Karthik (actor)

Murali Karthikeyan Muthuraman, better known by stage name Karthik, is an Indian film actor, playback singer and politician who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He is the son of veteran actor R. Muthuraman. He was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film "Alaigal Oivathillai" (1981) and became a lead actor by his own. He has primarily appeared in Tamil films, and some Telugu films. Karthik is popularly known as "Navarasa Nayagan" (multi-talented actor) for his "ability to emote all forms of emotions". He has acted in more than 125 films. He has been the recipient of the Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and the Nandi Award. He won four Filmfare Awards South.
Early life and background.
Karthik was born on 13 September 1960 in Chennai to Veteran Actor R. Muthuraman, a popular Tamil film actor in 80's, 90's and 2000's. He has two sons, Gautham and Ghayn, from his first marriage with Ragini, and another son, Thiran, from his second marriage with Rathi.
Film career.
Debut and success (1981-1986).
Karthik was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film "Alaigal Oivathillai" (1981). He received the Best New Face Award from the Tamil Nadu Government in 1981. He collaborated with leading film directors such as Mani Ratnam, K. Balachander, Bharathiraja, Visu, R. Sundarrajan, Ameerjan, R. V. Udayakumar, Priyadarshan, Fazil, Vikraman, Agathiyan, Sundar C., K. S. Ravikumar, P. Vasu and K. V. Anand.
During the earlier stages of his career, Karthik worked three times with R. V. Udaya Kumar and enjoyed great success in all their ventures. Later, he formed a partnership with Goundamani in many comedy films. He was also well received by the Tamil audience for his performance in "Nallavanukku Nallavan" (1984) in a challenging role against Rajinikanth. Karthik during the early to mid 80s did many films and some of them like "Ninaivellam Nithya" (1982), "Agaya Gangai" (1982), itto do variety of roles but many of the films till 1986 like "Bhagavathipuram Railway Gate" (1983), "Pei Veedu" (1984) and "Raja Thanthiram" (1984) were typical low budget masala films. His onscreen pair with Radha was appreciated in the 80s. His cameo in "Mouna Ragam" (1986) was very well received by the audience. The film, which made many women fall in love with Karthik. The film which gave Tamil industry an actor of extraordinary talent, an actor of immense artistry and one who was a natural performer. This film not only catapulted Karthik to fame but even he would admit, it made him re-think his choice of films and also instilled confidence and belief that he had what is required as an actor to succeed.
Golden years (1987-1991).
A golden period in the career of Karthik, one witnessed numerous performance-oriented films. "Vanna Kanavugal" (1987), the film was a super hit . Karthik collaborated with several leading directors and gave several successful films. He acted in Telugu film "Abhinandana" (1988), for which he won the Nandi Special Jury Award. Followed by "Agni Natchathiram" (1988) co-starred with Prabhu. The film was directed by Mani Ratnam. The high point of Ratnam's association with Ilaiyaraaja. "Agni Natchathiram"'s songs captured the story's essence. In 'Raja Rajadhi Rajan Indha Raja', Ilaiyaraaja brings an American electro sting to the beats, reminiscent of bands such as Newcleus that were storming the charts in the '80s.
Ups and downs (1992-1995).
A period of ups and terrible downs. Also, the period when Karthik took considerable risks in choosing film scripts. "Amaran" (1992), an action film where Karthik plays an orphan who eventually becomes a don. When it released, it performed below expectations but with time has attained cult status with the song sung by Karthik becoming a huge rage during the last 10 years. 'Vethala Potta Sokkula', One of the few super hit songs that Aadhithyan tuned. Sung by Karthik himself in his signature style very similar to his dialogue delivery, the song is a 'love at first sight' kind. Its simplicity and very hummable lyrics is what endeared it to many when it was first released. "Nadodi Thendral" (1992), a period film helmed by Bharathiraja. This was a huge risk during the 1990s when typical four-song and four-fight films ruled the roost. Karthik acting was a revelation in the triangular love story. "Ponnumani" (1993), a village-based melodrama. First one for Karthik. Performance wise everyone did their bit but in terms of acting skills, not much was required through the film was hugely successful. Karthik also spent a considerable amount of time shooting for a Telugu film co-starring Vijayashanti in "Maga Rayudu" (1994). This period also witnessed like "Marumagan" (1995), "Chakravarthy" (1995), "Nandhavana Theru" (1995) and an average success "Thotta Chinungi" (1995).
Breakout and Consolidation years (1996-1999).
One after another success in addition to laurels for acting. This was the year of Karthik, "Kizhakku Mugam" (1996), a good review but he received another breakthrough in his career by performing a full-length comedy role in Sundar C's "Ullathai Allitha" (1996), alongside Rambha and Goundamani, then collaborated with the director again in another profitable venture, "Mettukudi" (1996). He went on to win critical acclaim for his role in "Gokulathil Seethai" (1996). This was undoubtedly the film of the year. Performance of Karthik was on a different level, the nuances, the pause, the dialogue delivery, the body language, emotions through eyes, - This was an artist who was at his very best and whose artistry had no peers. He appeared in K. S. Ravikumar's "Pistha" (1997), which also won good reviews. Karthik carried on his good streak at the box office in 1998, while also winning accolades for his performances in Vikraman's "Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen" (1998) (100th film), Cheyyar Ravi's "Harichandra" (1998) and Selva's "Pooveli" (1998), and won a Tamil Nadu State Award for Best Actor. In 1999, he played drama films like "Chinna Raja", "Nilave Mugam Kaattu", "Anandha Poongatre", "Suyamvaram" and "Rojavanam". He acted in medium-budget comedy films, notably in four further Sundar C ventures including the successful Blockbuster film, "Unakkaga Ellam Unakkaga" (1999). His pairing with Rambha was a hit with the audience as the pair provided good hits in the 1990s.
Downfall begins (2000-2001).
During the early 2000s, Karthik experienced a difficult period as he began to lose his popularity at the box office and new actors began to emerge in the Tamil film industry. He subsequently signed on to appear in several films, which were either dropped, shelved or indefinitely postponed during the period. His career as a lead actor subsequently began to dwindle in the early 2000s, with several of his ventures opening with little publicity or being delayed after financial troubles. Many family films came but nothing different were noticed or not one performance to be talked about "Thai Poranthachu" (2000), "Sandhitha Velai" (2000), "Kannan Varuvaan" (2000), "Kuberan" (2000) and "Seenu" (2000) . Films including Prabhu Nepal's "Kadhale Swasam", alongside Meena, Sundar C's "Kadhal Solla Vandhen", with Isha Koppikar and Gowri Manohar's "Kashmir", with Priyanka Trivedi, had audio release events but failed to have a theatrical release.
Likewise, other ventures including Mahesh's "Manathil", alongside Kausalya, Soundarrajan's "Click", co-starring Prabhu and Selva's "Kai Korthu Vaa" progressed before being halted. Similarly, other projects in the early 2000s, such as "Gurudeva", with Rimjim; "Muthalaam Santhippil" with Kausalya again and "Enrum Unnai Naesippaen" were dropped soon after filming had begun. Potential home productions such as "Tension" and "Avan Appadithaan" under his banner Aalamara Films also did not materialise. In 2001, his films were "Ullam Kollai Poguthae", "Lovely" and comedy film "Azhagana Naatkal".
Years in wilderness (2002-2007).
He starred in action film, "Devan" with Vijayakanth and Arun Pandian, followed by "Game". During the nadir of 2002, Karthik was signed on by producer Keyaar to make a film titled "Enna Peyar Veikalaam", directed by Vincent Selva. Despite travelling to Pollachi for the shoot, the actor refused to emerge from his hotel room, and following an extended period of confusion, the film was called off and the Nadigar Sangam began legal proceedings against the actor. He acted in the crime film, "Indru" (2003). The film was a disaster.
Towards the nadir of 2005, he signed on to appear in a negative role in Sathyaraj's "Sivalingam IPS", but the film was shelved. In 2004, Karthik suggested that "his acts and habits" had landed him in trouble and was looking to make a comeback. He subsequently appeared in "comeback" films such as "Kusthi" (2006) and "Kalakkura Chandru" (2007), both of which had delayed releases and went unnoticed at the box office. Other ventures that the actor described as "comeback projects", such as Kicha's "Unnidathil" and Raj Kapoor's "Sivalingam IPS", were shelved mid-production. Later in 2006, he revealed that he had quit taking drugs and was keen to make another attempt at returning to the film industry.
Renewal (2010-2013).
Karthik opted to make a comeback into acting in 2010 and chose to appear in supporting rather than leading roles, much like his contemporaries Prabhu and Sathyaraj. He was first seen portraying a caring police officer in "Maanja Velu", before winning positive reviews for his small role as a forest guard in Mani Ratnam's "Raavanan". He subsequently went on to play roles in P. Vasu's "Puli Vesham" (2011) and the Telugu film "Om 3D" (2013), both of which failed at the box office.
Revival and comeback (2015-present).
He acted in a negative role in K. V. Anand's "Anegan", where he appears alongside Dhanush. He acted with Suriya in "Thaanaa Serndha Koottam" (2018), and his son Gautham Karthik in "Mr. Chandramouli" (2018). He made a guest appearance with actor Karthi in the film, "Dev" (2019).
Political career.
Karthik entered politics ahead of the 2006 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election. He joined the All India Forward Bloc and was appointed as the Secretary of the Tamil Nadu state unit of the party. He led the party during its electoral campaign on 24 September 2006. He later started his own party Ahila India Naadalum Makkal Katchi in 2009 before the Lok Sabha Elections. He contested from Virudhunagar constituency and got only 15000 votes. He again started another party named Manitha Urimaigal Kaakkum Katchi on 15 December 2018 at Tirunelveli before Lok saba elections and he expressed his support to AIADMK alliance.
2011 Assembly elections.
Karthik's party tried an alliance with AIADMK for the 2011 Assembly elections, but AIADMK supremo denied tickets for his party. Karthik announced his party will contest alone in 25 to 40 seats after it was not allotted any seat in the AIADMK coalition. Karthik sat on a fast in Madurai demanding Madurai Airport be renamed as Pasumpon Thevar Airport. His party with sizeable Thevar votes in southern Tamil Nadu is believed to eat into the AIADMK votebank. In 2006, former AIADMK minister Nainar Nagendran lost by 2,000 votes in Tirunelveli, where Karthik's party polled more than the margin. Two weeks later, he split from ADMK and announced his party will contest independently in 19 constituencies and support DMK in 213 constituencies.
Personal life.
Relationships.
Karthik is a self-proclaimed bigamist. He married actress Ragini in 1988, his co-star in the film "Solaikuyil" and the couple has two sons, actor Gautham Karthik and Ghayn Karthik. Later, he also married Ragini's sister, Rathi in 1992 and the couple have a son, Thiran Karthik.


