BES T INDIAN DIRECTORS

SHYAM BENEGAL

Born on 14 December 1934

Occupation Film Director, Screenwriter

Awards 1976 Padma Shri

1991 Padma Bhushan

2005 Dadasaheb Phalke Award

2013 ANR National Award

At the age of 12, he makes his first film with a normal camera given to him

by his photographer Father.

He went on to win National Film Award for best feature film in Hindi for

7 times.

He was also awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for lifetime

achievement for his contribution to Indian cinema in 2005.

Early Life Of Shyam

He spend the first few years of his career in Advertising agencies in Bombay.

Till 1974 he made hundreds of ad films and documentaries and then best

thing that brought him in limelight among the industry and media.

Ankur, his first feature film about economic and sexual exploitation from his

home state Andhra Pradesh. A year after he made Nishant which won the

National film award in best feature film category. Year after year he kept on

making cult films.

Manthan, Bhumika, Junoon, Arohan and the list goes on when we talk about

the great movies in 70’s and 80’s era which were also nominated at several

International film awards.

CAREER

He also directed a television serial “Bharat Ek Khoj” based on Jawaharlal

Nehru’s book, Discovery of India .In 1982 he made a movie based on the

life of legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray which won the National award

for Best biographical film.

Though he is considered as one of the best directors of parallel cinema he

also tried his hands in mainstream cinema with making of

Zubeidaa which again bagged the National film Award for best feature

film in the year 2001.

CAREER

In 2008 when “Welcome to Sajjanpur” was released an India times review said, “Shyam

Benegal has always been accredited as a mesmerizing storyteller known for

making ‘meaningful’ cinema. This time he also caters to commercial consumers,

coming up with his most ‘entertaining’ attempt, by far”.

Though it couldn’t perform well at box office it was much critically acclaimed by media

houses.

Now the maverick filmmaker is ready with his new project “Well Done Abba” which is

currently being screened at some of the prestigious film festival across the world

will be released very soon.

At the age of 75 and with more than 70 films to his credit he is still the same man who

believes in his own style of filmmaking , no matter it earns money or not but at the end

it earns applause from all savvy segments.

REVIEWS

Satyajit Ray

Born: May 2, 1921, KolkataDied: April 23, 1992, Kolkata

Books: Our Films, Their Films, The Emperor's Ring, moreAwards: Bharat Ratna, Dadasaheb Phalke Award, more

Children: Sandip Ray

Early Life Of Satyajit Ray

• He use to earn Rs. 80 /month working as a junior visualizer.

• His book “Our films their films” which came in 1976 was a classic

literary work highlighting the difference between Indian and

Hollywood cinema and other International filmmakers.

• He was one of the greatest filmmakers who bought most international

honours to our country for his contribution to parallel and realistic

cinema.

• In 1992 he earned a Honorary award for Lifetime Achievement

from Oscar Academy.

• He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema.

Career

• He started his film career as a director with his first film, Pather

Panchali (1955) which won eleven international prizes, including

Best Human Document at the Cannes film festival.

• Followed by making of Aparajito (1956) and Apur Sansar (1959),

the three films form The Apu Trilogy.

• Though he faced many financial hurdles while making Apu Trilogy,

he never compromised with the script and his way of filmmaking.

• Ray directed thirty-seven films, including feature films,

documentaries and shorts.

Works

• One film that influenced him deep inside was “Bicycle

Thieves” which attracted him towards independent

filmmaking.

• He was also greatly influenced by Rabindra Nath Tagore and

made a documentary on him.

• So his work revolved mainly around poverty, children and

apathy in a women’s life.

Awards

• In 1962, Ray directed Kanchenjungha, which was his first original

screenplay and colour film.

won 32 Indian National Film Awards.

win Golden Silver bear more than once.

• Ray is the second film personality after Chaplin to have been

awarded honorary doctorates by Oxford University.

• He was awarded Bharat Ratna shortly before his death in 1992.

• He also got the Akira Kurosawa Award for Lifetime Achievement in

Direction at San Francisco International Film Festival after his death.

• In 1992, the ‘Sight & Sound Critics’ Top Ten Poll ranked Ray

at no.7 in its list of “Top 10 Directors” of all time, making him

the highest-ranking Asian filmmaker in the poll.

• In 2002, the ‘Sight & Sound critics’ and directors’ poll ranked

Ray at no.22 in its list of all-time greatest directors.

• Thus making him the 4th highest-ranking Asian filmmaker in

the poll.

• In 1996, Entertainment Weekly magazine ranked Ray at no.25

in its “50 Greatest Directors” list.

• In 2007, Total Film magazine included Ray in its “100

Greatest Film Directors Ever” list.

His Words

• Akira Kurosawa, once said, “Not to have seen the cinema of

Ray means existing in the world without seeing the sun or

the moon.”

Born: July 9, 1925, Bangalore

Died: October 10, 1964, Mumbai

Occupation: Actor, Producer, Director,

Choreographer

Vasanth Kumar Shivashankar Padukone, better known as Guru Dutt,

was an Indian film director, producer and actor. He made 1950s and 1960s

classics such as Pyaasa, Kaagaz Ke Phool , Sahib Bibi Aur

Ghulam and Chaudhvin Ka Chand.

He is most famous for making lyrical and artistic films within the

context of popular Hindi cinema of the 1950s, and expanding its

commercial conventions, starting with his 1957 film, Pyaasa.

