganesh Kumar's early films saw him frequently donning the role of villain or anti-social, as portrayed in Cheppu (1987) and Rakuyilin Ragasadassil.

On 20 May 1994, he married Dr. Yamini Thankachy, who worked as a senior research fellow at the Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies while pursuing her Ph.D. in Adolescent health.

The couple have two sons, Adithyan and Devaraman.

The couple later divorced due to irreconcilable differences due to Kumar's infidelity & domestic violence.

He is a Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly representing Pathanapuram since 2001.

He is the Chairman of the Kerala Congress (B) party.

He was elected from Pathanapuram in 2001 and has represented the constituency ever since.

He was Transport Minister from May 2001 to March 2003.

He is the son of R. Balakrishna Pillai, former Minister of Kerala.

In May 2001, Ganesh Kumar was elected to the Kerala Assembly from Pathanapuram on a Kerala Congress (B) ticket.

He defeated his opponent, K. Prakash Babu, by a margin of 9,931 votes.

Ganesh Kumar's father and former Minister, R. Balakrishna Pillai had also been elected from the neighbouring constituency of Kottarakara, which he had represented for several decades.

Ganesh Kumar became Transport Minister in the Antony cabinet in May 2001 and went on to give a good account of himself.

Though a political novice at that time, he turned around the ailing KSRTC and earned a reputation for providing a clean and efficient administration.

Since 2001 he has balanced his role as MLA with his acting duties.

In March 2003, he stepped down from his ministerial post to facilitate his father's induction into the Cabinet.

The film Lion (2005), starring Dileep and Kavya Madhavan was loosely based on Ganesh Kumar's life.

The movie fared well at the box office.

In the 2006 Assembly elections, Ganesh Kumar was once again elected from Pathanapuram, this time realising an increased victory margin of 11,814 votes by defeating K. R. Chandramohanan of CPI.

LDF had made a clean sweep, winning 11 out of 12 seats in Kollam District and a formidable majority in the State Assembly, thereby making Ganesh Kumar the only UDF MLA from Kollam district.

The election also saw the defeat of many of his former ministerial colleagues, including M. K. Muneer, P. K. Kunhalikutty, Babu Divakaran and Ganesh Kumar's father Balakrishna Pillai.

He went on to win the State Award for Best Television Actor (2007) for his role in the serial Madhavam, aired on Surya TV.

In March 2008, Ganesh Kumar was chosen by the Frame Media Gallup poll to receive the best actor award for his role in the Amrita TV serial Aliyanmarum Penganmarum.

He has also served as the Minister for Forests and Environment, Sports and Cinema of Kerala from 2011 to 2013.

In the 2011 Assembly elections, Ganesh Kumar scored a hat-trick win from Pathanapuram with an even bigger margin of 20,402 votes, trouncing his veteran CPM rival, K. Rajagopal.

He went on to become a Minister for Forests, Sports and Cinema in the Oommen Chandy cabinet in May 2011.

He was the Minister for Forests & Environment, Sports and Cinema in the Government of Kerala beginning May 2011 until his resignation on 1 April 2013.

He resigned from cabinet due to the domestic violence case filed by his wife Yamini Thankachi on 7 April 2013.

Fenny Balakrishnan, the former lawyer and counsel for Saritha S Nair, the prime accused in the 2013 solar scam, had raised serious allegations against Ganesh Kumar, saying that Ganesh Kumar added four pages to Saritha S. Nair's letter, bringing the total number of pages to 25.

Ganesh married Bindhu Menon on 24 January 2014 who works as marketing head in Asianet.

In the 2016 Assembly elections, Ganesh Kumar become an LDF candidate and defeated Jagadish of Indian National Congress by a margin of 24,562 votes.

In 2018, he allegedly assaulted a youth in a road rage incident, with the youth ending up in a hospital for injury treatment.