Shreshta

Shreshta is a Telugu-Language lyricist and writer. She became popular for her lyrics for the songs in the movies, Pelli Choopulu and Arjun Reddy. After her debut, she was lauded as Telugu cinema’s first female lyricist.
Early life.
She was born in Mancherial in Adilabad district, Telangana. She is the only child, her father is a businessman and mother a government employee. Her mother a Hindu Brahmin and raised in a devout Hindu family and devotional songs were part of family culture. She was interested in writing from early age. She did her schooling in Mancherial and did her Bachelors in Commerce and LLB at Osmania University. She use to write poems and was encouraged by her grandfather, Panchadhara Venkata Kishan. She first started writing poems when she was in tenth standard.
Career.
She was encouraged by popular Telugu language lyricist, Vennelakanti to take up a career in penning lyrics. Initially, she started writing devotional songs, before pushing a career in movies.
Tollywood.
She made Tollywood debut in 2013 with the film, "Oka Romantic Crime Katha". She also penned lyrics for the Telugu films, Ko Ante Koti and Courier Boy Kalyan. Pelli Choopulu was her 9th movie as a lyricist.


B. S. Narayana

B. S. Narayana is an Indian film, director known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema.
 He has garnered two National Film Awards. He was a member of the Indian delegation to the "Tashkent Film Festival" in 1974, and the "Moscow International Film Festival" in 1975.


Taj Noor

Taj Noor is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer, who has predominantly scored music for Tamil films.
Career.
Taj Noor was born in town of Salem, Tamil Nadu to a district collector Usman Ali Khan and his wife Habibonisha and has two elder brothers and two elder sisters. He completed his education in Salem, attending the Bharatiya Vidyalaya and the Pavadi Boys High School and then continued his collegiate education at Government Arts College, Salem with Physics as his major subject. Taj Noor assisted music director A. R. Rahman, after joining his team in 1996. Initially, his major responsibility was to maintain all the back-ups for the work done by Rahman, with the job being particularly important before the technology boom in the late 1990s.
His first solo film soundtrack was for the romantic drama film, "Aayiram Muthangaludan Thenmozhi" (2012), though delays meant that the soundtrack albums of Pandiraj's "Vamsam" (2010) and "Eththan" (2011) released before hand. He also previously worked on the Rambha-starrer "Vidiyum Varai Kaathiru", but the film was shelved. For "Aayiram Muthangaludan Thenmozhi", Taj Noor composed the music based on the seasons in the Kurinji, Mullai, Marutham, Neithal and Palai regions and used mostly the violin, viola and cello to record the songs. The film's director, Shanmugaraj, was a good friend of Pandiraj and recommended that Taj Noor should be selected for Pandiraj's second venture. Taj Noor made a breakthrough in the music industry with the album of "Vamsam", winning acclaim for his work, especially for the "Marudaani" song. He won further acclaim for his work in "Eththan", though several of his subsequent albums had audio launches but did not have a theatrical release including "Mallukattu", "Adithalam", "Swasame" and "Kaliyugam", where he worked alongside Siddharth Vipin and Arunagiri. Furthermore, other ventures saw him removed after beginning work such as Samuthirakani's "Poraali" (2011) or shelved midst production such as Ilankannan's "Om", starring Arjun and Pallavi Subhash and the Sarathkumar-Iniya starrer "Velachery".


Bram Fischer (film)

Bram Fischer (2017) also titled An Act of Defiance is a 2017 film about the South African lawyer Bram Fischer who defended Nelson Mandela and his co-defendants at the Rivonia Trial of 1963 – 1964. The film was directed by Jean van de Velde and was featured in several film festivals. The role of Bram Fischer is played by Peter Paul Muller. The film runs for 124 minutes and is in both English and Afrikaans.
Plot.
In 1963, Nelson Mandela's inner circle of Black and Jewish activists, known as the Umkhonto we Sizwe, are arrested by the apartheid South African government for conspiracy to commit sabotage. The group joins Mandela in prison and is being held indefinitely without formal charge due to the government's 90-day detention law.
Bram Fischer, a sympathetic lawyer and head of the bar, risks his career and freedom to defend Mandela and the men from facing the death sentence. Over the course of the film it is revealed that Bram is also part of Mandela's inner circle and becomes subject to a secret police investigation. The film ends with the trial's conclusion, Mandela and the others get life imprisonment instead of the death penalty, and shortly after Bram is arrested.
The film is an adapted screenplay based on Joel Joffe’s book, "The State Vs. Nelson Mandela".
Screenings.
The film has been screened in a number of film festivals including 36 Jewish Film Festivals
Awards.
The film won two Golden Calf awards from the Netherlands Film Festival:
The film won an award from the UK Jewish Film Festival, the Dayton Jewish Film Festival and the Mill Valley Film Festival.


Anjali Devi

Anjali Devi (; 24 August 1927 – 13 January 2014) was an Indian actress, model and producer in Telugu and Tamil films. She was well known for her role as the Devi Sita in "Lava Kusa" as well as for the titular roles in movies like "Suvarna Sundari" and "Anarkali".
Early life.
Anjali Devi was born in Peddapuram, East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh, India, as Anjamma. She changed her name to Anjani Kumari when acting in dramas. Later, director C. Pullaiah changed her name to Anjali Devi.
Career.
As actress.
She was a theatre artiste before venturing into movies, her debut film role was as Lohitasva in "Raja Harishchandra" in 1936. Her first film as a heroine was "Kashtajeevi" by L. V. Prasad in 1940, but that film was abandoned after three reels shooting. Later, C.Pullayya discovered her and gave her the opportunity to star as Mohini in "Gollabhama" (1947). Based on her acting ability and looks, she became a star overnight in 1947. She eventually acted in more than 350 films, majority of them in Telugu films and a few in Hindi, Tamil and Kannada films as the heroine or in character roles.
She acted in "Lava Kusa", a milestone film and the first color film in the Telugu film industry in 1963. She is well known for playing Sita in "Lava Kusa" and her performances in films like "Suvarna Sundari" and "Anarkali" were also appreciated. "Brundavanam" (1992), "Anna Vadina" (1993) and "Police Alludu" (1994) were the last few films of her career. In Balaiah's "Police Alludu" and "Anna Vadina" she appeared alongside Brahmanandam. She acted in various roles, such as a damsel, an angel, a dancer, a demon, a goddess, a traditional woman and later in mother roles.
As producer.
In 1955 she produced the film "Anarkali", in which she herself played the titular role, with Akkineni Nageswara Rao as Prince Salim. Then she produced V. Madhusudan Rao's "Bhakta Tukaram" and "Chandipriya". Bollywood and Tollywood actress Jayapradha played the lead role in the latter alongside Sobhan Babu and Chiranjeevi. As a producer she has produced 27 films. An ardent devotee of Sri Sathya Sai Baba she produced and acted in Shirdi Sai Parthi Sai Divyakatha, a tele-serial on the life and avatar of Sri Sathya Sai Baba. This was also the first screen appearance of Vijay Devarakonda, then a student of class 3 at Sri Sathya Sai Primary School, Puttaparthi in 1997.
Personal life.
She married P. Adinarayana Rao, a music director, in 1948. They settled in Chennai. They have two sons. Together, they produced many Telugu films under the banner, Anjali Pictures. Their granddaughter, Saila Rao, is also an actress.
Death.
Devi died at the age of 86 on 13 January 2014 at Vijaya Hospital, in Chennai, due to a cardiac arrest. Her organs were donated to Ramachandra Medical College. She is survived by her sons.


