Aswhin Prajapati
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Head Of Production / Casting Director / Company Director
Head Of Production / Casting Director / Company Director
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- Casting Director
- Production Manager
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Born on 15 April 1991, Aswhin Prajapati from one of the most talented and popular film veterans of Gujarati Indian Cinema, Aswhin he. assisted Mayur Katariya before co-producing films under Mor films . She Casting movies like Ek Aasha(2018) With her strong belief in the power of nuanced cinema and good storytelling, she diversified and started her own company - Prajapati Film Production . Under this new venture, she produced a short film and she revived and dedicated another division of Mor Films in making content-driven cinema. Recently, she became known for production head films like Ek Aasha(2018) Aswhin Her approach blends depth and unconventionality making the films one-of-a-kind cinematic experiences for the viewers.www.ek-aasha.com- Kirti Adarkar started her career as a prolific theatre actress eventually making the jump to Cinema and TV. Some of her memorable theatre performances have been in Goodbye Doctor and Goshta Jamantarichi for which she received awards for Best Actress and Direction respectively. She played the role of the grandmother of Osho Rajneesh in the highly acclaimed independent film "The Rebellious Flower". She received a lot of accolades for that role. She played a central role in the film 'Baar Baar Dekho' wherein she plays the role of Tarun's (Siddharth's brother) girlfriend. This is considered her breakout role. She also debuted in Marathi cinema with the National Award-winning film "Ventilator". She followed this up with Ganesh Acharya directed "Bhikari" where she again played the central character of Sharda Devi. She was also seen in the TV Series "Peshwa Bajirao" where she played the recurring character of Rani Yesubai. She is currently shooting for multiple web series, TV series and movies. She is also a writer.
- Producer
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Mayur made a documentary in India with a Transgender group in 2015. It invigorated his soul and from which the concept of his first feature film Ek Aasha was born. Ek Aasha has won many awards and been shown in 20 International Film Festivals so far. Mayur has written, directed and produced Ek Aasha - a ground-breaking film. Mayur has been honing his art and craft by writing, directing, shooting, editing and producing 10 short films. Mayur works as Business Administration Manager, Monash University, Australia. He is a trained counsellor and an experienced mindfulness trainer. He has a Bachelor in Engineering and Master in IT from Australia. Mayur has won, for Ek Aasha, the Best Débutante Director award at the Lakecity International Film Festival, India and Australia Independent Film Festival. He also won the Best Director award (Silver) at the India International Film Festival, India. Mayur's first film Ek Aasha was awarded the Best Alternative Film at the 11th New Hope Film Festival, Pennsylvania, USA (Festival is touted as the "emerging 'Sundance East'" in a Huffington Post article). It was also awarded the Best Film at the India International Film Festival, Best Feature Film (LGBT) at the Lifft India Filmotsav-World Cine Fest, India. Ek Aasha was awarded the Best Film and the Most impactful film at the Big Syn Film International Festival, London, UK- Producer
Jasmine Evans is known for Ek Aasha (2018).- Director
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Adoor Gopalakrishnan is India's most acclaimed contemporary filmmaker. Born in 1941 in Kerala, a state in south India, he belongs to a family with strong links to the performing arts, especially Kathakali, a highly-stylised form of dance drama. From the age of eight Adoor began acting for the stage, later producing and directing over twenty plays, several written by him. He is the author of two books on the theatre as well as a book on the cinema, "The World of Cinema", for which he won a national award in 1983. In 1962 Adoor enrolled in the Film and Television Institute in Pune and graduated in 1965 with a diploma in Scriptwriting and Direction. The same year he founded the Chitralekha Film Society of Trivandrum as well as the Chitralekha Film Cooperative. Both played a key role in the development of film culture in Kerala. In 1972 Adoor made Swayamvaram/One's Own Choice, his first full-length feature film. It launched the New Cinema in Kerala and became one of the major films of the Indian New Wave. He has since made seven more films (along with over 25 shorts and documentaries), all of which have won major national and international awards: Kodiyettam/Ascent (1977); Elippathayam/Rat Trap (1981); Mukhamukham/Face to Face (1984); Anantaram/Monologue (1987); Mathilukal/The Walls (1990); Vidheyan/The Servile (1993), and Kathapurushan/Man of the Story (1995). Elippathayam received the prestigious British Film Institute Award in 1982; Mukhamukham won the FIPRESCI prize in 1985; Kathapurushan was honoured in India in 1995 with the National Award for Best Film. Retrospectives of Adoor's films have been held in Pesaro, Helsinki, La Rochelle, Nantes, Munich, and New York. All of Adoor's films draw on the history and culture of his native Kerala. Kerala's transition from feudalism to modernity serves as a backdrop to his complex meditations on the psychology of power, the nature of oppression, the corruption of patriarchy, and the coexistence of the modern and the feudal in post-Independence democratic India. Elippathayam, his masterpiece, vividly captures the descent into paranoia of a man trapped within his feudal universe. In Mukhamukham, a study in failed idealism, a Communist leader gives up on revolution and decides to go to sleep instead. Vidheyan, a parable-like story, deals with the abuse of power, the plight of the outsider, and the nature of a master-servant relationship. The more recent films--especially Anantaram, Mathilukal and Kathapurushan--display a new concern with interiority and reflexivity, foregrounding time, memory, consciousness, and the nature of storytelling itself. Adoor's genius lies in his ability to create visually complex films that operate on multiple levels, that are culture-specific and yet universal in significance.- Director
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- Actress
Accomplished Film Director/Writer/Producer Mira Nair was born in India and educated at Delhi University and at Harvard. She began her film career as an actor and then turned to directing award-winning documentaries, including So Far From India and India Cabaret. Her debut feature film, Salaam Bombay! was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1988; it won the Camera D'Or (for best first feature) and the Prix du Publique (for most popular entry) at the Cannes Film Festival and 25 other international awards. Her next film, Mississippi Masala, an interracial love story set in the American South and Uganda, starring Denzel Washington and Sarita Choudhury, won three awards at the Venice Film Festival including Best Screenplay and The Audience Choice Award. Subsequent films include The Perez Family (with Marisa Tomei, Anjelica Huston, Alfred Molina and Chazz Palminteri), about an exiled Cuban family in Miami; and the sensuous Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, which she directed and co-wrote. Nair directed My Own Country based on Dr. Abraham Verghese's best-selling memoir about a young immigrant doctor dealing with the AIDS epidemic. Made in 1998, My Own Country starred Naveen Andrews, Glenne Headly, Marisa Tomei, Swoosie Kurtz, and Hal Holbrook, and was awarded the NAACP award for best fiction feature. Nair returned to the documentary form in August 1999 with The Laughing Club of India, which was awarded The Special Jury Prize in the Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels 2000. In the summer of 2000, Nair shot Monsoon Wedding in 30 days, a story of a Punjabi wedding starring Naseeruddin Shah and an ensemble of Indian actors. Winner of the Golden Lion at the 2001 Venice Film Festival, Monsoon Wedding also won a Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Language Film and opened worldwide to tremendous critical and commercial acclaim. Nair's next feature was an HBO original film, Hysterical Blindness. Set in working class New Jersey in 1987, the film stars Uma Thurman, Juliette Lewis, Gena Rowlands. Thurman and Lewis play single women looking for love in all the wrong places, while Rowlands, who plays Thurman's mother, adds to her daughter's hysteria when she finds Mr. Right in Ben Gazarra. The film received great critical acclaim and the highest ratings for HBO, garnering an audience of 15 million, a Golden Globe for Uma Thurman, and 3 Emmy Awards. Following the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Nair joined a group of 11 renowned filmmakers, each commissioned to direct a film that was 11 minutes, 9 seconds and one frame long. Nair's film is a retelling of real events in the life of the Hamdani family in Queens, whose eldest son was missing after September 11, and was then accused by the media of being a terrorist. 11.09.01 is the true story of a mother's search for her son who did not return home on that fateful day. In May 2003, Nair helmed the Focus Features production of the Thackeray classic, Vanity Fair, a provocative period tale set in post-colonial England, in which Reese Witherspoon plays the lead, Becky Sharp. The film is scheduled to release in Fall 2004. Nair's upcoming projects include Tony Kushner's Homebody/Kabul for HBO, and Hari Kunzru's The Impressionist, and there are also plans to take Monsoon Wedding to Broadway. Mirabai Films is establishing an annual filmmaker's laboratory, Maisha, which will be dedicated to the support of visionary screenwriters and directors in East Africa and India. The first lab, which is only for screenwriters, will be launched in August 2005 in Kampala, Uganda.- Director
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Shekhar Kapur was born on 6 December 1945 in Lahore, Punjab, British India [now Pakistan]. He is a director and actor, known for Elizabeth (1998), Bandit Queen (1994) and The Four Feathers (2002). He was previously married to Suchitra Krishnamoorthi.- Writer
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- Director
The man who revolutionized Tamil-language cinema, Mani Ratnam is the biggest director in south India and one of the most respected directors in all of India. Each of his films contain its own unique style, with beautifully photographed songs and unique back-lighting. However, his films contain substance as well as style--Ratnam has dealt with a wide variety of topics, from the classic Indian love story to political thrillers.
He was born in Madras in 1956. Filmmaking was in his blood; he was the son of film producer 'Venus Gopalratnam' and his brother was G. Venkateswaran, a film distributor turned producer. Ironically, however, he studied at Madras University and received a management degree at the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies in Mumbai, and had initially started out as a management consultant. His first film, Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983), starring Anil Kapoor, didn't make many waves, although it won the State Award from Karnataka that year, but even though he made two films in Tamil and one in Malayalam, nothing worked for him until he broke through with Mouna Ragam (1986). Starring Revathi, the film told the tale of a woman who, although forced into an arranged marriage, chooses to maintain a platonic relationship with her husband. The film was noted for its sophisticated approach and execution of an extremely sensitive topic.
His next film, Nayakan (1987), was also arguably his greatest. A take-off on Francis Ford Coppola' legendary The Godfather (1972), it established Ratnam as the leading director of Tamil-language Cinema and won its leading actor Kamal Haasan the National Award for Best Actor. The film draws on 30 years of Tamil Nadu's celebrity images and directly played to the anti-Hindi feelings of Tamil Nadu when the protagonist, beaten up, tells the Hindi policeman in Bombay, "If I ever hit you, you will die!"
Then came the best of his early work - Agni Natchathiram (1988), Geethanjali (1989), and Anjali (1990). The first was a tale of conflict between two step-brothers. Shot with glossy camera work, the film resembled a cross between an advertisement and a music video, and set a trend for a whole new visual style in Tamil-language Cinema. The next, Geethanjali (1989), shot in Ooty to create a soft and poetic mood, was a touching love story between two terminally ill people with less than six months left. The third, Anjali (1990), about a disabled child brought back to her family with two normal children had been chosen by India to be sent to the Oscars for Best Foreign-language Film, but it did not receive a nomination. The next year saw his first, and only collaboration so far, with the Tamil superstar Rajni Kant in the film Thalapathi (1991). It also starred Mamooty, along side a host of other actor. This star studded film was a gritty tale of an orphan who grows up to become a notorious gang member in Chennai. The story was inspired by the great epic of Mahabharata.
It was Roja (1992) that made Ratnam a household name all over India. A patriotic love story set against the backdrop of Kashmiri terrorism, the film was dubbed in Hindi and became a huge national success. It enforced Ratnam as a director of style and substance, as well as proving a highly auspicious debut for the now-acclaimed music director A.R. Rahman, whom Ratnam had discovered. It helped that India's at-the-time election commissioner T. N. Seshan took the rare step of officially endorsing the film. Thiruda Thiruda (1993), a remake of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) was a misfire, but Ratnam bounced back with Bombay (1995), a politically charged romance between a Hindu man and a Muslim woman during the 1993 riots in Mumbai. The film underwent some controversy due to its slightly anti-Muslim viewpoint, but it contributed widely to the success of the film.
Continuing his political obsession, Ratnam made Iruvar (1997), based on the MGR-Karunanidhi affair, and Dil Se.. (1998), which starred superstars Manisha Koirala and Shah Rukh Khan. The latter was Ratnam's first Hindi-language film. Based on the northeast Indian problem, it told the story of a radio executive and a revolutionary. It had an excellent cast, beautifully crafted scenes, and most of all one of A.R. Rahman's greatest tunes--but did not go down too well with the audience, who hailed it as a strange and confusing film that headed nowhere. However, today it is held as ahead of its time, being that it was shot pre-9/11, and is now hailed as a contemporary classic.
He returned to familiar ground with Alai Payuthey (2000), which tackled the story of a couple in love that goes through the trials and tribulations of marriage. His subsequent film, Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), which told the tale of an adopted girl meeting her terrorist mother, saw Ratnam back in form as one of the greatest storytellers in Indian Cinema. His next film, Yuva (2004), saw Ratnam return to Hindi-language cinema after six years, but in spite of some fine flourishes, the film largely failed to work. However, don't take him too lightly: he is sure to return with something new next time....- Director
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Ram Gopal Varma was born in Hyderabad, the capital city of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. He initially was a video store owner before eventually becoming one of India's leading film directors. A film buff during his youth, Varma would watch both American and Indian cinema regularly. As a young man, he attended Siddhartha Engineering College in Vijayawada. Varma started his career in telugu cinema (the Hyderabad film industry), where he made a huge mark with his debut film Shiva, a violent and stylized actioner set in a college backdrop. At the age of 28, with little film training, Varma was able to convince Nagarjuna, a young Telugu star, to act in his debut picture. Nagarjuna was drawn by the narration of the script and intelligence displayed by the young Varma. Shiva was a landmark hit for the industry and was remade by Varma in the hindi language a year later.