He has worked as a choreographer and Actor at one time. His first

movie introduced a new technical concept in Indian cinema ,Close up

shots with 100mm lens which later was referred on his name in

filmmaking.

British film magazine Sight & Sound poll ranked him at 73 in its list

of all-time greatest directors, thus making him the Eighth highest-

ranking Asian filmmaker in the poll.

Guru Dutt credited with several cult movies in Indian cinema was

the legendary filmmaker behind movies like Sahab,Biwi aur

Gulam and Chaudhvin Ka Chand.

Pyaasa and Kaagaz ke Phool are included in all time 100 best.

He worked with Prabhat Film company , Pune for 3yrs till 1947.

After coming to Mumbai he assisted two directors.

In 1951 his first film as director, Baazi was released.

This movies was produced under the banner of Dev Anand’s company

Navketan.

His second film Jaal was also a super hit flick.He also introduced Waheeda

Rehman to Hindi cinema under his production in C.I.D starring Dev Anand.

He and Dev anand were very close friends for many years.

His film Sahab,Biwi aur Gulam won the filmfare award in Best film

category directed by Abrar Alvi.

Though his movies could not earn enough money at box office he

earned the status of a legendary filmmaker making cult movies one

after the other. He acted in 16 films and Picnic was his last film in

1964.

He died the same year after consuming alcohol and sleeping pills at

night.

Once Dev Anand quoted Guru Dutt as “My only true friend in the

film industry. We got close to each other while working for Prabhat

Film company.

THE GREAT INDIAN FILMMAKER (IV):

ISMAIL MERCHANT

Ismail Merchant (25 December 1936 – 25 May 2005)

was an Indian-born film producer and director.

Ismail Merchant Indian filmmaker. Born and brought up in

Mumbai he went to New York for higher studies.

His very first short fi lm as producer was nominated for Oscar

Awards in 1960.

His first fi lm as director won National awards from Indian

Govt.

His partnership with World’s famous director James Ivory has

been placed in the Guinness Book of World Records for the

longest partnership in independent cinema history.

He was an actor, writer, producer, director as well as a great

cook.

ABOUT

In 1961 He founded a production house Merchant Ivory

Productions in association with director James Ivory.

Together they made close to 40 films and their films

won six Oscar award and several other prestigious

award.

He books on making of his film.

WORKS

“A Room with a View” ,

“Howards End”, “

“The Remains of the Day”

“The Creation of Woman” were nominated for Oscars.

“Mahatma and the Mad boy” as director.

“Shakespeare Wallah” and “Bombay Talkie” as producer

were his other famous work.

FILM

He also wrote couple of books on food and cooking like

o “Ismail Merchant’s Indian Cuisine”,

o “Ismail Merchant’s Passionate Meals”

o “Ismail Merchant’s Paris: Filming and Feasting in France”.

His last book My Passage from India: A Filmmaker’s

Journey from Bombay to Hollywood and Beyond.

BOOKS

BOLLYWOOD

Hindi Cinema better known as Bollywood across the globe

started its journey with the production of Raja Harish Chandra

which is the first silent feature film made in India in

1913 directed and produced by Dadasaheb Phalke.

By 30’s film factory was producing close to 200 films per annum.

1931 saw a revolutionized change as Alam Ara, first Indian

sound film was produced and was a major hit commercially.

After 6 years of black and white production director of Alam

Ara Ardeshir Irani,once again gave a important gift to film

industry by producing first colored Hindi feature film, Kisan

Kanya but the color concept became popular after 1955.

In 1957 Mother India directed by Mehboob khan

Legend Filmmakers Satyajit Ray (The Apu Trilogy) and Guru

Dutt (Pyaasa (1957)) were known as best Asian film makers. Their

Movies featured in Time magazine’s “All-TIME” 100 best

movies.

Actors like Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor had a huge fan following

at that time.

The most internationally acclaimed Hindi film of the

1980s was Mira Nair‘s Salaam Bombay! (1988), which

won the Camera d’Or at the 1988 Cannes Film

Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for

Best Foreign Language Film.

• In 21st century Directors like Nandita Das, Anurag

Kashyap and Madhur Bhandarkar are continuing the

legacy of realistic cinema with movies

like Fire, Gulaal and Page3.

• Slumdog Millionaire gave a new meaning and life to

Hindi Film Industry which is expected to cross a

turnover of 4 billion$.

Frozen is the first Black and white film

after a millennium by Shivajee

Chandrabhushan filmed at Ladakh,India.

Frozen is an epitome of Indian cinema’s

maturity.

It was featured at the various

International film festivals, including the

2007 London Film Festival.

Won awards at Durban Film festival for best cinematography

Nominated for other prestigious global awards and now it has been

released in India recently.

GOLDEN AGE

The late 1940s to the 1960s is regarded by film historians as the

"Golden Age" of Hindi cinema.

Critically acclaimed Hindi films were produced during this period.

Films expressed social themes mainly dealing with working-class

urban life in India are

• Guru Dutt films Pyaasa (1957)

• Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959)

• Raj Kapoor films Awaara (1951)

• Shree 420 (1955).

