Ramesh Khanna

Ramesh Khanna (also spelt as Ramesh Kanna) is an Born: (June 12, 1954) Indian film director and actor who has worked in Tamil films. He has acted in supporting and comedian roles.
Early life.
Khanna was born in Chennai and third child to the family. He acted in R. S. Manohar's drama troupe from the age of 5 as child artist more than 1000 dramas up to his age of 10 and was appreciated by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, President of India at that time.
Cinema career.
He became assistant to directors Karaikudi Narayanan, Pandiarajan ("Aan Paavam"), "Kodi Ramakrishna", Vikraman ("Poove Unakkaga", "Suryavamsam", "Unnai Ninaithu" and "Priyamana Thozhi") and K.S.Ravikumar. Ravikumar was meant to remake the Telugu film "Maavichiguru" (1996) starring Jagapati Babu and Aamani into Tamil for Sridevi Movie Makers, but his busy schedule meant that he recommended Ramesh Khanna to the producers. The remake was initially titled as "Maa Vilakku" and was supposed to star Jayaram and Meena in lead roles, but went through cast changes. Jayaram's falling popularity meant that Ajith Kumar was signed to replace him, while the actor requested that a change of lead actress. The film was revived under new title "Thodarum" with new cast involving Ajith Kumar, Heera and Devayani. He later started working on a film titled "Genius" in 2000, but the project eventually was shelved.
Only after, director Vikraman introduced him as comedian in "Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen" (1998), he came to limelight.
Khanna has acted in notable roles in films such as "Padayappa" (1999), "Friends" (2001), "Unnai Ninaithu" (2002) and "Villain" (2002). He has also appeared in supporting roles in films such as "Thulluvadho Ilamai" (2002).


Padayappa (soundtrack)

Padayappa is the soundtrack album of the 1999 Indian Tamil drama film of the same name written and directed by K. S. Ravikumar. The film's original soundtrack and score were composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics written by Vairamuthu and was released through the audio label Star Music. The soundtrack Telugu dubbed version titled "Narasimha" was released through Saregama.
Development.
Before the film's release, Rahman had asked Ravikumar whether the soundtrack could be released in August 1999. Ravikumar informed Rahman that he had spoken to the press about the completion of the film's making, and that Rahman would be blamed if the film had a delayed release. As a result, Rahman did a live re-recording of both the soundtrack and score to finish them on time.
The credits for the song "Vetri Kodi Kattu", which was sung by Palakkad Sreeram, initially went to Malaysia Vasudevan, who publicly stated that the credits for the song were attributed to Sreeram and not to him. Rahman requested the company who manufactured the audio cassettes to make the change. "Minsara Poove" had two versions with Hariharan rendering his vocals while the version of Srinivas was initially recorded as "track version". Rajini and Ravikumar preferred Srinivas's version "as it was more majestic". The song "Minsara Kanna" is based on the "Vasantha" raga, while "Vetri Kodi Kattu" is based on the "Keeravani" raga.
Reception.
Singer Charulatha Mani, in her column for "The Hindu", "A Raga's journey", called "Minsara Kanna" "a mind-blowing piece" G. Dhananjayan, in his book "Best of Tamil Cinema", says the songs are "mass entertraining", also citing that the songs contributed to the film's success. Srikanth Srinivasa of the "Deccan Herald" wrote, "The music by Rahman, to Vairamuthu’s lyrics, sounds good while the movie is on, though whether without the presence of Rajanikanth they would have, is another thing.["sic"]" S. Shiva Kumar of "The Times of India" was more critical of the soundtrack, and called it "lacklustre".


Sai Kiran Adivi

Sai Kiran Adivi is an Indian Telugu film director & writer.
Career.
He first worked as an assistant to Sekhar Kammula and made his debut with "Vinayakudu" (2008), starring Krishnudu in the lead role. His next film was "Village Lo Vinayakudu", the sequel to "Vinayakudu". In 2015, Sai Kiran Adivi directed a romantic entertainer Kerintha. His latest movie Operation Gold Fish released in October 2019.


Nandi Award for Best Actress

The Nandi Award for Best Actress was commissioned in 1977. The winner is awarded a "Silver Nandi" and a cash award of 30,000.
Most Awards were received by Vijayashanti and Jayasudha (4 awards each).