R. Parthiban

Parthiban (also credited as R. Parthiepan, Ra Parthiepan, or Parthiepan) is an Born: (02 August 1958) Indian film actor, director, producer and writer who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He has directed 14 films, produced 12 films and acted in more than 60 films. He started his career as assistant director for K. Bhagyaraj in 1984 and the duo worked in over 20 films from 1984 to 1991.
Parthiban is known for having directed critically acclaimed films such as "Pudhiya Paadhai" (1989) and "Housefull" (1999) won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.
His performances as actor are in successful films such as "Bharathi Kannamma" (1997), "Nee Varuvai Ena" (1999), "Vetri Kodi Kattu" (2000), "Azhagi" (2002), "Aayirathil Oruvan" (2010), "Melvilasom" (2011) and "Otha Seruppu Size 7" (2019).
On 25 December 2018, he was appointed as the new Vice President of the Tamil Film Producers Council replacing Gautham Menon and Prakash Raj who were jointly holding the position until 24 December 2018.
Early life.
He started as an Assistant Director in the film "Vedikkai Manidhargal". He was even given an opportunity to assist in dialogue in the name of R. Moorthy. After this, he joined as an assistant of K. Bhagyaraj. At that time, he used to make around Rs 6000 a month by dubbing for various artists. He made his first film appearance in "Ranuva Veeran" (1981). Then, he played the role of a postman in his mentor's "Dhavani Kanavugal" (1984).
Apart from direction and acting, he produces films. He wrote a book, "Kirukkkalgal – Thamizh Kavithai Thoguppu", which was released by M. Karunanidhi. He runs a charitable trust named "R.Parthepan Manidha Neya Mandram".
Career.
In 1989, he made his directorial debut through "Pudhiya Paadhai", starring himself as an inhuman ruffian who gets reformed by his rape victim. The film was released to critical acclaim and emerged a box office success, while also winning several accolades, including the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil, Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film and Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Story Writer. In early 1990, he directed and acted in "Pondatti Thevai", which failed at the box office. In the end of 1990, he appeared in R. Sundarrajan's "Thalattu Padava" and in the devotional film "Engal Swamy Ayyappan". In 1991, he starred in S. P. Muthuraman's "Thaiyalkaran". In 1992, he starred in "Unnai Vaazhthi Paadugiren", co-starring with Suman Ranganathan and Mohini. He then directed and acted in "Sugamana Sumaigal", a clean family drama, which failed at the box office. In 1993, to recoup the financial losses, he directed and acted in the commercial film "Ulle Veliye". Ayyappa Prasad of "The New Indian Express" labelled the film as "flesh and bore". Despite negative reviews, the film has been declared a super hit at the box office. He then directed and acted in 1994 in "Sarigamapadani", co-starring with Roja and Sangita and the next year in "Pullakuttikaran", co-starring with Sangita and Urvashi. In 1996, he acted in the comedy film "Tata Birla".
He won Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for "Bharathi Kannamma" (1997). He played a man from a lower caste who a zamindari falls in love with. Parthipan, the actor, director and producer, loves breaking the conventional rules set by commercial cinema. He has taken roles that other heroes would carefully avoid, directed films that his critics found to be arty. The actor has remained uncompromising and stuck to his principles in spite of some not-so-memorable roles in the past. After the critically acclaimed and award-winning films such as "Housefull" (1999) and "Azhagi" (2002), audience and the trade have acknowledged the maker's undisputed talents. His 1999 Tamil film "Housefull" won the same award.
In 2001, he launched an ambitious directorial project titled "Yelelo", with A. R. Rahman composing four songs for the film. Despite having a high-profile launch and completion of a few filming schedules, the venture was shelved. Similarly, he launched three films simultaneously titled "Kartha", "Rowdy" and "Adi" after the failure of "Kudaikul Mazhai" (2004), though all projects were abandoned.
The film "Aayirathil Oruvan" (2010), in which he portrayed a Chola King, won him the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Tamil.
His previously released movie "Kathai Thiraikathai Vasanam Iyakkam" becomes Parthiban's first directorial film in which he does not feature in the lead role. The film, which has a tagline reading "a film without a story?", began production in late 2013 and released on 15 August 2014 and received positive reviews from all the sides and was a huge blockbuster hit in the box office. In 2015, he portrayed a cop in "Massu Engira Masilamani" and played a comedian villain in "Naanum Rowdy Dhaan". He acted in supporting role in the "Maaveeran Kittu" (2016) and "Koditta Idangalai Nirappuga" (2017). He appeared in Kannada movie "Dada Is Back" (2017), which he played in lead role as undisputed king of the underworld in Bengaluru. Followed by a comedy film, "Podhuvaga Emmanasu Thangam" (2017). In 2018, he acted in Bilingual Malayam-Tamil drama movie "Kinar".
In 2019, he play in "Oththa Seruppu Size 7", with only one character on the screen. Off it too. Written, directed and acted in by R Parthiban, the film has managed to pique the interest of the audience right from its inception. The filmmaker revealed that it was his 18-year dream to make this film, yet the story is timely and relevant. Along with the outstanding performance and sharp visuals, the film is amplified by the amazing sound design which gives life to the uncanny, yet detailed confession of Masilamani.
References.
35.https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/67th-national-film-awards-kangana-ranaut-sushant-singh-rajput-s-chhichhore-win-101616411773402.html
Hindustan Times. 22 March 2021


Alludu Seenu

Alludu Seenu () is a 2014 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film directed by V. V. Vinayak. Produced by Bellamkonda Suresh on his banner Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Productions, the film marks the debut of his son Bellamkonda Sreenivas with Samantha Ruth Prabhu in the lead roles, while Brahmanandam and Prakash Raj play supporting roles. Devi Sri Prasad composed the music for this film while Chota K. Naidu and Gautham Raju handled the cinematography and editing of the film, respectively.
The film was officially launched on 15 February 2013 in Hyderabad. After altering the bound script twice, the film's principal photography commenced at Annapoorna Studios in Hyderabad in October 2013. Majority of the film was shot in and around Hyderabad while significant portions were shot at Alleppey in Kerala. The songs were shot in the locales of Japan, Dubai and Italy apart from the sets built in Hyderabad. After completion of a few action sequences at Gachibowli Aluminium Factory in Hyderabad, the film's principal photography came to an end on 14 June 2014.
The film released worldwide on 25 July 2014. Upon release, the film received decent feedback from critics with most of them calling it a Routine Commercial Entertainer. While critics praised Sreenivas' dancing and fighting skills, Samantha's glamour, Prakash Raj and Brahmanandam's performances, they criticized the film for its predictable content and wrong placement of songs. Later the film was dubbed in Hindi as Mard Ka Badla (2019). Sai Srinivas won Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut – South.
Plot.
Seenu, better known as Alludu Seenu, lives with his uncle Narasimha in a village where both are in great debt. One day, they run away to Chennai, hoping to fly to Dubai and earning a lot of money and clearing their debts. They mistake their train and they end up in Hyderabad. They land in a lodge where Seenu discovers that he is in Hyderbad, but to his horror, the city's don Bhai resembles his uncle Narasimha very much. He uses his uncle's face to earn a lot of money, and by fooling Dimple, Bhai's right hand. He also manages to make Bhai's stepdaughter Anjali fall in love with him, when she mistakes him to be her fiancé, Rohit. When Bhai gets to know that someone is faking him in the city, he plans to get him killed and ends up discovering that the faker is his twin brother Narasimha.
Bhai catches Seenu and Narasimha and their fellows, and orders his men to kill them. Seenu manages to escape with them. Narasimha now tells Seenu that he was the chief of his village and the twin brother of Bhai. Years ago, when Narasimha had collected some projection funds from villagers and was going to submit it to a superior, Bhai attacked his car, which he and his wife Nandini and daughter Anjali were all in. Anjali survived the attack and was later adopted by Bhai, who wanted only the heritage of her father. Bhai told everyone that Narasimha killed his own family and escaped with the money, making all people hate him, including Anjali.
Narasimha is shocked to learn that his blood daughter Anjali is still alive. Meanwhile, Anjali learns Seenu is not his fiancé Rohit but only pretending to be, so she starts to hate him and leaves with Bhai for Sharjah to marry real Rohit—son of the don in Sharjah—Bhanu. Seenu and Narasimha also arrives Sharjah to stop the wedding.
In Sharjah, Seenu somehow kidnaps Bhai, keeps him captive and makes Narasimha disguise as him to fool others to execute his plan—to call off the wedding, unite Seenu and Anjali, and reveal the truth to her. With some plans, they swindle some money from Bhanu, and tell Anjali the real story of his father Narasimha and stepfather Bhai, making her fall in love with Seenu again. After that, they escape from Sharjah and fly to India, while Bhai also escapes from captivity and tells Bhanu they've all been cheated.
Bhanu and Bhai all fly to India to kill them, but all their men are defeated by Seenu. Seenu, not only brings them to justice, but also clarifies his uncle's accused crimes. The village apologizes to Narasimha and welcomes him again.
Production.
Development.
On 5 December 2008 as Bellamkonda Suresh celebrated his birthday at the Devnar School for the Blind in Begumpet at Hyderabad, V. V. Vinayak who came as a guest to the function revealed the first news of Sai Sreenivas' film debut. He said "I share an emotional bonding with Bellamkonda Suresh for a long time as he gave me the first break as a director. It was Bellamkonda Suresh who introduced me as a director. Now I want to direct Bellamkonda Suresh’s son Sai’s debut film. I wish to make Sai a nice hero." Bellamkonda Suresh spoke "I would like to thank VV Vinayak for offering to introducing my son as a hero. My son Sai will be introduced as hero in 2011. I will send him to USA to learn more about acting. I am indebted to VV Vinayak for the favor he is doing to me." On 15 February 2013 the film was officially launched at Annapurna Studios in Hyderabad and along with the film's crew, celebrities like Venkatesh and Dasari Narayana Rao attended the event. On that day, Devi Sri Prasad was announced as the music director while Chota K. Naidu and Gautham Raju were selected as the cinematographer and editor of the film respectively. In mid-May 2014, reports emerged that the makers were considering to title the film as "Alludu Sreenu". The same was officially confirmed by Samantha in her Twitter on 26 May 2014.
Casting.
In early February 2013, Samantha Ruth Prabhu was selected to play the heroine in this film as a part of the three-film deal she entered with Bellamkonda Suresh. She stated that she accepted to be a part of the film only due to her good relationship with Bellamkonda Suresh when he helped her during the time when she was suffering with serious skin ailments. She said "Bellamkonda Suresh has stood by me during the toughest phase in my life and I am doing this film for him." A photo shoot was conducted later on Samantha and Sai Sreenivas in the same month. In mid-March 2013, it was reported that Tamannaah was selected as the other heroine of the film and it was said that Bellamkonda Suresh offered her a huge remuneration for the film. She too confirmed the news that she is sharing the screen along with a debutante hero. But since the previous two scripts were not accepted by Vinayak himself and after penning a fresh script, Tamannaah was no more a part of the film as the new one required a single heroine only. In the end of January 2014, Prakash Raj reacted in his Twitter about the speculations that he would play a double role in Mahesh Babu's "Aagadu" that he is not playing a dual role in that film but he is playing a dual role in this film which he called an "interesting" one. In the end of March 2014, it was reported that Tamannaah would do a special song in the film.
It was said that she would participate in the shoot for this song in the end of April 2014 or early May 2014. It was also said that the song would be the introduction song of the hero in the film. But by the time the reports emerged into the media, Tamannaah wrapped up the shoot of the song in the film on 31 March and V. V. Vinayak thanked her for accepting the offer in his Facebook page. The song, a romantic one, was shot in Hyderabad in a vineyard set for five days. In an interaction to "Chennai Times", Tamannaah's father said "The primary reason why she agreed to do this song was because it is the most important song in the film. It is not an item song but a romantic number and the director narrated how he intends to shoot it. It is true that a year ago, when the script was first written, Tamannaah had chosen to be a part of this film. However, when the script was changed, we mutually agreed to part ways. But despite that, both Tamannaah and Vinayak have mutual respect for each other and that is why, when Vinayak requested Tamannaah to do this one song for him, she agreed." About his character, Brahmanandam spoke "I played Dimple in this film and it is a very different character from my previous films. Prakash Raj played a dual role in this film and I played an assistant to one of his characters. But I get confused with both of them and talk about one with the other. It generates a lot of entertainment."
Filming.
The film's first schedule of shooting started at Annapurna Studios in Hyderabad in the end of October 2013 due to delay in script work and a song on Samantha and Bellamkonda Sreenivas was shot there. After completing the first schedule silently, the film unit proceeded to Japan to shoot a song on Sai Sreenivas and Samantha in the exotic locales of that country. The regular shooting continued for some time after the unit's return from Japan and after a brief gap, the shooting continued from 19 February 2014 at Ramanaidu Studios in Hyderabad where some street scenes were shot on Sai Sreenivas and Samantha. Later again after a brief gap due to Samantha's busy schedules, the filming continued at Fort Grand in Hyderabad which was known for its picturesque setting. Later it was reported that the film's shoot would continue in Dubai after a song was filmed on the leads in Hyderabad. After completion of the Hyderabad schedule of "Kaththi", Samantha joined the sets of the film on 1 April 2014. She left the sets after completing her part in the schedule and joined the sets of "Kaththi" again and took a break from there in the first week of May. Later she joined the sets of this film at Alleppey in Kerala. After returning from there, Samantha tweeted in the second week of May that the team would go to Italy for filming a song on Sai Sreenivas and herself. After filming few sequences of a song there, the team returned to Hyderabad on 11 May. Later the shoot continued at Aluminium factory at Gachibowli in Hyderabad. The film's shoot came to an end on 23 June 2014 which was confirmed by Samantha in her micro-blogging page.
Soundtrack.
Devi Sri Prasad composed the music and background score for the film reuniting with V. V. Vinayak after "Adhurs" (2009). The audio launch of the film was initially slated to be held on 7 June 2014, but the audio release was postponed to 21 June 2014. On 15 June 2014, the makers confirmed that the audio release will happen on the said before date, at Shilpakala Vedika in Hyderabad, on Aditya Music label. It was reported that N. T. Rama Rao Jr. was invited as the chief guest for the audio launch. The official track list featuring 6 songs was released before the soundtrack album's launch on 19 June 2014. The event was aired live on MAA Movies starting from 7:30 PM. While N. T. Rama Rao Jr. did not attend the function turning the reports as rumors, Venkatesh, S. S. Rajamouli and Pranitha Subhash attended as the chief guests.
The audio received viral response and all the songs in the soundtrack were praised by the audience. Reviewing the album, The Times of India wrote "Devi Sri Prasad seems to have dished out a standard edition album with a little bit of everything. All in all, it's the kind of album that's good to listen to but will not exactly make you go for a repeat listening" and rated the album 3 out of 5. Indiaglitz rated 2.5 out of 5, stating "Alludu Seenu is an album that manages to dish out average music. The lyrics come with flashes of creativity here and there."
The soundtrack album had a record number of sales for which Aditya Music thanked Devi Sri Prasad and the film makers, one of the representatives from the company stated that "Devi Sri Prasad, who has given many super hit albums in his career, has provided beautiful songs for 'Alludu Seenu' and it has been creating sensation regarding sales, from the day it was released. All the songs are received well by the listeners and we thank DSP once again for the superb score."
Release.
In a press meet held on 15 June 2014 the makers officially declared the film's release date as 24 July 2014. On 28 June 2014 reports emerged that Gemini TV secured the satellite rights of the movie for an undisclosed price. On 5 July 2014 a press note was issued which stated that the film would release a day later i.e. on 25 July 2014 in theaters. The film was awarded an 'A' certificate with few cuts by the Central Board of Film Certification on 23 July 2014.
Marketing.
The first look posters were also released on the same day itself but none of them featured the title of the film. New posters were released after the shoot at Japan but they too didn't bear the title of the film. But Sai Sreenivas and Samantha were appreciated for their looks in those posters. The title logo of the film was revealed on 6 June 2014. The first look poster bearing the title and few stills were released on 21 June 2014. Those stills received positive response and Samantha's glamour in those stills received a strong positive response. The theatrical trailer and video promos of the songs were released on 29 June 2014 and they received positive response in which Sreenivas was appreciated for his dances, looks, acting and fighting skills; Samantha and Tamannaah were appreciated for their glamour show. Particularly, Tamannaah's item number received great positive response which generated good buzz for the film.
Reception.
The film received positive reviews from critics. "Deccan Chronicle" gave a review stating "Vinayak has chosen a safe subject for the debutant. The story is not new but director Vinayak handles it very well. This film is a great launch for a debutant. Vinayak, known for his mass films, has once again provided entertainment for masses. Brahmanandam’s comedy and Samantha’s glamour quotient may also help the film" and rated the film 3/5. "123telugu.com" gave a review stating "Alludu Seenu is a tailor made launch pad for Bellamkonda Sreenivas. He makes an impressive debut and enthralls everyone with his dances and fights. Samantha’s glamour, V V Vinayak’s routine but entertaining commercial aspects, and Brahmi’s hilarious comedy makes this film a wholesome entertainer" and rated the film 3.25/5. "IndiaGlitz" gave a review stating "'Alludu Seenu' is Gopi Mohan-meets-VV Vinayak in a blistering way. A full-on commercial film where comedy scenes, songs, fights and sentimental scenes come in the expected measure" and rated the film 3.25/5.
On the flip side, "The Times of India" gave a review stating "There's a term which is often used to describe films like Alludu Seenu in one word – 'package'. It has a little bit of everything, although the sum of these bits isn't necessarily fulfilling in the end." "The Hindu" gave a review stating "Director V.V. Vinayak, adept at handling commercial entertainers involving established stars, has attempted to do something similar with a newcomer. The silliness that tries to pass off as comedy is numbing, and by the time these scenes play on screen, viewers have already been conditioned not to expect anything intelligent." "Oneindia Entertainment" gave a review stating "Alludu Seenu is a hit that deals with fresh concept.it promises to be a good commercial entertainer. It is a good launch pad for debutant Srinivas. It can be watched twice" and rated the film 3/5.
Box office.
India.
The film opened to 80%–90% occupancy in both single screens and multiplexes. The film collected 2.85 crores at both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh box offices on its first day which was called a Good start by the Trade Analysts for a debutante's film. By the end of its first weekend, the film collected an aggregate of 7.6 crores in both the states thus concluding on a good note. During its 3-week run, Alludu Seenu is managed to collect more than Share. It occupies 6th position in the highest-grossing Telugu films from 2014 till date.
Overseas.
The film had a great start at the Overseas Box office, collecting $48,497 on its first day. The film collected an aggregate of 3.80 crores at the Overseas Box office in three days.