EPIC FILMS OF HINDI CINEMA

Mehboob Khan's Mother India (1957), which was nominated for

the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film,

K. Asif's Mughal-e-Azam (1960).

Madhumati (1958), directed by Bimal Roy and written by Ritwik

Ghatak, popularized the theme of reincarnation in Western

popular culture.

Other acclaimed mainstream Hindi

filmmakers

Kamal Amrohi and Vijay

Bhatt

Successful Actors

Dev Anand,

Dilip Kumar,

Raj Kapoor and

Guru Dutt.

Successful Actresses

Nargis,

Vyjayanthimala,

Meena Kumari,

Nutan,

Madhubala,

Waheeda Rehman and

Mala Sinha.

The 1950s new Parallel Cinema movement was mainly led

by Bengali cinema, it also began gaining prominence in Hindi

cinema.

Hindi films in this movement

• Chetan Anand's Neecha Nagar(1946) and

• Bimal Roy's Two Acres of Land (1953).

Hindi filmmakers involved in the

movement

Mani Kaul,

Kumar Shahani,

Ketan Mehta,

Govind Nihalani,

Shyam Benegal and

Vijaya Mehta

1950s and early 1960s

The social realist film Neecha Nagar won the Grand Prize at the first Cannes

Film Festival.

Hindi films were frequently in competition for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film

Festival throughout the 1950s and early 1960s.

1980s

Guru Dutt, while overlooked in his own lifetime, had belatedly generated

international recognition much later in the 1980s.

Dutt is now regarded as one of the greatest Asian filmmakers of all time,

alongside the more famous Indian Bengali filmmaker Satyajit Ray.

2002s

The Sight & Sound critics' and directors' poll of greatest filmmakers ranked Dutt

at #73 on the list.

THE FILM OF DUTT (NOW INCLUDED AMONG GREATEST FILMS)

Pyaasa (1957) being featured in Time magazine's "All-TIME"

100 best movies list.

Pyaasa and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) tied at #160 in the

2002 Sight & Sound critics' and directors' poll of all-time greatest

films.

Several other Hindi films from this era were also ranked in

the Sight & Sound poll, including Raj

Kapoor's Awaara (1951), Vijay Bhatt's Baiju

Bawra (1952),Mehboob Khan's Mother India (1957) and K.

Asif's Mughal-e-Azam (1960) all tied at #346 on the list.

Late 1960s and early 1970s

Romance movies and action films starred actors like Rajesh

Khanna, Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar and Shashi Kapoor and actresses

like Sharmila Tagore, Mumtaz and Asha Parekh.

In the mid-1970s

Romantic confections made way for gritty, violent films about gangsters

(see Indian mafia) and bandits.

Amitabh Bachchan, the star known for his "angry young man" roles, rode the

crest of this trend with actors like Mithun Chakraborty and Anil Kapoor, which

lasted into the early 1990s.

Actresses from this era included Hema Malini, Jaya Bachchan and Rekha.

70s

The rise of commercial cinema in the films such as Sholay (1975), which

solidified Amitabh Bachchan's position as a lead actor.

The devotional classic Jai Santoshi Ma was also released in 1975.

Another important film from 1975 was Deewar, directed by Yash Chopra and

written by Salim-Javed.

80s

The most internationally-acclaimed Hindi film of the 1980s was Mira Nair's Salaam

Bombay! (1988), which won the Camera d'Or at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival and

was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Family-centric romantic musicals are back with the success of such films as

• Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988),• Maine Pyar Kiya (1989),

• Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994) and• Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995),

This makes stars out of a new generation of actors (such as Aamir Khan, Salman

Khan and Shahrukh Khan) and actresses (such as Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit, Juhi

Chawla and Kajol) .

Action and comedy films were also successful.

The entry of new performers in arthouse and independent films.

Satya (1998) succeeded commercially directed by Ram Gopal Varma and written

by Anurag Kashyap.

Lagaan(2001),

Devdas (2002),

Koi... Mil Gaya (2003),

Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003),

Veer-Zaara (2004),

Rang De Basanti (2006),

Lage Raho Munnabhai (2006),

Krrish (2006),

Dhoom 2 (2006),

Om Shanti Om (2007),

Chak De India (2007),

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008),

Ghajini(2008),

3 Idiots (2009),

My Name is Khan (2010),

Raajneeti (2010) &

Dabangg (2010)

Lagaan won the Audience Award at the Locarno International Film

Festival and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at

the 74th Academy Awards.

Devdas and Rang De Basanti were both nominated for the BAFTA

Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

New generation of popular actors (Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek

Bachchan) and actresses (Aishwarya Rai, Preity Zinta, Rani

Mukerji, Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra), and keeping the

popularity of actors of the previous decade.

Mrinal Sen

Mrinal Sen (also spelled Mrinal Shen) is a Bengali Indian filmmaker.

Born on 14 May 1923,

Early Life

His interest in films started after he stumbled upon a book on film

aesthetics.

However his interest remained mostly intellectual, and he was forced

to take up the job of a medical representative, which took him away

from Calcutta.

This did not last very long, and he came back to the city and

eventually took a job of an audio technician in a Calcutta film studio,

which eventually launched his film career.

His directorial debut Mrinal Sen made his first feature film, Raatbhor, in 1955.

It had iconic Uttam Kumar who wasn't a star then.

The movie was a let-down.

His next film, Neel Akasher Neechey (Under the Blue Sky), earned

him local recognition.

His third film, Baishey Shravan (the day when rabindranath tagore

died) was his first film that gave him international exposure.