Asi Levi

Osnat "Asi" Levi (; born September 28, 1969) is an Israeli Film Academy Award winning actress.
Career.
Levi attended and graduated the Yoram Levinstein School of Acting in southern Tel Aviv.
Levi's early appearances include films such as "HaShiva" (1995), "Kesher Ir" (Urban Feel; 1998) and "HaBoleshet Hokeret" (The Investigation Must Go On; 2000), alongside Moshe Ivgy. For the latter two she received an Israeli Film Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She has also appeared in several television shows, including "Cafe Paris" and "HaBurganim".
In 2004, she played the leading role in Raphael Nadjari's film "Avanim", which was presented in the Berlin Film Festival as a Panorama: Special Presentation, and also won several awards across Europe, including Best Film at the Cinema Tout Ecran in Geneva.
Her best-known appearance was in "Aviva Ahuvati" (Aviva, My Love), a 2006 film by Shemi Zarhin, in which she played the leading role. The film became popular in Israel and earned Levi significantly wider recognition, as well as her third Israeli Film Academy Award, this time for Best Actress.
In 2008, Levi appeared on the Israeli television series "BeTipul".
Personal life.
Levi has two daughters with her ex-husband Yaniv Kaufman. Currently, she is in a relationship with dancer Tamar Shelef.


Ariana DeBose

Ariana DeBose (born January 25, 1991) is an American actress, singer, and dancer, known for her work in musical theater, film, and on "So You Think You Can Dance". She originated the role of The Bullet in the Broadway cast of "Hamilton" and played Alyssa Greene in Netflix's "The Prom", directed by Ryan Murphy. She can be heard playing director/choreographer Zoey Taylor in "As the Curtain Rises", an original Broadway soap opera podcast from the Broadway Podcast Network.
Early life.
DeBose was born on January 25, 1991, in North Carolina. Her mother, Gina DeBose, is an 8th grade teacher. DeBose trained in dance at CC & Co. Dance Complex in Raleigh, North Carolina. Her father is of Puerto Rican and African-American descent, while her mother is white.
Career.
2009–2014: Breakthrough.
DeBose made her breakthrough in 2009, when she competed on the TV series "So You Think You Can Dance", making it into the Top 20. She later appeared on the soap opera "One Life to Live" and played Inez in the North Carolina Theatre's production of "Hairspray" before booking the role of Nautica in the 2011 Alliance Theatre production of "". She also appeared in the ensemble of the New York Philharmonic production of "Company", which was filmed for television. At the end of 2011, "Bring It On" embarked on a national tour across the United States. DeBose continued her role into the 2012 Broadway production and understudied the character Danielle.
Her career launched, DeBose played Mary Wilson in "" on Broadway in 2013, understudying the role of Diana Ross. DeBose left the show soon later to play Eponine in a regional production of "Les Misérables" before returning to Broadway as a noble and a player in the musical "Pippin", understudying the role of the Leading Player, which she ended up taking over for a short period in 2014.
2015–2018: "Hamilton", "A Bronx Tale" and "Summer: The Donna Summer Musical".
DeBose left "Pippin" to appear as the Bullet in the ensemble of the off-Broadway musical "Hamilton" in early 2015. The show moved to Broadway later that year and became an overnight sensation. DeBose was nominated for an Astaire Award for her dancing in the show, in which, as a member of the ensemble, she portrayed the bullet with which Aaron Burr killed Alexander Hamilton. She left "Hamilton" in July 2016 and made a guest appearance on the TV series "Blue Bloods" as Sophia Ortiz. She also starred as Daphne in the thriller film "Seaside."
She returned to Broadway in November 2016 as Jane in "A Bronx Tale" until August 2017. She also hosted the corresponding Broadway.com vlog "Bronx Bullet" for eight weeks.
DeBose went on to play Disco Donna in "" in San Diego at La Jolla Playhouse in late 2017. She reprised this role on Broadway, which opened in April 2018. She received a 2018 Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical. She also frequently performs at Feinstein's/54 Below.
2019–present: "The Prom" and "West Side Story".
DeBose played Alyssa Greene in the film adaptation of "The Prom" opposite of Jo Ellen Pellman and will play Anita in the 2021 film adaptation of "West Side Story". In February 2021, it was announced that she would play Kira Foster in the upcoming film "I.S.S.". In March 2021, DeBose released a dance-pop recording and video of Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Shall We Dance" for the album "R&H Goes Pop".
Personal life.
DeBose identifies as queer and came out to her grandparents in 2015.
In December 2020, Ariana DeBose and Jo Ellen Pellman launched the Unruly Hearts Initiative. The initiative was created to help young people connect with organisations and charities that advocate for the LGBTQ+ community.