GLAAD Media Award For Outstanding Reality Program

The GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Reality Program is one of the annual GLAAD Media Awards which is offered to the best LGBT-related television series.


Naaka Mukka

Naaka Mukka is a 2008 Tamil song from the movie Kadhalil Vizhunthen. The song was composed and performed by Vijay Antony and choreographed by Sridhar. The song also had its Female version which was performed by Chinnaponnu and was supported by the lead actor of the movie Nakul.
Naaka Mukka is loosely derived from an old song written eons ago by a Vettiyan. The song was played during the opening ceremony of the 2011 Cricket World Cup.Vijay Antony became the first Indian to win the 2009 Gold Lion in the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for the Nakka Mukka commercial (for The Times of India) in the Best Use of Music category.


Aastiparulu

Aastiparulu () is a 1966 Telugu-language drama film, produced by V. B. Rajendra Prasad under the Jagapathi Art Productions and directed by V. Madhusudhan Rao. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Jayalalitha and music composed by K. V. Mahadevan. The film was remade in Tamil as "En Thambi" and in Hindi as "Bhai Ho To Aisa". The storyline was also an inspiration for the 2008 Telugu movie "King" (2008) starring Nagarjuna Akkineni.
Plot.
Zamindar Janardhan Rao (Gummad) a paterfamilias, holds high esteem in society. He lives along with his wife Kaasulamma (Suryakantam), two sons Krishna (Akkineni Nageswara Rao), Bhaskar/ Bachi (Jaggayya) and an infant daughter Ammulu (Baby Padmini). The elder one Krishna is altruistic, amiable and devoted to his family, whereas younger Bachi is a vagabond and malicious. As Krishna is the step-son Kasulamma, Bachi always shows resentment. Krishna falls for her maternal aunt Rajyalakshmi's (G. Varalakshmi) daughter Radha (Jayalalitha). Meanwhile, Bachi's misdeeds increase day by day, Janardhan Rao cuts his allowance, so, one night he tries to make a theft when his father obstructs his way and collapses with a heart attack. Before dying, he entrusts the entire authority on the property to Krishna and secretly reveals regarding a hidden treasure of their family hierarchy. Here, homicidal Bachi plots and intrigues against Krishna to drown him in the river and show it as an accident. Knowing it, Ammulu becomes terminally ill due to angst on Krishna. Meanwhile, Rajayalakshmi decides to hand over the property to Bachi and also to couple up Radha with him, but her son Prasad (Relangi) wants to prevent the injustice. At that juncture, fortuitously, he spots a person Seenu, a drama artist, who resembles Krishna, Prasad seeks his help, trains him well and he infiltrates as Krishna. But Bachi is not ready to accept it, so, he makes various attempts to falsify Seenu but breaks down. At present, Rajyalakshmi begins wedding arrangements of Krishna and Radha when perturbed Prasad divulges the reality. Thereupon, as a flabbergast, Seenu affirms himself as Krishna who has escaped from death and entered in disguise to reform his brother which no one believes and he is thrown out. During that plight, Krishna remembers regarding the hidden treasure through which he bring out the veracity. Bachi follows and again tries to slaughter him. In the combat, Krishna rescues Baachi against harm. At last, Baachi repents and pleads pardon from Krishna. Finally, the movie ends as a happy note with the marriage of Krishna and Radha.
Soundtrack.
Music composed by K. V. Mahadevan. The song Soggade Chinni Nayana is a blockbuster which has kept as a title to Akkineni Nagarjuna movie 2016. Music released on Audio Company.