Sen and New Cinema in India

After making five more films, he made a film with a shoe-string

budget provided by the Government of India.

This film, Bhuvan Shome (Mr. Shome), finally launched him as a

major filmmaker, both nationally and internationally.

Bhuvan Shome also initiated the "New Cinema" film movement in

India.

Experimentation, recognition and acclaim

During this period, he won a large number of international awards.

His films show the development of ideas

from existentialism, surrealism, Marxism, German

expressionism, French Nouvelle Vague and Italian neorealism.

Sen's cinema do not provide a happy ending or a definitive conclusion.

The director invites and provokes the audience into a shared process of

forming multiple conclusions, that are at the same time unique and

different.

In 1982, he was a member of the jury at the 32nd Berlin International

Film Festival.

Mrinal Sen never stopped experimenting with his medium.

In his later films he tried to move away from the narrative structure

and worked with very thin story lines.

After a long gap of eight years, at the age of eighty, he made his

latest film, Aamaar Bhuvan, in 2002.

Awards National Film Awards

Best Director

1969 Bhuvan Shome

1979 Ek Din Pratidin

1980 Akaler Sandhane

1984 Khandhar

Best Screenplay

1974 Padatik

1983 Akaler Sandhane

1984 Kharij

Filmfare Awards

Critics Award for Best Film

1976 Mrigayaa

Best Screenplay

1984 Khandhar

International awards

Moscow International Film Festival - Silver Prize

1975 Chorus

1979 Parashuram

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival - Special Jury Prize

1977 Oka Oori Katha

Berlin International Film Festival

Interfilm Award

1979 Parashuram

1981 Akaler Sandhane

Grand Jury Prize

1981 Akaler Sandhane

Cannes Film Festival - Jury Prize

1983 Kharij

Valladolid International Film Festival - Golden Spike

1983 Kharij

Chicago International Film Festival - Gold Hugo

1984 Khandhar

Montreal World Film Festival - Special Prize of the Jury

1984 Khandhar

Venice Film Festival - Honorable Mention

1989 Ek Din Achanak

Cairo International Film Festival - Silver Pyramid for Best Director

2002 Aamaar Bhuvan

State honours In 1981, the Government of India awarded Padma Bhushan.

In 1985, President François Mitterrand, the President of France awarded him the

Commandeur de Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Commander of the Order of Arts

and Letters).

In 2005, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honor given to an Indian

filmmaker awarded by the Government of India.

He was made an Honorary Member of the Indian Parliament from 1998 to 2003.

In 2000, President Vladimir Putin of the Russian federation honored him with

the Order of Friendship.

Ritwik (Kumar) Ghatak (4 November 1925 – 6 February

1976)

Bengali Indian filmmaker and script writer.

• In 1948, Ghatak wrote his first play Kalo sayar (The Dark Lake),

and participated in a revival of the landmark play Nabanna.

• In 1951, Ghatak joined the Indian People's Theatre Association

( IPTA ).

• In 1957, he wrote and directed his last play Jwala (The Burning).

• Ghatak entered the film industry with Nemai

Ghosh's Chinnamul (1950) as actor and assistant director.

• Ghatak's first commercial release was Ajantrik (1958), a comedy-

drama film with science fiction themes.

• Ghatak's greatest commercial success as a script writer was

for Madhumati (1958).

• Ritwik Ghatak directed eight full-length films.

• His best-known films, Meghe Dhaka Tara (The Cloud-Capped Star)

(1960), Komal Gandhar (E-Flat) (1961), and Subarnarekha (Golden

Lining) (1962).

• Ghatak moved briefly to Pune in 1966, where he taught at the Film

and Television Institute of India (FTII). During his year at FTII, he

was involved in the making of two student films, viz., Fear and

Rendezvous.

• Making films became difficult because of his poor health due

to extreme alcoholism and consequent diseases.

• His last film was the autobiographical Jukti Takko Aar

Gappo (Reason, Debate And Story) (1974).

IMPACT AND

INFLUENCEAt the time of his death (February 1976), Ghatak's primary

impact would seem to have been through former students.

Though his stint teaching film at FTII was brief, one-time

students Mani Kaul, John Abraham, and especially Kumar

Shahani (among many others), carried Ghatak's ideas and theories,

which were further elaborated upon in his book Cinema And I, into

the mainstream of Indian art film.

• Director and screenwriter

oNagarik (The Citizen) (1952)

oAjantrik (The Unmechanical, The Pathetic Fallacy)

(1958)

oBari Theke Paliye (The Runaway) (1958)

oMeghe Dhaka Tara (The Cloud-Capped Star) (1960)

oKamol Gandhar (E-Flat) (1961)

oSubarnarekha (1962/1965)

oTitash Ekti Nadir Naam (A River Called Titash) (1973)

oJukti Takko Aar Gappo (Reason, Debate and a Story)

(1974)

• Screenwriter

• Musafir (1957)

• Madhumati (1958)

• Swaralipi (1960)

• Kumari Mon (1962)

• Deeper Nam Tiya

Rong (1963)

• Rajkanya (1965)

• Actor

• Tothapi (1950)

• Chinnamul (1951)

• Kumari Mon (1962)

• Subarnarekha (1962)

• Titas Ekti Nadir Nam (1973)

• Jukti, Takko, aar Gappo (1974)

• Short films and documentaries

• The Life of the Adivasis (1955)

• Places of Historic Interest in Bihar (1955)

• Scissors (1962)

• Fear (1965)

• Rendezvous (1965)

• Civil Defence (1965)

• Scientists of Tomorrow (1967)

• Yeh Kyon (Why/The Question) (1970)

• Amar Lenin (My Lenin) (1970)

• Puruliar Chhau (The Chhau Dance of Purulia) (1970)

• Durbar Gati Padma (The Turbulent Padma) (1971)

G. ARAVINDAN

Govindan Aravindan born 21 January 1935 in Kottayam —

died 15 March 1991 in Trivandrum)

Popularly known as G. Aravindan was a national award winning film

director, screenwriter, musician and cartoonist from Kerala.