His next was the exciting adventure film, Kshana Kshanam, starring Venkatesh and Sridevi. Varma followed this up with such films as - Raatri, a homage to 'The Exorcist' starring Revati and Om Puri (which Varma would remake over a decade later in Hindi as Bhoot) and Antham, a stylized crime drama, with Nagarjuna and Urmila Matondkar (which Varma would also rework later as Satya) - but was not able to attain the commercial success of his first feature. His next release Gaayam, with Jagapathi Babu and Urmila Matondkar, was a violent crime drama set in Hyderabad. The screenplay was co-written by tamil film director Mani Ratnam, and the script based on 'The Godfather'. It became a success for Varma. He then decided to start his own production banner, Varma Corporation Limited, and produced successful telugu films such as Money (remade later as Love Ke Liye Kuchh Bhi Karega), Money Money (its sequel), Gulabi and Anaganaga Oka Roju.
His first huge success in hindi cinema (the Mumbai film industry) was the commercial blockbuster Rangeela, a stylish romantic drama with Aamir Khan and Urmila Matondkar. A.R. Rahman, a tamil music composer, was introduced to hindi audiences by Varma with this film and won the award for best film music.
Varma followed up with the ground breaking gangster saga Satya, a violent crime epic set in the Mumbai underworld. The film was gritty and realistic, reinventing the crime genre in Indian cinema. Varma had done extensive research for the film, and reworked certain elements of his earlier film Antham. Satya was widely considered Varma's first true masterwork. Made on a shoestring budget and with new faces, the film won awards for actor Manoj Bajpai and music composer Vishal Bharadwaj. Satya became a turning point in Varma's career, winning best picture of the year, and Varma would be forever associated with Mumbai noirs.
Varma then, with fellow director Shekhar Kapur, created a joint film production company in 1998 called India Talkies. The first venture of the production house was the ambitious terrorist drama 'Dil Se', with Shahrukh Khan and Manisha Koirala. The film was a box office dud, and India Talkies would be short lived. Varma would return to focusing on his own production house Varma Corp.
The hard hitting masterpiece 'Shool' followed shortly after, written and produced by Varma. The film depicted the life of an honest police officer in the violent and harsh rural setting of Bihar. The film was a commercial and critical success with both Manoj Bajpai and Sayaji Shinde winning awards for their performances. Varma lightened things up next with the romantic drama 'Mast'. The film was inspired by Varma's own college days, and featured Aftab Shivdasani in an award-winning turn as a film crazy college student.
Varma decided afterwards to only direct films in the Mumbai film industry. He believed there was more talent in Mumbai than in southern film cities like Chennai and Hyderabad. Varma had always admired directors such as Shyam Benegal, Govind Nihlani, and Gulzar. He considers Kalyug, Ardh Satya, and Mere Apne among his favorite Indian films of all time. At a time when popular Indian Cinema featured either over the top action films or glamorous love stories, Varma's films were more rooted and realistic. Varma is known to frequently cut out song and dance sequences in his films, which are usually commonplace in Bollywood. His films almost always deal with the contemporary and urban, usually set in the city of Mumbai. He often uses Indian stage actors in his films rather than established bollywood stars. Mainly known for creating the 'Mumbai noir', Varma brought psychological depth and cinematic virtuosity to genre films.
More recently, Varma returned with the organized crime masterpiece 'Company'. The film was again set in the Mumbai underworld, and was based on real life Underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his criminal outfit D-Company. The film featured award-winning performances by Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi and Manisha Koirala. The film also won awards for best editing by Chandan Arora and best story by Jaideep Sahni. The film was lauded by critics and audiences alike.
His latest release Naach, which Varma called his best film yet, was a largely self reflective piece, about the relationship between an idealistic choreographer and an ambitious actor. The film had a weak commercial run but was liked by critics. In a recent interview with the Indian Express newspaper, the filmmaker criticized Indian audiences saying "I gave Ayn Rand to a Municipal School."
He spends most of his time these days producing small budget films for his successful production house Varma Corp. Though not always credited, he is involved in all aspects of his productions, often believed to 'ghost direct' many of the films. He produces films at a fast speed that is unfamiliar to the Indian Film Industry. He has had many recent successes including - 'Ab Tak Chhappan', based on the experiences of famed Mumbai police Daya Naik, 'D', a prequel to his earlier hit Company based on the early years of Dawood Ibrahim during his days under Pathan underworld boss Karim Lala, 'Ek Hasina Thi', a female revenge thriller, and finally 'Road'. He has also produced lighter films such as 'Love Ke Liye Kuchh Bhi Karega' and 'Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon'.- Producer
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Anurag Singh Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter. Kashyap made his directorial debut with as yet unreleased Paanch, with Kay Kay Menon as the lead. As a filmmaker, he is known for Black Friday (2004), a controversial and award-winning Hindi film about the 1993 Mumbai bombings, followed by No Smoking (2007), Dev D (2009), Gulaal (2009), That Girl in Yellow Boots (2011) and Gangs of Wasseypur (2012). As a screenwriter, he wrote the scripts for the Filmfare Award-winning Satya (1998) and the Academy Award-nominated Canadian film Water (2005). He founded his film production company, Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt. Ltd. in 2009.- Composer
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Vishal Bhardwaj is an Indian film director, writer, composer, singer and producer. He has directed ten feature films, produced five and composed music for more than forty. His directorial work includes Makdee, The Blue Umbrella, Kaminey, 7 Khoon Maaf, Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola, Rangoon, Pataakha as well as the internationally acclaimed Shakespeare Trilogy - Maqbool, Omkara and Haider (adapted from Macbeth, Othello and Hamlet, respectively). Prominent films written and produced by him are Ishqiya, Dedh Ishqiya and Talvar (based on the Noida double murder case).
He has received 3 international awards: Makdee (2002) received the Best Film award at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival, Omkara (2006) won the Best Artistic Contribution in Cinema award at the Cairo International Film Festival and Haider (2014) won the People's Choice award at the Rome Film Festival. He has also received 7 National Awards: Best Music Direction for Godmother (1999), Best Children's Film for The Blue Umbrella (2005), Special Jury Award for Omkara (2006), Best Music Direction for Ishqiya (2010), Best Dialogues and Best Music Direction for Haider (2014) and Best Screenplay for Talvar (2015).- Director
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Dibakar Banerjee was born on 21 June 1969 in New Delhi, India. He is a director and writer, known for Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! (2015), Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar (2021) and Shanghai (2012).- Writer
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Rajkumar Hirani is an Indian film director and editor. Hirani has directed five Hindi films, including Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., Lage Raho Munnabhai, 3 Idiots, PK and Sanju, and all of which have been commercial and critical successes. Most of which have won several awards, including the national awards. Among his awards, include 11 Filmfare Awards. He is the founder and owns the production house Rajkumar Hirani Films.- Actor
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His passion for cinema immediately draws your attention, making you realize that Ashutosh Gowariker would not have been anywhere except behind the camera, however tempting the choice. An actor who took to film direction after almost a decade in front of the camera, Ashutosh has acted in Hindi films, Marathi films, television serials and commercials and although the transition from acting to direction was difficult, it was destined.
His diverse exposure as an actor whetted his appetite to helm a project, taking on the directorial reign for the first time with Pehla Nasha (First Love), a murder mystery in 1993. Though the film did not do very well at the box office, it helped Ashutosh find firm ground as a director. He followed this up with Baazi (The Game), a thriller, in 1995, which enjoyed average success, but led Ashutosh on a journey in search of a better script.
With Lagaan, which released in 2001, Ashutosh veered away from most norms in the making of a mainstream commercial Hindi film - a period drama, set in rural India; it's language a dialect; most of its characters were dressed in loincloths; it included a British cast; it was a musical, and a sports film put together! It was produced by Aamir Khan who also starred in it. Lagaan was nominated at the Academy Awards in the Best Film in a Foreign Language category for 2001 and earned plaudits worldwide for its meticulous execution and evocative performances.
His fourth feature film, Swades, was written, produced and directed by him, starring Shah Rukh Khan. The film released worldwide in 2004 to critical acclaim and attained huge success at the international box office.
February 2008 saw the release of his most ambitious magnum opus Jodhaa Akbar, an epic romance. This brought together two of the most respected actors, Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The film won the Best Foreign Film in the International Film Festival of Sao Paulo in Brazil, South America and the Grand Prix Best Film and Best Actor in the International Film Festival Golden Minbar in Kazan, Russia, as well as sweeping all of the Indian Film Awards.
His next film saw him take on a new genre with What's Your Raashee?, being Ashutosh's first romantic comedy, based on the Gujarati novel Kimball Ravenswood by Madhu Rye. The film featured Harman Baweja and Priyanka Chopra.
Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey is a period thriller starring Abhishek Bachchan and Deepika Padukone, based on the book 'DO and DIE: The Chittagong Uprising 1930-34' by Manini Chatterjee.
His last release, Mohenjo Daro, set in the Indus Valley Civilization stars Hrithik Roshan and debutant Pooja Hegde along with a stellar supporting cast including Kabir Bedi and Arunoday Singh.
Ashutosh has now engaged in the filming of his newest magnum opus Panipat, which is slated to release on December 6th, 2019. Based on the legendary third battle of Panipat, which took place on 14th January 1761 between the Marathas and King of Afghanistan, Panipat promises to be his grandest outing yet.- Director
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Deepa Mehta is a transnational artist and a screenwriter, director, and producer whose work has been called "courageous", "provocative" and "breathtaking". Her visually lush and emotionally resonating films have played at every major international film festival; receiving numerous awards and accolades, and have been distributed around the world. Deepa was born in India and received a degree in philosophy from the University of New Delhi before immigrating to Canada. She began her career making documentaries in India.
In 1991, Deepa's first feature film Sam & Me, which stars Om Puri, won a Special Jury Mention in the Camera D'Or section at the Cannes Film Festival. Between 1992-1994 she directed two episodes of The Young Indiana Jones, produced by George Lucas for ABC. In 1993, Deepa directed her second feature film Camilla, a Canada-UK co-pro starring Jessica Tandy, Bridget Fonda, Elias Koteas, Maury Chaykin, Graham Greene, and Hume Cronyn. Fire, which Deepa wrote and directed, is the first film in her Elemental Trilogy (Fire, Earth, Water). Fire opened Perspective Canada at the 1996 Toronto International Film Festival, where it was runner-up for the People's Choice Most Popular Film Award. It played at the New York Film Festival and won many awards worldwide, including the Audience Award for Best Canadian Film at the Vancouver International Festival, the Special Jury Prize at the Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival and Silver Hugo Awards for Best Direction and Best Actress in Chicago.
Earth, based on Bapsi Sidhwa's acclaimed novel about Partition, Cracking India, is the second film in the Elemental Trilogy. It premiered as a Special Presentation at the 1998 Toronto International Film Festival, and won the Prix Premiere du Public at the Festival du Film Asiatique de Deauville and the Critics' Award at the Verona Schermi d'Amore International Film Festival. Bollywood/Hollywood was a change of pace. Written and directed by Deepa, it is a lighthearted, affectionate comedy about two mismatched lovers. It opened Perspective Canada at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival and was a tremendous crossover box office success. It remains one of the top 10 grossing English language Canadian movies. In 2003 Deepa co-wrote and directed the Canada-UK co-pro The Republic of Love, based on a Carol Shields novel.
After a disrupted and hazardous production history Deepa's final film in the Elemental Trilogy Water opened the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival, and was the first Canadian film acquired by US distributor Fox Searchlight. Water is a powerful, hauntingly tragic story, set in Benares (Varanasi) about a child widow who at the age of eight is forced to enter a house of widows where she has to live for the rest of her life. The movie was to have been shot in India in 2000, but Hindu fundamentalists fomented riots, burnt sets, and issued death threats against the director and actors, forcing production to shut down and the filmmakers to leave the country. Water was successfully remounted in Sri Lanka and completed shooting in June 2004, and features many of India's most renowned actors.
Water was an enormous success. It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 79th Annual Academy Awards, and has screened at festivals around the world, winning many awards, and remains an audience favourite. The Vancouver Film Critics Circle named Deepa Mehta the Best Canadian Director of 2006. This fall (2015) is the 10th anniversary of Water's launch.
In 2006 Deepa made a documentary about domestic violence in Toronto's immigrant families called Let's Talk About It, which continues to be used in community outreach programs. She then thematically segued into the feature film Heaven On Earth, which explores arranged marriages and isolation. Starring Preity Zinta, the film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2008. It was awarded a Silver Hugo for Best Actress at the Chicago International Film Festival, and received the Best Screenplay Award at the Dubai International Film Festival. It also won the Youth Jury Award at the Schermi d'Amore Film Festival in Verona and the Audience Award at the River to River Florence Indian Film Festival.
In 2012, Deepa completed her epic cinematic adaptation of Salman Rushdie's famous novel about the history of India in the 20th century, Midnight's Children. A novel that won three Booker prizes. The movie, with 127 speaking parts, and covering five distinct time periods from 1917-1977, was a vast, ambitious undertaking and has screened all over the world, including the Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, and the BFI London Film Festival. Midnight's Children was chosen as the Best Feature Film of 2013 at the Directors Guild of Canada's Awards.
