Tessa Thompson

Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of "The Tempest" and "Romeo and Juliet", the latter of which earned her a NAACP Theatre Award nomination. Her breakthrough came with leading roles in Tina Mabry's independent drama film "Mississippi Damned" (2009) and Tyler Perry's drama film "For Colored Girls" (2010).
Thompson gained favorable critical notice for her performances in the comedy-drama "Dear White People", as civil rights activist Diane Nash in the historical drama "Selma" (both in 2014), and as Bianca Taylor in the sport drama films "Creed" (2015) and "Creed II" (2018). She gained mainstream recognition for her starring role as Valkyrie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films ' (2017) and ' (2019).
She also had roles in films such as the dark comedy "Sorry to Bother You" (2018), the crime thriller "Little Woods" (2018), the science-fiction horror film "Annihilation" (2018), the science fiction action film "" (2019), the musical romance "Lady and the Tramp" (2019), and the romantic drama "Sylvie's Love" (2020). On television, she starred in the noir drama series "Veronica Mars" (2005–2006), the drama series "Copper" (2012–2013), and the science fiction series "Westworld" (2016–present).
Early life.
Tessa Lynne Thompson was born on October 3, 1983, in Los Angeles, California. She was raised between Los Angeles and the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Her father, singer-songwriter Marc Anthony Thompson, is of Afro-Panamanian descent and is the founder of the musical collective Chocolate Genius, Inc. Her mother has white, Panamanian and Mexican ancestry. She has a younger half-sister, Zsela who is a singer and songwriter.
Thompson attended Santa Monica High School where she played Hermia in a student production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream". She attended Santa Monica College (SMC) where she studied cultural anthropology. While at SMC, she also attended lectures by Lisa Wolpe of the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company (LAWSC).
Career.
Acting.
In 2002, Thompson made her professional stage debut in as one of three actors portraying the role of Ariel in LAWSC's production of "The Tempest". In 2003, she appeared as Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet: Antebellum New Orleans, 1836" with The Theatre @ Boston Court in Pasadena, California, which earned her an NAACP Theatre Award nomination.
Thompson made her first television appearance in a 2005 episode of the CBS crime drama series "Cold Case" in the role of a lesbian bootlegger from the 1930s. In the same year, she rose to fame as she landed the role of Jackie Cook on the UPN/CW neo-noir drama series "Veronica Mars", starring as a series regular in season two. In 2006, she appeared on the ABC medical drama series "Grey's Anatomy".
Thompson's first feature film appearance was in the 2006 remake of the horror film "When a Stranger Calls" playing the role of Scarlett. In 2007, she was a part of the cast on the CW's short-lived drama "Hidden Palms", portraying Nikki Barnes. She was next seen opposite Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the dance film "Make it Happen" in 2008. She also worked on guest star roles on the television series "Life" and "Private Practice", and appeared in season four of "Heroes".
In 2010, Thompson appeared in Tyler Perry's stage play adaptation "For Colored Girls", after she directly approached Perry to be cast in the film. Also in 2010, she had a guest role as the wife of a detective on the drama series "Detroit 187". In 2012, Thompson had a guest role as Gavin Doran's daughter, Sasha, on the horror series "666 Park Avenue". In 2013, she starred in BBC America's first original series "Copper".
In 2014, she starred as Samantha White in Justin Simien's Sundance-winning comedy "Dear White People". That same year, Thompson played civil rights activist Diane Nash in Ava DuVernay's Martin Luther King Jr. biopic "Selma". In 2015, she appeared in Ryan Coogler's "Rocky" sequel film "Creed", and in Nate Ruess' short film "The Grand Romantic".
In 2016, she began a starring role in the HBO science fiction drama series "Westworld" as board director Charlotte Hale. Also in 2016, Thompson appeared in the off-Broadway run of the Lydia R. Diamond play "Smart People" at Second Stage Theatre, starring alongside Mahershala Ali, Joshua Jackson and Anne Son.
In April 2016, Thompson was cast as Valkyrie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film "", which was released on November 3, 2017. She then appeared in the science-fiction horror film "Annihilation", which was released on February 23, 2018. In June 2017, Thompson was cast in the science-fiction comedy "Sorry to Bother You", which was released on July 6, 2018. She reprised her role as Bianca Taylor in the sports drama sequel film "Creed II", which was released on November 21, 2018 to positive reviews and strong box office returns.
Thompson reprised her role as Valkryie in the superhero sequel film ', which was released on April 26, 2019. She starred as Agent M in the "Men in Black" spin-off film, ', opposite Chris Hemsworth, her co-star from "Thor: Ragnarok" and "Avengers: Endgame". The film was released on June 14, 2019. Also in 2019, she voiced Lady in the musical romance film "Lady and the Tramp", a live-action adaptation of the 1955 film of the same name.
At the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con, it was announced that Thompson would reprise her role as Valkyrie in the superhero film "". Valkyrie, after being declared King of New Asgard, will begin searching for her queen, revealing herself to be the MCU's first major LGBT character.
Thompson co-produced and voiced the lead role in the mystery sci-fi podcast series "The Left Right Game", which was released in 2020. The audio drama series featured Thompson as a journalist who follows a story about a group of paranormal adventurers. Amazon Studios secured the screen rights to the series, with Thompson executive producing. Also in 2020, she starred as the title character in the romantic drama film "Sylvie's Love", which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. She will next star in the drama film "Passing", which serves as Rebecca Hall's directorial debut. More recently, she started her own production company with a first look deal at HBO.
Music.
Thompson is also a singer-songwriter. She has in the past been a member of the Los Angeles-based indie electro soul band Caught A Ghost, and contributed to the soundtracks for both "Creed" and "Creed II", for which she co-wrote and performed several songs with producer Moses Sumney.
Personal life.
Thompson revealed in June 2018 that she is attracted to both men and women, but chooses not to label herself bisexual.


Kannan Thamarakkulam

Kannan Thamarakkulam
is an Indian film director who works in Malayalam films. His first direction venture was "Thinkal Muthal Velli Vare" (2015). His second release was Jayaram's big budget film "Aadupuliyattam" in 2016. His next release is "Maradu 357".
Personal life.
Thamarakkulam married Vishnu Prabha in a small ceremony at Chettikulangara in December 2020.


Cinema of Libya

The cinema of Libya has had an uneven history. Though there was little local film production in Italian Libya and the Kingdom of Libya, cinema-going became a popular entertainment activity. From 1973 onwards, Muammar Gaddafi tried to exercise control over cinema. Though he encouraged some local filmmaking, his obstruction of foreign film consumption resulted in the closing of cinemas. In the post-2011 instability in Libya, hopes for a resurgence of Libyan cinema combine with a lack of infrastructure.
Pre-1967 cinema.
The earliest recorded film to be made in Libya was a 1910 French-made documentary, "Les habitants du desert de Lybie". Italy, as a colonial power, made some short documentaries about Libya. Libyan battles during World War II were covered in British, German and Italian newsreels. After the war, oil companies and international agencies made occasional documentaries. After independence in 1951, the Kingdom of Libya made some short films about Leptis Magna to encourage tourism. Yet Libya was poor and there was relatively little filmmaking in the country. In 1959 the Ministry of News and Guildance established a cinema division, touring the country with 16mm documentaries and newsreels, and the Ministry of Education and Learning produced some educational films.
Despite the relative lack of cinematic production, film consumption was extremely popular as entertainment. The country's first cinema had been established as early as 1908, though it was reportedly demolished after the Italian invasion of Libya in 1911. The Italians established cinemas, mostly but not exclusively for Italian audiences, in Libya's major cities. From the 1940s until the mid-1960s, Libya boasted a large number of cinemas: around 14 or 20 in Tripoli, and around 10 in Benghazi. Cinemas in Tripoli included the outdoor Arena Giardino and the opulent Royal Cinema, which Gaddafi would rename "Al-Shaab" (The People).
Cinema under Gaddafi.
Gaddafi came to power in 1969. He regarded foreign films with suspicion, regarding them as American cultural imperialism. Previously the only feature films shot in Libya had been by foreign filmmakers – films like Albert Herman's 1942 "A Yank in Libya" or Guy Green's 1958 "Sea of Sand". The first Libyan feature film, Abdella Zarok's black-and-white "When Fate Hardens" / "Destiny is Hard" appeared in 1972. In 1973 the General Council for Cinema was founded, to take control of filmmaking and cinema building in Libya. Foreign films were dubbed into Arabic, and needed to comply with the government's cultural policy, a mix of religious law and nationalism. Most home-made films were documentaries, and social realism was promoted as an ideal for fiction films. The General Council for Cinema continued to operate until 2010. It made documentaries, around 20-25 short films, and helped support the few feature films that were made in the 1970s and 1980s.
Gaddafi exercised direct personal control over film production. For example, he censored the release of a film by Kasem Hwel, "Searching for Layla al-‘Amiriya". Gaddafi established a production company to make Egyptian films. In the mid-1970s the government took increasingly direct control of all cinemas, blocking the importation of films, and cinemas began to close.
Alongside Kuwait and Morocco, Gadaffi's government-sponsored Mustafa Akkad's controversial 1976 filmic account of the birth of Islam, "The Message". However, many Arab countries would not screen the film, and it triggered a Nation of Islam siege of three office buildings in Washington, D.C. Akkad's "Lion of the Desert" (1981), funded by Gadaffi's government, was a historical action movie portraying the Bedouin leader Omar Mukhtar resistance against the Italian colonization of Libya. The film was censored in Italy until 2009.
In 2009 it was announced that Gaddafi's son al-Saadi Gaddafi was financing private-equity production company involved in financing Hollywood films like "The Experiment" (2010) and "Isolation" (2011). In 2009–2010 foreign companies agreed to refurbish and re-open Libyan cinemas and theatres. However, the 2011 revolution resulted in this work coming to a halt, and much of the equipment was stolen.
Cinema since 2011.
After the fall of Gaddafi, there was widespread desire for Libyan film to re-assert itself. However, cinema's resurgence has been obstructed by fighting and Islamist objections. Young Libyan filmmakers started to make short films, with support from the British Council and the Scottish Documentary Institute. Film festivals in Tripoli and Benghazi were popular but targeted by Islamist militants. The International Mediterranean Film Festival for Documentary and Short Films was established in 2012. In 2013 a cinema club was discreetly established in the basement of a Tripoli art gallery. By 2015 only a single movie house remained in Tripoli, a men-only venue serving action movies to the militias controlling the city.
In December 2017 Erato Festival, a film festival for human rights films was launched in Tripoli. It opened with Almohannad Kalthoum's docudrama "Jasmine".