Allu Arjun

Allu Arjun (born 8 April 1983) is an Indian film actor who primarily works in Telugu cinema. Known for his dancing abilities, he is a recipient five Filmfare Awards South and three Nandi Awards.
After his debut in "Gangotri" (2003), Allu appeared in Sukumar-directed "Arya" (2004) which earned him Nandi Special Jury Award. In the following years, he starred in films such as "Bunny" (2005), "Happy" (2006) and "Desamuduru" (2007).
Allu won his first Filmfare Award as Best Actor for "Parugu" (2008). His consecutive films, "Arya 2" (2009), "Vedam" (2010), "Varudu" (2010) and "Badrinath" (2011), failed to perform at the box office. His role in "Rudhramadevi" (2015) as Gona Ganna Reddy won him Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor and Nandi Award for Best Character Actor.
Films like "Race Gurram" (2014), "Sarrainodu" (2016) and "Duvvada Jagannadham" (2017), brought him back on success track with each grossing more than 100 crore. He collaborated with director Trivikram Srinivas thrice for "Julayi" (2012), "S/O Satyamurthy" (2015) and "Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo" (2020). All three are successful with the latter grossing over 262 crore at the box office.
Early life.
Allu Arjun was born on 8 April 1983 in a Telugu family in Madras (present-day Chennai) to film producer Allu Aravind and Nirmala. His paternal grandfather was the film comedian Allu Ramalingaiah. Their native place is Palakollu of West Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh.
He is the second of three children. His elder brother Venkatesh is a businessman while his younger brother Sirish is an actor. His paternal aunt is married to Chiranjeevi. He is the cousin of Ram Charan, Varun Tej, Sai Dharam Tej, and Niharika Konidela.
Career.
Career beginnings (2001–2008).
After playing as a child artist in "Vijetha" and as a dancer in "Daddy", Allu made his adult debut in "Gangotri". Allu then appeared in Sukumar's "Arya". His role in Arya was his breakthrough, earning a first Filmfare Best Telugu Actor Award nomination and he won a Special Jury award at the Nandi Awards ceremony, two CineMAA Awards for Best Actor and Best Actor Jury and the film was a critical and commercial success.
He next starred in V. V. Vinayak's "Bunny" playing Bunny, a college student. Critics praised his efforts, mannerisms and dancing. His next film was A. Karunakaran's musical love story "Happy". He then starred in Puri Jagannadh's action film "Desamuduru" in which he played the role of Bala Govindam, a fearless journalist who falls with a woman with a darker past.
Further success and experimentation of genres (2008–2013).
His next film was Bhaskar's "Parugu", where he played the role of Krishna, a happy-go-lucky man from Hyderabad who helps his friend to elope with his love, only to experience the wrath of the woman's father and the emotional struggle he felt. "idlebrain.com" wrote: "Allu Arjun is pretty excellent in the first half as the characterization in the first half is vibrant and needs loads of energy. He carried the entire first half on his shoulders. He excelled in the emotional scenes in the second half."
After playing in a guest role in" Shankar Dada Zindabad", he starred in Sukumar's psychological action drama "Arya 2". He played the role of Arya, an orphan who is behaviourally sick in that he is consumed with possessiveness for his friend Ajay, who never accepts him. "Sify" wrote: "Allu Arjun is full of energy as the guy caught in the powerful current of love. Though he plays the part with negative shades, his characterization could evoke a lot of sympathy from the audiences. His dances are mind-blowing and he excels in emotional scenes." "idlebrain.com" wrote: "Allu Arjun is perfect as Arya. His character in the movie has the qualities of a psychotic and he portrayed the character flawlessly. He shined in emotional scenes in the second half of the movie. Allu Arjun is probably the best dancer of current era in Tollywood. That is the reason why he made hugely difficult dances appear fluid and effortless in the first four songs of the movie."
Allu starred in two experimental films in 2010. The first was Gunasekhar's "Varudu". "Rediff" wrote: "Allu Arjun has put in a competent performance, subdued when necessary and volatile when needed." While "Rediff" stated: "He's a good dancer and does justice to his role." His next film was Krish's "Vedam".
His next release was V. V. Vinayak's action film "Badrinath". He played the role of Badri, a warrior who is assigned to protect the shrine of Badrinath by his Guru, to whom he is very loyal. The movie completed a 50-day run in 187 centers.
After "Badrinath", Allu appeared in the film "Julayi", an action comedy released in 2012. Allu played the role of Ravindra Narayan, a street-smart yet spoilt brat whose life takes a drastic turn after he becomes the witness of a huge bank robbery. "The Times of India" wrote: "Allu Arjun puts in a confident performance as the loveable rogue. It's a role that is right up his alley and he carries it off with a characteristic panache. He lights up the screen with his dancing in particular, pulling off some pretty challenging dance moves." He was nominated for the SIIMA Award for Best Actor. He later starred in Puri Jagannadh's action thriller "Iddarammayilatho", playing Sanju Reddy, a guitarist with a dark past. "The Times of India" wrote: "True to his tag of "stylish star", Allu Arjun looks trendier than ever before. His character of a guitarist, who is a street performer in Barcelona, was at its best sketchy, and looks completely different from his previous films. He once again proves that he is a good actor and probably because of the action director's meticulous planning, he makes perfect expressions in all the fight scenes."
2014–present.
In 2014, he appeared in a cameo in Vamsi Paidipally's "Yevadu". "The Hindu" wrote: "Allu Arjun shows what an actor can do even in a short role, in the few minutes he packs his experience, internalises the character and makes an impressive exit even as he loses his identity." His next film was Surender Reddy's "Race Gurram", in which he played the role of a carefree guy. The "Deccan Chronicle" wrote: "Allu Arjun definitely steals the show with his energetic performance. He is good with his comedy timing and has also improved a lot as an actor. He actually carries the film on his shoulders. His dancing skills are utilised well too." He won his third Filmfare Best Telugu Actor Award.
Allu produced and acted in a short film "I Am That Change" (2014), to spread awareness on individual social responsibility. The movie was directed by Sukumar, which was screened in theatres across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana on 15 August 2014. He acted in Trivikram Srinivas's "S/O Satyamurthy", which was released on 9 April 2015. Later, he acted in Guna Sekhar's "Rudhramadevi", which is the first Indian 3D historical film. For "Rudhramadevi", he won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Telugu and became the only actor to win both the Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Telugu and the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor - Telugu. Later, he acted in "Sarainodu", directed by Boyapati Srinu. In 2016, he collaborated with producer Dil Raju for the third time for "Duvvada Jagannadham". In 2018, his film under the direction of writer turned director Vakkantham Vamsi, "Naa Peru Surya, Naa Illu India" was released. In the film he acted as an Indian Army soldier who has anger management issues. In 2020, his film under the direction of Trivikram Srinivas, "Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo" was released. In 2020 his film under the direction of Sukumar, "Pushpa" was released in during Diwali but filming is delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A rap song was composed by S. Thaman performed by Roll Rida and Harika Narayan with lyrics by Roll Rida and The Hyderabad Nawabs, on Allu's journey in Telugu cinema. The music video titled "Allu Arjun Rap Song" was released through Aditya Music label.
Personal life.
On 6 March 2011, He married Sneha Reddy in Hyderabad. They have a son named Allu Ayaan and a daughter named Allu Arha. In 2016, Allu started a nightclub named 800 Jubilee in collaboration with M Kitchens and Buffalo Wild Wings.


Vijay Award for Best Director

The Vijay for Best Director is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films.
The list.
Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won.


S. P. Sailaja

Sripathi Panditaradhyula Sailaja is an Indian singer and actress who has lent her voice to Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam films. She has sung about 6000 songs to date.
Early life.
She was born in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh. Her father, S. P. Sambamurthy, was a well-known exponent of Harikatha and her brother S. P. Balasubrahmanyam was a prolific playback singer in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam films. She is the youngest of the eight children of Sambamurthy and Sakunthalamma (d. 2019).
Career.
Voice acting.
Sailaja has occasionally worked as a voice actor and dubbed for various artistes including Tabu, Sonali Bendre and Sridevi among others. She started her dubbing for the movie Seetamalakshmi heroine Rameshwari.
Acting.
Sailaja acted in "Saagara Sangamam", a Telugu venture directed by K. Viswanath, in which she played the role of a classical dancer; it was dubbed into Tamil as "Salangai Oli".
Television works.
Sailaja started her television career with the ETV show SaRiGaMalu which she co-hosted along with singer Mano.
Thereon, Sailaja has appeared as both an audition judge and a guest judge in several reality talent hunt shows such as Vijay TV's "Airtel Super Singer", "Airtel Super Singer Junior", Jaya TV's "Jaya Super Singer South India", Zee Telugu's SaReGaMaPa Little Champs and SaReGaMaPa among others.
Personal life.
She was married to Subhalekha Sudhakar in December 1989. The couple has a son, Sreekar born in 1991.


Once in a Lifetime (2000 film)

Livet är en schlager ("Life is a Schlager", also known as Once in a Lifetime or Hånden på hjertet in Danish) is a Swedish film released in 2000, written by Jonas Gardell and directed by his usual directing partner Susanne Bier. The film features cameo appearances by many Swedish singers. The film was produced by Nordisk Film and Sveriges Television in association with Sonet Film and TV2 Denmark.
Plot.
The film is based around the life of Mona Berglund, a mother-of-four obsessed with the Eurovision Song Contest - so much so, that her house is decorated with posters of her idols, and she has named her children after Swedish Eurovision performers: Kikki, Anna Book, Lena PH and Carola. Her partner Bosse is unemployed, and she is left to feed the family. Her brother, Candy, is a transvestite and an AIDS-sufferer who designs clothes. David, Mona's employer has cerebral palsy and is a proficient songwriter, and composes a song which Mona steals and sends a demo of (with her own lyrics) into Melodifestivalen, the Swedish heats for the Eurovision contest. Much to Mona's delight, the song qualifies for the finals. Mona's new-found fame takes her to unexpected places, including a TV interview, and an invitation to lunch at Berns. Throughout, the film, though, Mona is torn as to whether she should reveal that she was not in fact the only writer of her song, and thus risk losing the public's support.
Music.
The film features several songs by well-known Swedish singers, such as "If Life Was a Song", performed by Carola Häggkvist, "I Believe in Miracles" performed by Lena Philipsson and "Kärleksikonen" performed by Regina Lund.
The film also features the song "Aldrig ska jag sluta älska dig", originally performed by Helena Bergström, which was later released by Gardell, and "Handen på hjärtat" performed by Sofia Källgren. "Handen på hjärtat" was released on the soundtrack but was performed by Björn Kjellman feat. Salome.
External links.
 Review from Filmtipset.se


Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (soundtrack)