BIOGRAPHY

G. Aravindan was the son of famous comedy writer M. N. Govindan Nair.

Started his professional life in as a cartoonist in Mathrubhumi journal.

He established himself in early 1960s with his cartoon series Cheriya

Manushyarum Valiya Lokavum. (Char. Ramu & Guruji).

He has also worked in other journals as cartoonist.

Aravindan diverted his attention to theatre and music.

He played a major role in establishing theatre and music clubs

namely Navarangam and Sopanam.

Several plays like Kaali and Avanavan Kadamba were created when Aravindan

got associated with artist Devan, playwright Thikkodiyan and writer Pattathuvila

Karunakaran.

WORKS

The first film directed by Aravindan, Uttarayanam(1974), produced by

Karunakaran and the story was written by Thikkodiyan.

Aravindan's second film Kanchana Sita was released three years later in

1977. The film was retake on the Ramayana.

Aravindan's next film Thampu(1978) dealt with realism and told the story

of suffering in a circus troupe.

His 1979 films Kummatty and Esthappan were also ran through different

streams.

His next film Pokkuveyil(1981) starred poet Balachandran Chullikkad.

WORKS

In 1985 film Chidambaram was produced by Aravindan himself under

the banner Suryakanthi.

In 1986 Oridathu came which handled the problems faced by the

people of a hamlet where electricity in unavailable, when electric

supply finally reaches there.

In this period Aravindan also did a number of documentaries and

short films.

Aravindan's final project Vasthuhara (1991) about refugees in

Bengal was based on C. V. Sreereman's short story in the same

name. The film had Mohanlal and Neena Gupta in major roles. Even

before the release of Vasthuhara, Aravindan died on 15 March 1991.

AWARDS

National Film Awards

o 1974: Award for the Best Feature Film on the 25th Anniversary of

India's Independence - Uttarayanam

o 1974: Best Feature Film in Malayalam - Uttarayanam

o 1978: Best Direction - Kanchana Sita

o 1979: Best Direction - Thampu

o 1986: Best Film - Chidambaram

o 1987: Best Direction - Oridathu

o 1991: Best Feature Film in Malayalam - Vasthuhara

Kerala State Film Awards

• 1974: Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay - Uttarayanam

• 1978: Second Best Film, Best Director - Thampu

• 1979: Best Film, Best Director - Esthappan

• 1979: Best Children's Film - Kummatty

• 1981: Best Director - Pokkuveyil

• 1985: Best Film , Best Director - Chidambaram

• 1985: Best Documentary - The Brown Landscape

• 1986: Best Film, Best Director - Oridathu

• 1986: Best Documentary - The Catch

• 1988: Best Music Director - Ore Thooval Pakshikal

• 1990: Best Film , Best Director - Vasthuhara

Adoor Gopalakrishnan

Moutatthu "Adoor" Gopalakrishnan Unnithan is an

Indian film director, script writer, and producer.

(born 3 July 1941)

BIOGRAPHY

At the age of 8 he started his artistic life as an

actor in amateur plays.

Later he shifted his base to writing and direction and

wrote and directed a few plays.

He worked as a Government officer

near Dindigul in Tamilnadu .

In 1962, he left his job to study screenwriting and

direction from the Pune Film Institute.

Works

With his classmates and friends, Adoor established Chithralekha Film

Society and Chalachithra Sahakarana Sangham.

The organization was the first film society in Kerala and it aimed at

production, distribution and exhibition of films in the co-operative sector.

Adoor has scripted and directed 11 feature films and 30 short films and

documentaries.

Adoor's national award winning film Swayamvaram(1972) (Malayalam).

The films that followed namely Kodiyettam, Elippathayam,

Mukhamukham, Anantharam, Mathilukal, Vidheyan & Kathapurushan

fetched him many awards.

Works

Adoor's later films are Nizhalkuthu and Naalu Pennungal, a film

adaptation of 4 short stories by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai.

Adoor’s third feature, Elippathayam won him the coveted British

Film Institute Award for 'the most original and imaginative film' of

1982.

The International Film Critics Prize (FIPRESCI) has gone to him six times

successively for Mukhamukham, Anantaram, Mathilukal, Vidheyan,

Kathapurushan and Nizhalkkuthu.

The nation honoured him with the title of Padma Shri (India's fourth

highest civilian award) in 1984 and Padma Vibhushan (India's second

highest civilian award) in 2006.

Mani Ratnam

Mani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer.

Born on 2 June 1956.