Kamalakara Kameswara Rao

Kamalakara Kameswara Rao (4 October 1911 – 29 June 1998) was an Indian film director known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema, and few Tamil and Hindi films. Widely known as "Pouraanika Chitra Brahma", Rao has directed fifty feature films in a variety of genres. In 1960 he directed the biographical film, "Mahakavi Kalidasu" which won the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Telugu. In 1962 he directed "Gundamma Katha" based on the Shakespearean comedy, "The Taming of the Shrew" which received mixed reviews from critics but was commercially successful, completing a 100-day run in 17 centers and a silver-jubilee run at the Durga Kalamandir, Vijayawada. "Gundamma Katha" received the Filmfare Award for Best Film – Telugu.
In the same year, he directed another biographical film, "Mahamantri Timmarusu" which won the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Telugu at the 10th National Film Awards. In 1963, Rao directed the blockbuster, epic mythological film Nartanasala. The film is cited among CNN-IBN's list of the hundred greatest Indian films of all time. The film has received wide critical acclaim and has garnered the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film at the 11th National Film Awards, and has secured the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Film. The film received awards for best production design and best actor for S. V. Ranga Rao, at the Jakarta International Film Festival.
Life sketch.
He was born in 1911 in Machilipatnam. He has completed Bachelor of Arts from the Noble College, Machilipatnam. He has worked as a Film journalist for Krishna Patrika between 1934 and 1937. His unbiased reviews about the released films are highly appreciated by the audiences. On invitation from H. M. Reddy, he has reached Madras. He has joined as assistant director and worked with K. V. Reddy and Moola Narayana Swamy for the film "Gruhalakshmi" in 1938. He has worked as assistant director for the films "Vande Mataram", "Sumangali", "Devatha" and "Swarga Seema" under Bomireddi Narasimha Reddy and for "Bhakta Potana" and "Yogi Vemana" under Kadiri Venkata Reddy. After observing him closely, Vijaya Pictures has given the responsibility of independently direct Chandraharam in 1954. He has left Vijaya pictures in 1955. He has directed about 30 films of National Art Theatres, Rajyam Pictures, Ponnaloori Brothers, Padmalaya Pictures, Mahija pictures and Suresh Productions over the period of three decades. He used to describe the film "Nartanasala" (1963) as his best directoral work, which won many National and International awards.
Death.
Rao died at the age of 88 years on 29 June 1998 due to cardiac arrest.


Chaitra (film)

Chaitra is a short film by Kranti Kanade based on author G.A. Kulkarni's story of the same name. Kranti selected this story for his thesis short film towards completion of his degree in Direction from Film and Television Institute of India. The film went on to win three National Film Awards in 2002.
Plot.
The story of a proud woman, her poetic vindication of unfair social insult, and her inevitable sad destiny. A very culture-specific film dipped in a local festival of rural women.
Production.
The film was shot in Alandi village near Pune and the post-production done at FTII. Being a student film, director did not have enough budget but Sonali Kulkarni and Lalan Sarang agreed to do the film without remuneration. Music director Bhaskar Chandavarkar not only composed music for the film without taking any remuneration but he also paid for the musicians himself. Cinematographer Mahesh Muthuswami contributed an amount towards the production and so did the sound designer Subir Das.
Awards and recognition.
Chaitra won three National Film Awards in 2002.
At the Mumbai International Film Festival 2002 it won National Critics’ Award and Best Short - Silver. That year, it was India's official entry to the Student Academy Awards.
The film was also included in a DVD titled "Master Strokes", a compilation of works of twenty renowned FTII students.


Rosario Dawson

Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is a Latin American actress, voice actress, producer, and activist. She made her feature film debut in the 1995 independent drama "Kids". Her subsequent film roles include "He Got Game" (1998), "Josie and the Pussycats" (2001), "Men in Black II" (2002), "Rent" (2005), "Sin City" (2005), "Clerks II" (2006), "Death Proof" (2007), "Seven Pounds" (2008), "" (2010), "Unstoppable" (2010), "Zookeeper" (2011), "Trance" (2013) and "Top Five" (2014). Dawson has also provided voice-over work for Disney/Marvel, Warner Bros./DC Comics, and ViacomCBS's Nickelodeon unit.
For her role in "Rent", Dawson won the Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture; for her role in "Top Five", she was nominated for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in a Comedy.
Dawson is also known for having several roles in comic book adaptations. These include Gail in "Sin City" (2005) and "" (2014), providing the voices of Diana Prince / Wonder Woman in the DC Animated Movie Universe and Barbara Gordon / Batgirl in "The Lego Batman Movie", as well as her portrayal of Claire Temple in five of the Marvel/Netflix series (2015–2018). In 2020, she portrayed Ahsoka Tano in the second season of "The Mandalorian", and will star in the upcoming Disney+ original series "Ahsoka". She also has a recurring role in the Dwayne Johnson autobiographical comedy series "Young Rock" in 2021.
Early life.
Dawson was born on May 9, 1979, in New York City. Her mother, Isabel Celeste, is of Cuban and Puerto Rican ancestry. Isabel was 16 years old when Rosario was born; she never married Rosario's biological father, Patrick C. Harris. When Rosario was a year old, her mother married Greg Dawson, a construction worker. From this marriage, Dawson has a half-brother, Clay, who is four years her junior.
Isabel and Greg sublet their apartment and moved their family into 544 East 13th Street, a reclaimed building, after being approved by the residents as members of an affordable housing plan. During that time Rosario and Clay would also grow up in Texas. Dawson has cited this part of her history when explaining how she learned that, "If you wanted something better, you had to do it all yourself."
Career.
As a child, Dawson made a brief appearance on "Sesame Street". At the age of 15, she was subsequently discovered on her front-porch step by photographer Larry Clark and Harmony Korine, where Korine lauded her as being perfect for a part he had written in his screenplay that would become the controversial 1995 film "Kids". She went on to star in varied roles, ranging from independent films to big budget blockbusters including "Rent", "He Got Game" and "Men in Black II".
In 1998, Dawson teamed up with Prince for the re-release of his 1980s hit "1999". The new remixed version featured the actress in an introductory voice over, offering commentary on the state of the world in the year before the new millennium. The following year, she appeared in The Chemical Brothers' video for the song "Out of Control" from the album "Surrender". She is also featured on the track "She Lives In My Lap" from the second disc of the OutKast album "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below", in which she speaks the intro and a brief interlude towards the end.
In 2001, she appeared in the movie "Josie and the Pussycats" as band member Valerie Brown.
Dawson starred as Naturelle Rivera, the love interest of a convicted drug dealer played by Edward Norton, in the 2002 Spike Lee film drama, "25th Hour". In the 2004 Oliver Stone film "Alexander", she played the bride of Alexander the Great. In the autumn of 2005, Dawson appeared on stage as Julia in the Public Theater's "Shakespeare in the Park" revival of "Two Gentlemen of Verona". It was her first appearance on stage.
In the film adaptation of the popular musical "Rent" in 2005, she played the exotic dancer Mimi Marquez, replacing Daphne Rubin-Vega, who was pregnant and unable to play the part. She also appeared in the adaptation of the graphic novel "Sin City", co-directed by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller, portraying Gail, a prostitute-dominatrix. Also in that year, she appeared in a graphically violent scene in the Rob Zombie film "The Devil's Rejects". Though the scene was cut from the final film, it is available in the deleted scenes on the DVD release.
She starred as Becky in 2006's "Clerks II", and mentioned in "Back to the Well", the making-of documentary, that the donkey show sequence was what made her decide to take the role. In May of the same year, Dawson, an avid comic book fan, co-created and co-wrote the comic book miniseries "Occult Crimes Taskforce". She was at the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con to promote the comic. She co-starred with former "Rent" alum Tracie Thoms in the Quentin Tarantino throwback movie "Death Proof" in 2007, part of the Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez double feature "Grindhouse". She teamed up with friend Talia Lugacy, whom she met at the Lee Strasberg Academy, to produce and star in "Descent". On July 7, 2007, Dawson presented at the American leg of Live Earth.
In 2008, Dawson starred with Will Smith in "Seven Pounds" and in "Eagle Eye", produced by Steven Spielberg. Beginning in August, she starred in "Gemini Division", an online science fiction series. In the computer animated series "Afterworld", she voiced the character Officer Delondre Baines. On January 17, 2009, Dawson hosted "Saturday Night Live". Later in the year, she voiced Artemis of Bana-Mighdall in the animated film "Wonder Woman".
In 2009, Dawson performed in "The People Speak", a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States". In 2009, Dawson also voiced the character of Velvet Von Black in Rob Zombie's animated feature, "The Haunted World of El Superbeasto". For the Kasabian album "West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum", she is featured singing on the track "West Ryder Silver Bullet".
In 2010, she starred in the movies ', as Persephone, and "Unstoppable", as railway yardmaster Connie. In 2013, she played Apple's mother in the independent film "Gimme Shelter". The following year, she reprised her role as Gail in '. In 2015, she played Claire Temple in the Netflix web television series "Daredevil", a role which she reprised in "Jessica Jones" and "Luke Cage". Dawson's likeness was also used in the "Jessica Jones" tie-in comic as her character on both shows. Dawson has continued this role in 2017 in "Iron Fist" and "The Defenders". In 2018, she played the female lead role in the Netflix movie, "Krystal". In 2020, she was cast as the "Star Wars" character Ahsoka Tano in the second season of "The Mandalorian" on Disney+.
Personal life.
Dawson is a self-professed Trekkie who mentioned both her and her brother's love of "Star Trek" in an interview with Conan O'Brien, and also demonstrated her knowledge of several Klingon words.
Dawson briefly dated writer and actor Jason Sudeikis in 2010.
Dawson was in a relationship with director Danny Boyle during shooting of the film "Trance", which he directed and she starred in, in 2013.
Dawson adopted a 12-year-old girl in 2014.
From 2016 to 2017, Dawson dated comedian and television host Eric Andre.
In March 2019, Dawson confirmed that she is in a relationship with United States senator Cory Booker.
In October 2019, Dedrek Finley, a trans man, filed a case in Los Angeles against Dawson and her family for alleged incidents involving discrimination, verbal abuse, misgendering and physical assault. Finley had been employed as a handyman, living with the family and had known them for decades. Through their attorney, the Dawson family said that they are "saddened and disappointed by these false and baseless allegations." In August 2020, 18 of the 20 accusations, including those against Dawson herself, were voluntarily dropped by the plaintiff.
In 2018, Dawson made a post to Instagram which was widely perceived as her coming out; when asked about this in a 2020 interview, she stated that this had not been her intention, and further specified that although "it's not inaccurate", she had never "had a relationship in that space."
Politics.
Dawson was arrested in 2004, while protesting against president George W. Bush.
Dawson endorsed Barack Obama for re-election in 2012, and Bernie Sanders for the Democratic nomination in the 2016 Democratic Party primaries. On April 15, 2016, Dawson was among the protesters arrested during Democracy Spring in Washington, D.C.
In mid-2019, Dawson endorsed her boyfriend Cory Booker in the 2020 presidential election. Booker ended his campaign for president on January 13, 2020. Had she become First Lady of the United States, Dawson said she would have advocated for solutions to youth homelessness. On March 9, 2020, Dawson endorsed the presidential campaign of Bernie Sanders, whom she had also previously endorsed in his 2016 bid.
Philanthropy.
Dawson is involved with the Lower East Side Girls Club and supports other charities such as environmental group Global Cool, One Campaign, Operation USA, Oxfam, Amnesty International, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), the International Rescue Committee, Voto Latino, and Stay Close.org, a poster and public service ad campaign for PFLAG where she is featured with her uncle Frank Jump. She has participated in the "Vagina Monologues" (she refers to her vagina as "The General") and serves on the board for V-Day, a global non-profit movement that raises funds for women's anti-violence groups through benefits of this play.
In October 2008, Dawson became a spokeswoman for TripAdvisor.com's philanthropy program, More Than Footprints, Conservation International, Doctors Without Borders, National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy and Save The Children. Also in October 2008, she lent her voice to the RESPECT! Campaign, a movement aimed at preventing domestic violence. She recorded a voice message for the Giverespect.org Web site stressing the importance of respect in helping stop domestic violence. In 2012, Dawson partnered with SodaStream International in launching the first annual Unbottle the World Day, a campaign conceived in an effort to raise awareness to the impact of cans and plastic bottles on the environment. Dawson also sits on the Board of Directors of Scenarios USA, which works to support a generation of reflective, outspoken, and confident youth through filmmaking and uses film to educate students through a variety of programs.