Deepa's work as an artist, as a progressive voice about social issues, and her generous mentorship have often been recognized. She has received numerous honorary degrees and many awards and honours, among them: The Life of Distinction Award from the Canadian Centre of Diversity, The Excellence in the Arts Award from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, and the Woman of Distinction, President's Award from the YMCA. She is a recipient of the Governor General's Lifetime Artistic Achievement Award for Film. Most recently, in 2013, Deepa was appointed as an officer to the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour, for her work as a "groundbreaking screenwriter, director, and producer." She is also a recipient of the province of Ontario's highest honour, the Order of Ontario.- Director
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Jayaraj was born on 4 August 1960 in Kottayam, Kerala, India. He is a director and writer, known for Desadanam (1996), Ottaal (2014) and Karunam (2000).- Director
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Amit Dutta is an Indian experimental filmmaker and writer. He is considered to be one of the most significant contemporary practitioners of experimental cinema, known for his distinctive style of filmmaking rooted in Indian aesthetic theories and personal symbolism resulting in images that are visually rich and acoustically stimulating. His works mostly deal with subjects of art history, ethno-anthropology and cultural inheritance through cinema, many times merging research and documentation with an open imagination.- Producer
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Sanjay Leela Bhansali is among the most celebrated Film Makers of the Bollywood. Having worked with the biggest stars of Indian Film Industry, Bhansali is the most sought-for director of the Bollywood. He started his career as an assistant director to Vidhu Vinod Chopra. If one has to name his 'niche' genre, it would definitely be Mega-Musicals. From Devdas to Bajirao Mastani, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam to Saawariya, love of cinema and music, proclaims through every movie he writes or direct.
His 1999 Romantic-Drama, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, starring heartthrob duo Salman-Aishwarya became one of the most critically cherished movies of the Genre. Amitabh Bachan, starrer Black was equally appreciated by the critics. But he made his presence felt with 2002 adaptation of the Hindi literary masterpiece, Devdas, for a silver-screen experience. He received a nomination for Best Foreign Film at BAFTA for the movie.
Devdas has become a name synonymous with a passionate, intense love that does not find consummation. This similar theme has been repeated numerous time in the literary work. And one of them is Romeo & Juliet. He translated this classic tale into Indian Folk Idiom.- Writer
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Producer-director Vidhu Vinod Chopra was born on 5th September, 1952 in Srinagar, Kashmir, India. After attending the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune, he made his directorial debut with the short film Murder At Monkey Hill in 1976. This won him the National Award, an honor given by the Government of India. Two years later, in 1978, he made a short documentary film called An Encounter with Faces, which was nominated for the Academy Awards in 1979. This poignant documentary highlighting the plight of India's destitute children also won the Grand Prix at the Tampere International Short Film Festival (1980). Chopra then went on to make his first mainstream Hindi-language film called Sazaaye Maut (Death Row) in 1981 (this was based on Murder at Monkey Hill). Later movies directed by him like Khamosh, Parinda, 1942: A Love Story, Kareeb, and Mission Kashmir were hailed by critics and audiences alike ( all can be hyperlinks). Moving away from direction in 2003, he wrote his first script and also made his first solo production under his company, Vinod Chopra Films, with Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. The movie, directed by Rajkumar Hirani, went on to become one of the most popular and successful films in Indian cinema. The second movie in the Munna Bhai series, Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) propagated Mahatma Gandhi's nonviolence principles and portrayed them in a new light. The 'Gandhisim' wave that spread across India, post the release of the movie was unprecedented. Chopra also wrote and produced the film Parineeta (2005) with another newcomer director, Pradeep Sarkar. It received critical and popular acclaim. After a hiatus of seven years, Chopra took up the director's baton yet again with the dramatic action-thriller Eklavya: The Royal Guard (2007). 3 Idiots (2009), another Vinod Chopra Films production directed by Rajkumar Hirani, remained India's #1 biggest worldwide box office performer until 2017, and it grossed more than $100 million. It was the first film in India to do so. It went on to win many awards, including Best Film at the Filmfare Awards. It also found popular appeal in markets like Taiwan and Korea. After the success of 3 idiots, Vinod Chopra worked with another new director, Rajesh Mapuskar, and co-wrote the film Ferrari Ki Sawaari (2012). The film was successful at the box-office and was lauded by the audience for its beautiful message. In 2014, he produced PK, another film directed by his longtime collaborator Rajkumar Hirani. Vinod Chopra made his Hollywood directorial debut with his film Broken Horses in 2015. This film was co-produced by the American company, Mandeville Films. He went on to produce several other films, including Wazir (2016), Sanju (2018), and Ek Ladki Koh Dekha Toh Aisa Laga (2018). His production company, Vinod Chopra Films is one of the leading film production houses in India.- Director
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T.K. Rajeev Kumar is known for Sesham (2002), Jalamarmaram (1999) and Raja Ko Rani Se Pyar Ho Gaya (2000).- Writer
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Abhishek, a renowned Indian filmmaker who co-wrote and directed the critically acclaimed dacoit action film, Sonchiriya, an RSVP production. He began his career as an associate director and co-writer to Vishal Bhardwaj for his debut Makdee (2002) & went on to assist him in his subsequent films, and most notably co-wrote Vishal's trendsetting Omkara (2006) and Kaminey (2009). Abhishek's directorial debut, the dark comedy Ishqiya (2010) and its sequel Dedh Ishqiya (2014), both starring Naseeruddin Shah received rave reviews. His following film, Udta Punjab (2016), highlighted the heroin epidemic in Punjab and was released to critical acclaim. He made his debut as a producer with Konkona Sen Sharma's A Death in the Gunj (2016), which premiered at MAMI Mumbai Film Festival.- Writer
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Nagraj Popatrao Manjule (born 24 August 1978) is an Indian film director, actor, producer, scriptwriter, poet, screenwriter, filmmaker and he works in the Marathi Cinema. Manjule grew up in Jeur village in the Solapur district of Maharashtra. He belongs to the traditionally-nomadic Waddar community, a Dravidian tribe.
He earned his M.A. in Marathi literature from University of Pune, followed by a master's in communication studies from New Arts, Science and Commerce College, Ahmednagar. His first National Award-winning short film Pistulya is a reflection of his 'felt experience'.
His debut feature film, Fandry, was released in February 2014.
Manjule's second film, Sairat, premiered at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. Like Fandry and Pistulya, it deals with caste discrimination and honour killing, a practice still widespread in parts of India. Sairat is currently the highest grossing Marathi film of all time.
Manjule is making his directorial debut in hindi films with Jhund starring Amitabh Bachchan. he known for his Marathi film Sairat, short-film Pistulya for which he received National Film Award in Non-Feature Film category.
At the 61st National Film Awards, Fandry won the Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director. In 2018, Manjule published a book of poetry in Marathi titled Unhachya Katavirudhha which won the Bhairuratan Damani Sahitya Puraskar.- Writer
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Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan was born on 8 October 1975 in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. He is a writer and director, known for '83 (2021), Lahore (2010) and 72 Hoorain (2019).- Director
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Gurvinder Singh is an Indian film director. He is best known for his Punjabi language films Anhe Ghore Da Daan, and Chauthi Koot (The Fourth Direction) which premiered at Venice and Cannes Film Festival respectively. In 2016, he was invited by a Turkish production house to direct a short film 'Infiltrator' (16 mins) as part of an international anthology of ten short films from ten countries, titled "In The Same Garden". The anthology premiered at the Sarajevo Film Festival in 2016. He made an experimental film based on the short stories of the Colombian writer Garbriel Garcia Marquez as part of a workshop with the students of acting at the FTII. The film titled 'Sea of Lost Time' (45 mins) premiered at the Rotterdam Film Festival in 2019.- Director
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Arun Prabhu Purushothaman was born on 14 June 1989 in Chennai,Tamilnadu,India. He is a director and writer, known for Aruvi (2016), Vaazhl (2021) and Untitled Arun Prabhu Film.- Director
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Mahesh Mathai began his career as a director in advertising films and established a reputation as one of India's best talents. He was known for the iconic campaigns for Garden Vareli, Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate (with the girl dancing on the cricket field), Gimme Red for Eveready Batteries, Asian Paints with Pataudi and the Mumbai Indians IPL team launch with Hrithik Roshan.
He founded Highlight Films which went on to become one of the most successful advertising commercials companies in India. His work for a range of clients including Unilever, Procter and Gamble, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Cadburys, Chevrolet, Eveready, McDowells, Philips, Asian Paints, Times of India, Seagrams, ICICI Bank and India Tourism covered nearly every possible brand category and won numerous Awards.
One of the pioneers of music video industry in the country, he partnered with Sony Music and BMG Records to launch the careers of singer Lucky Ali, and the band Bombay Vikings. The music video for Lucky Ali's ' O Sanam', shot at the Pyramids in Egypt, became hugely popular.
In 2000 he made the feature film, Bhopal Express with Naseeruddin Shah, Kaykay and Vijay Raaz (which launched the new composer trio of Ehsaan, Loy and Shankar) and opened the Panorama section of the prestigious Berlin Film Festival and won 7 International Awards.
In 2005 he completed a British film, Broken Thread starring Linus Roache (Batman Begins, Wings of a Dove, Hart's War, Chronicles of Riddick), Saffron Burrows (In the Name of the Father, Ganster Number One; Enigma; Troy; and Klimt.), Andrea Corr (The Commitments, Evita) and Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Monsoon Wedding).
In 2007 he founded the Blue Frog in Mumbai, the venue that became synonymous with live music, and is now branching out across the country.
In 2009 he drove an ambulance from London to Mongolia as part of a charity rally through 15 countries across Europe and Central Asia.- Director
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Ram Madhvani is one of India's most respected filmmakers. His debut feature film Let's Talk premiered at the Locarno Film Festival. It then went on to win the Screen "Best Actor" award for Boman Irani and "Best Debut Director" at the Srinivas Gollapudi National Awards.
Ram's documentary, Everlasting Light, showcased India's superstar, Amitabh Bachchan, at the Lincoln Center in New York. Richard Peña, Director of the Lincoln Center, wrote: "It is rare that a film on an artist is itself a work of art."
In February 2015, Ram set off on his next adventure with his biographical film on Neerja Bhanot - Neerja, with Sonam Kapoor and Shabana Azmi; under the banner of Fox Star Studios and Bling Unplugged, with Equinox Features (Ram's Company) being Associate Producer. The movie is a huge success both critically and commercially. Most reviewers gave the film 4 to 4.5 stars. Neerja has been one of the highest grossing Indian films with a female lead in history.
Ram has recently won the National Award for Best Hindi Feature Film (Neerja). He has also won "Best Director" at the Star Screen Awards, Stardust Awards and Zee Cine Awards & "Best Film(Critics)" at the Filmfare.- Producer
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Vetrimaaran is an Indian film director, screenwriter and film producer, who works in the Tamil film industry. Vetrimaaran made his directorial debut with the Polladhavan. His second feature film Aadukalam won six National Film Awards. He produces films under his production company, Grass Root Film Company. His movie Visaranai (2016) was selected as India's official entry to the Academy Awards.His film Asuran (2019) was named as the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.- Director
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T.S. Nagabharana was born on 23 January 1953 in Bangalore, Mysore State, India. He is a director and actor, known for Janumada Jodi (1996), K.G.F: Chapter 1 (2018) and Allama (2017).- Director
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Girish Kasaravalli was born on 3 December 1950 in Kesalur, Karnataka, India. He is a director and writer, known for Gulabi Talkies (2008), Naayi Neralu (2006) and Riding the Stallion of a Dream (2010). He was previously married to Vaishali Kasaravalli.- Writer
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A Legend of Telugu Cinema from South India, K.Raghavendra Rao's career spans 4 decades during which he has directed 110 films to date and has produced over 25 films in various Indian Languages.
He started his career successfully in 1975 having a long association with the icon of Telugu Cinema, the late N.T.R (ex-chief minister) and continues into the 21st century having worked though 5 generations of stars that include NTR & ANR, Krishna & ShobanBabu, Chiranjeevi & Balakrishna, Nagarjun & Venkatesh, Mahesh Babu, Jr. NTR & Allu Arjun.
He is credited with having longstanding relationships with some of the biggest stars of Telugu cinema noteworthy of them being 12 films with the late NTR ( a resurgence with which he went on to become the chief minister), 8 films with Chiranjeevi ( the most by any director) and 17 films with Sridevi (the most by any director). He has introduced and launched the careers of Venkatesh (son of D.Rama Naidu), Mahesh Babu (son of Krishna), Jr. NTR (grandson of Late NTR) and Allu Arjun (nephew of Chiranjeevi) apart from many heroines like Sridevi, Jaya Prada, Ramya Krishna, etc.
His foray into Hindi cinema in the 80's included blockbuster hits like Himatwaala, Tofha, Justice Choudary, Farz Aur Kanoon, Jani Dhost, among others(16 films). He is credited with the resurgence of Jeethandra as the jumping jack of Hindi cinema. As per independent estimates, the box office impact of his Hindi films adjusted for inflation in today's terms is over Rs.200 crores and puts him among the most successful directors in Indian film history. (Source IBOS Networks).
He has also credited with directing all 3 generations of families that include the Late NTR, ANR (Annapoorna Studios), D.Rama Naidu (Suresh Productions) and L.V Prasad ( Prasad Labs & ACS). His assistants include successful directors like B.Gopal, Kondandaram Reddy, S.S. Raj Mauli, Chandrasekar, YVS Choudary, etc.