Chekka Chivantha Vaanam is the soundtrack album, composed by A. R. Rahman with song lyrics by Vairamuthu to the 2018 Tamil film of the same name. The film features an ensemble cast including Arvind Swami, Vijay Sethupathi, Jyothika, Silambarasan, Arun Vijay, Aishwarya Rajesh, Dayana Erappa and Aditi Rao Hydari in the lead roles.
The album consist of seven songs out of which "Mazhai Kuruvi" and "Bhoomi Bhoomi" served as the lead singles. Composition of the soundtrack began in December 2017. The songs in the film are symbolic in nature and are fit into the situations. Two poems from Vairamuthu's book "Peiyana Peiyum Mazhai" have been re-written into song lyrics, one being "Mazhai Kuruvi".
The promotional music event featured live performances of the lead singles as well as all the songs in the soundtrack album. The soundtrack album was released on 5 September 2018 under the Sony Music record label.
Development.
A. R. Rahman, Vairamuthu and Mani Ratnam began with music sessions for the soundtrack in December 2017. According to lyricist Vairamuthu, the provisions for the music and language in Chekka Chivantha Vaanam is limited because of the action genre. Rahman and his compositions were set as if they were playing "flute in a war field". For the songs in the film, Mani Ratnam had chosen two poem's from the Vairamuthu's book "Peiyena Peiyum Mazhai". These poems were written into song lyrics, one of the songs is "Mazhai Kuruvi".
As per Vairamuthu, the songs in are symbolic in the nature that they talk indirectly about the situations. The track "Mazhai Kuruvi" — is about a man who was enjoying the sight of a sparrow perched on a rock on a gloomy day. As it rains, the man rushes into the comforts of his home and wonders how the sparrow would be suffering due to the downpour. However, as per the lyricist the interpretation is that the sparrow is enjoying itself and wondering why the man isn't taking delight in something nature was giving him. The music sessions were held in Goa. Rahman recalled: "At that time I was also working on my own movie production "99 Songs". I composed 10 ideas within two days and asked him (Mani Ratnam) to choose whichever he liked.” One of these compositions was the music for the track "Mazhai Kuruvi".
The song "Bhoomi Bhoomi" plays four times in a song structure and was composed as a core theme of the film. "Bhoomi Bhoomi" was not originally recorded for the film. The track "Sevandhu Pochu Nenju" highlights the mistakes a man commits whereas "Kalla Kalavaani" talks about a carefree woman. "Kalla Kalavaani" was used in the film's trailer in the portion that introduced character Ethi (Silambarasan). The song has rap lyrics by Lady Kash and addressed to and in praise of a fraud or a thief. Vairamuthu's lyrics recall the Latin phrase Veni vidi vici (he came, he saw, he conquered).
Due to prepone release date of the film, Rahman set up all his musical equipments in the hotel room and composed the original score post his live tour shows during weekends. Recording of the original score was completed by early September 2018.
Release.
The promotional music event for the film was held in Chennai on 5 September 2018, with the presence of the film's cast and crew, and featured a musical stage performance by Rahman and his musical team. Out of these, the first two were released on digital music download platforms four days before the launch on 1 September 2018. The launch event was hosted by Chinmayi and Karthik (singer).
Reception.
V Lakshmi of "The Times of India" writes, "The album has two songs, and while the soundscape is different, the underlying emotion seems to be common — celebrating life". Priyanka Sundar of "Hindustan Times" who gave track by track review of the singles performed live; stated: ""Bhoomi Bhoomi" is electric and soulful at same time, "Mazhai Kuruvi", a slow number that is all about juxtaposing nature and love". Manoj Kumar of The Indian Express stated "Mazhai Kuruvi" as a happy and breezy song whereas "Bhoomi Bhoomi", contrary, lonely and heartbreaking. Mridula Ramaguda of "Firstpost" reviewed the first four singles of the album noted: "AR Rahman-Mani Ratnam unite for another masterful soundtrack, With many parts of the album alone, the director-composer duo manage to keep their trademark alive. [...] the duo experiment with new genres and include a more western influence with "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam"'s songs."
"News18" in its review stated: "A.R. Rahman's score and songs work in tandem to elevate the overall mood of the film. Ratnam's use of the "Bhoomi" track in the climax is nothing short of a masterstroke, assuring that it's the return of the master to his glorious form." Anupama Subramanian of "Deccan Chronicle" wrote: "Music by AR Rahman (and lyrics by Vairamuthu) is relegated to the backgrounds, but he’s on point as ever. ARR’s BGM elevates the entire proceedings top notch." However, M. Suganth of "The Times of India" stated: "[...]Rahman's score, [...] tries a bit too hard to shoe-in songs in the place of a background score." Manoj Kumar R of "The Indian Express" pointed: "And what Ratnam and composer AR Rahman have done with the film’s music is a surprise. The director has not used any of Rahman’s songs in its entirety or spent money picturizing the beautiful numbers. He uses the songs in small doses throughout the film to lift up the scenes further. Rahman’s music is a character in itself in the movie." Vivek MV of "Deccan Herald" called Rahman's music as riveting. Nandini Ramnath of "Scroll" stated: "[...]AR Rahman’s mostly forgettable tunes ["stay"] to the background and only "Bhoomi Bhoomi" soares in key scenes."
Album Credits.
Credits adapted from official page of Sony Music South.


Beirut International Women Film Festival

Beirut International Women Film Festival (BWFF) is an annual event held in Beirut. The festival screens films made by women or centering women, and tackles issues that particularly affect women, including gender equality, sexual identity and domestic violence.
History.
The festival was founded in 2016, with the theme "Women for Change", with the goal of Women's Empowerment. The symbol of the festival is the Phoenician goddess Tanith, who is a mother goddess who rules the stars and sky, symbolizing fertility and life force. The festival prime award is the "Tanith of Beirut".
BWFF is organized by the Beirut Film Society NGO.
Awards.
National Competition:
International Competition:


Allari Priyudu

Allari Priyudu (English: Naughty Lover) is a 1993 Telugu musical romantic comedy film directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. The film stars Rajasekhar, Ramya Krishna and Madhu Bala in lead roles. The film was premiered at the 1994 International Film Festival of India in the mainstream section. It is a unofficial remake of Hindi language film Saajan.The film was dubbed into Tamil as "Yaarukku Mappillai Yaaro". It was remade in Kannada as "Chora Chittha Chora", with V. Ravichandran, Namrata Shirodkar and Malavika. The film was recorded as a "Blockbuster" at the box office.
Plot.
Kavita and Lalita are dearest friends. They've been living together ever since Lalita's father died while trying to save Kavita from being crushed by a machine on a construction site. Lalita has been secretly writing poems to thrill her family and especially Kavita. Meanwhile, Raja is a lower-class musician who stays in a rental house along with his friends with a band owned by Babu Mohan. He lies to his grandmother saying he has a big job, but he believes that one day his band will become popular. He one day comes across one of Lalita's poems and falls in love with her. He writes a letter to Lalita stating how beautiful her poem was, she too falls for him after reading it. They both write letters to each other expressing their loving feelings. However, Raja and Lalita get into a series of clashes without knowing they are the lovers who are writing the letters to each other. Lalita soon finds out that her lover is Raja, but when she is about to propose to him, she finds out that Kavita had fallen in love with him. Not wanting to ruin her relationship with Kavita, she tells Kavita to act like the lady who writes letters to Raja. Raja mistakens Kavita to be the one writing the poems as they both fall in love. The rest of the story deals with whether Raja ever finds out that Lalita was the one writing the poems and letters to him. What will be Kavita's reaction when she finds the truth? This question forms the climax.
Music.
The music of the film was composed by M. M. Keeravani.


P. Ravi Shankar

Pudipeddi Ravi Shankar (born 28 November 1966) also known as Sai Ravi, is an Indian actor, dubbing artist, director and writer. He predominantly appears in Kannada films, in addition to Telugu and Tamil films. He dubbed for over 3500 films with more than 1000 films each in Telugu and Tamil, and over 150 films in Kannada. He has won nine state Nandi Awards for Best Male Dubbing Artist and two Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Male Dubbing Artist.
Son of actor P. J. Sarma and the brother of actor Sai Kumar, Ravi Shankar made his directorial debut with the Kannada film "Durgi" in 2004. He also worked as a dialogue writer and wrote dialogues for over 75 Telugu films and 150 Tamil films. He also worked as a playback singer for Telugu films such as "Rakta Charitra" and "Bejawada". He gained recognition for his role in the 2011 film "Kempe Gowda", starring Sudeep. He won his first Filmfare Award for the film.
Personal life.
P. Ravi Shankar grew up as a child in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Ravi Shankar's mother Krishna Jyothy Pudipeddi is a Telugu actress who acted with Kannada thespian Dr. Rajkumar and others in films such as "Sri Krishna Garudi", "Makkala Rajya" and others. Ravi Shankar's father, Pudipeddi Jogeswara Sharma, was also an actor and dubbing artist who worked in many Telugu, Kannada and Tamil films. His elder brother Pudipeddi Sai Kumar entered the film industry as dubbing artist and later became an actor in Kannada Film Industry.
Shankar is married to a Suchil, a Punjabi woman, and the couple has a son, Adhvey. In 2018, Ravishankar announced that he would launch Adhvey as an actor in his own directorial film in Kannada.
Career.
P. Ravi Shankar made his film debut as a lead actor in 1986 with R. Narayana Murthy's film "Aalochinchandi". He later was seen in supporting roles in films such as "Madhura Nagarilo" and "Keechurallu". With no more offers, Ravi took a hiatus from acting and re-entered as a villain in 2001 with Gopi Chand's debut film "Tholi Valapu". Lack of success in his acting career forced him to pursue dubbing as a profession like his father and brother. He started dubbing professionally with the Telugu film "Rowdyism Zindabad", where he dubbed for Tamil actor Mohan Raj. He continued to dub for many character artists from other languages such as Raghuvaran, Mohan Raj, Devaraj, Charan Raj, Captain Raju, Nassar, Ashish Vidyarthi, Prakash Raj, Ashutosh Rana, Sonu Sood, Mukesh Rishi, Upendra and Pradeep Rawat etc. He dubbed for over 4000 films with more than 1000 films each in Telugu and Tamil and over 150 films in Kannada. In 2004, he directed a Kannada film titled "Durgi", starring Malashri. The film was later remade in Telugu as "Narasimhudu", starring N. T. Rama Rao Jr., Ameesha Patel and Sameera Reddy. Ravi provided the story for the film which was directed by B. Gopal. The film was heavily criticised and bombed at the box office.
His dubbing work in the 2009 film "Arundhati", where he voiced for Sonu Sood, was praised in a review on Idlebrain. He won a Nandi award for his performance and was referred to as "Bommali Ravi Shankar" by the media.
In a very recent Kannada TV show called "Weekend with Ramesh" on Zee Kannada Channel, Ravishankar said that even after his very successful career in the dubbing field, he was extremely frustrated in life to fulfill his and his mothers dream of becoming a successful actor and he had to wait for as long as 25 years for that to happen. The biggest break in his career was when he portrayed the character of a criminal named "Armuga" in the 2011 mega Blockbuster hit Kannada film "Kempe Gowda", with actor Sudeep. The film became so popular that Ravishankar was hence called "Kempegowda Ravishankar" or "Arumugam Ravishankar" and he grew to become a household name in Karnataka. His performance was not only widely praised by the critics, but he also bagged his dream Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Kannada at the 59th Filmfare Awards South. Ravi Shankar, on the TV show, continued by saying that his mother could not see his success since she had died in 2006.
Ravi Shankar, after "Kempe Gowda", became a busy supporting actor in the Kannada Film Industry and went on to become a household name in Karnataka. He then acted in films such as "Manikya", "Dandupalya", "Adhyaksha", "Charulatha", "Bachchan", "Edegarike", "Varadanayaka" and others. He was also seen in Telugu films such as "Kurradu" and "Happy Happy Gaa" and in Tamil films such as "Vettaikaaran" and "Kollaikaran".
Popularity in Kannada and fans.
After the very successful "Kempe Gowda" that gave Ravishankar a huge break in his career, he went on to act in over 50 Kannada films in just 5 years and became one of the busiest and the most sought after actors in Kannada. He has acted in many super-hit Kannada films since then. His popularity in Karnataka grew so much that he became a household name in the state. Ravishankar, in every film is welcomed by whistles and claps by his Kannada fans.
It is very common for fans to form "Fans Associations" for film stars. Ravishankar's popularity as a supporting actor in Kannada grew to an extent where he has many fans associations across Karnataka. Fans throng to his house in Bengaluru on his birthdays like it happens for a big hero. One of his biggest fans associations in Bengaluru is called "Akhila Karnataka Sakalakalavallabha Ravishankar Abhimanigala Sangha".
Ravishankar, in the recent Zee Kannada show "Weekend with Ramesh", said that it was his mother's all time dream and his 25-year dream to become a successful actor one day and that his mother is now not here to see my success. He went on to say that he was extremely frustrated even after "Arundhati", of not being able to become a popular actor and he said that Karnataka was one state that fulfilled his dream and that he would always be indebted to the state and will always give the Kannada industry first preference. He also said: "Telugu might be my mother tongue, but Kannada is my language of life and I will proudly call myself a Kannadiga".
He had also revealed that his first Kannada movie was "Halli Krishna Delhi Radha". and his second Kannada movie was "Mana Mecchida Sose". His 50th movie was "Jigarthanda".
Ravishankar appeared in the dance sequence for the song "Allah, Allah, Nataraja Bartaanalla" for the film "Nataraja Service". This song, which tells about the protagonist of the film "Nataraja" (Sharan), went viral much before its release.
Awards.
He won his first Nandi Award for Best Male Dubbing Artist in 1999 for Ram Gopal Varma's "Prema Katha". He dubbed for Manoj Bajpai in the film. He won his second Nandi Award in 2002 for Chiranjeevi's "Indra", in which he dubbed for Mukesh Rishi. His next Nandi Award was in 2004 for his dubbing in S. S. Rajamouli's "Sye". He dubbed for Pradeep Rawat in the film. He won four consecutive Nandi Awards from 2006 to 2009 for the films "Pokiri", "Athidhi", "Arundhati" and "Anjaneyulu" respectively. He also won Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Male Dubbing Artist for his dubbing for Ashish Vidyarthi in 2001 film "Dhill".
Partial filmography.
As actor.
List is incomplete