Gypsy Woman (film)

Gypsy Woman is a 2001 film directed by Sheree Folkson and written by Steven Knight, filmed on location in London and The Isle of Man. It is a romantic comedy, set against the backdrop of the Black Mountains, Wales.
Plot overview.
'Leon Hawthorne (Davenport) is a recently widowed property developer left to raise his young daughter on his own. While at a coroner’s inquest into the death of one of his workers, Leon meets the dead man’s widow, Natalie (McIntosh). A bright and exotic woman, Natalie’s beauty captivates Leon and after the verdict of the court case comes, he sets out to track the widow down. This brings him into the countryside and on an unexpected journey full of humour, danger and self-discovery as he enters the world of the gypsies... With the help of Leon’s and Natalie’s daughters, they just might manage to sort it out.'


Maari (soundtrack)

Maari is the soundtrack album for the 2015 Tamil film of the same name, starring Dhanush and Kajal Aggarwal in the lead roles, directed by Balaji Mohan. The soundtrack album was composed by Anirudh Ravichander, with three songs written by Dhanush and rest of the songs were written by Vignesh Shivan and G. Rokesh. The film, marks the third collaboration between Dhanush and Anirudh Ravichander. The audio rights were purchased by Sony Music and the soundtrack album was released on 7 June 2015, receiving positive reception.
Development.
Anirudh Ravichander, who was supposed to work with Balaji Mohan for "Vaayai Moodi Pesavum", was selected as the film's music director marking his fifth collaboration with Wunderbar Films, and third with Dhanush after "3" and "Velaiilla Pattadhari". The film's soundtrack consists of four songs and a theme music, as of April 2015, and the recording for the songs going on for three months. Fans can expect a "pakka mass" album, say sources and the atmosphere in theaters is bound to be electric. The album is reported to brim with a local, earthy charm. Dhanush penned three songs for the film, and the other two tracks were penned by Vignesh Shivan and Rokesh. Popular Malayalam actor and singer Vineeth Srinivasan has also sung a number in the film. Actor Dhanush recently revealed a couple of lines from the title track, which is said to be based on pigeon racing. The lines go like this, 'Maari' Konjam Nalla Maari' Romba Vera Maari Maari' Thecha Thangam Maari' Moracha Singam Maari.'
Release.
Sony Music purchased the audio rights of the film. It was announced that, the audio was initially slated to release on 25 May 2015, by the makers, however it was later announced by Balaji Mohan that the audio will release on 4 June 2015. The songs were released on 7 June 2015 at midnight. The theme music and the song teaser, was released on 16 July 2015.
Reception.
Behindwoods.com gave the album 3 stars out of 5 and Called it "Style à la north Chennai !!." Karthik From Milliblog Stated "The soundtrack's best are Don’u Don’u, a captivating call-and-response duet featuring Anirudh and Alisha Thomas, and Oru vidha aasai, with a wonderfully articulated 80s swagger and Vineeth Sreenivasan in blistering form. So-So Maari, but for these two songs." Indiaglitz rated the album 3 out of 5, and gave a verdict "Hooks you Maari style!" Sify rated the album 3 out of 5, and stated that "Anirudh delivers a middling album that needs time to grow!" MusicAloud rated the album 7 out of 10, and stated that "Out-and-out dancy soundtrack from Anirudh. And an engaging one at that." BollywoodLife rated the album 3.5 out of 5 and summarised that "Packed with a series of foot tapping numbers, Maari album by Dhanush and Anirudh Ravichander is high on energy and has enough to keep you entertained. Having said that this album by DnA is not upto the high standards set by the music of 3 and VIP. Nevertheless, the songs are enjoyable and way better than the kind of music coming out these days." Sharanya CR from The Times of India, reviewed it as "The album sounds less Anirudh and more local."
Telugu Version.
The soundtrack album of its Telugu version titled Mass, was released on 18 January 2016.


Devarakonda Balagangadhara Tilak

Devarakonda Balagangadhara Tilak (1 August 1921 – 1 July 1966) was an Indian poet, novelist and short story writer.
Early life.
Tilak was born on 21 August 1921 in the village of Mandapaka in the Tanuku Taluk district. He died on 1 July 1966 at the age of 44 years.
He completed his Intermediate at AVN College Visakhapatnam and joined Loyola College, Chennai (then Madras), but had to cease his studies due to health issues. He established the Vigjnana Parishad in Tanuku (later renamed Sahiti Sarovaram) and pursued literary activities.
Tilak wrote his first story at the age of 11, which is said to have been published in the Madhuri Magazine. At the age of 16, he started writing poetry and developed his unique writing style.
His most famous work, "Amrutham Kurisina Ratri", was translated into English as "The Night the Nectar Rained" by Velchala Kondal Rao. "The Night of Nectar" was translated by B Indira.
Career.
His first anthology, "Prabhatamu-Sandhya" (1945), was written in the romantic style popular in Indian poetry of the early and mid-20th century. He changed his style after attending the 'All India Progressive Writers' Conference in Bombay. His anthology of Poems ( Padya kavitalu) "Goruvankalu" was published by Visalandhra Publishing house.
Literary contributions and recognition.
He was awarded the "Sahitya Academy award" in 1970 for his posthumously published collection of poems "Amrutham Kurisina Ratri". published in 1969 The volume was called a "milestone in modern Telugu" by Sisir Kumar Das, who added, "But for him, 'verse libre' or 'prose poetry' could not have gained so much of popularity."
His short stories include "Sundari-SubbaRavu", "Vuri Chivara Illu" and "Tilak Kadhalu". His stories were influenced by Maxim Gorky and Rabindranath Tagore.


N. R. Raghunanthan

N. R. Raghunanthan is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer. He has scored music for Tamil films.
Career.
Raghunanthan's debuted as a music director in 2010 with "Thenmerku Paruvakaatru" directed by Seenu Ramasamy which met with critical acclaim and went on to win three National Film Awards at the 58th National Film Awards. His second film was "Krishnaveni Panjaalai" (2012). Meanwhile he had also composed SR Prabhakaran's "Sundarapandiyan" and Seenu Ramasamy's "Neerparavai" in the same year, while the former was a commercial success, the latter was critically well received. He also worked for music director G. V. Prakash Kumar's debutant productional movie "Madha Yaanai Koottam".


Anudeep Dev

Anudeep Devarakonda is an Indian playback singer. He is known as Anudeep Dev in the field of music. With "Ahana Pellanta" he made his début and did playback singing in about 70 feature films and has sung 100 songs. Some of the feature films with his songs are "Uyyala Jampala" and "Pilla Nuvvu Leni Jeevitham".
Career.
Anudeep was born in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh on 9 May 1989. He completed his bachelor's degree in Hyderabad. He has performed on television shows such as ETV's "SYE singers Challenge", "Padalani undi" (MAA TV), "Tara Rum Pum" (Gemini TV), and "Amul Sangeetha Maha Yudham" (Gemini TV). He is associated with his college rock band called ‘Anudeep and the band’. He has worked for music directors including Thaman, Ghibran, Anoop Rubens, MM Keeravani, Jeevan Babu, Shekar Chandra, Radhan and Micky J Meyer.
Discography.
As a Playback singer
This is only a partial list
Awards.
He received 2014 GAMA Award for Best Upcoming Singer - Male


Nandi Awards of 2008

The Nandi Awards are presented annually in Andhra Pradesh, For Telugu cinema by State government. "Nandi" means "bull", the awards being named after the big granite bull at Lepakshi — a cultural and historical symbol of Andhra Pradesh. Nandi Awards are presented in four categories: Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Copper.
The Nandi awards for the year 2008 were announced on 24 October 2009 at Hyderabad.


R. K. Suresh

R. K. Suresh is an Indian Tamil film producer and actor who heads the production company, Studio 9. In 2015, Suresh debuted as an actor, working in Bala's "Tharai Thappattai" and M. Muthaiah's "Marudhu", winning critical accolades for his performance in both.
Career.
Suresh, the son of Dr R Kalanjiam — the producer of the Murali-starrer "Poo Vaasam" (1999), wanted to be a part of the film industry after being told he had the looks of an actor by director Samuthirakani at a gymnasium. He subsequently began looking for acting opportunities and approached several producers to no avail. He was offered a role as an extra in "Pudhupettai" (2006), but his father made him return the advance after being unimpressed about the stature of the role. Suresh then began a film distribution company and succeeded by distributing films such as "Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom" (2012), "Soodhu Kavvum" (2013) and "Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara" (2013), before first working as a producer with "Salim" (2014).
In November 2014, Suresh was involved in a legal dispute with actor Vijay Sethupathi, who kept delaying the start of Suresh's production "Vasantha Kumaran". He posted a message in social media that he quit the film industry and stated that Studio 9's ongoing projects would be shelved. Suresh blamed Vijay Sethupathi's failure to allot dates for "Vasantha Kumaran" as the primary reason behind their financial problems and sought legal action against the actor. The actor clarified that he had informed everything about the issue to the actors’ association and was waiting for an official press release jointly from the producer and South Indian Film Artistes’ Association. Responding to the allegations, in a statement, Vijay Sethupathi said that Suresh was trying to make the film without sorting out funding. He added that Suresh had indulged in several activities that were wrong and used a lot of bad languages, and refused to accept his withdrawal notice. The pair later amicably sorted out differences and announced another film during the following year, "Dharma Durai" (2016) which went on to be a profitable venture financially and critically.
Suresh later signed on to appear as an actor in Bala's "Tharai Thappattai" (2016), for which he received critical acclaim, and then in Muthiah's "Marudhu" (2016), portraying the antagonist. The success of the films prompted him to decide to star as a protagonist and announced several films as such as "Thani Mugam", "Billa Pandi, Vettai Naai and Vargam" where he plays opposite Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, where he would portray the lead role. Also he has signed for a role in Vikram's "Sketch" (2017). In June 2017, he has signed a new project titled "Thennattan," which is based on farmers and jallikattu and directed by M. Vijay Pandi. In the biopic film "Traffic Ramasamy" (2018), he is playing the friend of Veteran Director S. A. Chandrasekhar
Personal life.
R K. Suresh's nephew Roshan will be making his debut as an actor with "Champion" directed by Suseenthiran.
He was married to his college friend for several years and both have one son. They had some issues and divorced, and he was engaged to be married to Sumangali serial actress Divya however the couple got split due to differences. He is currently Vice President of OBC wing of BJP. He is supporting many social activities along with Devar Community.


