Mohanlal lives with his family in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He married Suchitra, daughter of Tamil film producer K. Balaji[96] on 28 April 1988.[9] Mohanlal later recalled in an interview that Suchitra used to send him cards because she wanted to marry him. Their horoscopes did not match at first, but later it was found that the astrologer erred. Mohanlal has two children - Pranav and Vismaya. Pranav has acted in a few movies, debuting in Mohanlal's film Onnaman.[97] Mohanlal did not object when his son expressed a desire to act as "Kids may have many such ambitions. If we can help them realise something, what is the problem?" [97]
Mohanlal is a self-described foodie.[10][98] He also enjoys melodious music. Mohanlal is a strong believer in destiny and spirituality. He likes to read Osho, J. Krishnamoorthy, Aurobindo and Ramana Maharshi.[15] In 2008, Mohanlal underwent 18 months of magician training under Gopinath Muthukad. He had planned to perform a stunt called Burning Illusion in Thiruvananthapuram, however this was cancelled later on allegations that it is a dangerous act.[99]
In 2008, while shooting for the movie Kurukshetra in which he plays the role of an Army officer, Mohanlal expressed interest to join Territorial Army of India as an officer.[100] On July 9, 2008, he was formally inducted to the Territorial Army in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel by Army Chief Deepak Kapoor. Rules had to be amended to accommodate him as men above the age of 42 are not eligible to join the volunteer force.[101][102]
Mohanlal was awarded an honorary doctorate by KaladySree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit in 2010. The citation praised Mohanlal as "an excellent performer after actor Sathyan in Malayalam film world, who essayed a rich variety of roles with equal ease and poise." [103]
Mohanlal is a self-described foodie.[10][98] He also enjoys melodious music. Mohanlal is a strong believer in destiny and spirituality. He likes to read Osho, J. Krishnamoorthy, Aurobindo and Ramana Maharshi.[15] In 2008, Mohanlal underwent 18 months of magician training under Gopinath Muthukad. He had planned to perform a stunt called Burning Illusion in Thiruvananthapuram, however this was cancelled later on allegations that it is a dangerous act.[99]
In 2008, while shooting for the movie Kurukshetra in which he plays the role of an Army officer, Mohanlal expressed interest to join Territorial Army of India as an officer.[100] On July 9, 2008, he was formally inducted to the Territorial Army in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel by Army Chief Deepak Kapoor. Rules had to be amended to accommodate him as men above the age of 42 are not eligible to join the volunteer force.[101][102]
Mohanlal was awarded an honorary doctorate by KaladySree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit in 2010. The citation praised Mohanlal as "an excellent performer after actor Sathyan in Malayalam film world, who essayed a rich variety of roles with equal ease and poise." [103]