He has also served as the Electronic Media Advisor, a Cabinet rank for the Chandrababu Naidu Govt. He has to his credit 1 National Award, over 10 State awards, 2 Filmfare awards and a Filmfare Life Time Achievement Award for his contribution to Indian Cinema.- Actor
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Cheran was born on 12 December 1970 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. He is an actor and writer, known for Autograph (2004), Porkkalam (1998) and Thavamai Thavamiruntu (2005). He is married to Selvarani.- Director
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The die-hard romantic Bharathiraja was born in Alli Nagaram, a small, sylvan village near Theni as Chinnasamy on 17 July 1941. He was the fifth child to his parents, Periya Maya Thevar and Meenatchiammaal alias Karuthammaal. His childhood passions were deer hunting and literature. As a full-blooded youth, he dreamt of making it to the dream world of filmmaking. He had an unremitting passion for acting and all the other theatrical pursuits right from his earliest days as a vagrant youth. He also happened to be a good platform speaker and went places spreading social awareness among the unlettered villagers. By the way, he got a job as a Sanitary Inspector in the Public Health Department in 1963, at a monthly salary of Indian Rs.75/-
Bharathiraja wrote, directed and acted in his first dramas "Oor Sirikkirathu" (The Town Laughs) and "Summa Oru Kadhai" (Just a Story) in Theni Pazhani Chettiyapatti village during festival seasons. This kindled the creative spirit in him and gave him the confidence to look for an opening in Tamil film industry.
As he moved to Madras to seek greener pastures and to give vent to his creative thirst, Bharathiraja staged his "Summa Oru Kadhai" and "Adhigaaram" (Power) with the help of his friends. He also took part in radio dramas and music programs. But since these opportunities were too infrequent to be depended upon for a living, he took up a job in a petrol bunk keeping his cinema ambitions intact.
After a fairly long struggle, Bharathiraja at last joined Puttannaa Ganagal as an assistant director in 1967 and still considers him his Guru. Eventually working with Krishnan Nair, Avinasi Mani and A. Jaganathan, he learned the grammar of film making and got his first directorial opportunity in 1977.
Bharathiraja is married to Chandra Leelavathi, and they have two children - son Manoj (the hero of ' Tajmahal') and daughter Janani.- Writer
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Pawan Kumar was born on 29 October 1982 in Anantpur, Andhra Pradesh, India. He is a writer and producer, known for Lucia (2013), U Turn (2016) and Dhoomam (2023). He has been married to Sowmya Jaganmurthy since 6 June 2010. They have one child.- Music Department
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M. Manikandan was born on 13 February 1982 in Tamilnadu, India. He is a writer and director, known for Kadaisi Vivasayi (2021), The Crow's Egg (2014) and Kuttrame Thandanai (2016).- Writer
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Anjali is a leading Indian film director and screenwriter. She completed her post-graduate degree from London Film School with honors in editing, producing, and directing film; her graduation film Black Nor White premiered at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and received the BFI award for Best Short Film. Anjali made her writing and directorial debut with the feature Manjadikuru (Lucky Red Seeds), a coming of age drama set in 1979, for which she received the FIPRESCI award for Best Malayalam Film and Best Indian Debut. Anjali has also written the critically and commercially acclaimed Ustad Hotel, for which she received the National Film Award for Best Screenplay - Dialogues. Her next feature film, Bangalore Days, revolving around the life of three Malayali cousins, emerged as a cult classic. Anjali's feature film Koode, showcasing issues of caste, migration, and child sexual harassment while dealing with themes of loss and solace, released to wide critical and commercial success in India and internationally. Having worked on projects in India, the Middle East, and the UK, Anjali's films provide a nuanced insight into the migrant experience and cross cultural interactions and she has received multiple National and State awards for her work in cinema. Her recent film Wonder Women delicately makes us aware of the beliefs, confusion, and questions regarding pregnancy and childbirth. Anjali is also one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), an organization that focuses on gender equality in the Malayalam film industry. She started a production company, Little Films India, in 2006 where she leads content and production affairs. Anjali is currently developing her next feature film and an anthology for a leading production house.- Director
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T.K. Rajeev Kumar is known for Sesham (2002), Jalamarmaram (1999) and Raja Ko Rani Se Pyar Ho Gaya (2000).- Producer
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Vikramaditya Motwane is a writer, director and producer (unfortunately not always in that order) and a partner in Phantom Films with Anurag Kashyap, Vikas Bahl and Madhu Mantena. His directorial debut Udaan (2010) was selected to compete in the 'Un Certain Regard' category at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. He's since directed Robber (2013), Trapped (2016) and Bhavesh Joshi Superhero (2018) and was the showrunner and co-director on Sacred Games (2018), Netflix's first Indian original.- Director
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Anurag Basu, a Bollywood director and writer explores relationships and adversity on reel. He had his share of tough times when he was diagnosed with leukemia.
Basu directed television serials among which is Tara (1993), which became one of the first soap operas on Indian television. He also directed Balaji Telefilms' Koshish Ek Aasha (1997) and Miit (2002), which was based on Rabindranath Tagore's Noukadubi.
He made his debut in movies with Kucch Toh Hai (2003). It starred Tusshar Kapoor and Esha Deol. The movie wasn't anywhere near a major success. He made movies under the Vishesh Films banner. Saaya (2003) belonged to the supernatural genre about a doctor who communicates with his dead wife through his patients. It starred John Abraham and Tara Sharma.
Murder (2004) was based on Hollywood's hit Unfaithful. It starred Emraan Hashmi and Mallika Sherawat. The movie along with it's soundtrack became a big success. During the filming of his next movie Tumsa Nahin Dekhan (2004), Basu was diagnosed with blood cancer. The movie was later completed by Mohit Suri and Mahesh Bhatt.
In 2006, Anurag Basu came back to make Gangster with Emraan Hashmi, Kangana Ranaut and Shiney Ahuja. It was supposed to be based on Abu Salem's real life affair with actress Monica Bedi. The movie did well.
It was followed by the critically acclaimed Life in a Metro.
He wrote the screenplays for Gangster, Life in a Metro and Kites and won the Filmfare Best Screenplay Award for Life in a Metro.- Director
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Ayan Mukerji was born on 15 August 1983 in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. He is a director and writer, known for Brahmastra Part One: Shiva (2022), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) and Wake Up Sid (2009).- Director
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Nila Madhab Panda, has been hailed as a new-age sensation of Indian cinema. His first feature film, the highly-acclaimed I Am Kalam, has already won 24 International awards, one national award, two Industry award (Film fare and screen) and several nominations, which traveled over 60 International film festivals. His second released film "Jalpari-the desert Mermaid" received critically acclaimed as well as well received by the audience. His latest release "Kaun Kitney Paani Mein" is a film about fight over water between two village heads against the backdrop of a passionate love story, it got released in August, 2015.- Director
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Karthick Naren was born on 23 July 1994 in Tamil Nadu, India. He is a director and writer, known for Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru (2016), Naadaga Medai and Naragasooran.- Writer
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Neeraj Pandey (born 17 December 1973) is an acclaimed Indian film director, producer and screenwriter. In his first movie A Wednesday, his work was largely praised by audiences as well as the critics. A Wednesday also won many awards in different categories. His second film Special 26 (2013) was equally appreciated by the public and the critics. Not just a filmmaker but a writer too, Neeraj has written a novel named 'Ghalib Danger' in 2013. He also directed the movie Baby (2015) starring Akshay Kumar which received critical acclaim from the audience and was a huge success.The movie Rustom which was produced by Neeraj, was released on 12 August 2016 and received mixed reviews by critics but was a runaway commercial success. His last movie was a biopic on cricketer M.S.Dhoni titled M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story which was loved by the audience.. He aims at making more commercial content in the sports genre. Neeraj has carved a niche for himself in the film industry with his adept handling of different topics and is one of the most sought after Directors of his generation.
In 2016, his Production House Friday Filmworks and Reliance Entertainment entered into a joint venture and formed Plan C Studios.
He has also directed a Web Short 'Ouch' with Manoj Bajpayee and Pooja Chopra which is nominated for Filmfare Short Film Award 2017. As the co-producer, his recent blockbuster Toilet- Ek Prem Katha is getting critical appreciation from the film industry and the audience. His upcoming movie is Aiyaary which is set to release on 2018 starring Sidharth Malhotra and Manoj Bajpayee- Director
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Born in 1955 in Mumbai, Nandita Roy did her graduate and post graduate studies in Economics and worked as a primary school teacher.After becoming an assistant director and a set dresser, she formed her own company to produce feature films and has worked with actor Shiboprasad Mukherjee as co-director, since 2011.- Director
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Srijit Mukherji was born on 23 September 1977 in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. He is a director and writer, known for Vinci Da (2019), Ek Je Chhilo Raja (2018) and Chotushkone (2014). He has been married to Rafiath Rashid Mithila since 6 December 2019.- Producer
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Shiboprosad Mukherjee is an Indian Bengali film maker, actor and Screenwriter. He, along with director Nandita Roy, are amongst the few director duos in the history of Bengali cinema to have achieved success both critically and commercially in their very first film Icche (2011). The director duo is known for directing socially relevant entertaining films. They have directed films like Icche, Muktodhara, Accident, Alik Sukh and Ramdhanu all of which have achieved both critical and commercial success. He is a partner at Windows Productions.
Shiboprosad Mukherjee was born on May 20 in Baranagar, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He attended Ramakrishna Mission Ashram, Baranagar Mission and later did his high school from Hindu School. He perused his graduation in Political Science Honours from Jadavpur University.
After completion of high school he joined the theatre group as trainer. He was part of T.I.E. Project (Theater in Education), under the guidance of Rudra Prasad Sengupta. He also attended workshop conducted by Ibrahim Alkazi. During his acting days he was also working as a freelance journalist in 'Anandalok' (a film Magazine of A.B.P. Group), guided by Rituporno Ghosh. He started acting in television serials like Ekushe Pa, Ghoom Nei, Janmabhoomi etc. He got his first acting career break in the year 1995 in the serial "Ekushe Pa" directed by Raja Dasgupta for Zee Bangla.
He has been associated with ETV Bangla - a 24-hrs regional satellite channel of Eenadu Group right from its inception where he is responsible for conceptualizing, designing & producing 6 hours of original programming daily. He was a senior programming associate at ETV Bangla (1999 to 2002). He has designed more than 50 non-fiction shows for Bengali television. He conceptualised the first Bengali women's magazine programmes on television - 'Sreemoti'. He launched the first reality show format in Bengali television - Ritur Mela Jhoom Tara Ra Ra as a director and producer he has worked with all leading channels in West Bengal and Bangladesh. He has designed more than 10,000 hours of television programme.
He started his own company named 'Windows Productions' along with his partner Nandita Roy. Together they produced many non-fiction and fiction programmes.- Director
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Priyadarshan is an Indian film director and screenwriter. He has worked in the Hindi and Malayalam film industry for almost 40 years and has directed over 90 films.
He completed his early education at Government Model School in Thiruvananthapuram. He later pursued his bachelor's degree from Mahatma Gandhi College and Master of Arts in Philosophy from University College Thiruvananthapuram. Priyadarshan was a voracious reader, which sparked his interest in writing and led him to write short plays and skits for All India Radio in college.
He began his career in the Malayalam Film Industry in the early 1980s. He started his career as a director with Poochakkoru Mookkuthi (1984) in 1984. The film did surprisingly well and ran for almost 100 days in theatres across Kerala. He continued this slapstick comedy style and later made Oodarathuammava Aalariyam (1984) and Onnanam Kunnil Oradi Kunnil (1985).
Later that year, he demonstrated versatility by directing the crime drama Parayanumvayya Parayathirikkanumvayya (1985). In the same year, Priyadarshan made his first film with Mohanlal titled Punnaram Cholli Cholli (1985).
1988 was a landmark year in Priyadarshan's career. He directed Vellanakalude Naadu (1988) with Mohanlal in the lead role. It was a political satire crime film that revolved around the prevalent corruption in the country. The film was the biggest hit of that year and successfully ran for 200 days in theatres.
Later that year, he directed and released Chithram (1988), his career's biggest hit. The film completed 366 days in the theatres and broke all the records of his previous collections.
Later, these records were broken by his other film, Kilukkam (1991), released in 1991. Kilukkam starred Mohanlal, Revathi, and Jagathy Sreekumar in lead roles. Priyadarshan's next three releases - Abhimanyu (1991), Advaitham (1991), and Thenmavin Kombath (1994) were also commercially successful and ran for 100 days in the theatres.
Priyadarshan actively worked in the Malayalam film industry for almost two decades (the 1980s and 1990s). After this, he took a short break from Malayalam cinema. He then started focusing on Hindi cinema. He worked as a director and screenwriter in Hindi cinema for nearly a decade.
Priyadarshan debuted in Hindi cinema with Muskurahat (1992), a remake of his film Kilukkam. While the movie didn't perform well at the box office, he made a comeback with the action-crime film Gardish (1993), starring Jackie Shroff. The film was a massive hit, earning two Filmfare Awards for Best Action and Best Art Direction.
In 2000, Priyadarshan directed the comedy movie Hera Pheri (2000) starring Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, and Paresh Rawal. The movie is an Indian cult classic and is considered one of the best comedy films in the history of Hindi cinema. Priyadarshan's career in Bollywood took off after Hera Pheri (2000), and he went on to direct comedy blockbusters such as Hungama (2003), Garam Masala (2005), and Phir Hera Pheri (2006).
In 2021, he directed the period drama Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea (2021), set in the 16th century. The film, starring Mohanlal, earned Priyadarshan the National Film Award for Best Feature Film.