Mahesh Muthuswami

Mahesh Muthuswami is an Indian cinematographer working in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films.
Career.
Upon his graduation from Film and Television Institute of India , Pune, he started working with legendary cinematographer P. C. Sreeram. With him he worked in features - "Kushi" (Telugu), "Vaanam Vasappadum" (Tamil) . He worked with ace cinematographer Ramji in "Sandhya", a Hindi film.
His diploma short film, "Chaitra" directed by Kranti Kanade was the official student Oscar entry in the year 2002.
His first film was "Rightaa Thappaa" for director, producer Bhuvana. The film went on to win two State Awards.
His second feature "Chithiram Pesuthadi",was Mysskin's directorial debut. It became a hit owing to the unique style the film was written in.
Post "Chithiram Pesuthadi", he shot the Hindi Film "Risk" starring Randeep Hooda, Vinod Khanna and Tanushree Dutta for director Vishram Sawant.
Then he teamed up with director Mysskin again shooting "Anjaathey" and "Nandalala" for him. "Anjathey" was a runaway commercial success.
"Nandalala" got him the Best Cinematographer award for the year 2010 from the reputed and popular Tamil weekly magazine "Ananda Vikatan".
In 2009 he did camerawork for a Hindi 3D Animation Feature film, "Alibaba & 41 Thieves", produced by UTV Motion Pictures and directed by Soumitra Ranade.
In his next feature "Vamsam" he teamed up with director Pandiraj . It was the debut film for actor Arulnidhi .
His next release was "Mouna Guru" which had Arulnidhi and Iniya in lead roles for debutant director Shantakumar.
It was a brooding, crime thriller and went on to earn raving reviews.
His first Telugu film, "Jabardasth", was with Director Nandini Reddy. "Jabardast" had leads played by Siddharth, Samantha and Nithya Menen.
"Kutti Puli" directed by debutant director Muthaiah had Director, Actor Sasikumar as lead. The film was commercially a huge success.
"Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara", directed by Gokul , featuring Vijay Sethupathi, as lead was his next.
He also teaches Cinematography at BOFTA, Chennai ( Blue Ocean Film and Television Academy ) http://www.bofta.in/faculty-masters.php for the past five years and finds the experience very refreshing..
Early life and family.
Mahesh Muthuswami was born in Palani, Tamil Nadu, India. to R. Muthuswami and P. Vijayalakshmi, Rtd HOD of Government Arts College, Dindigul. His maternal uncle was his first inspiration for his visual media. He completed his schooling from MSP Solai Nadar Memorial Higher Secondary school, Dindigul and graduation in Mechanical Engineering from PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore. Then he got placed in Bajaj Auto, Pune. During his college days he further developed his interest in Photography from his close friend Muthuselvan. That passion made him to leave Bajaj and join FTII, Pune to pursue a course in Cinematography. He is married to Manimalar, who is also a media professional and currently working as a graphic designer in San Academy group of schools, Pallikaranai. They have a daughter named Sanchita.


Burning Up (film)

Burning Up is a 1930 American Pre-Code action film directed by A. Edward Sutherland and written by Grover Jones and William Slavens McNutt. The film stars Richard Arlen as a racing driver and Mary Brian as his love interest, the daughter of a fellow driver. An early talkie, the film also features motorcycle stunts, and also stars Francis McDonald, Sam Hardy, Charles Sellon, and Tully Marshall. The film was released on February 1, 1930, by Paramount Pictures.
The film was made in an effort by Paramount's Jesse L. Lasky to emulate the success of earlier racing films made by the late Wallace Reid, "emulating Wally's films almost exactly", and with director Allen Sigler having "filmed the racing scenes exactly as Wally's had been done". One review described it as "the old racing-car scenario brought up to date with sound and talk".


A Sunday in Kigali

A Sunday in Kigali (original French title: "Un dimanche à Kigali") is a 2006 Canadian feature film set during the Rwandan genocide. It is directed by Robert Favreau based on the novel "A Sunday at the pool in Kigali" by Gil Courtemanche.
Plot.
Bernard Valcourt, a documentary filmmaker, and journalist, sets off to Kigali to film a documentary about AIDS. He gets caught up in the turmoil of horrific events involving Hutus and Tutsis that tragically leads to genocide. During his stay at the Hôtel des Mille Collines, Valcourt falls in love with a beautiful, shy waitress named Gentille. Gentille serves drinks to the diplomats, officials, and Rwandan bourgeoisie who surround the hotel swimming pool every Sunday. While Valcourt's longing for Gentille increases, the country moves toward civil war, and the brutal violence of the Rwandan genocide separates them. A few months go by and Bernard returns to Rwanda, frantically seeking Gentille in the midst of the chaos. Most of the narrative unfolds in retrospect.
Release.
"A Sunday in Kigali" grossed $1.1 million Canadian in Quebec in the fall of 2006, and is set for September 23 release in English-speaking Canada. Video and cable are the best options in other territories.
Reception.
Box office.
Eight weeks into its release, Robert Favreau's Rwandan genocide drama is the first Quebecois film of 2006 to pass the CAN $1m benchmark at the local box office.
Critical response.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rate of 88% based on 59 reviews.
The sites' critical consensus reads, "A strident, well-meaning film that makes the mistake of doing all our thinking and feeling for us." Geoff Pevere give the film a 2 out of 4 rating, stating "here's something about the idea of weeping over a single love affair ... while hundreds of thousands are being slaughtered that verges on its own form of myopic irresponsibility." Writer for "Variety" Robert Koehler also gave it 2 out of 4 stars and said: "Pic is truly undone by a bizarre structure that constantly cuts between the timeframe before the 100-day massacre and the aftermath."
Accolades.
Since its release, the film has been nominated for 42 festivals and awards.


Yesenia (film)

Yesenia is a 1971 Mexican film directed by Alfredo B. Crevenna, based on an original story by Yolanda Vargas Dulché. The film stars Jacqueline Andere as the titular character, along with Jorge Lavat. "Yesenia" was a blockbuster in the Soviet Union, where it sold 91.4million tickets, and became the highest-grossing film in the Soviet Union. Due to this success abroad, it ranks among the world's non-English language films with the highest attendance record.
Plot.
Yesenia (Jacqueline Andere) had grown up among gypsies but her mother was white. Obliged by the circumstances (and her parents), she felt the need to give her child to an old gypsy woman whom Yesenia believed to be her grandmother. The love of a soldier, disappointment, and other misunderstandings reveal the hidden truth.


Boy Culture

Boy Culture is a 2006 American romantic drama film directed by Q. Allan Brocka, based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Matthew Rettenmund. The film stars Derek Magyar, Darryl Stephens, Patrick Bauchau, Jonathon Trent, and Emily Brooke Hands.
Plot.
A successful escort describes in a series of confessions his entangled romantic relationships with his two roommates and an older, enigmatic client.
The story remains the same as the novel, about a man who goes by only the letter "X" to maintain his anonymity and relationships between his two roommates—one of whom he's in love with—and an enigmatic older client who challenges him to find his heart before he will consent to sex.
The film's differences from the novel include Andrew's character (now an African-American) and the location of the story in Seattle, Washington, instead of Chicago, Illinois.
Production.
"Boy Culture" is based on a novel, with a few important differences found between the two. It was decided in the film to set it in Seattle rather than Chicago, and to make substantial differences to the character of Andrew, including his ethnicity. The film is also noted for the careful eye of the director, who managed to turn what was an 18-day production cycle into a fully realized film.
Release.
The film made its world premiere in the United Kingdom at the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (since renamed ), on April 1, 2006, and made its debut in the United States at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 26, 2006. It subsequently received a very limited theatrical release in the United States on March 23, 2007.
"Boy Culture" was shown at the following film festivals:
Reception.
Critical response.
"Boy Culture" currently holds a 71% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 31 reviews; the consensus states: "Eloquent one-liners and quick pacing make "Boy Culture" sharper than the typical gay indie flick." On Metacritic, based on 12 critics, the film has a 56/100 rating, signifying "mixed or average reviews". Maitland McDonagh from "TV Guide" wrote, "Shrewder than you'd think and not half as dumb as it looks." Jeannette Catsoulis from "The New York Times" wrote, "A slick and absorbing drama." Ronnie Scheib from "Variety" wrote, "A strong cast, formal visual style and cynical voiceover that propels the action help elevate this Seattle-set gay romp from the ranks of the stereotypical."
Home media.
The film was released on DVD on August 14, 2007, courtesy of TLA Video. The release includes an audio commentary from writer/director Q. Allan Brocka and writing partner Philip Pierce, interviews with Brocka and the four stars, deleted scenes, premiere footage from the Tribeca Film Festival and the film's trailer.
"Boy Culture:The Series".
In 2017, a Kickstarter campaign was launched for "Boy Culture: The Series" an episodic sequel to the original, which proposed to star Matthew Wilkas (X), Darryl Stephens (Andrew), Matthew Crawford (Chayce), as well as Stephen Guarino and singer Steve Grand. The campaign met its funding goal and the series was filmed in August 2018. It was also announced that Derek Magyar, who played the lead role “X” in the original film, is now reprising his role, taking over for Matthew Wilkas, who was originally announced to be replacing him.


47 Days

47 Days is a 2020 Indian Telugu-language mystery-drama film starring Satyadev Kancharana and Pooja Jhaveri.
Plot.
Satyadev is an ACP whose wife Paddu dies. While inspecting a similar case to the death of his wife, Satyadev becomes a part of a larger issue.
Production.
The film is directed by Pradeep Maddali, a former software engineer who worked as an assistant director under Puri Jagannadh. He met Satyadev Kancharana on the sets of "Rogue" (2017). The film is based on a scene from his short film "Juliet" (2011) and began production in 2018. Satyadev was signed to play an ACP in the film. The makers of the film obtained the permission to use the name "47 Days" after the 1981 film of the same name. The film was scheduled to release in theaters following Satyadev's "Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya"; however, the film released on ZEE5 on June 30, 2020 due to COVID-19 after much delay.
Music.
The songs are composed by Raghu Kunche. Puri Jagannadh released the song "Kya Karoon" on Valentines Day 2018, performed by Neeha Kadiveti with lyrics by Lakshmi Bhupala.
Reception.
Neeshita Nyayapati of "Times of India" gave the film two stars out of five, saying ""47 Days" only works in bits and pieces because Satyadev does enough to ensure you stay invested." Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of "The Hindu" wrote that, "There’s a lot going on in the film written and directed by Pradeep Maddali, but it ends up as a hotchpotch. The only reason to watch it till the end is its leading man Satyadev, whose empathetic performance goes in vain."