Actual Name: Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam Iyer

Directing landmark films such as

MounaRaagam (1986), Nayagan (1987),

Anjali (1990), Thalapathi (1991),

Iruvar (1997), Alaipayuthey (2000),

KannathilMuthamittal (2002), Yuva (2004),

Guru (2007).

Histerrorism trilogy consisting of Roja (1992),

Bombay (1995) and

Dil Se (1998).

He went on to become one of the leading directors in Indian Cinema.

His films Nayagan (1987) and Anjali (1990) were submitted by India in

contest for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

He made his directorial debut with the Kannada film PallaviAnuPallavistarring Anil Kapoor in 1983.

Career

He worked as a management consultant before becoming a

filmmaker.

He got into film direction with the help of his late brother, film

producer G. Venkateswaran.

Ratnam is particularly known for his eye for technical detail

in the art of film making.

Several international papers and books have been

published on his critically acclaimed movies.

1980s

Mani Ratnam's directorial debut was in 1983, through the Kannada film Pallavi Anu

Pallavi.

Mani Ratnam managed to persuade acclaimed director and cinematographer Balu

Mahendra to serve as his cinematographer.

His following efforts were the Malayalam film Unaru (1984), and then

two Tamil films, Pagal Nilavu and Idaya Kovil.

In 1986, Mani finally attained commercial success in Tamil Nadu through the Tamil

language romantic drama Mouna Ragam with Revathi and Mohan.

Mani's status was elevated further a year later writing Nayagan, directing the versatile

Tamil actor Kamal Hassan for the film, which went on to become a legendary success in

the industry. This Film was included in TIME Magazine's All-Time 100 Greatest Movies.

The story was inspired by the real life story of underworld king Varadarajan Mudaliar.

Late 1980s and 1990s

Ratnam wrote and directed Agni Natchathiram. The film was notable for use of new techniques

in terms of camera framework, especially during the shoot of songs in the film. The film had a

successful run in the box office.

Mani opted to do his next project in Telugu, and it was titled Geethanjali.

Ratnam maintained a momentum of making emotional stories of undeserved people through

the Raghuvaran starring Chennai release Anjali in 1990. The film told the story of an autistic

child and how she changed the lives of people in colony.

Mani later made another underworld-themed Tamil film with Thalapathi in 1991

starring Rajnikanth and Mammooty. Thalapathi earned both critical acclaim and commercial

success upon release.

Roja, a romantic film, tackled themes of terrorism in the regions of Kashmir – starring Arvind

Swamy and Madhoo – was released in 1992 and nominated for the Golden St. George Award at

the Moscow International Film Festival.

• Mani then took a more light-hearted approach with his next film – Thiruda

Thiruda. Scripted by Ram Gopal Varma.

In 1994, a retrospective of his Tamil films was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Ratnam again teamed up with Ram Gopal Varma to provide the screenplay for the latter's Telugu

film Gaayam.

In 1995, Ratnam returned to Tamil language drama. Bombay starring Arvind Swamy and Manisha

Koirala told the story of a Hindu-Muslim couple in the midst of the 1993 religious Bombay riots and

bombings.

Bombay was financially very successful and well appreciated by the critics. It won the Special Award

from the Political Film Society, the Wim Van Leer In Spirit of Freedom Award at the Jerusalem

International Film Festival and the Gala Award at the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

Then came his third part of "Terrorism Trilogy" in 1998 named Dil Se starring Superstar Shahrukh

Khan and another movie collaboration with Manisha Koirala after Bombay. The album was again

composed by A R Rahman and gave his next Filmfare Award for best Music Direction in 1999. This

album also marked the beginning of a famed collaboration between playback singer Lata

Mangeshkar and Rahman.

2000–present

Ratnam's following effort, Kannathil Muthamittal. The film was a critically lauded commercial

success, winning six National Film Awards, Filmfare Award South for directing, In Spirit for Freedom

Award at the Jerusalem Film Festival and an award at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles.

In 2004, Mani made his second Hindi language effort with Yuva.

Ratnam also made the film simultaneously in Tamil as Aayutha Ezhuthu, starring Surya

Sivakumar, R.Madhavan and Siddharth replacing Ajay Devgan, Abhishek Bachchan and Vivek

Oberoi respectively. Ratnam also had his first heart attack during shooting for Yuva.

In 2007, Ratnam direct the Madras Talkies production Guru starring Abhishek Bachchan. It became

one of 2007's biggest hits.

In 2010 Ratnam worked on a big-budget bilingual being made in Tamil and Hindi. The films are

titled Raavanan in Tamil and Raavan in Hindi. The Tamil version was dubbed into Telugu as Villain.

The film released worldwide on June 18, 2010.

Mani Ratnam received the Glory to the Filmmaker! Award at the 67th Venice Film Festival on

September 6, 2010. The ceremony was followed by a screening of Raavanan in Tamil.

Film-making style : Mani Ratnam often makes movies inspired by real-life events & famous epics.

Awards & Honors

Mani Ratnam has won several National Film Awards, Filmfare Awards and International film

awards.

Geethanjali won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome

Entertainment.

Mouna Raagam, Anjali and Kannathil Muthamittal have won the National Film Award for

Best Feature Film in Tamil.

Roja and Bombay have won the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National

Integration.

Bombay, Iruvar and Kannathil Muthamittal have won International film awards and screened

at various film festivals.