And We Love Life

And We Love Life (, ) is a 2013 Russian film, directed by Abdulla Issa.
Synopsis.
Young refugee Ahmad in Gaza Strip wants to be a sailor to escape from the blockade. But looking at the fate of the sailors, he realizes that the sea is surrounded by military ships. He also has great talent in playing football, but understands that to become a world star like Messi or Ronaldo as Gaza Strip destroyed the only stadium. After his father's death, Ahmed was forced to work in the workshop. Knowing that workshops are being bombed, thinking that doing Qassam rocket, he decides to become a martyr to get into paradise.
In search of paradise, he begins to understand that the great jihad is to be with his mom and sister. Then he promises his classmate to become a great actor as Omar Sharif to become an honorary ambassador of peace in the world. So the child's question: "Did the children of Israel afraid as we are?".
About the film.
The film tells about the difficult life of palestinians in the Gaza Strip. This is an unusual picture represents something between fiction and documentary cinema: in the framework of the invented script shows the real heroes and history, taken by real situations and emotions of the survivors of the horrible tragedy.
Facts.
November 29, 2013 the film was shown at the opening of the international Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People at the United Nations (UN) in Moscow.
October 29, 2016 the film was shown at the Festival "Day of Arab culture" in the Ivanovo.


Vijay Award for Best Supporting Actress

The Vijay for Best Supporting Actress is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films.
The list.
Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won.


Gerald Chapman (director)

Gerald Chapman (8 November 1949 – 25 September 1987) was an English theatre director and educator who was best known for his work with the Royal Court Theatre, London, Gay Sweatshop, the New York City Young Playwrights Festival, the American Repertory Theatre, the Circle Repertory Company, and the Double Image Theatre.
Early life.
Chapman was born in Torquay, England, the younger son of hotelier Peter Chapman, whose father had been manager of London's Savoy Hotel in the early 1900s. He spent his early years at the Castle Hotel, Taunton, Somerset, where his father was manager, and which is now owned by his elder brother, Christopher (Kit) Chapman. His mother was of Greek origin, and his summers were spent with his mother's family in Thessalonica.
Dramatic career.
Gerald Chapman appeared in several school drama productions when he was a pupil at Taunton School, (along with his contemporary Ian McNeice), and began his involvement with play production as a student at Cambridge University.
In 1974, at a time when Gay Liberation was just beginning in the UK, Chapman joined other gay activists and playwrights to set up one of the first Gay Theatre seasons in the UK. The intention of the group was to counteract the prevailing conception in mainstream theatre of what homosexuals were like, therefore providing a more realistic image for the public. They realised that a great deal of hard work was required and came up with the name The Gay Sweatshop. This later became one of the best known gay theatre companies in the UK, with former members including Antony Sher, Simon Callow, Tom Robinson and Miriam Margolyes.
In the mid-1970s Chapman was appointed to the Royal Court Theatre, London, in charge of the Young People's Theatre Scheme. This had originally been set up in 1966 to develop and produce the best new writing by young people under 25, encouraging writers from all sections of society to find their voice. In 1976, as part of a drive to invigorate the group, Chapman developed the YPTS idea and held a competition to give the group a shorter and snappier name. The winning name chosen was "The Activists"; the logo of which was the letter "A" formed of nails, to signifying the driving edge and hard grittiness that typified the group's work. This group had two main branches of activity – the first was a mainstream group that worked with influential writers and directors such as Edward Bond, John Schlesinger, Max Stafford-Clark and many others. The second group was formed as part of an offshoot of the radical theatre company Gay Sweatshop, with which Chapman had worked previously. Together with South African writer David Lan, workshop sessions were held with a group of gay teenagers to develop a play that would eventually become a touring production called "Not in Norwich" (see the following web-link). This highly controversial show (for the time) aroused deep press hostility, which resulted in a front-page story in the London "Evening Standard": "London Children in Sex Play". In contrast to the sensationalist press stories (the play actually contained no sexual scenes whatsoever, and the so-called "children" were all, at the time, actors in their late teens), the play itself was constructed from the real life personal experiences of young British gay teenagers, containing as it did, examples of the difficulties, prejudice and considerable humour of those that took part. The Royal Court, through Chapman and then director Ann Jenkins, fought against a largely hostile press to maintain the integrity of the production, which successfully played at the Royal Court as well as on tours to regional theatres and schools. It was pioneering work of this kind that became a hallmark of Chapman's career, before it was cut so tragically short in 1987. He also taught school, ran workshops, and organised the highly successful Young Playwrights' annual festival.
Stephen Sondheim had been attempting for several years, without success, to set up a young playwright's competition in New York City. He heard about the program at the Royal Court and went to England to see for himself:
“It was my first opportunity to see what I had only read about for so many years, and it was an experience so moving and exhilarating that I returned to the council with renewed vigor. I wrote to Robert Cushman, "The Observer"′s theatre critic, to find out exactly how the event was organized, and asked Ruth Goetz, a council-member who lived in London at the time, to do some detective work at the Court. She came up with the key to it all: a fellow named Gerald Chapman”.
In 1980 Sondheim invited Chapman to New York to start a similar project in the United States as the Foundation of the Dramatists Guild and now known as Young Playwrights Inc. Chapman founded and directed the acclaimed New York Young Playwrights Festival, which won a Drama Critics Circle Award in 1983. In 1984 he directed the world premiere of the play "Holy Wars – Morocco and The Road to Jerusalem" by Allan Havis, at the American Repertory Theatre. He also taught at New York University, worked in New York City schools, and directed productions at the American Repertory Theatre, the Circle Repertory Company, and the Double Image Theatre.
In 1985 he was invited to be Guest Director at the International Young Playwright's Festival in Sydney.
In 1986 he was invited by artistic director Toby Robertson to direct "Claw" by Howard Barker at Theatr Clwyd; the production was mounted on the theatre’s second stage and then toured Wales.
Death and legacy.
Gerald Chapman died of AIDS on 25 September 1987 at the Beth Israel Medical Center, New York City. His life partner, Ivan Chatman, was by his side. The "New York Times "published a substantial obituary and there were long eulogies in the deaths columns from his friends and colleagues at the Dramatists Guild. After his death The Gerald Chapman Trainee Director Award was set up at the Royal Court Theatre, London.
Published work.
In 1990, his book "Teaching Young Playwrights" (edited and developed by Lisa A. Barnett) was published posthumously by Heinemann. It won The American Alliance for Theatre and Education (AATE) Distinguished Book Award in 1991 and has since been acknowledged as a seminal work.


Selvakumar S. K.

Selvakumar SK (born 25 January 1986) is an Indian cinematographer who works in the Tamil film industry. He is best known for his works in "Maanagaram", "Mehandi Circus", and "Gypsy".
Early life and education.
Selvakumar began painting in his early school life. He started to paint and recreate the pictures he found in magazines. Over time, he realized he wanted to make his own original images. And thus began his introduction to photography. Soon, his interest in painting was overtaken by his interest towards photography.
Selvakumar graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Visual Communication, from Madras Christian College. While in college, he learned a lot about the art of cinematography and slowly his interest in photography developed into a passion for cinematography. He started watching the works of legendary cinematographers and was in awe of their works. He worked as the cinematographer for more than 50 short films, during and after his college days.
Career.
After completing his college education, Selvakumar assisted cinematographer George C.Williams in films like Raja Rani and Kaththi.He made his feature film debut with "Maanagaram" (2017) and garnered acclaim for his work in the film. Selvakumar worked on several films including "Gypsy" (2020) and "Dharala Prabhu". Regarding his work in "Gypsy", a critic noted that "Selvakumar’s camera switches between its role as a silent spectator when Gypsy goes about his daily duties and, at the same time, breathtakingly captures the gorgeous locations in all its splendour".