Anaganaga O Dheerudu

Anaganaga O Dheerudu () is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language fantasy adventure film directed by debutant Prakash Kovelamudi in his first mainstream film. Co-produced by Disney World Cinema, and Arka Media Works with veteran director K. Raghavendra Rao at a budget of 270 million, it stars Siddharth, Shruti Haasan, and Baby Harshitha as protagonists with Lakshmi Manchu as the antagonist. This film marks the Telugu debuts of Haasan and Manchu. It features a musical score by Salim–Sulaiman, an ensemble soundtrack by Salim-Sulaiman, M. M. Keeravani, Koti and Mickey J Meyer, while cinematography and editing are handled by Soundar Rajan and Sravan Katikaneni, respectively.
"Anaganaga O Dheerudu" focuses on the journey of Moksha, a nine-year-old girl with special healing powers, and Yodha, her fierce warrior bodyguard, as they travel to a faraway village to save its children, under the constant menace of the evil witch Irendri.
Plot.
Irendri (Lakshmi Manchu) is a sorceress who terrorizes people of Anga Rajyam. A guru arrests her, doesn't allow her to play with the lives of people, and destroys her. Before she was destroyed, Irendri takes her soul away and traps it in a locket. Though she dies, her soul lives in the locket. Her great-great-granddaughter is Priya (Shruthi Haasan), and she lives as a gypsy.
Priya too possesses magical powers as she was born into a sorceress' family. Yodha (Siddharth) is a travelling swordsman who always romances women whenever there is opportunity. He is smitten by Priya's beauty and falls in love with her. Sudigundam (Ravi Babu) is a local goon, and he attacks the gypsies' village. Yodha prevents him and defeats him in a fight. However, Sudigundam makes a stealth attack, ties Yodha's hands, and sets afire the entire village.
In this process, the locket in Priya's neck falls down, and Irendri's soul comes out with the touch of fire. The sarpa sakthi (power of the serpents) tells her that she could gain power with a drop of Priya's blood. So, Irendri takes away Priya and imprisons her. Meanwhile, Yodha turns blind as Sudigundam pierces his eyes. However, Yodha gets saved by a swami (Subbaraya Sharma) and appoints to save a girl named Moksha (Baby Harshitha), who has divine powers. Irendri, to take revenge, attacks Agartha, a village in Anga Rashtram, and makes the children of the village senseless.
Druki (Vallabhaneni Ramji) goes to Pushpagiri to bring Moksha, who could save their children. Druki, Yodha, and Moksha start from Pushpagiri and reach Agartha. At this juncture, the sarpa sakti tells Irendri that Moksha's blood would make her invincible if it was taken by her on lunar eclipse day. So, Irendri sends her men to capture Moksha. But Yodha kills all of them. Irendri again sends Sudigundam, the commander-in-chief, to bring her. Yodha follows them in search of Moksha, finds Priya alive, and saves Moksha and Priya. Moksha brings back Yodha's vision with her divine power. Yodha decides to completely destroy Irendri as she is trying to harm people and succeeds in the climax.
Production.
Pre-production for "Anaganaga O Dheerudu" began in June 2009 and the cast was finalized soon after, with the film creating expectations as it marked the debuts of noted star children Prakash Rao, Shruti Haasan and Lakshmi Manchu. Furthermore, the film marked a return to a rare genre in Indian cinema: the fantasy adventure. Shooting began in October 2009 and took place across India, whilst scenes were also shot in Turkey.
During the production stage, Disney agreed to co-produce with Raghavendra Rao's home banner, a Bellyful of Dreams Entertainment, marking the first South Indian production by Disney.
Release.
"Anaganaga O Dheerudu" was released internationally on 14 January 2011 during the Sankranti festival to average reviews and box office collections.
Dubbed versions were created in Tamil and Malayalam, but their release was put on hold indefinitely due to the unexpected failure of the Telugu version. The film is rated PG-13 in North America for "violence and scary images" making it the sixth of ten Disney-branded films to receive the rating.
Home media.
The film was released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment on DVD and digital download on 26 July 2011. The release will be produced in DVD widescreen and include a Telugu language track plus English subtitles.


Aadesh - Power of Law

Aadesh - The Power of Law is a 2017 Indian Marathi film directed by Suvahhdan Angre and produced by Yogesh Wanve, based on the life of public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam. A courtroom drama, it is the first Indian film about a prosecuting attorney.
Reception.
"Aadesh - The Power of Law" received strongly negative reviews. Mayuri Phandis of the Times of India rated it one out of five stars, referring to it as a "dramatised and poorly shot string of cases" that "does nothing to satiate the curiosities" of the viewer.


Sundar Rao Nadkarni

Sundar Rao Nadkarni was an Indian film actor, editor, cinematographer, producer and director. He was the director of the first hit film for AVM productions Bhookails in Telugu in the year 1940, and later the record-creating Tamil film "Haridas".
Early life.
Sundar Rao Nadkarni was born in Mangalore in a Konkani speaking family. He started his career in Bangalore as an actor in silent films produced by Surya Films. Later, he moved to Bombay where he took to film direction and editing. Nadkarni caught the eye of film producer Avichi Meiyappa Chettiar who, after the success of "Sabhapathy", was looking to make another comedy film. Thereon, he moved to Coimbatore and finally Madras, where he settled down permanently.
In 1942, Nadkarni directed the Tamil film "En Manaivi" which was a hit. Following this success, Nadkarni also made other successful Tamil films. But his greatest hit was the 1944 film "Haridas" which set a record by becoming the first Tamil film to run for 110 weeks at a single theatre. He directed all the top Tamil actors during his active years, notably M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar and T. R. Rajakumari in "Haridas" (1944), Narsimha Bharathi in "Krishna Vijayam" (1950), and MGR and Savitri in "Mahadevi" (1957).


Grey Lady (film)

Grey Lady is a 2015 American film directed by John Shea. The film centers on a Boston homicide detective, Doyle (Eric Dane) who searches for clues about a serial killer that murdered both his sister and his partner (Rebecca Gayheart). His search leads him to Nantucket where he uncovers secrets about his family's past.
Plot.
Boston homicide detective, James Doyle, and his partner/girlfriend, Maggie Wynn are called by their commander and alerted of a 911 call made by a woman claiming to be stalked by a man addressing her as Deirdre (the name of Doyle's sister who was murdered weeks earlier) Doyle and Wynn rush to the scene and discover it is a trap. Wynn is stabbed by the woman who called and they are both shot by an unknown man. Doyle survives and Wynn is killed.
Weeks later, Doyle is on leave and is taking the boat to Nantucket. During the voyage he meets two women, Eli, and the Duchess. Upon arrival, he is greeted by a local officer Detective Johnson who directs him to his hotel. After checking in, he meets the police chief Preston MacGuire. who tells him that time on the island will help him emotionally recuperate. Doyle and Johnson later attend an outdoor barbecue and concert where Doyle encounters the two women he saw on the boat. Later, the Duchess is found dead. Doyle surmises she was murdered by the same parties that killed his partner and sister due to similar wounds on their backs carved with a knife. Doyle then recalls that his aunt Lola used to live on the island and he makes an attempt to locate her. During a flashback Doyle recollects that Maggie whispered "The Rose, The Crown" in his ear while she was dying. He then goes to the Rose and Crown restaurant thinking it may be a clue. The local bartender does not recognize his aunt by name, but Doyle notices a photo on the wall of 3 people, one of which he has a hunch might be his aunt. The bartender tells him one of the other people in the picture, Tony used to work there and she sends him to his home. When he is there, he shows Tony the photo, and they walk inside. The woman in the photo, Angela tells Doyle his aunt died the previous year. He leaves his business card at the house and leaves. Upon leaving it is revealed that Eli and another man were spying on him
Back at his hotel, Doyle attends an art gallery opening the Duchess had invited him to. While there, he purchases a painting which reminds him of Maggie. The artist, Melissa Reynolds introduces herself. Eli is also in the gallery and spills wine on another painting. The artist, Clara asks to be treated to a couple of pints of beer at the gallery's after-party as compensation. After dinner, the woman, Eli becomes ill and her companion takes her home. She is very upset and the man injects her with a sedative. They then look at pictures of the murder victims on their phone and it is revealed that they are the killers.
The next morning, Doyle, Melissa, Clara and another artist from the party, Billy MacLeod, are scalloping on the beach. Melissa and Doyle are dropped off at her dockside studio after she has a panic attack and Doyle is picked up by Johnson. Eli and her companion show up at the house where Angela lives and take Tony hostage and torture him for information, and cut off one of his fingers. Doyle shows up unexpectedly and Eli keeps Tony quiet. Tony's friend Junior shows up as Doyle is leaving. Junior seeing a stranger in the house, runs over to his home to retrieve a shotgun. In a subsequent shootout, Eli shoots at Angela, whom she addresses as Lola. Junior is wounded and Eli and her companion flee. Doyle later has a late night meal with Melissa and he explains to her what is going on. That morning, Eli's companion has a massage appointment with Clara whom he murders. When her body is found on the beach, a wound is found carved on her back. Fearing Melissa might be in danger he calls her and tells her to go to his hotel. Eli shows up and tells Melissa that Clara was found murdered. She has another panic attack and a friend drives her to the hospital. Eli picks her up and introduces her companion as her brother Perry. While Doyle is at the house where Clara was attacked, he examines photos of the wounds and realizes that the carvings are actually letters and that the killers are spelling his last name. Doyle's phone rings and a local priest tells him that a woman is there who wants to speak with him at the church. When he arrives he sees Angela who is really his aunt Lola. Lola reveals that the killers are his cousins who falsely believe that Doyle's father Frank killed their father Tim. Lola reveals that she stabbed her husband because he attacked her in a fit of drunken rage while finding her in bed with his brother Frank. Tony shows up and wants in on capturing Eli and Perry as revenge for cutting off his finger. As Doyle is leaving, Lola implores that he not kill Perry and whispers something in his ear.
Back at the hotel, Doyle calls Melissa's phone and hears it ring in the hotel. Eli is there and tells Doyle that Melissa dropped it before going to the hospital and that she is with Perry. She draws a map to where they are staying. Doyle, knowing that Melissa is being held hostage alerts Tony who meets up with Doyle at the house. Doyle and Tony attempt to get Perry to surrender. Perry is wounded in the leg by a shot from Tony's crossbow and hides in a garage. Melissa is rescued and told to hide. Hearing a siren, she rushes towards it only to find Eli driving a stolen police car and shooting at her. She hides under a canoe and Eli fails to locate her. Doyle is chasing Perry but is stopped by Eli saying she will kill Melissa if he does not let them escape. Doyle drops his gun. Melissa shows up and fires a shot. Eli attempts to shoot Melissa but is fatally shot by Doyle instead. Perry then tells Doyle to kill him too, but he refuses, saying that Lola revealed that Perry is actually his half-brother from Lola's relationship with Frank.
The following morning, a crowd gathers on the beach for a memorial service for Clara, Lola gives Doyle his father's old movie camera. The following morning, Perry is in custody and being escorted back to the mainland by the state police. Doyle is on the boat's upper deck and reminisces about happier times with his family
Production.
Production commenced in April 2014, with four weeks of filming on Nantucket followed by one week in Boston.
Release.
The film premiered at the 2015 Nantucket Film Festival, and public screenings commenced on April 28, 2017. The film was released on DVD, and video on demand services on June 27, 2017.


