Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail (born 7 September 1951), known professionally as Mammootty ([mɐmːuːʈːi]), is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam-language films. He has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, and English-language productions. In a prolific career spanning five decades, he has appeared in more than 400 films, predominantly in lead roles. He is the recipient of several accolades, including three National Film Awards, eleven Kerala State Film Awards, eleven Kerala Film Critics Awards and fifteen Filmfare Awards South. He was honoured with the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award by the Government of India in 1998, for his contributions to cinema. He was also honoured with the Kerala Prabha Award by the Government of Kerala in 2022. Mammootty was named as one of "the men who changed the face of the Indian Cinema" by CNN.

Mammootty made his screen debut as a junior artiste in the drama film Anubhavangal Paalichakal (1972). He got his first credited role in M. T. Vasudevan Nair's Vilkkanundu Swapnangal (1980). After playing a few supporting roles, he progressed to lead role in I. V. Sasi's romantic drama Thrishna (1981). He continued to do secondary and lead roles in the following years. By the early to mid 1980's, he established himself a bankable leading actor by starring in several successful films in 1984 and 1985; the crime drama Athirathram (1984), the action thriller Nirakkoottu (1985) and the romantic drama Yathra (1985) heightened his stardom. Mammootty predominantly works in Malayalam cinema, but has also appeared in other language films. Some of his best known non-Malayalam films include the Tamil gangster drama film Thalapathi (1991), the Tamil romantic drama Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000), the Telugu musical drama Swathi Kiranam (1992) and the English-Hindi bilingual biopic Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar (2000).

Mammootty has won three National Film Awards, seven Kerala State Film Awards, fourteen Filmfare Awards, eleven Kerala Film Critics Awards and five Asianet Film Awards (from fourteen nominations). In 1998, the government of India honoured Mammootty with its fourth highest civilian award, Padma Shri for his contribution to the Indian film industry. He was conferred with the Doctor of Letters degree by the University of Calicut and the University of Kerala in 2010. In 2022, he was the honoured with Kerala Prabha, the second-highest award given by the Government of Kerala.

Mammootty's life and career have been included in the undergraduate syllabus of the BA History programme at Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam, as part of a course titled "History of Malayalam Cinema", recognising his significant contribution to the film industry. He is the chairman of Malayalam Communications, which runs the Malayalam television channels Kairali TV, Kairali News, and Kairali We. He is the owner of multiple production ventures, including the distribution-production banner, Playhouse, and production company, Mammootty Kampany. In 2007, Mammootty published his first book, Kazhchapadu (roughly translated as "Perspective"), a compilation of short essays he had written in various publications over the years.

Mammootty was born on 7 September 1951 in Chandiroor. He was raised in the village of Chempu near Vaikom in Kottayam district in the present-day state of Kerala, India in a middle-class Muslim family. His father, Ismail, had a wholesale garment and rice business and was involved in rice cultivation. His mother, Fatima, was a housewife. He is their eldest son. He has two younger brothers, Ibrahimkutty and Zakariah, and three younger sisters, Ameena, Sauda and Shafina.

He went to Government High School, Kulasekharamangalam, Kottayam for his primary education. In the 1960s, his father moved the family to Kochi, where he attended Government School Ernakulam. He did his pre-university course (pre-degree) at Sacred Heart College, Thevara. He attended Maharaja's College, Ernakulam, for his degree. He graduated with an LL.B. from Government Law College, Ernakulam. He practised law for two years in Manjeri.

He married Sulfath Kuttyy in 1979 in an arranged marriage. The couple has a daughter Surumi (born 1982), and a son Dulquer Salmaan (born 1983)—also an actor. He resides in Kochi with his family. His younger brother, Ibrahimkutty, has also acted in Malayalam films. His nephews, Maqbool Salmaan and Ashkar Saudan, are Malayalam film and television actors.

Mammootty made his onscreen debut as an extra in K. S. Sethumadhavan’s Anubhavangal Paalichakal (1971) at the age of 20. He made his second appearance in an uncredited role in the 1973 film Kaalachakram, directed by K. Narayanan. He was cast in a small role as a boatman. It was in this film that he said his first dialogue. In 1975, he acted in the theatre drama Sabarmathi. After his graduation from Maharaja's college in 1976, Mammootty began his practice as a lawyer in Manjeri. During this time, he met his mentor M. T. Vasudevan Nair, who cast him in a pivotal role in Devalokam (1979). However, due to financial constraints and conflicts among cast and crew, the film stopped shooting halfway. As the film did not get a release Vasudevan Nair cast him in a minor role in Vilkkanundu Swapnangal (1980), directed by Azad and scripted by Nair, his first credited role.