Amrit Manthan (film)

Amrit Manthan (English: "Churning for nectar") is a 1934 Indian costume-drama film directed by V. Shantaram for his Prabhat Film Company. The film was produced simultaneously in Hindi and Marathi. The film starred Chandra Mohan, Nalini Tarkhad, Shanta Apte, G. R. Mane, Varde and Kelkar. The film was based on Narayan Hari Apte's novel "Bhagyashree". The Hindi translation was done by Veer Mohammed Puri, who also wrote the lyrics for the film.
The narrative in ""Amrit Manthan"" focuses on a reformist king who bans the sacrifice of animals and humans in his kingdom.
The film was tremendously successful all over the country. It ran in one Bombay theatre for thirty weeks. Prabhat's distributor, Baburao Pai, coined the term ""silver jubilee" when "Amrit Manthan"" completed its twenty-fifth week: a first in the Indian film industry.
Plot.
The story is about a reformist king Kantivarma (Varde), who bans the sacrifice of animals and humans. This angers the fanatical Rajguru (Chandra Mohan), head priest of the Chandika cult. The cult meets secretly and the head priest orders the killing of the king. Yashodharma is chosen and though he hesitates, the priest orders him to do so. Yashodharma writes a note for his son before leaving that night, telling him of the deed planned by the Rajguru. After the King is killed, Yashodharma (Kulkarni) is betrayed by the Rajguru in court and is ordered to be killed. Yashodharma's two children, Madhavgupt (Mane) and Sumitra (Shanta Apte), are on the run, but Madhav is caught and the letter is found on him by one of Rajguru's men. Sumitra is taken prisoner and Rani Mohini (Nalin Tarkhud), who succeeds to the throne after her father's death is asked to have Madhav sacrificed in the temple by the Rajguru. There is a storm and Mohini and Madhav escape to the forest. Madhav later goes in search of his sister. Vishwasgupt (Kelkar), a trusted minister tells Mohini and the people of Avanti about Rajguru being the real killer. The temple is thronged by townspeople demanding justice and the Rajguru with his obsessive belief in sacrifices, offers himself to the goddess and cuts off his own head as a final sacrifice.
Cast.
The cast included:
Production.
V. Shantaram having studied new techniques in film making in Germany, made use of them during the making of Amrit Manthan. He kept the camera at a low angle with a circular track movement and made effective use of light and shade, particularly at the start of the film when the cult meets. It was the first film to be produced at the Prabhat film company's new sound-proof studio and under the art direction of Fattelal, spectacular sets were put up. Through the film, V. Shantaram used "reformist tradition in Hinduism" to revoke the practice of sacrifices at festivals and prayers. V. Shantram, who had presented Durga Khote to films now introduced Chandra Mohan in his debut role as the High Priest in Amrit Manthan. Chandra Mohan went on to be counted as one of the top actors of the Indian screen.
The film was the first to have a run of twenty-five weeks (silver jubilee) at a theatre.
Music.
The music direction was by Keshavrao Bhole and lyrics were written by Veer Mohammed Puri. The first Hindi film ghazal "Kamsini Mein Dil Pe Gham Ka" was rendered in the film by Shanta Apte.
Famous scenes.
"Amrut Manthan" contains several famous scenes, including the twice-told legend of the churning of the seas. This legend is told once by the priest to show how evil must be exorcised, and then told again by a good General to show how demons often appear disguised as gods.
The film's strong political thrust provoked strong reactions among critics and viewers.


Karelle Tremblay

Karelle Tremblay is a Canadian film and television actress from Quebec. Tremblay received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actress at the 4th Canadian Screen Awards in 2016 for "Our Loved Ones (Les Êtres chers)".
She has also appeared in the films "Amsterdam", "Corbo", "King Dave", "Oh What a Wonderful Feeling", "The Fireflies Are Gone (La disparution des lucioles)", "Flashwood", "You Will Remember Me (Tu te souviendras de moi)" and "Death of a Ladies' Man", and the television series "Le Club des doigts croisés", "19-2" and "Jérémie".
Tremblay is in a relationship with Franco-Ontarian humorist and comedienne Katherine Levac.


Santosham Best Actor Award

The Santosham Best Actor Award is given by the "Santosham Film" magazine as part of its annual Santosham Film Awards for Telugu films.
The award was first given in 2003. Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won.


Egyptian Arts Group

Egyptian Arts Group is a production and distribution company operating business in the Middle East and North Africa and seeks to go worldwide.
Establishment.
Egyptian Arts Group established with the participation of Core Production Company and Switch Production Company. Acquired expertise of the two companies, Egyptian Arts Group aims to produce different offering of TV and film market in terms of production quality, and the first production was Bab El Khalk TV series, broadcast on more popular channels like CBC, Al Mehwar, Dream 2, Bab El Khalk is considered Mahmoud Abdel Aziz renturn after 8 years since his last successful TV Series “Mahmoud Al Masry”.


Family Katta

Family Katta is a 2016 Indian Marathi language family comedy-drama film directed by Chandrakant Kulkarni and produced by Vandana Gupte. It stars Dilip Prabhavalkar, Vandana Gupte and Sai Tamhankar in lead roles.
It was released on 7 October 2016.
Plot.
Family Katta is a story of a splintered family and the way in which the old couple at the head of the family tries to hold it together.
The elderly couple played by Dilip Prabhvalkar (Bhai) and Vandana Gupte (Malati) based in Pune are celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary and have planned to throw a small party and organize a get together which is strictly for family. It is their another effort at getting together their 4 children and their extended families. Their children and grandchildren are located in different cities and over time the family has lost touch due to unresolved issues from the past. However, the grandchildren i.e. the two young cousins are still close.
Their daughter (Manju) played by Sai Tamhankar who is married to a guy from a different cast who is elder to her (referred as of Father's age in one scene) will be coming home and meeting the family after 6 years. It is also meant to be an opportunity for the patriarch Bhai to forgive their daughter.
The couple is shown carrying away daily household chores while anticipating and getting things ready for the big day. There is light humour arising out of couple’s arguments over small issues in their day-to-day life.
The couple is shown celebrating their anniversary by sharing a private moment and remembering all the memories of their past years in the early morning hours.
The grand children create a family WhatsApp group and plan to reach their grand parents' house together against their parents' wish.
The film takes an emotional turn in the second half with the sudden demise of Bhai just before the arrival of the children at home. Malati is shocked with this sudden development. But does not reveal this news to the children so that all the efforts put by her and Bhai to bring the family together and see them happy again does not go in vain.
The family share some light moments unaware of the serious situation. As time passes the siblings get in an argument. Malati sees this and in an outburst reveals the news of Bhai's demise to the family.
Soundtrack.
The soundtrack of "Family Katta" consists of just one song, "Ek Sohlaa Nirala" , which was sung by Aanandi Joshi, composed by Mangesh Dhakade and written by Dasoo.
Reception.
"The Times of India" rated the film at three and a half stars, stating that "In an industry that is busy following trends most of the times, "Family Katta" comes as a fresh detour from the usual fare." "Loksatta" also reviewed the movie. as did the "Pune Mirror", which stated that it had a "strong emotional core". The movie received three and half stars by ABP Majha stating this is a Celebration that puts Xrays on Relationships.
Box office.
The film's six day box office collection was approx Rs. 1.53 Crores.


Hridayanath

Hridayanath (English translation:"Ruler of the Heart") is a 2012 Indian Marathi film directed by Amar Gupte, produced by Nitesh Waghmare and shot by Kedar Gaikwad. The film stars Jackie Shroff, Aditya Pancholi and Swarangi Marathe The film's music is composed by Santosh Mulekar, and the playback singers include Sunidhi Chauhan, Hamsika Iyer, Shankar Mahadevan and Adnan Sami.
Soundtrack.
The music was composed by Santosh Mulekar and released by Shemaroo Entertainment.
Release.
Release date: 24 August 2012


S. Rajasekar

S. Rajasekar (19 August 1957– 8 September 2019) was an Indian cinemotographer, film director, and serial actor. According to "The Times of India", "The actor will be remembered for the “Ithu Oru Pon Malai Pozhudhu” song scene in "Nizhalgal" which he enlivened with his youthful charm and spirit".
Career.
Rajasekar's first break happened with "Kudisai", followed by "Oru Thalai Ragam" as he worked as cinematographer along with Robert Ashirwatham. Bharathiraja's "Nizhalgal" provided him the break as a lead actor. He has co-directed many successful films along with Robert Ashirwatham as a director duo known as "Robert Rajasekaran".
Later, he acted in many TV serials, notably Thendral, Saravanan Meenatchi, Valli, and Sathya. His role in Saravanan Meenatchi was liked by many, as he portrayed a comedic, friendly dad with ease. This made him a recognizable face among the new generation audience.
Personal life.
He was married then to Tara Begam in 1990. The couple didn't have any children.
On 8 September 2019, Rajasekar died of an illness while he was getting treated at Ramachandra Hospital in Chennai. He was 62 years old, and a resident of Valasaravakkam, Chennai.


Anand Jeeva

Anand Jeevananthan "(J Anand)" is an Indian cinematographer. His debut movie was Vinmeengal directed by Vignesh Menon. His second feature film is Naveena Saraswathi Sabatham which released on 29 November 2013.
Personal life.
Anand Jeeva was born in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu as the eldest son of Jeeva Nanthan and Thamizharasi. His father is a notable artist, writer and film critic. He has a younger sister Meena. His uncle V. Manikandan is an acclaimed cinematographer.
Career.
Anand Jeeva did his graduation in Visual Communication from Loyola College, Chennai. After graduation he was assisting G Venket Ram, a leading celebrity & fashion photographer. He later joined the Film and Television Training Institute, where he did his Dip. in Film Tech and T V Production (Cinematography). Then he joined as an assistant cinematographer to Nirav Shah. He became an independent cinematographer in 2011 by filming Vinmeengal, a Tamil film directed by Vignesh Menon. His second film is Naveena Saraswathi Sabatham directed by K. Chandru and produced by AGS Entertainment.


Love in the Time of Civil War

Love in the Time of Civil War () is a 2014 Canadian drama film directed by Rodrigue Jean. It was selected to be screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. The film stars Alexandre Landry as Alex, a male hustler and drug addict in Montreal, Quebec.