Priyadarshan has been awarded several state and national awards for his work in Hindi and Malayalam cinema. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Film (Critics) for Virasat (1997) in 1997 and the Filmfare Award for Best Director in 2009 for his movie Kanchivaram (2008). In addition to his cinema accolades, the then President of India also awarded Priyadarshan a Padma Shri in 2012 for his contribution to Indian cinema.- Producer
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Born in Dhaka 1963 and raised in Calcutta. He graduated from IIT Kharagpur MS from Columbia university with Ph.D in applied physics. Bedabrata worked with NASA until 2008 as a scientist, contributing to 87 patents. Best known for CMOS sensors, which are used in DSLR, mobile camera. Now, he is a director/producer in Indian cinema. He is executive producer of Amu, which was critically acclaimed.- Writer
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Alphonse Puthren is a film director, producer, and writer from India. He is primarily known for his work in the Malayali film industry and is renowned for his unique style of storytelling. He has been involved in directing, producing, acting, editing, and ad filmmaking.
He completed his elementary and secondary education at Amrita Vidyalayam in Perumbavoor, Kerala, and transferred to MES College Marampally in Aluva to pursue his BCA degree. He then enrolled for a filmmaking diploma from S. A. E. College in Chennai, after which he started working on short films and music videos.
Puthren's 2013 film, Neram (2013), which was his debut as a director and writer, received critical acclaim; he won the 2014 Ananda Vikatan Cinema Award for Best Editor. He followed it up with the blockbuster hit Premam (2015) in 2015, for which he won the 2016 Asianet Film Award for Best Director.
After a seven-year hiatus, Puthren returned with his film Gold (2022) in 2022, featuring prominent actors Prithviraj Sukumaran and Nayanthara. Some of his other notable works include Time Bara Vait (2015) and Run (2016).
His upcoming film, Paattu, stars Nayanthara and Fahadh Faasil. The film will be produced by UGM Entertainment, and the cinematography will be done by Anend C. Chandran, who has worked with Puthren on his previous films.- Writer
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Bala was born on 11 July 1966 in Theni, Tamil Nadu, India. He is a writer and director, known for Sethu (1999), Paradesi (2013) and Naan Kadavul (2009). He is married to Muthumalar.- Actor
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Kamaleswar Mukherjee is known for Mountain of the Moon (2013), Cloud Capped Star (2013) and Anusandhan (2021).- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Thiagarajan Kumararaja was born and bred in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. He enrolled for a Visual Communications course at the Loyola College, Chennai, but dropped out shortly after to make films. Kumararaja cited that it was composer Ilaiyaraaja's music that animated him to come to films and to study Visual Communications in the first place. However, he discontinued his studies in 1998 and started to work as a freelance copywriter and photographer for a while. He went on to shoot advertisement films and also directed a five-part documentary on South Indian Temples, Sthala Puranam for Vijay TV. In 2005, he participated at the one-minute film competition 60 Seconds to Fame by Ability Foundation, aiming for the prize money. His short film Becky was awarded the first prize at the AbilityFest2005. Kumararaja then collaborated with Pushkar-Gayathri, writing the dialogue of their directorial debut Oram Po (2007). He would later write all songs for their second project Va (2010) as well. Through Pushkar-Gayathri, Kumararaja met S. P. B. Charan, who agreed to produce his first feature film Aaranya Kaandam.
Kumararaja began writing his maiden film in December 2006. Although he had wanted to make a "racy film" - he wrote the climax part first, before going on to add multiple story lines - he said that the film had eventually turned out to be a "leisurely paced film, taking its own time to unfold". Kumararaja met Charan in January 2007 and narrated him the script for two hours. Filming was supposed to commence by late 2007, but Charan opted to produce another film first. Aaranya Kaandam was launched in December 2008, with Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff, who was being introducing to Tamil films, Ravi Krishna and Sampath Raj in the lead roles. Kumararaja took more than one and a half years to complete the film, which was entirely shot in and around Chennai. Upon completion, the film ran into trouble when the regional censor board in Chennai refused to clear it, demanding 52 cuts due to profanity and excessive violence. Kumararaja expressed that he made the film for a matured audience and not for children, while adding that he expected difficulties in the censorship. Since he wanted to present the film uncompromisingly to the audiences, he and Charan approached the Central Tribunal at Delhi, that cleared the film. Dubbed as the first neo-noir film in Tamil cinema, Aaranya Kaandam opened to strong critical acclaim, winning the Grand Jury Award for Best Film at the 2010 South Asian International Film Festival, and two prizes at the 59th National Film Awards, including the Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director for Kumararaja.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Rakshit Shetty is an Indian actor, writer, producer, and filmmaker who is also the recipient of two Filmfare awards.
Shetty studied in Udupi and completed his graduation at N.M.A.M. Institute of Technology, Nitte, Karkala, in Electronics and Communications Engineering. He ventured into the movie business with short films like Let's Kill Gandhi and other unreleased ventures.
Shetty's first movie was Nam Areal Ond Dina (2010). His second movie was released in 2012 and was named Tuglak (2012).
However, he got his breakthrough in Simple Agi Ondh Love Story (2013), a romantic comedy that received a tremendous response.
Shetty ventured into direction after that and made the movie Ulidavaru Kandanthe (2014), a crime thriller. Because of his dancing skills, Shetty bagged a major role in the movie.
The film won him critical appreciation and two awards - Director's First Time Best Film by the Karnataka State Film Awards and another Best Director award by the Filmfare Awards South.
He featured in other movies like Vaasthu Prakaara (2015), Jaathre (2015), Ricky (2016), Jigar Thanda (2016), and Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu (2016).
Shetty produced and wrote another successful film Kirik Party (2016), in which he acted opposite actress Rashmika Mandanna.
In 2019, he appeared in two movies, Padde Huli (2019) and Avane Srimannarayana (2019).
777 Charlie (2022), which Shetty produced, was first announced in 2017. It took five years for it to be released due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The movie was directed by Kiranraj K under Paramvah Studios. The story was based on the relationship between humans and their pets. The movie also starred Charlie, a Labrador, who had a crucial role in the movie.
He later did movies like Saptha Sagaradaache Ello - Side A (2023) and Richard Anthony.
Shetty has won 14 awards and 22 Nominations in total.- Actor
- Music Department
- Writer
Kamal Haasan was born November 7, 1954 in Paramakudi, Ramanathapuram District, Tamil Nadu. He debuted as a child artiste in the film "Kalathoor Kannamma" (1960). Since then, he has starred in nearly 220 films in the major Indian languages - Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi. He has been a part of the film industry for 60 years, as of 2020. His journey in cinema has seen him do various roles - from child artiste, to romantic lead to one of the most respected and revered heroes of the film industry today.
He has famously said that he is a reluctant actor. He has an avid interest in every aspect of film making and is known for his work as a choreographer, director, and writer, as well.
He wrote his first script at age 18 for the film "Unarchigal" (1976), which was then followed by films that have gone on to become cult classics - Rajapaarvai (1981), Sathya (1988), Apoorva Sahotharargal (1989), Thevar Magan (1992), Mahanadi (1994), Kurudhippunal (1995), Avvai Shanmugi (1996), Hey Ram (2000), Pammal K Sambandam (2002), Panchathanthiram (2002), Anbe Sivam (2003), are a few of the films etched in popular memory for having set the bar for craftsmanship in the fields of screenplay, script, and dialogue.
He is also a prolific writer of fiction and non-fiction in Tamil and his published work is testament to his constant exploration of structure and form.
Kamal Haasan's strong convictions in his art have led to some of Indian cinema's most path-breaking films like Pushpak / Pushpaka Vimaanam / Pesum Padam (1987). Kamal Haasan also worked as a choreographer while transitioning as a well-known child artiste to the lead actor in a feature length film. Some of his best-known work as a dancer can be seen in Saagara Sangamam (1983) and the popular hit Punnagai Mannan (1986).
Kamal Haasan is also a student of Carnatic music, studying under musical maestro Dr. Balamuralikrishna. One of his biggest hits as a playback singer was the song "Inji Iduppazhagi" for the film Thevar Magan.
His career as a director began with the film Chachi 420 (1997), the Hindi remake of Avvai Shanmugi. Since then he has called the shots for critically acclaimed films like "Hey Ram" and "Virumaandi".
He has never hesitated to state his opinions and encourage debate about topics that are socially relevant. He is a rationalist in thought and moderate in opinion and a humanist in philosophy. The need to be socially conscious is seen in the way his fan clubs have revamped themselves into entities that carry out charity and volunteer work.- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Cinema entered the ordinary life of a young, sports and soccer enthusiast Shoojit Sircar, studying in Delhi, India, quite by chance when during the XIIth grade a friend suggested accompanying him for the viewing of a film. Unbeknownst to Sircar, this film would mark for him the beginning of a whole new way of looking at life. The film was Satyajit Ray's 'Pather Panchali' ('Song of the Little Road'). Curious and much impacted by this 'art form', Shoojit went on to watch the entire 'Apu trilogy' including 'Aparijito' (The Unvanquished) and 'The World of Apu'; and all other films by Ray, besides films by film-makers Ritwik Ghatak and Mrinal Sen. There are three films however besides Ray's 'Pather Panchali' that Shoojit specifically credits for giving 'birth to the cinema within him'; and for encouraging him to look at everything in life, differently; these are - Truffaut's '400 Blows', Vittorio De Sica's 'Bicycle Thieves' and Oliver Stone's "Platoon". Another important turning point in his journey was when he joined 'ACT ONE', a theatre group in Delhi, led by director, Mr.N.K. Sharma. There Shoojit handled backstage, across all departments - giving him the experience of creating theatre with minimalist resources, along with being rooted in the rigor and discipline that comes with living the life of theatre. His first big break as independent director ironically was a commercial on football, which he followed with a music video, 'MANN KE MANJEERE'. While most music videos of the time catered to the 'pop' form of storytelling - this one explored a more realistic journey, that of a woman, played by Mita Vashisht; a single mother who breaks away from an abusive married life and chooses to become a 'truck driver', then quite the traditional bastion of the male. Composed by Shantanu Moitra, with lyrics by Prasoon Joshi and sung by Shubha Mudgal, the video was viewed by over 20 million people at the time, its impact described as '"Mann ke Manjeeré has made a breakthrough by claiming public space for women's aspirations." Shoojit's first major directorial feature 'YAHAAN' (2005), on the turmoil faced by the Kashmiri people - won him the best director award in the Osian Film Festival 2005. He followed that with "VICKY DONOR" (2012), a film that dealt with the issue of infertility and brought the taboo topic of sperm donation onto a dining table conversation, 'Vicky Donor' went on to win three national awards including 'Best Entertainer of the year'. He followed that up with the hard - hitting political thriller 'MADRAS CAFE' (2013), throwing light on one of the most tumultuous periods in the sub-continent history - the Sri Lankan civil war. A year later, he brought us the much loved slice of life, 'PIKU' (2015) - a father-daughter comic drama, centered around an ageing, possessive father and his constant 'bowel problem'; aptly played out by Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone; winning over 18 awards from across the nation. And then came, 'PINK' (2016) - a film that gave voice to millions of Indian women; that proclaimed a 'No means No'; a film that proved to be not just a movie but a 'movement'; With 'OCTOBER' (2018), Shoojit Sircar shared a most poetic, soulful, personal take on love... And with the absurdist satire, 'GULABO SITABO' (2020), an unapologetic take on human greed! And most recently, the powerful and cinematically rich period biographical drama, 'SARDAR UDHAM' (2021), a film about India's pre independence movement with a compelling take on the 'revolutionary vs. terrorist' debate. With such a diverse and distinct repertoire of films, Shoojit Sircar today stands out as one of the most important and original voices of Indian Cinema. Besides bringing forth such quality cinema, Shoojit Sircar has also taken up the mantle of backing projects as a producer, producing the much appreciated and well received (Bengali) features, "Aparajita Tumi" and "Open Tee Bioscope"
As an ad film maker, Shoojit has been recognized internationally through works like the Cannes award winning, 'Lead India campaign' by The Times of India group, which brought together most respected Indian icons. His last (digital) campaign, an authentic reflection on modern parenting, has become a major talking point, going on to garner millions of hits on social media.- Producer
- Director
- Music Department
Aanand L. Rai is a Hindi film director and producer known for romantic-comedy movies Tanu Weds Manu (2011), Raanjhanaa (2013), Tanu Weds Manu: Returns (2015) and Zero (2018). Rai started assisting his elder brother television director Ravi Rai in television series. Eventually he made his directorial debut with the psychological thriller Strangers, followed by Thodi Life Thoda Magic (2008).- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Prakash Jha is an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter who is primarily known for his socially and politically relevant films like Apaharan (2005), Aarakshan (2011), and Raajneeti (2010), among others.
Jha went to Sainik School Tilaya in his hometown of Bettiah in Bihar, India. After finishing his schooling, he attended Ramjas College, Delhi University. During his college days, he went on to work as an assistant manager in a restaurant.
Jha was inspired to enter the film industry after he met an art director during the shooting of the film Dharma (1973). Later, he went on to enrol at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune, Maharashtra, to study filmmaking.
He worked on a biographical film called Sonal (1973) in the 1980s, which explored the life of the dancer Sonal Singh. He made another documentary called Faces After the Storm (1981), which was based on the communal riots of Bihar, India, focusing on the incident where Hindu extremists massacred numerous Muslims. However, the award-winning documentary was banned soon after its release.