In 2010, he was honoured with Jaeger-Lecoultre Glory To The Filmmaker at 67th Venice

International Film Festival.

Girish Kasaravalli

Girish Kasaravalli (born 1950) noted film director, and one of the pioneers of the Parallel Cinema in Kannada cinema.

He’s a Film Director, producer and script writer.

Girish Kasaravalli graduated from FTII Pune in 1975, with a

specialization in 'film direction'.

He was inspired by Kurosawa, Ray, Ozu, Fellini and Antonioni

filmmakers, especially Ozu. While in his final year, he was chosen

to be the Assistant Director for Sri.B. V. Karanth for the

film Chomana Dudi.

He passed out of the FTII with a gold medal to his credit.

His first film as an independent director, was Ghatashraddha in

1977, which won him the Golden lotus, and also won a few

international awards.

Career

He won his second Golden Lotus for Tabarana Kathe in 1987.

Considered as one of the best edited films in India.

In 1997, he came up with , Thaayi Saheba which won him his

third Golden Lotus award. Thaayi Saheba is considered to be

the most mature work of the director.

He repeated his success with Dweepa in 2002 starring late

actress Soundarya. This film won his fourth Golden

Lotus award. Dweepa was different from his earlier films.

The International Film Festival of Rotterdam held a

retrospective of Girish Kasaravalli's films in 2003.

National Film Awards

Best Film

1977: Ghatashraddha

1986: Tabarana Kathe

1997: Thaayi Saheba

2001: Dweepa

Best Film on Family Welfare

2005: Hasina

Best Feature Film in Kannada

1989: Bannada Vesha

2009: Gulabi Talkies

South Asian Cinema Foundation's 'Excellence in Cinema' Crystal Globe Award

2009

Awards

Ghatashraddha (The Ritual) 1977

Won the Presidents Golden Lotus for the Best Indian Film of the year 1977-78

Won the Best Music Award for B.V. Karanth

Akramana (The Siege) 1979

Movie won the "MOITRA AWARD" at the Asian Film Festival

at Jakarta, Indonesia

Vaishali Kasaravalli won the Best Actress Award at the State Film Awards.

Mooru Dhaarigalu (Three Path Ways) 1981:[5]

Won the Best Cinematograpghy award at the National Film festival.

Dweepa (The Island) 2002

The film won the Presidents Golden-Lotus (Swarna Kamala) award for the Best

Movie of the Nation for the year.

H. Ramachandra won the best Cinmematographer.

*

Shekhar Kapur, (born 6 December 1945) is an Indian film

director and producer

*

* Kapur started his career working with a multinational oil company. He

moved to Great Britain in 1970, and worked as an accountant

and management consultant.

* He started his career as an actor in the movie Jaan Hazir Hai (1975) and

later in Toote Khilone in Bollywood.

* He also appeared in several Hindi TV serials, like Udaan opposite Kavita

Chaudhary, and films, but failed to flourish as an actor.

* He turned director with Masoom (1983).

* He then directed the 1987 science-fiction film Mr. India which was one

of the most successful films of the 1980s.

* In 1994 he directed the critically acclaimed Bandit Queen and also played a

cameo in the film as a truck driver.

* Kapur was also partly involved in the production of several Bollywood films.

* He partly directed the movie Joshilay (1989).

* In 1992 he direct another science-fiction film titled Time Machine. Halfway

through production, financial problems forced the film to be abandoned.

* He partly directed Dushmani, starring Sunny Deol, Jackie Shroff and Manisha

Koirala.

* In 1998, he received international recognition for directing the Academy

Award-winning period film Elizabeth. A fictional account of the reign

of Queen Elizabeth, the movie was nominated for 7 Oscars.

* The 2007 sequel, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, was nominated for 2 Oscars.

* He was accused of being anti-British by British tabloids for his portrayal of the

British Army and the Empire in the 2002 movie The Four Feathers.

* Kapur was the executive producer of the film The Guru.

* He also established an Indian film company with Ram Gopal Verma and Mani

Ratnam, though the group has thus far produced only one film, Dil Se (1998).

* In 2005, Kapur worked with Okan Quail on Hunji!, a story of a young Indian

maid who idolised Sachin Tendulkar.

* In 2006, Kapur formed Virgin Comics and Virgin Animation, an entertainment

company focused on creating new stories and characters for a global audience.

**Padma Shri in 2000

*Bollywood Mantra in 2005

In an unusual role, Kapur provided the voice of Mahatma Gandhi in

the Charkha Audio books title of The Story of My Experiments with Truth,

alongside Nandita Das as narrator.

He served as judge on a reality TV series, India's Got Talent, aired on Colors.

He was a member of the jury at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival in May 2010.

Mira Nair

Mira Nair (born October 15, 1957) is an Indian film director and producer.

Her production company is Mirabai Films.

Career

At the beginning of her career as a film artist, Nair directed four

television documentaries.

India Cabaret, a film about the lives of strippers in a Bombay nightclub, won the

Blue Ribbon award at the 1986 American Film Festival.

Salaam Bombay! (1988), with a screenplay by Sooni Taraporevala, was

nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and won

many other awards. It is today considered a groundbreaking film classic, and is

standard fare for film students.

The 1991 film Mississippi Masala starred Denzel Washington and Sarita

Choudhury, and profiled a family of displaced Ugandan-Indians living and

working in Mississippi. The screenplay was again bySooni Taraporevala, and

produced by Michael Nozik.