Umarji Anuradha

Umarji Anuradha (Telugu: ఉమర్జీ అనూరాధ) is an Indian writer known for her works in Telugu cinema and journalism. She wrote continuously on The Legends of Indian Cinema (Vendi Tera Nirdeshakulu, వెండి తెర నిర్దేశకులు) for "Sitara Film Weekly Magazine", the largest circulated Telugu film weekly in India. She also wrote number of dramas for All India Radio and television channels, for daily serials like "Pelli Chesukundamra", for E TV., Vaisaali Serial for Zee Telugu and Gharshna serial for E TV. She was also the winner of Akkineni Abhinandana Award for Best Dialogue Writer of the year 2010 and Super Hit Film Weekly Award Super Hit Film Weekly Magazine, for the blockbuster movie, "Ye Maaya Chesave".
Early life.
Umarji Anuradha was born to a Marathi-speaking Madhva family. Since her paternal uncle (Peda Naanna) worked for the railways as station master, she had her schooling in Vijayawada, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh and in Mangalagiri, a small but traditionally religiously popular town in Guntur District known for a Panakala Narasimha swamy temple. While continuing her studies, she also continued her habit of drama writing from school days to post-graduation. She was born to G. Nagarajan and Vemaganti Susheela and grew up for some time with Kuppu Rao Nagubai and Kuppu Rao Srinivasa Rao, a railway station master. She was born in the midst of a well-educated, sensible family with a literary background, and started writing from her childhood. Her mother Vemaganti Suseela was also a writer and an Artist of All India Radio Madras. She served as English teacher in the 'Kendriya Vidyalaya' a Central School, Government of India, in Chennai. She has an excellent track record of writing talent and literary taste.
Career.
Journalism.
She started her career as a contributor for Eenadu News Daily in Chennai along with her husband, research scholar Sridhar Kumar, Screen Name who changed his screen name as Gautham Kashyap, who worked as a photo journalist for Eenadu. Later he joined with film director Padma Shri P. Bharathi Raja, for PhD. Anuradha was recognized as the first woman staff reporter for Eenadu News Daily. She worked as an in-charge for the Eenadu Tamil Nadu edition. Later, since her husband Gautham Kashyap Sridhar Kumar was absorbed as script writer in Ramoji Film City, for Ushakiran Movies Films Division, she was transferred to Hyderabad. Umarji Anuradha wrote many articles, columns, features on various film personalities for Eenadu Cinema Page and Sitara Film Magazine on the name of Umarji Kumaran. (Kumran is another pen name of Sridhar Kumar). Later she was promoted as desk in charge for Maharashtra Desk. She went on a special assignment to establish Mumbai Eenadu. She supervised the starting ceremony of Eenadu Mumbai Edition. She worked for Eenadu as Staff Reporter, as Cinema Desk In-Charge, and as Maharashtra Desk in charge. She was also Central desk in-charge for the central pages of all district editions of Eenadu daily news paper.
Journalism and T.V. Serials.
Films.
Umarji Anuradha debuted with writing a script for "Ye Maaya Chesave" directed by Gautham Menon, with music by A.R. Rahman. The dialogues in the movie were so phenomenally popular that the name of this movie was referred to very often with her original name. Abhinandana Awards.
She has written four T.V. serials. Then she was introduced to the film field by Manjula Ghattamaneni, the daughter of famous Telugu hero Ghattamaneni Krishna and sister of famous Telugu hero Mahesh Babu.
 The meaning of this super hit feature film "Ye Maaya Chesave", is 'What magic have you done?'. It is a 2010 Telugu-language romantic drama film story written by Gautham Menon, dialogues by Umarji Anuradha and directed by Gautham Menon. The music is by A.R. Rahman. The film stars Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu in the lead roles. It was produced by Manjula Ghattamaneni under the banner Indira Productions. Other credits include cinematography by Manoj Paramahamsa, dialogues by Umarji Anuradha and editing by Anthony Gonsalves. The film was simultaneously shot in Telugu as "Ye Maaya Chesave" and Tamil as "Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa" with a different cast and climax. The television rights were sold to Zee Telugu. The particular highlight of the movie is the climax part of it. "Ye Maya Chesave" became a super hit in Telugu language because of its very sensible dialogues with a positive climax. This film attracted the youth to movie theaters. This is the first super hit box office film for hero Naga Chaithnya and for the heroine Samantha Ruth Prabhu. With this film, Umarji Anuradha could get attention from the film industry and immediately she got two more offers like "Gaganam", Hero Nagarjuna directed by famous director Radha Mohan, and "180", Siddartha, Nithya Menon, directed by Jayendran. "Maro Charithra" (in Telugu language it means "Another History"): Though "Maro Charithra" released later, this film started prior to "Ye Maya Chesave". This was directed by Ravi Yadav (cinematographer of Hindi film "Race"), produced by famous producer Dil Raju. "Gaganam" (In Telugu language Gaganam means The Sky) was directed by Radha Mohan, (Aakashamantha).
Personal life.
Umarji Anuradha, at her 23 years old, (1993) she married to her senior, Dr Kavuri Venkata Shridhar Kumar, screen name Gautham Kashyap, a writer, poet and mimicry artist. He did PhD on The Aesthetic Methodology of Film Story, Screenplay and Direction under the guidance of Prof L.B. Sankara Rao, Presidency college and under the guidance of Director Padma Shri P. Bharathi Raja and Director Padma Shri K. Viswanath. Their marriage was performed in Tirumala Tirupati Hills on 13 August 1993 by Telugu film lyricist Sirivennela Sitarama Sasthry. The couple has one son, Naahushi Kavuri, (born 1997 March, 1st). Sridhar Kumar worked as a part-time tutor at Presidency College. Later in 1998 he joined and worked at Ramoji Film City for Ushakiron Movies Film Story Department as film story, script writer. Now they live in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.
Writing style.
Umarji Anuradha has adopted a very common style of language and slang. She did intensive research on Telugu-speaking Malayalis Style, and Christian families' traditions in Kerala. Critiques acclaimed that the dialogues of the film were short and sweet.


Fanfares of Love

Fanfares of Love () is a 1951 West German comedy film directed by Kurt Hoffmann and starring Dieter Borsche, Georg Thomalla and Inge Egger. It is a remake of the 1935 French film "Fanfare of Love". It was a major hit and in 1953 a sequel "Fanfare of Marriage" was released, showing the further adventures of the main characters.
Production.
The story was based on a screenplay written by Robert Thoeren while working in the Weimar Republic in the early 1930s. After emigrating to Paris following the Nazi takeover of power, it was developed into a French film directed by Richard Pottier.
It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich with sets designed by the art director Franz Bi. Location filming also took place at Berchtesgaden in the Bavarian Alps.
Hollywood remake.
The film was later remade in Hollywood by Billy Wilder as "Some Like it Hot". Thoeren screened the 1951 German film for Wilder, who secured the remake rights. In contrast to the contemporary setting of the German film, Wilder shifted the action back to the 1920s. He later tried to downplay the extent to which he was influenced by the original, describing it as "a very low budget, very third-class German picture".
In the German film synchronisation of "Some Like It Hot", Georg Thomalla served as the voice for Jack Lemmon in his role as the second musician - exactly the role which Thomalla played eight years earlier in this film.
Synopsis.
Two struggling male musicians, unable to get any work, disguise themselves as women in order to join a successful all-female band.


Hooking Up (film)

Hooking Up is a 2020 American comedy-drama film directed by Nico Raineau and starring Brittany Snow and Sam Richardson.
Plot.
In Atlanta, strangers Darla and Bailey cross paths when her court-ordered sexual addiction recovery meeting is held next door to his cancer support group. Bailey, a testicular cancer survivor, works at a gym and is struggling to get over his ex-fiancée, Elizabeth. Darla, a sex columnist, is fired for her increasingly debauched writing and exploits at the office.
After learning that his remaining testicle must be removed, a drunken Bailey stumbles into Darla's meeting by mistake and announces his diagnosis. Desperate to save her career, she invites him on a cross-country road trip: they will revisit the scenes of her past sexual encounters, and recreate them together before his surgery. Bailey agrees, on the condition they visit Dallas, where he hopes to reconnect with Elizabeth. Unbeknownst to Bailey, Darla persuades her former editor, Tanya, to let her publish a daily blog about the trip.
Following a map of her sexual past, Darla and Bailey bond as they have trysts across the country; she writes a blog entry about each encounter, and he secretly Instagrams their trip. Darla discovers Bailey's passion for drawing, and he considers not going through with the surgery. They sneak into a house Darla is reluctant to revisit, where she reveals she had sex with a man she knew was married; his wife walked in on them, drove off, and was paralyzed in a car accident. Stricken with guilt, Darla is comforted by a sympathetic Bailey.
In Dallas, Darla is forced to pose as Bailey's girlfriend and meet his parents, who are dismissive of his art; his mother, Cindy, hopes to reunite him with Elizabeth. Sneaking into Elizabeth's childhood bedroom to recreate losing his virginity, Bailey and Darla spend a romantic night together, kissing for the first time. He discovers her blog before they attend a party at Elizabeth's parents' house, where Elizabeth inadvertently reveals Bailey's posts portraying Darla as his girlfriend. Darla confronts him for using her to make Elizabeth jealous, and he accuses her of using him for her blog, disparaging her writing and sexual past. She humiliates him with the truth in front of Elizabeth and his family, and storms out.
Elizabeth reconnects with Bailey, and he tells her of his new diagnosis. They prepare to return to Atlanta together, but she upsets him by revealing his diagnosis to their parents. Darla has sex with a man she meets at a bar, before angrily sending him away. Visiting her mother, Betty, who shares her destructive behavior, Darla struggles with her final blog post. She is touched to discover Bailey's drawings on their map, and her mother rejects her attempt to discuss addiction.
Arriving in Atlanta, Bailey realizes that he and Elizabeth have outgrown their relationship, and they amicably part ways. Darla makes peace with her mother, who fixes her car, and she arrives at Bailey's support group just as he is describing his appreciation for her. They reconcile, and he undergoes his second orchiectomy, while she commits to treating her sex addiction.
Agreeing to remain platonic friends while they help each other through their recovery, Bailey finds a job as an illustrator, and Darla is offered her job back due to the popularity of her blog, but declines and receives an advance to write her own book. One year later, Bailey's cancer is in remission and Darla has spent a successful year in recovery, and they agree to go on a date.
Reception.
The film has a 30% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Tara McNamara of Common Sense Media awarded the film two stars out of five. Alan Ng of "Film Threat" gave the film a 7 out of 10.
Lisa Kennedy of "Variety" gave the film a positive review and wrote, "Director Nico Raineau and co-writer Lauren Schacher hug the familiar beats of the form while rubbing up against its conventions with some naughty, sometimes endearing tweaks."
Frank Scheck of "The Hollywood Reporter" gave the film a negative review and wrote, "You wouldn't think that sex addiction and testicular cancer are topics that could be mined for any but the cheapest of laughs. And "Hooking Up" would prove you right."