In 1984, Jha made his directorial debut with the film Hip Hip Hurray (1984), which revolves around the lives of a group of high school students. The film was critically acclaimed and was featured in a book 40 Retakes: Bollywood Classics You May Have Missed.
He founded a cultural society called Anubhooti in 1991 to work on social issues like health care, disaster management, upliftment of the poor, and much more.
His 2001 film Gangaajal (2003) marked a turning point in his career- renowned actors like Ajay Devgn and Gracy Singh were cast in this film.
Jha has received several awards and accolades for his work in the film industry, like the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi for Damul (1985), the Filmfare Award for Best Screenplay for Apaharan (2005), the apsara award for best dialogue for Aarakshan (2011), etc. He has also achieved great international acclaim for his films like Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016), Parampara (1986), Parinati Parinati (2020) (2020), etc. Lipstick Under My Burkha Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016) (2016) premiered at the Stockholm International Film Festival. Aparahan was the opening film at the Indian Film Festival in Israel.
Jha has also been involved in Indian politics. He started his political career by joining the Janta Dal in the early 1990s. He contested the Lok Sabha elections in 2009 as a Janta Dal candidate from his hometown, Bettiah, in Bihar.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra is a director, writer and producer who established Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra Pictures (Romp) in India. Romp has cultivated in them an attitude to pioneer the way for the new wave and new age cinema from India, by identifying talent (writers & directors) from India and telling Indian stories to the world.
Rakeysh has written, produced and directed the film Rang de Basanti (Color of Sacrifice) (2006), with an ensemble of Indian and International cast. Rang De Basanti won 4 National Awards (President's Medals), was India's official entry to the Oscars 2006- 2007 It was also nominated by British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) in the Best Foreign language film category 06-07.
Rakeysh went onto make Delhi -6 (2009) which is set against the backdrop of the caste and religious divide of the Indian social fabric. Delhi -6 has achieved tremendous critical acclaim and was an official selection at the prestigious Venice Film Festival . It won two National Awards (President Of India Medals). The Variety has termed it as un-bollywood , and "a step forward from Rang De Basanti , ushering an era of new age Indian cinema."
In 2011, Rakeysh's documentary film Bollywood: The Greatest Love Story (which was co-directed by Jeffery Zimbalist) was an official selection at the Cannes 2011 to celebrate 100 years of Indian Cinema. It is a docu feature, an avantgarde take on how Indian cinema has reflected the changing socio-political landscape since India got independence from the British Raj.
His film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) was set in the backdrop of when India gained freedom from the British in 1947, and the bloody ethnic violence that led to the massacre of thousands and the displacement of millions. This story is about the triumph of the undying human spirit, based on the life of the greatest Indian Olympian Milkha Singh , also known as "The flying Sikh". The film made a clean sweep at all the popular film awards in India, including two National Film Awards (President of India Medals).
Mirzya - (2016) which is a contemporary take on the legend of Mirza-Sahiban, a tragic love story told as a musical spectacle premiered at the London Film Festival. It was showcased at Chicago Film Festival , Busan Film Festival etc.
He has recently finished his latest project named 'Mere Pyaarey Prime Minister' which is under post production and due to release Summer of 2018. It is the story of an 8 year old boy's desire to build a toilet for his mother.
Rakeysh is also producing the under production film 'Fanney Khan', starring Anil Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Rajkumar Rao. It is also expected to release by Summer of 2018.- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
Born as Mahesh Vaman Manjrekar, Mahesh Manjrekar is an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter, and producer who works primarily in Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, and Bhojpuri films. Manjrekar has acted in several films, including some of his productions. He studied at Don Bosco High School, Mumbai, and then completed his graduation from the University of Mumbai.
He wanted to become an actor since childhood and joined theatre in college. In 1994, he played a role in the Marathi play Aflatoon and has been a part of several other plays like All the best, Dhyanimani, etc.
In his film career span of 20 years, he has worked in 75 films and written and directed almost 25 films. Manjrekar made his acting debut in the Marathi movie Jeeva Sakha (1992), in which he plays the role of Inspector Jamdade. He was also seen in Kshitij Ye Nahi (1992), a Doordarshan Marathi series, where he got the part of a leprosy patient.
Manjrekar became famous with his directorial debut movie Vaastav: The Reality (1999). He also directed films like Nidaan (2000) and Jis Desh Mein Ganga Rehta Hain (2000).
His performance in the movie Kaante (2002) as Raja "Balli" Yadav got him appreciation from the audience and his critics. He played the role of Sultan in the movie Plan (2004). In the same year, he worked in movies like Run (2004) as Ganpat Chowdhury and Musafir (2004) as Lukka.
Manjrekar played the role of Joy Fernandes in Zinda (2006), which also starred Sanjay Dutt. He also appeared in the Telugu film Okkadunnadu (2007) and then in the same year as Mahesh in a role in Dus Kahaniyaan (2007)
One of his most remembered performances is in the film Slumdog Millionaire (2008), an Oscar-winning movie in which he plays the role of Don Javed.
Another role that got him appreciation was negative in the movie Wanted (2008), as Senior Inspector Daulat R. Talpade. In 2010 he appeared in Teen Patti (2010) and the movie Dabangg (2010).
In 2011, he collaborated with Aniruddha Deshpande and established his own production company, Great Maratha Entertainment LLP Productions. The first film released under his production house was the Marathi movie Fakta Ladh Mhana (2011).
Manjrekar was next seen in Ready (2011), Bodyguard (2011), and OMG: Oh My God! (2012). He was also a part of Mumbai Mirror (2013), Shootout at Wadala (2013), and the Tamil film Arrambam (2013).
Manjrekar has also been a part of Jai Ho (2014), Singham Returns (2014), Bajirao Mastani (2015), Sanju (2018), Total Dhamaal (2019), Saaho (2019), Dabangg 3 (2019) and The White Tiger (2021).
In 2022 he appeared in the Telugu movies Sarkaru Vaari Paata (2022) and Mister Mummy (2022).
He has also appeared on several TV shows and serials like Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa (2006) as a Contestant, Maharashtracha Superstar (2010) as a Judge, and Bigg Boss Marathi (2018) as the host in 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2023. He also appeared as Kismat Bhai in Taaza Khabar (2023).
He ventured into the OOT platform with a Marathi web series, Kaale Dhande (2019) and Forbidden Love (2020).
Manjrekar has won a total of 22 awards and has been nominated for 31 awards. The awards that felicitated Manjrekar for his performances are the National Film Awards, Filmfare Awards, IIFA Awards, Screen Awards, Filmfare Marathi Awards, Zee Cine Awards, Maharashtra State Film Awards, Pune International Film Festival, Marathi International Cinema & Theatre Awards, Maharashtracha Favourite Kon?, Colors Marathi Awards, and Sakal Premier Awards.- Sound Department
- Editorial Department
- Director
Born in Kampala, Uganda, Shimit Amin moved to the USA at a very young age and soon pursued filmmaking. He made his first film, "Ab Tak Chappan" (56 and Counting) about a group of Mumbai cops who became notorious with their license to kill.
His second film, "Chak De India" (Let's go India!), produced by India's biggest film studio, Yash Raj Films (YRF), was about a team of mismatched female hockey players and gender politics. The film went on to become a critical and box office success in India and worldwide. The film was acknowledged by the Billie Jean King's women's sports foundation.
His third film was "Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year" chronicled the adventures of a young college graduate forced to deal with business ethics. The film was one of the most acclaimed films of 2009 in India.
He was also a director on the BBC series "A Suitable Boy". In his capacity as an Editor, Shimit has worked on Mira Nair's 2012 award winning film, "The Reluctant Fundamentalist". The film opened the 2012 Venice Film Festival.
Shimit is also a highly acclaimed ad-filmmaker and has directed the Glass Grand Prix award winning campaign for Whisper/P&G "Touch the Pickle". He also worked on an award wining commercial for Ariel's "Share the load" which was lauded by Sheryl Sandberg and Melinda Gates. He has shot successful campaigns for Amazon, Facebook, Whatsapp, Oreo, BMW, VISA and Ford.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
S.S.Rajamouli is an Indian filmmaker who primarily works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the most celebrated filmmakers ever of the Indian film industry and pioneered the Pan-Indian films movement. Rajamouli was born in a Telugu family to V. Vijayendra Prasad and Raja Nandini. Both his parents hail from Andhra Pradesh.
Rajamouli has directed 12 feature films so far, including mega blockbusters like Baahubali: The Beginning, Baahubali: The Conclusion, and RRR. Through his Baahubali series, Rajamouli pioneered the Pan-Indian films movement. His next film, tentatively called SSMB29, is a globetrotting action adventure & first collaboration with "Superstar" Mahesh Babu which is is expected to begin its production in 2024.
Eega (2012) won nine awards at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival, including the Most Original Film. Baahubali films have received six Saturn Award nominations with Baahubali 2 (2017) winning the Best International Film. His latest directorial "RRR" (2022) received various international accolades including the 1st Academy Award for India, a Golden Globe Award for the song "Naatu Naatu" & nomination for Best Foreign language film, and a Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
A self confessed "film freak", Rajamouli's penchant for filmmaking is best captured by the word "emotion". He has often stated that his films are based on stories driven by human emotions. While scaling up his work with "larger-than-life" themes over the years, Rajamouli maintained his signature style of filmmaking that allows audience to simmer in the thrills and emotions of the story with less dialogue.
He is a recipient of various national and international honors including a prestigious New York Film Critics Circle award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, two Saturn Awards, and four National Film Awards. In 2016, the Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri (fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India), for his contributions in the field of art. In 2023, he was included on the Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Born 26th September 1980 in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Anand started writing and directing plays in school at the age of 12. At 19, he wrote a total of hundred episodes of two television soap operas, which went on to become the most popular shows in the history of Indian Television. The same year his play "Sugandhi" was awarded the prestigious National Award. After dropping out from formal education and finishing a diploma in philosophy (his passion for philosophy has been evident in all his works), he traveled across India, exploring, meeting people, writing, performing and attending a series of workshops on subjects varying from Gandhian economics to Quantum physics. He made Right Here, Right Now in 2003 with borrowed money and believing friends. The film immediately achieved a cult status among Mumbai filmoholics, later backed up by its award-winning international acclaim. Anand is a visiting lecturer at a Mass Media college in Mumbai and has facilitated creative workshops for students all over India. His first feature length film is expected to release in 2006.- Writer
- Director
- Producer
Pan Nalin is a writer, director, and producer of fiction and non-fiction movies. He is a self-taught filmmaker who achieved worldwide critical and commercial triumph with his debut feature Samsara (Miramax/Disney).
His latest movie; Last Film Show (Chhello Show) was India's Official Entry to the 95th Oscars. And it went on to be shortlisted by The Academy for the nomination as the Best International Film at the 95th Oscars.
Pan Nalin's new project Satori Trilogy has been recently optioned by Lucas Foster (Ford vs. Ferrari, Law Abiding Citizen, Jumper, Man on Fire, Mr. and Mrs. Smith...) Satori Trilogy is a high-voltage action-adventure epic about an Asian superhero. Satori Trilogy is now in development, and Lucas Foster is attached to produce it.
Pan Nalin has established himself as a true auteur that adapts to different genres and styles of filmmaking and has made movies in English, French, Hindi, Gujarati, Japanese, and Tibetan.
Pan Nalin's Last Film Show (Samuel Goldwyn Films / Shochiku) won the Best Picture, Golden Spike, at Seminci 66th Valladolid International Film Festival 2021 in Spain, Audience Choice Award First-Runner-up at the Tribeca Film Festival 2021, and Audience Favorite Award at the Mill Valley Film Festival. It also won The Snow Leopard for The Best Picture at the Los Angeles's Asia World Film Festival. The last Film Show is currently being theatrically released worldwide.
Pan Nalin won Audience Choice Award First-Runner-up for Angry Indian Goddesses (Netflix /Mongrel International) at the Toronto International Film Festival and Prix du Public at the Rome Film Festival. Since then Angry Indian Goddesses has been theatrically released in 40 countries and now streaming on Netflix worldwide.
Nalin was born in a remote village near Gir Forest in Gujarat, and he left his home at an early age to pursue filmmaking. He studied Fine Arts at the M.S. University of Baroda, where he adopted his artist's pseudonym "Pan Nalin." A year later Nalin went to study Design at the prestigious NID (National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad). While studying at NID, he discovered cinema beyond Bollywood movies. He saw for the first time Hollywood movies. Soon after he started managing NID's film club where he programmed movies from all over the world. He was one of the first students in the city to write and promote cinema from French New Wave, Italian Neo-Realism, German Expressionism, American Indies, and Hollywood Classics. Also while still at NID, Nalin started making movie clips with 16mm and 8mm cameras. Nalin worked as a videographer on Indian weddings to finance his passion for films.
After NID Nalin moved to Mumbai where he made TV commercials and corporate films. Soon after Nalin combined his love for travel with moviemaking and started filming documentaries for BBC, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Canal Plus, and other leading international TV networks. His multiple award-winning feature documentary Ayurveda Art of Being (Kino / Pandora) was theatrically released worldwide with major success.
But making a debut feature with creative freedom was nearly an impossible task within the structure of the Indian movie industry. So Nalin went around the globe looking for funds for his first feature Samsara. After seven years of struggle, broke and homeless, Nalin was introduced to legendary producer Karl Baumgartner who fell in love with the screenplay of Samsara. Within a year Samsara went on to the floor, and it was produced by Baumgartner's company Pandora Film as a Germany-France-Italy-India coproduction.