In 1995 her film adaption of the book The Perez Family, by Christine Bell, was

released. The film starred Marisa Tomei, Alfred Molina, and Angelica Huston,

and was again produced by Michael Nozik.

In 1998 she made My Own Country starring Naveen Andrews. It was produced

for HBO Films and adapted from the memoir by Abraham Verghese by Sooni

Taraporevala.

In 2001 she released Monsoon Wedding (2001), a film about a

chaotic Punjabi Indian wedding with a screenplay by Sabrina Dhawan. It was

awarded the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival, making Nair the

first female recipient of the award.

After the success of Monsoon Wedding Nair collaborated with writer Julian

Fellowes on her 2004 adaptation of Thackeray's novel Vanity Fair starring

Reese Witherspoon.

Deepa Mehta

Deepa Mehta, (born 1 January 1950 in Amritsar, Punjab, India) is a Genie

Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated Indian-born Canadian film

director and screenwriter

Career• Mehta started making short documentaries in India, and in time she met

Canadian documentarian Paul Saltzman, who was in India making a film,

whom she was to later marry and migrating with to Canada in 1973.

• Once in Canada, she embarked on her film career as a screenwriter for

children's films, she also made a few documentaries including, At 99: A

Portrait of Louise Tandy Murch (1975).

• In 1991 she made her feature-film directorial debut with Sam &

Me (starring Om Puri), a story of the relationship between a

young Indian boy and an elderly Jewish gentleman in

the Toronto neighbourhood of Parkdale.

• It won Honorable Mention in the Camera d'Or category of the

1991 Cannes Film Festival.

• Mehta followed up with Camilla starring Bridget Fonda and Jessica Tandy in

1994.

• In 2002, she directed Bollywood/Hollywood, for which she won the Genie

Award for Best Original Screenplay.

• Mehta directed two episodes of George Lucas' television series The Young

Indiana Jones Chronicles.

• The first episode, "Benares, January 1910", aired in 1993.

• The second episode was aired in 1996 as part of a TV movie titled Young

Indiana Jones: Travels with Father.

• Mehta also directed several English-language films set in Canada,

including The Republic of Love (2003) and Heaven on Earth(2008) which deals

with domestic violence and has Preity Zinta playing the female lead.

• The film premiered at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival.

Elements trilogy• Mehta is best known for her Elements Trilogy, Fire (1996), Earth (1998) (released

in India as 1947: Earth), and Water (2005), which won her much critical

acclaim.

• Some notable actors that have worked in this trilogy are Aamir Khan, Seema

Biswas, Shabana Azmi, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, John Abraham, Rahul

Khanna, Lisa Ray, and Nandita Das.

• These films are also notable for Mehta's collaborative work with author Bapsi

Sidhwa.

• Sidhwa's novel Cracking India, is the basis for Mehta's 1998 film, Earth.

• Mehta's film, Water, was later published by Sidhwa as the 2006 novel, Water: A

Novel.

• All three films have soundtracks composed by A. R. Rahman.

Filmography• Sam and Me (1991)

• Camilla (1994)

• Fire (1996)

• Earth (1998)

• Bollywood/Hollywood (2002)

• The Republic of Love (2003)

• Water (2005)

• Heaven on Earth (2008)

• Cooking with Stella (2008) (co-director)

• Midnight's Children (upcoming film) (2012) - based on the novel by Salman Rushdie

• Komagata Maru (TBA) based on Komagata Maru incident

Awards : Doctor of Laws, University of Victoria, 2009

Nagesh Kukunoor (born 30 March 1967) is

an Indian filmmaker and screenwriter and also Actor.

He invested the money he made from his engineering career in USA in

producing the movie Hyderabad Blues.

The script that he wrote in Atlanta dealing with Indians returning home from

the United States of America. He directed and acted in the movie.

It was a budget of Rs. 17 lakhs (1.7 million, roughly equivalent to U.S.

$ 40,000/-) and shot in 17 days.

It was perceived by Sanjay Arora, an independent film maker, to be realistic

and among one of the first movies to use Hyderabadi Urdu correctly.

It became the most successful independent film in India.

The film was featured at Peachtree International Film Festival

in Atlanta and Rhode Island International Film Festival.

3 Deewarein which was based on Shawshank Redemption(2003) was premiered at

the Kolkata Film Festival.

His film Iqbal (film), (2005) which was brilliantly written by Vipul K

Rawal featuring Shreyas Talpade and Naseeruddin Shahwon a lot of critical acclaim

for both for the simple yet heart rendering script and the acting by all actors.

8x10 Tasveer (2009), features Akshay Kumar in the lead role and Ayesha Takia as the

female

His latest movie, Aashayein, was released in 2010 but sank without a trace at the box

office mainly due to the lack of a good story.

It has received mixed reviews.

His current project Mod too is in trouble because it is a straight remake of a taiwanese

film and has no good story worth telling.

National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues - Iqbal -

2006

Filmfare Award for Best Story - 3 Deewarein - 2004

Teacher's Achievement Award for Creative and Performing Arts -

2002

Audience Award for best film at the Peachtree International Film

Festival in Atlanta, Georgia - Hyderabad Blues - 1999

Audience Award for best film at the Rhode Island International Film

Festival - Hyderabad Blues - 1999

THE END