N. Veeraswamy

Nagappa Veeraswamy (17 April 1932 – 23 August 1992) was Indian film producer and distributor, who produced under the house, Sri Eswari Productions. He produced 17 Kannada films and one Hindi film, from the early 1970s till his death in 1992. He is the father of Kannada film star and director V. Ravichandran.
Early life and career.
Veeraswamy was born on 17 April 1932 in Otteri, in the erstwhile North Arcot district of Madras Presidency, into a Tamil-speaking family of Mudaliars, of Nagappa and Kamakshamma. He began his association with cinema in the early 1950s when he worked as an attendant with Dreamland Pictures Corporation. In 1955, he started out as a film distributor with his friend Gangappa, under the banner Udaya Pictures. In 1962, he founded the production house Sri Eswari Productions. The first film under the company, "Kula Gourava", was released in 1971, and had Rajkumar playing the lead role. The two subsequent films, "Naagarahaavu" (1972) and "Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu" (1974), became widely popular and emerged as critical and commercial successes. He would go on to produce other films that emerged successful, such as "Naa Ninna Mareyalare" (1976), "Chakravyuha" (1983), "Ramachaari" (1991) and "Halli Meshtru" (1992). The latter two films were produced with his son V. Ravichandran playing the lead roles; they went on to become landmark films in latter's career.


Nandi Award for Best Choreographer

The Nandi Award for Best Choreographer winners since 1985:


24 (soundtrack)

24 is the soundtrack album, composed by A. R. Rahman with song lyrics by Vairamuthu and Madhan Karky, to the 2016 Tamil film of the same name, produced by Suriya and directed by Vikram Kumar. The film stars Suriya, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Nithya Menen in lead roles. The album features six tracks, and was released on 9 April 2016 by Eros Music.
Background.
In November 2014, A. R. Rahman was announced as the film soundtrack and score composer. Rahman had a six-hour script narration session with Suriya and Vikram Kumar before signing the project. Recording of the track "Punnagaye" written by lyricist Vairamuthu was completed by February 2015. In an interview with "The Hindu", Suriya told that recording of one more track was completed by September 2015. According to lyricist Madhan Karky, for the track "Naan Un": Rahman was trying out a tune on his piano and Karky was writing the lyrics while listening to him. He wrote a line in Tamil, "Undhan Azhagil Iraivanai Kaankiraen" that translates to, "In Your Beauty, I See God." An inspiration before composing tunes, Rahman had read the same line from the Prophetic books before composing that track. However, the track was initially composed for some other film. Later, it was reworked to suit the film soundtrack. An additional composition written by Madhan Karky titled, "Dangerskku Hi5 Podu, Daredevilkku Vaanam Podu." was as an intro song only in the film score. However, the track was released as a bonus single under the title "24 Carat" on 19 May 2016.
Release.
The original and Telugu versions of the album were released at separate events held at Sathyam Cinemas in Chennai and Shilpkala Vedika in Hyderabad respectively on 9 April 2016. At the launch of original version of the album, there were live performances of songs from the film. Singer Benny Dayal sang the track "Kaalam En Kadhali", followed by Chinmayi singing "Naan Un". Shakthisree Gopalan was next with the track "Aararoo" and the Telugu version "Laalijo" was sung by actress Nithya Menen with A. R. Rahman playing the keyboard. The songs were released a day before the launch on 8 April.
Critical response.
"Gulf News" based critic Mythily Ramachandran stated: "A. R. Rahman’s music grows on you and is refreshing." Latha Srinivasan of "DNA India" mentioned: "A. R. Rahman's songs and score add tremendous value to this script as well." "Sify" quoted: "Rahman’s songs are big plus for the film and the maestro scores well in the BGM of Athreya’s sequences, especially in the pre-climax portion." Critical review board based at "Behindwoods" praised the music: """The score in typical A. R. Rahman style sets the mood right for the tale." Mani Prabhu of "NDTV Movies" called the songs "eye popping" that fits into the entertainment." Anupama Subramaniam of "Deccan Chronicle" stated: "AR Rahman’s background score elevates the proceedings while the songs are already a hit." Subha Shetty Saha of "Mid Day" stated that the film has "melodius music" by A. R. Rahman.
Critic S. Saraswathi of "Rediff" stated: "The beautifully composed songs by Rahman are well picturised, but act as speed breakers to the narrative." Sreedhar Pillai, in his review for "Firstpost" wrote: "A. R. Rahman’s background music is in sync with the theme of the film, though songs are barely hummable". In his review for "The Indian Express," Goutham VS writes: "A R Rahman’s background score blended perfectly with the scenes, especially when Mani’s wonderstruck mind was seeking answers about the mysterious watch, but Rahman seems to have lost his magic when it comes to the songs." For his review to "Filmibeat", Avinash Gopinath noted: "AR Rahman's music is not up to the mark. While background score is only average, his songs are made bearable by brilliant visuals."
Baradwaj Rangan, in his review for "The Hindu", wrote that the numbers by A. R. Rahman are lead up to only for the film. M. Suganth of "The Times of India" wrote: "AR Rahman disappoints with a rather serviceable score." Arathi Kanan for the online newspaper "Manorama" wrote: "Rahman interludes are welcome. However, the routine placement of the songs are boring."
Track listing.
"Note–"The order of tracks on the digital and physical versions of the album are different. The track listing below is according to the digital versions of the soundtrack album.
Personnel.
Credits adapted from CD liner notes of the soundtrack album.
Dr. Narayanan, D. Sathya Prakash, Nivas, Santhosh Hariharan, Deepak, Maalavika Sundar, Pooja Vaidyanath, Sharanya Srinivas, Sowmya Mahadevan, Suzanne D'Mello, S. Kousihan, Gary Mesquitta, Alan D'Souza, Hrishikesh Kamerkar, Lara Pinto, Keshia Braganza, Poorvi Koutish


Mahesh Aney

Mahesh Aney is an Indian cinematographer.
Career.
A Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) graduate with specialization in cinematography, Mahesh Aney has shot more than a thousand commercials including some award-winning films for Pepsi, Kellogg's, Tata Steel, Feviqik and Maggie noodles. He runs his own production house and has produced more than fifty commercials for brands like Coca-Cola, Vicks, Onida TV, Nivea Cream, Cinthol Soap and Johnnie Walker Golf.
Renowned for his deft camera work, brilliant eye, and penchant for turning the mundane into the magical on screen, Aney has also conceptualized and directed extremely popular television shows like "Movers & Shakers", "Bindaas Bol", "Kya Masti Kya Dhoom" and "Wajood", which have won several awards. He has worked as a cinematographer on films like "God Only Knows!", "Tum: A Dangerous Obsession" and the now-classic "Swades".
Personal life.
Mahesh Aney is married to Anjali Aney, has two children Aarti and Aditya, and lives in Mumbai.


Devrai

Devrai () is a 2004 Indian Marathi film directed by filmmaker duo Sumitra Bhave–Sunil Sukthankar and produced by the Schizophrenia Awareness Association and K. S. Wani Memorial Trust. The film stars Atul Kulkarni, Sonali Kulkarni, Devika Daftardar, Tushar Dalvi, and Mohan Agashe and was released on 11 March 2004. The film's music is by Shrirang Umarani. It depicts a story of a man who suffers from schizophrenia and is struggling to come to terms with his illness and the frustration of his helpless sister.
The film received critical acclaim for the portrayal of schizophrenia and performances of its leads, and won several awards upon its release including four awards: the Best Film, the Best Director, the Best Actor, and the Best Actress award at the 11th Screen Awards (Marathi), the Technical Excellence Award at the International Film Festival of Kerala and was awarded the Best Film on Environment Conservation / Preservation at the 52nd National Film Awards. Atul Kulkarni was awarded with the Special Jury Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival and Sonali Kulkarni bagged the Best Actress Award at the 42nd Maharashtra State Film Awards.
Plot.
As a child, Shesh Desai an intelligent boy (Atul Kulkarni) grew up with his mother, sister Seena (Sonali Kulkarni), and cousin Kalyani (Devika Daftardar). He loves to spend his time outdoors, amongst nature. As the kids grow older Shesh begins to get attracted to Kalyani. On discovering this his horrified mother forces Kalyani to go back to her father’s place, away from the village. This upsets Shesh a lot.
Shesh has created an imaginary world centered on his devotion to the Devrai, a sacred grove near his village. He wants to conduct research on the Devrai but his mother refuses to help out with funds as she has limited resources and a daughter to marry off. Shesh doesn’t take this well. After failing to graduate from college he is asked to look after the family's mango orchard. The research never progresses.
Shesh gradually becomes a loner and eccentric after his mother's death and sister's marriage. A paranoid concern engulfs him that the villagers intend to destroy the Devrai. He becomes attracted to Parvati (Amruta Subhash), the wife of a family servant Shambhu, and fantasises her as a goddess who is an inhabitant of the grove.
Seena invites Shesh to her house to celebrate her husband, Sudesh's (Tushar Dalvi) promotion. At the celebration, Shesh gets a panic attack while socialising with guests and becomes furious. Seena tries to offer support to Shesh but Sudesh becomes upset and gets him admitted to a psychiatric facility where he receives treatment by a senior psychiatrist (Mohan Agashe). Shesh keeps visualizing and talking about the Devrai, Parvati. Kalyani makes frequent appearances in his ramblings. The doctors however soon succeed in getting his condition under control. The treatment administered by the team suppresses Shesh’s erratic behavior but does not eradicate his imaginary world.
Seena’s home life and that of her entire family proves to be very stressful after her brother’s discharge from the hospital. Shesh initially refuses to take his medications, is mercurial and extremely difficult to deal with. Seena avoids letting Kalyani meet Shesh throughout the ordeal fearful of the consequences of her presence. Soon though help comes in the form of the sessions at a day care center run by a social worker (Jyoti Subhash) for mentally ill patients. There with the help of fellow patients Shesh comes to the realization that he is ill and needs to take responsibility for his own wellbeing. Seena also attends the sessions for caregivers which helps her see the illness in a new light. Shesh slowly starts developing empathy and wishes to engage with his young nephew, who however keeps Shesh at an arms length.
A dip in Shesh’s condition soon comes about and one night during a frantic conversation with Seena he divulges the information that their help Shambhu has murdered his wife Parvati. Seena breaks down with all the stress in her life. She then meets Kalyani and insists her to make an inquiring call back home. Kalyani does so and talks to a much alive Parvati. Seena can see she has failed to take care of her older brother with minimal help from her grudging husband who has concerns with his son being exposed to this volatile home environment. She agrees to send Shesh back to the village and entreaties her cousin to help take care of him. Kalyani has been living in the city, the life of single working woman. She never did remarry after being widowed at a tender age. After reminiscing about the happy days of her childhood and youth spent in the quiet and tranquil village she agrees to Seena’s proposal.
All three of them travel back to their childhood home. There Kalyani along with Parvati and Shambhu put Seena's mind at ease about the care of her schizophrenic brother whereupon she returns home to her family.
Production.
The film is a joint venture of Schizophrenia Awareness Association (SAA) and K. S. Vani Memorial Trust. Director Sukthankar said that they held discussions with psychiatrists and attended SAA's self-help groups to observe the afflicted patients. The film's shoot was completed in four months and was shot in and around Pune and in the Konkan region. Director-Writer Bhave said that through "Devrai", they tried "to dispel the myths and put schizophrenia in a scientific perspective". The film does not use any background music. While shooting, actor Atul Kulkarni wrote a poem. The filmmaker duo was so impressed with it that they included the poem in the film. The film was released on 11 March 2004.
Reception and awards.
The film was appreciated for its depiction of schizophrenia and performances of its leads, and won several awards upon its release. Psychiatrists Vinay Kumar of Indian Psychiatry Association said that "[it] is a thought provoking film on the subject". Critic Bhawana Somaaya mentions in her book "Fragmented Frames: Reflections of a Critic" (2008) that ""Devrai" is an insightful journey into the broken structure of a once beautiful mind, today inhabited by delusions and sounds that torment him." The film was screened at the 63rd Annual National Conference of the Indian Psychiatric Society. Rediff's review mentions that "it is tough to depict mental problems seriously in films. Most films that deal with the subject tend to watch from a distance. But "Devrai" takes you inside the mind of sufferer".
The film was awarded the Best Film on Environment Conservation / Preservation at the 52nd National Film Awards. The citation states that "in this chaotic world, when every body talks about the importance of environment, conservation and preservation but no body cares to learn from the wisdom of myth created by our forefathers and create a space for every mind to realise its potential without judging, discriminating or condemning." It also won four awards: the Best Film, the Best Director, the Best Actor, and the Best Actress award at the 11th Screen Awards (Marathi). The film was awarded the Technical Excellence Award at the International Film Festival of Kerala. Atul Kulkarni won the Special Jury Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival for his performance. Sonali Kulkarni bagged the Best Actress Award and the film won the Award for Best Film with Social Message at the 42nd Maharashtra State Film Awards. The film was presented at the India International Disability Film Festival at Anand theatre in Chennai on 7 July 2005 and was appreciated for portraying "the struggle of a person caught between his two worlds" and "the situation of his family too that tries hard to help him", and the filmmaker duo Bhave–Sukthankar were lauded for "presenting the experiences of a schizophrenic as honestly as possible."