Samsara premiered at Toronto International Film Festival and on the same day, Harvey Weinstein acquired the movie for Miramax. Not only that, within the same week Samsara was acquired by 40 other countries. Samsara went on to become a massive commercial and critical success worldwide and won dozens of international awards. To date, it remains the highest-grossing Indian Independent film.
What followed was a first-ever India-Japan-France-Germany coproduction, Valley Of Flowers, where Nalin set out to make an "Eastern" epic love story with an Asian soul. Valley Of Flowers (TF1 International) went on to become a major underground hit with cult, critical and commercial success worldwide. Valley of Flowers was awarded Best Picture at IFFLA Los Angles, also four nominations at IAAC New York, including The Best Picture and The Best Director.
Nalin's feature documentary Faith Connections was an Official Selection at Toronto, won the Audience Choice Award at IFFLA Los Angeles and has been theatrically released worldwide.
Nalin's tragi-comedy screenplay Slightly Sane, won the CJ Entertainment's Award for The Best International Project at Asia Film Market in Busan, South Korea.
Nalin recently completed The Disappearance of Eva Hansen, a spiritual thriller set in the Himalayas. It's the first New Zealand - India coproduction starring David Wenham and Emmanuelle Beart.
Pan Nalin is currently developing English language features and series with Gotham Group in Los Angeles.
Other English language picture in the line-up includes an epic biopic Buddha The Warrior Within. Nalin also created Greeks, a multi-season drama TV series in association with producer Fred Fuchs, which is in development. Nalin has been scripting Paris set spy-thriller Codename: Madeleine inspired by the real-life story of Noor Inayat Khan during WWII.
Pan Nalin has been a member of the Jury at many leading International Film Festivals. Nalin has been often invited to seminars, panel discussions, and conclaves. Nalin has also conducted Masterclasses on film direction and screenwriting.
Pan Nalin is a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (Oscars), in its prestigious Director's Branch of Class of 2022. Nalin is also a member of the French Academy of Arts and Techniques of Cinema (Cesars) in its coveted Directors wing.- Producer
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Abhishek Jain is a film maker and the founder of CineMan Productions Limited. At the age of 26, he got recognized as 'Trendsetter of the year 2012' followed by 'Innovation achievers award for contribution in Films & Advertisement' by the Gujarat Innovation Society- a felicitation initiated by the Government of Gujarat. He has spent nine years of his childhood doing theatres, got a degree in management and joined the very prestigious Whistling Woods Institute to pursue his further studies in filmmaking. Abhishek has the unique distinction of working with some of the top-notch filmmakers of Bollywood. He was assistant director to Subhash Ghai for the films Yuvraaj and Black & White. Later, he was associate director with Sanjay Leela Bhansali Films for the movies Guzaarish and Chenab Gandhi. He has also assisted Ram Madhvani (Director of highly acclaimed film Neerja) for advertising campaigns. At one point he realised his dream to revive the film industry in Gujarat, and left the secured profile in the main stream film industry to devote his talent for the regional cinema. Abhishek's conviction has already created a benchmark in the Gujarati Film Industry with his path breaking debut feature film- 'Kevi Rite Jaish' which settled a milestone as a revival of the Gujarati film industry and ran in cinemas for 112 days, his second feature film- 'Bey Yaar' went up to become the widest released Gujarati film with a theatrical release in more than 14 countries and a domestic run in cinemas for 54 weeks, his latest Feature Film- 'Wrong Side Raju' raised the standards and proved to be the first Gujarati film to have a national collaboration with Phantom Films headed by acclaimed filmmaker Anurag Kashyap et al. In the year 2017, CineMan received a National Award for the best feature film in Gujarati language. After successfully paving path into Gujarat's regional film industry, his company CineMan has now got into a 2 film co-production deal with Maddock films for making Hindi feature length films. Abhishek has just completed the shoot of his first Hindi Feature Film tentatively titled as 'Hum Do, Humare Do' starring Rajkumar Rao, Kriti Sanon, Paresh Rawal, Ratna Pathak Shah and Aparshakti Khurana. Keeping the advent of new found audience base for OTT platforms, Abhishek has recently launched his latest venture- OHO Gujarati, which is Gujarat's first premium content streaming platform, catering to the Gujarati audience globally. Abhishek has also penned a biographical book, 'aa to just vaat che' which talks about his journey of making Gujarati feature films. This book has already gained the stature of being a handbook on making of Gujarati films for youngsters. Before his foray into feature films, he started CineMan Productions Limited in 2010 to cater to the advertising industry. Having produced television commercials and advertisement films, he has carved a unique identity of delivering finest productions contributing towards the brand's value. As an entrepreneur, Abhishek has innate understanding of the business of films and as a filmmaker he has distinct creative sensibilities that marry the market and imaginative. Today, CineMan is a fully functioning film production house engaged in activities ranging right from script to screen, Film Production, Film Distribution and Film Marketing along with Advertisement Films, OTT platform and this makes CineMan one of the finest film production houses in the industry.- Writer
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Radha Krishna Jagarlamudi was born on 10 November 1978 in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India. He is a writer and director, known for Kanche (2015), Gabbar Is Back (2015) and Vedam (2010).- Actor
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Kaushik Ganguly was born on 4 August 1968 in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. He is an actor and writer, known for The Elder Son (2019), The Eunuch and the Flute Player (2017) and Cinemawala (2016). He is married to Churni Ganguly. They have one child.- Director
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Ketan Mehta is one of the most internationally acknowledged filmmakers from India. He has a received many National and International awards for his well-known films like 'The Rising - Ballad of Mangal Pandey', 'Mirch Masala', 'Maya Memsaab', 'Sardar', 'Holi' and 'Bhavni Bhavai'. Received Best Film on Human Rights for Bhavni Bhavai, Best Film for Mirch Masala at the Hawaii International Film Festival and the Audience Choice Award at Locarno for the Ballad of Mangal Pandey.
Ketan Mehta, a graduate in Film making from India's premier film institute FTII (Film and Televsion Institute of India) has more than 25 years' experience in the film industry.
His films have been shown at film festivals across the world and he has been a jury member at many international film festivals.
He has served as a consultant on many Government of India bodies including Doordarshan, Directorate of Film Festivals and is currently a Member of the Board of Directors of NFDC (National Film Development Corporation of India). He has been a Content Producer for ISRO and been involved in their satellite project for a number of years.
He is also the President of IIFW - (Independent Indian filmmakers's worldwide) a global association of Independent film makers and the promoter of Maya Entertainment ltd, India's leading Computer Animation and Digital visual effects studio.- Writer
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Rajkumar Santoshi is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter of Hindi films. Counted as one of the most successful filmmakers in the Hindi film industry, he has received several accolades,including three National Film Awards and six Filmfare Awards.
Santoshi made his directorial debut with the crime film Ghayal (1990), which won him the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment as well as the Filmfare Award for Best Director. He next directed the thrillers Damini (1993) and Ghatak: Lethal (1996). All these three financially successful films starred Sunny Deol, Amrish Puri and Meenakshi Seshadri; the second of these garnered him a second Filmfare Best Director Award and the latter fetched him the Filmfare Best Screenplay Award as well as a Filmfare Best Director Award nomination. During this period, Santoshi also received praise for directing the comedy Andaz Apna Apna (1994), which though a box office flop has attained cult status, and the major box-office hit Barsaat (1995), that marked the film debut of Bobby Deol and Twinkle Khanna. In 2000, he wrote dialogues of the average-earning film Pukar which garnered him the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration. He followed it by directing two moderate commercial successes-the biopic The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002) and the action thriller Khakee (2004)-both of which earned him Best Director nominations at the Filmfare. Santoshi's highest-grossing film release came in 2009 with the romantic comedy Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, in which he also appeared in a cameo role.
Rajkumar Santoshi has finished filming his next directional Badboy.- Writer
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Chaitanya Tamhane was born on 1 March 1987 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He is a writer and producer, known for The Disciple (2020), Court (2014) and Six Strands (2011).- Director
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Madhur Bhandarkar was born on 26 August 1966 in Bombay, Maharashtra, India. He is a director and writer, known for Chandni Bar (2001), Babli Bouncer (2022) and Page 3 (2005). He has been married to Renu Namboodiri since 15 December 2003. They have one child.- Actress
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Aparna Sen is a renowned name in Bengali as well as Indian cinema. She has excelled both as an actor in film and theatre and as a director of parallel cinema.
Aparna was born in 1945 in Kolkata. Her father is film critic and film maker Late Chidananda Das Gupta. She studied at Modern High School and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Presidency College, Kolkata. Her first film appearance happened in Satyajit Ray's Three Daughters (1961) when she was sixteen. Since then, Aparna has acted in many films in lead roles.
In 1981, Aparna made her debut as a film director with 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981) which won national and international awards. Since then, Aparna has directed series of films on a wide variety of subjects. Most of her films have been well acclaimed nationally and internationally. Aparna moved to Mumbai and continues to make films in Hindi and English.
Aparna acted in little theatre groups and commercial theatres for a period of time. She was also editor of a popular Bengali magazine (Sananda) for long time.- Director
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Tigmanshu Dhulia was born on 3 July 1967 in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. He is a director and actor, known for Gangs of Wasseypur (2012), Paan Singh Tomar (2012) and Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster (2011).- Director
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Nagesh Kukunoor was born on 30 March 1967 in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. He is a director and writer, known for Rainbow (2015), Iqbal (2005) and 3 Deewarein (2003).- Director
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Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni is an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India and is one of the most important contemporary voices in Indian cinema. He has an immense body of work, having made critically and commercially acclaimed feature films and short films. His films like Girni and Three of Us have been screened in more than ten international film festivals including the Clermont Ferrand, Rotterdam, Oberhausen and Berlinale Film Festival. Girni has also won the National Awards for Best Short Film and President's Gold Medal for Best Direction. His first feature film Valu was a significant film for Marathi cinema. It is amongst the few Marathi films that kept the box office collection on an upward swing and also traveled to more than 30 International film festivals. He then went on to work on features like Vihir and Deool, which won three National Awards including the Best Feature Film of the year. Apart from that, he has been invited as a jury in festivals like Clermont Ferrand, Karlovy Vary Film Festival, Cairo Film Festival, Thai Film Festival, International Film Festival of Kerala. He also conducts extensive workshops and film clubs for young filmmakers. His feature Highway was critically acclaimed for its representation of the cross section of society through an ensemble cast and was screened in the New York Indian film festival. He is currently working on an unscripted Netflix Series.- Writer
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R. Balakrishnan, also known as Balki, is a prominent Indian filmmaker and screenwriter known for his unconventional storytelling style.
After completing his education, Balki began his career in advertising and made his directorial debut with the critically acclaimed film Cheeni Kum (2007) in 2007. The film starred Amitabh Bachchan and Tabu and received widespread appreciation for its unique storyline and the actors' performances.
Balki's next film, Paa (2009), featured Amitabh Bachchan in a remarkable performance as a child suffering from progeria, a rare genetic disorder. The film was a commercial success and won several awards, including the 2009 National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.
Balki continued to make thought-provoking films, such as Shamitabh (2015), which explored the relationship between a mute actor and his voice actor, and Ki & Ka (2016), which challenged gender stereotypes by depicting a house husband and a career-oriented wife. His film, Pad Man (2018), addressed menstruation's stigma and promoted menstrual hygiene.
His short film called Chup (2022) was released in February 2021. Chup has been widely appreciated by critics and audiences alike for its sensitive portrayal of a complex issue and its ability to spark a conversation around it.
Besides his filmmaking career, Balki wrote several successful ad campaigns, including the famous Daag Ache Hain for Surf Excel. He also produced the TV series Chup (2022) and the film Mission Mangal (2019)).
Balki is married to Gauri Shinde, a renowned director and filmmaker. The two first met when Balki was looking for a writer to work on his ad films, and Shinde was recommended to him. They eventually fell in love and married in 2007. Despite their busy schedules, they collaborated on several projects, with Balki producing Shinde's films and Shinde working on the scripts for Balki's films.- Director
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Gajendra Vitthal Ahire was born on 16 February 1969 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He is a director and writer, known for Pimpal (2017), Bayo (2006) and Saajinde (2021). He is married to Vrinda Ahire.- Director
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Sudhir Mishra was born on 22 January 1959 in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. He is a director and writer, known for Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (2003), Calcutta Mail (2003) and Dharavi (1992).- Director
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Raj Kumar Gupta made his debut as a writer & director with the critically acclaimed and commercially successful 'Aamir' (2008). Shot with a shoestring budget, guerilla style on the streets of Mumbai, this edgy thriller established Raj Kumar as a filmmaker to look out for and garnered several award nominations in the Best Debut Director category that year. After penning the screenplay of 'Barah Aana' (2009), Raj Kumar Gupta wrote and directed 'No One Killed Jessica' (2011), based on the true story of the murder of Jessica Lal and the controversial trial of the case. This powerful drama featuring Rani Mukerjee and Vidya Balan drew rave reviews and set the box-office ringing. Nominated for several awards including the prestigious Filmfare & Screen Awards in the Best Film, Best Director and Best Screenplay categories, 'No One Killed Jessica' catapulted the filmmaker into the big league. In 2013, Raj Kumar Gupta shifted gears by surprising his audience with the suspense comic caper 'Ghanchakkar'. Starring Emraan Hashmi and Vidya Balan, the film drew an extremely divided response from both critics and viewers, but confirmed that the filmmaker wasn't going to play by the conventional rules set by the industry. Raj Kumar Gupta made his debut as a producer in 2016 with a short film titled "Aaba" under his production house Raapchik Films Pvt. Ltd. which premiered at Berlin Film Festival 2017 in the Generation K Plus Category and went on to win the prestigious International Jury Prize for Best Short film in its category.- Director
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Buddhadev Dasgupta was born on 11 February 1944 in Anara, India. He was a director and writer, known for Uttara (2000), Dooratwa (1979) and Charachar (1994). He died on 10 June 2021 in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.- Cinematographer
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Shaji Neelakantan Karun was born on new years day 1950 as the eldest son of Mr. N. Karunakaran and Mrs. Chandramati in Kollam district of the state of Kerala, India. The family moved to Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the state in 1963. He did his schooling in Palkkulangara H.S., and took a batchelor's degree from University College, Thiruvananthapuram. In 1971 he entered the Filim and Television Institute of India where he took his diploma in Cinematography. He won the President's medal on passing out in 1975. Got married to Anasuya Warrier, who incidentally was his neighbour in Trivandrum for quite some time again on New years day 1975. After a brief stint in the south Indian city of Madras, he returned to Thiruvananthapuram in 1976 where he got an appoinment as film officer in the newly formed state Film Development Corporation. His first son Anil was born on 19 June 1976. His association with the legendary malayalam film maker, G.Aravindan Began at this time and it led to Shaji defining a new outlook in cinematography in Malayalam cinema. His second son Appu was born on 6 June 1981. He made his first major carrer shift in 1988 wher he directed his first feature, Piravi, which received much critical acclaim worldwide. In 1994 he completed his second film Swaham.- Writer
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Krishna Vamsi was born on 28 July 1962 in Tadepalligudem, Andhra Pradesh, India. He is a writer and director, known for Khadgam (2002), Govindudu Andari Vaadele (2014) and Anthahpuram (1998). He has been married to Ramya Krishnan since 12 June 2003. They have one child.- Director
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Shyamaprasad was born in 1960 in Kerala, India. He is a director and actor, known for The Sea Within (2007), Lady Tiger (2010) and Akale (2004). He is married to Sheeba. They have two children.- Writer
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Reema Kagti is considered to be one of the best working talents in Indian cinema, with a singular voice as an artist, screenwriter, and filmmaker.
Reema's directorial debut, Honeymoon Travels Private Limited (2006), was an immediate commercial success. Following that, she wrote and directed the neo-noir Talaash (2012), and the historic sports drama, Gold (2018), both of which were highly acclaimed by audiences and critics alike. In addition to directing, Reema has co-written the screenplays for huge commercial successes such as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011), Dil Dhadakne Do (2015), and Gully Boy (2019), as well as the highly acclaimed series, Made in Heaven (2019), for Amazon Prime Video.
Reema's most recent project, 'Dahaad' received widespread love and appreciation, after making global waves at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2023. With her latest venture, Tiger Baby, Reema has extended her role to that of Producer - with Made in Heaven (2019), Eternally Confused and Eager for Love (2022), Dahaad (2023), The Archies (2023) and Kho Gaye Hum Kahan (2023) already under her belt, and many more exciting projects to come!- Camera and Electrical Department
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Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury is an Indian film director. He is the director and producer of multiple Bengali and Hindi films. He directed the highly successful Hindi movie Pink (2016 film) which received accolades from film critics and movie lovers alike. He received National Awards for both Pink (2016 film) and Anuranan. He received a National Film Award in the Best Film category for his 2008 movie Antaheen. He also made a cameo appearance in the 2015 Hindi film Piku. Winner of multiple awards, he has made movies on important societal themes, enthralling fans and encouraging them to think about issues.- Director
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Ritesh Batra created a world sensation in 2013 with his wonderful The Lunchbox (2013), a bittersweet romantic comedy as well as a sensitive portrait of the city of Mumbai, torn between tradition and progress. Loved by all and everywhere on the planet, "Dabba" is strikingly the young director's first feature film. A great start for Batra, which augurs well for his career to come. Born in Mumbai in 1979 and raised there, Mr. Batra moved to New York where he studied cinema. Before his now famous "Dabba", he tried his hand at making shorts which were shown in many an international film festival. His latest to date, Café Regular, Cairo (2012) earned him the International Film Critics Association Award (FIPRESCI) and received special mentions from the jury at the Chicago and Tribeca Film Festivals. In 2009 his project then titled "Story of Ram" was selected by the Sundance Screenwriters and Directors Lab later to bloom into "Dabba" (The Lunchbox). After shooting the film, Batra chose to stay in Mumbai with his wife Claudia. In 2013, he was working on a series of shorts and on "The Photograph", his next feature.- Producer
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Asif Kapadia is an Academy Award, Grammy and four time BAFTA winning Producer / Director / Writer who works across both film and television. Kapadia is known for his emotional engaging, visually striking, genre breaking films exploring 'outsiders' characters living in extreme circumstances, fighting against a corrupt or broken system and the price of fame. He has worked in drama and documentaries, Kapadia is best known for his trilogy of narratively driven, archive constructed documentaries SENNA, AMY & DIEGO MARADONA.
His debut feature 'THE WARRIOR' was nominated for three Bafta awards, winning Best British Film and Best Debut Film. His fourth feature 'SENNA', the story of the Brazilian motor racing legend Ayrton Senna, was nominated for three Bafta awards, winning Best Documentary and Best Editing. It went on to break UK box office records to become the highest grossing British Documentary of all time. 'AMY', about singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse has now overtaken 'SENNA' to become the most successful British Documentary of all time, winning numerous awards including the Academy Award, BAFTA, European Film Award and a Grammy for Best Documentary.
Born in Hackney, London in 1972, Kapadia studied filmmaking at the Royal College of Art where he first gained recognition with his short film THE SHEEP THIEF (1997) shot in Rajasthan, India, the film won many international awards including one in the Cinefondation section of the 1998 Cannes International Film Festival and the Grand Prix at the European Film Festival in Brest.
Kapadia's distinct visual style developed with his debut feature THE WARRIOR (Film4, 2001), shot in the deserts of Rajasthan and the snow capped Himalaya. The Warrior was championed in the British Press as 'epic' and 'stunning' (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian) and in 2003 was nominated for three BAFTA awards, winning two for Outstanding British Film of the Year and The Carl Foreman Award for Special Achievement by a Director in their First Feature, as well as being nominated for Best Film Not in the English Language. The Warrior won the prestigious Sutherland Award at the London Film Festival, the Evening Standard British Film Award for the Most Promising Newcomer and the Douglas Hickox Award at the BIFAs for Best Debut Film.
FAR NORTH (2007), Starring Michael Yeoh and Sean Bean premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Based on a short story by writer Sara Maitland. Kapadia used the epic and brutal Arctic landscape to show what desperation and loneliness can drive people to do.
Kapadia's feature documentary SENNA (Universal Pictures / Working Title, 2011), the thrilling story and emotional story of the Brazilian motor-racing legend Ayrton Senna, constructed entirely from archive, was a groundbreaking feature documentary, the film was a break out hit at the international box office, grossing over $15m worldwide. SENNA was Nominated for three BAFTA awards, winning Best Documentary and Best Editing, as well as being nominated for Best British Film. SENNA broke records at the cinema and on DVD & Bluray in the UK. The film has won awards around the world including the World Cinema Documentary Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, Best Documentary at the London Critics Circle, the BIFA award for Best Documentary, the Audience Award for Best International Feature at the Los Angeles Film Festival and was nominated by the Producers Guild of America for the Documentary Theatrical Motion Picture Award 2012.
AMY (Universal Music, 2015), world premiered in Official Selection at the Cannes Film Festival and tells the story of Amy Winehouse in her own words. The film was an international box office hit grossing over $20m, it is the highest grossing UK documentary of all time. AMY won the Academy Award for Feature Documentary, the BAFTA for Best Documentary, was nominated for Outstanding British Film. Kapadia was nominated for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary for AMY by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) (Documentaries & TV).
Kapadia's third feature documentary Diego Maradona, about the controversial genius, Argentinian footballer Diego Armando Maradona world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, the film was Nominated for a BAFTA for Best Documentary and completed his epic trilogy on the price of fame,
Kapadia directed two episodes of Mindhunter (Netflix) for David Fincher.
in 2021 Kapadia Executive Produced and Series Directed the music series 1971: 'The year that music changed everything' and he Directed & Executive Produced the series THE ME YOU CAN'T SEE with Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry focusing on mental health and well being, both for AppleTV+.
Kapadia was an Executive Producer of the landmark BBC ONE series Stephen: The Murder That Changed A Nation.
THE ODYSSEY (2012, Film4, BBC, LOCOG) Kapadia was commissioned to direct an official film for the London Cultural Olympiad, his film traces the journey from 2005 when London won the right to host the Olympic Games to the eve of the games in 2012. The film uses the voices of Londoners, archive, classic Olympic footage and stunning aerial photography of London to show how sport is essential, how it can inspire, provide unforgettable moments of beauty, purity and the sublime.
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE (2013, Reprieve, Guardian films) More than 100 hunger-strikers in Guantánamo Bay protest as they continue to be held without charge, some for over a decade. A leaked document sets out the military instructions, or standard operating procedure, for force-feeding detainees. In this graphic four-minute film made by Human Rights organisation Reprieve and director Asif Kapadia, US actor and rapper Yasiin Bey (formerly known as Mos Def), experiences the procedure. SOP was released on The Guardian newspaper's website, the film went viral and was picked up by every major news source around the globe, picking up more than 10million views in a matter of days.
Kapadia directed the award winning Burberry commercial, "A Tale of Thomas Burberry", featuring an all-star cast of Domhnall Gleeson, Sienna Miller, Dominic West and Lily James and written by Academy Award nominee Matt Charman. Comprising of a three-minute cinematic trailer, the film is inspired by Thomas Burberry's life and achievements, reimagining key events that have shaped the company's history and values.- Director
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Born to an Indian Army General in Madhya Pradesh, she graduated with Economics honours from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Delhi. She did Mass Communications from Sophia College, Mumbai. She is married to Aseem Bajaj, an Indian Cinematographer well known for his poetic imagery on films like Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi, Shabd, Teen Patti, U Me Aur Hum and Chameli to name a few. She met Aseem while directing her first TV show This Week That Year.- Actress
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Geetu Mohandas formed her film production house- Unplugged in 2009 which produced her directorial debut short fiction film titled "Are You Listening?" The film premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and subsequently won 3 International awards as well as the National Film Award in India. Her first feature film "Liar's Dice" received the Hubert Bals fund for script and project development and the film was selected in Competition for the world dramatic competition at Sundance in 2014. Liar's dice went on to win 6 major international awards across the world and 2 National awards in India. It was also India's official submission for the Best Foreign Film category for the 87th Academy Awards. Her second feature is in production titled "Moothon." The script is suported by the Sundance film lab and also won the Global film making award in 2016 at Sundance.- Actor
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Nishikant Kamat was born on 17 June 1970 in Dadar, Maharashtra, India. He was an actor and director, known for Dombivli Fast (2005), Drishyam (2015) and Mumbai Meri Jaan (2008). He died on 17 August 2020 in Hyderabad, India.- Director
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Partho Sen-Gupta is a Sydney-based film writer, director and producer. He worked as Art Director and Production Designer on feature films, TV series and commercials in India. He studied Film direction (1993-97) at La FEMIS (Ecole Nationale Superieure des Metiers de l'Image et du Son) in Paris. Partho's short films screened at Locarno, Clermont-Ferrand, Angers, etc. and won awards. Partho's first feature film, 'Let the Wind Blow' (Hava Aney Dey), premiered at the Berlin Int. Film Festival. His second feature film, 'Sunrise', premiered at the Busan IFF and has since screened at 2015 Tribeca, Munich, BFI London, Sitges, Sydney, etc. It won the Best Film and the Best Cinematography Awards at the 2015 Durban Film Festival, Black Tulip for Best Film at the Imagine Film Festival and an Honorable Jury Mention at the Munich Film Festival. It was nominated at the 2015 Asia-Pacific Screen Academy Awards. After its theatrical release in France, Germany, US, and China, it was acquired by Netflix. His third feature film 'Slam' set in Sydney, Australia, premiered at the 2018 Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. It then screened at various film festivals around the world. Partho has also been a member of International film festival juries and sits on the board of the Australian Director's Guild - ADG and the Australian Screen Directors Authorship Society - ASDACS. Partho worked as a Senior Lecturer in Directing at the Australian Film, Television, Radio School (AFTRS) 2021-2023.- Writer
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Abhay Kumar is known for Placebo (2014), ...Just That Sort of a Day (2010) and Life Is a Beach (2011).- Director
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Anusha is an Indian film director and screenwriter. Formerly a journalist, Anusha's directorial debut Peepli (Live) premiered at the Sundance Film Festival 2010 in the World Competition Section and was the first Indian film to be accepted in the 25 years of the festival's existence. The film was later nominated as India's official entry to the 83rd Academy Awards. Peepli (Live) won the Guild Award for Best Story, and the Best Film Award at the Durban Film festival. Anusha has also directed documentaries including Hijack IC-814 for National Geographic and Amul and Khadi for the BBC. She is currently developing an original series project with a leading Indian OTT platform.- Writer
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Sundar C. was born on 21 January 1968 in Erode, Tamil Nadu, India. He is a writer and producer, known for Aambala (2015), Rendu (2006) and Janakiraman (1997). He has been married to Kushboo since 9 March 2000. They have two children.- Writer
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