Gurukul (film)

Gurukul is a 2015 Indian Marathi-language film, written and directed by Rommel Rodrigues in a directorial debut. It stars Nagesh Bhosle and Vidyadhar Joshi as the two main protagonists supported by a slew of artists like Asit Redij, Swapnil Joshi, Pradeep Kuwar, Prashant Mohite, Neha Khan, Reenna Liman, Sonali Shewale and others. The story focuses on a quest of former students to restore the glory of their institute from where they got their higher education Gurukul and release it from the clutches from the hands of greed politician who had usurped it by fraudulent means.
Plot.
"Gurukul" is a story of an upright educationalist Nansaheb Vishwanath Gokhale, fondly called as Guruji (played by Nagesh Bhosle) who is the founder and head of Gurukul University. As a teacher Guruji is different from others and deals with the students in a gentle and tolerant manner. He believes along with professional education, students should put emphasis on moral and social values of life. Reflecting the politicisation of education institutions in India, Gurukul is fraudulently grabbed by a local politician Girish Bhao Velangekar (played by Vidyadhar Joshi), saddened by which Guruji leaves for unknown destination. The story shows the quest of the 6 former students who are now married couple to search, fight and restore the glory of Gurukul's former head Guruji, where in the end climax his moral greatness is reflected.
Soundtrack.
The soundtrack of the film consisted of four tracks composed by Sanjay Raj Gaurinandan and lyrics by Prashant Ingole, Rajesh Bamugade and Madhukar Arkade.
Famous singer Asha Bhosle has sung a intense Lavani (Marathi Folksong) with lyrics penned by famous lyricist Prashant Ingole who has blockbuster films to his credit like Race 2, Bajirao Mastani, Mary Kom, Daddy etc.
Music label.
Zee Music Company
Box office.
"Gurukul" was released in 135 theaters across the state and opened to an average opening day occupancy. The film premiered on Zee Talkies on 1 July 2016.


Maria Bello

Maria Elena Bello (born April 18, 1967) is an American actress and writer. Her film roles include "Permanent Midnight" (1998), "Payback" (1999), "Coyote Ugly" (2000), "The Cooler" (2003), "A History of Violence" (2005), "" (2008), "Grown Ups" (2010), "Prisoners" (2013), and "Lights Out" (2016). On television, Bello appeared as Dr. Anna Del Amico on the medical drama "ER" (1997–1998), with other starring roles including as Lucy Robbins on the series "Touch" in 2013, as Michelle McBride on the first season of the series "Goliath" in 2016, and from 2017 to 2021 as Special Agent Jacqueline "Jack" Sloane on the series "NCIS".
"The Guardian" named her one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.
Early life.
Bello was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, to Kathy, a school nurse and teacher, and Joe Bello, a contractor. Her father is Italian American, with roots in Montella, Italy, and her mother is Polish American. She grew up in a working-class Roman Catholic family and graduated from Archbishop John Carroll High School in Radnor, Pennsylvania. She majored in political science at Villanova University. Following graduation, Bello honed her acting skills in a number of New York theater productions.
Career.
Bello's early TV appearances include episodes of "The Commish" (1991), "Due South" (1994), "Nowhere Man" (1995), "Misery Loves Company" (1995), and "ER" (1997–98). Her breakthrough came when she was cast as Mrs. Smith in the TV series spy show "Mr. & Mrs. Smith", though the show was cancelled after 8 weeks. She then appeared in the final three episodes of the third season of "ER" as pediatrician Dr. Anna Del Amico and was a regular cast member during the medical drama's fourth season.
Bello moved on to films, landing a role in "Coyote Ugly" (2000). She was nominated for the Golden Globe award twice: for Best Supporting Actress in "The Cooler" (2003) and for Best Actress in "A History of Violence" (2005). She starred in "The Jane Austen Book Club" (2007) as Jocelyn and as Dr. Alex Sabian in the 2005 film "Assault on Precinct 13" a remake of the original 1976 movie made by John Carpenter. In 2008, she starred in "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" as Evelyn O'Connell, replacing Rachel Weisz. In December 2008, Bello began developing a drama for HBO. Besides starring in the new series, Bello was planned to also serve as an executive producer. She starred in the 2009 drama film "The Yellow Handkerchief", which was released in theatres on February 26, 2010 by Samuel Goldwyn Films.
In 2010, Bello guest-starred in two episodes of "". The following year, she starred in the TV series "Prime Suspect", which was cancelled after 13 episodes. In 2011, she became a founding board member of the CQ Matrix Company, a company created by her then-partner, Clare Munn, to help clients achieve "transformative living and the power of intelligent exchange" by enhancing their communication quotient. In 2014, she starred alongside Frank Grillo in the James Wan-produced thriller "Demonic".
Humanitarian efforts.
In the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Bello founded WE ADVANCE with Aleda Frishman, Alison Thompson, and Barbara Guillaume. It is an organization that encourages Haitian women to collaborate in making healthcare a priority, and putting an end to domestic violence within their communities. Currently, the organization is based in a health clinic and a community outreach center in Cité Soleil. Bello is also a board member of Darfur Women Action Group, an NGO that undertakes activism on behalf of genocide victims of the Darfur conflict.
Personal life.
Bello has a son with her former boyfriend Dan McDermott. In November 2013, she wrote about having a same-sex relationship with her then-partner, Clare Munn. She published a book, "Whatever...Love Is Love: Questioning the Labels We Give Ourselves" (Dey Street Books, April 28, 2015).
In February 2020, while attending the 92nd Academy Awards in their first public appearance as a couple, Bello announced she and chef Dominique Crenn had gotten engaged on December 29, 2019 while vacationing in Paris, France.


4th South Indian International Movie Awards

The 4th South Indian International Movie Awards was held in Dubai World Trade Center, Dubai on 6th and 7 August 2015. SIIMA 2015 recognized the best films and performances from the past year, along with special honors for lifetime contributions and a few special awards.
Main awards.
List of Nominations & Award Winners


V. S. R. Swamy

V S R Swamy is an Indian cinematographer.


K. Balaji

Krishnamoorthy Balaji (5 August 19342 May 2009) was an Indian film producer and actor best known for his Tamil films including "Billa" (1980) and "Vazhvey Maayam" (1982)
Early life.
Balaji was born to Krishnamoorthy Achari and Janaki in Trivandrum, Travancore. He was the grandson of colonial era advocate T. Rangachari.
He started acting at an early age, when he performed in school plays and amateur theatre shows.
Career.
Balaji contacted S. S. Vasan, then owner of Gemini Studios in 1951, looking for work. He was offered a minor role in "Auvaiyar", in which he played the Hindu god Muruga.
Balaji soon understood that he was better off playing a villain or the hero's understudy with a negative angle in films that included "Padithaal Mattum Podhumaa", "Bale Pandiya", En Kadamai and "Thillana Mohanambal".
While working as an actor, he was hired as a manager in Narasu Studios in the southwest suburbs. In the 1960s, after coming into contact with top Hindi actors such as Ashok Kumar, Dilip Kumar and Tamil stars Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan and actress Savithri, he began to remake Hindi hits in Tamil. His first production was "Annavin Aasai", a remake of "Chand Aur Sooraj" directed by Dulal Guha. The debut production film starred Gemini Ganesan and Savithri in the lead.
He then went on to remake popular Hindi films such as "Dushman" (1971) and "Namak Haraam" (1973) both starring Rajesh Khanna, "Deewaar" (1975), and "Qurbani".
He founded Sujatha Cine Arts in 1966. He was also the founder of Sujatha Recording Studio, where sound recordings for most of the big-budget movies of the 1980s and '90s were done.
In 1979 began to produce films in Hindi, including the successful "Amardeep".
Family.
His wife Anandavalli died in 1995. The couple had three children, Suresh Balaje, Sujatha and Suchitra Mohanlal. Malayalam actor Mohanlal Viswanathan is his son-in-law. He was also the grandfather of Pranav Mohanlal and Sooraj Balaji. The comedian Y. G. Mahendran is his nephew through his sister Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy.
Death.
Balaji died on 2 May 2009 evening due to multiple organ and kidney failure. He had been hospitalised for over a month.