Anuradha Paudwal

Anuradha Paudwal (born 27 October 1954) is an Indian playback singer who works predominantly in Bollywood. She was awarded the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian award, by the Government of India in 2017. She is a recipient of the National Film Award and a four-time winner of the Filmfare Award. Although primarily a playback singer, she has also sung several bhajans.
Career.
Her maternal name is Alka Nadkarni. She is a Marathi and Hindi film singer. She has also sung in films including Tamil, Odia, Nepali, Bengali and Kannada. She made her debut in the field of singing from a Sanskrit verse in the Hindi film named "Abhiman".
Her singing talent was recognised by the audience for the first time for the Marathi film, Yashoda, released in the same year. Since then, she has been singing for about four decades through the soundtrack of movie songs, lyrics and hymns. Anuradha Poudwal uses the money earned from the song to help the families of soldiers who died in the war, to provide electricity to poor families and to solve the problem of malnutrition.
The Indo-British All Party Parliamentary Group in England boasted Anuradha Paudwal, her music career and social work in the Parliament of England.
Personal life.
She was married to Arun Paudwal, a music composer, with whom she had a son Aditya and a daughter Kavita, a singer by profession. On 12 September 2020, her son Aditya died of kidney failure.
Awards and recognitions.
Filmfare Awards.
Won
Nominations


A Day in Black and White (film)

A Day in Black and White is a 1999 American comedy film written and directed by Desmond Hall.
Synopsis.
A young black writer (Harold Perrineau), asked to write and present a speech on race relations, reaches out to a white friend (Anthony DeSando) for his input. As the two discuss the speech and the racial issues being addressed within it, their differences in views transform a friendly conversation into a heated debate. The pair continue their argument on and off throughout the day, as they discuss a variety of racially-charged topics, from the OJ Simpson trial to disco and interracial dating, with each other and a number of other characters.
Release.
"A Day in Black and White" premiered at the SXSW FIlm Festival on March 14, 1999. The film was purchased by HBO and scheduled for a February 2001 broadcast premiere.
Reception.
"A Day in Black and White" received generally mixed to positive reviews. Jerry Renshaw of "The Austin Chronicle" wrote in his review that the film "manages to find fresh approaches to a very serious subject", calling it "a rare film that can take such an overheated subject and treat it in a witty, entertaining way, thought-provoking without being inflammatory". Godfrey Cheshire of "Variety" wrote "A Day in Black and White" was "(s)incere, insightful and sometimes flat-out hilarious", but stated "the pic suffers only from being a string of clever, topical dialogues rather than a fully fleshed narrative". Elvis Mitchell wrote in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the film "erred a bit on the side of didacticism, not trusting the acuity of the humor to get its points across"", but still referred to the film as "good stuff".
The film was a finalist for the Gordon Parks Award for Desmond Hall's direction in 1999.


Santosham Best Dialogue Award

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


My Darling Is a Foreigner

 is a manga series written by Saori Oguri. The English subtitle of the Japanese editions of the first two entries is "My darling is ambidextrous"; the official English version is called "My Darling is a Foreigner".
The books are published by Media Factory, Incorporated in Japan, and bilingual versions have been produced.
The series is about Oguri's relationship with Tony László, an American writer of half-Hungarian half-Italian descent who lives in Tokyo. The book "Is He Turning Japanese?", a spin-off of the main manga written by László and illustrated by Oguri, was published by Digital Manga Publishing in North America.
Film version.
A film adaptation of the manga was produced in 2010. Official media related to the film version spell the title in English as "My darling is a foreigner".
Mao Inoue and Jonathan Sherr star in the film version, released in Japan in April 2010.
Reception.
Mark Shilling of "The Japan Times" gave the film a rating of 2.5 stars out of a total of 5 stars. He praised actor Jonathan Sherr as "miles above the usual foreign actor in Japanese films, meaning he is not totally embarrassing to watch", but added that when he is "required to show something deeper than affability, he is lost". "The Hollywood Reporter" also gave the film an average review. "Variety" stated that "narrative tension flounders due to excessive fidelity to Oguri's experience. Sherr has little to do but be sweet and understanding; Inoue is more rounded, but can't transcend the script's limitations. Occasional use of Oguri-style animation will appeal to the manga's fans, but merely emphasize the charm that's mostly missing. Helming and lensing are as flat as Sherr's character. Tech credits are solid." Joe Kern in "Metropolis" criticized what he described were stereotyped portrayals.


Bezness

Bezness (Arabic: بزناس) is a Tunisian film directed by Nouri Bouzid in 1992.
Synopsis.
Fred, a photographer, is in Tunisia to report on the « Bezness » (male prostitutes). Thanks to Roufa, Fred will discover this surprising environment where young men are confronted with the contradictions between tradition and modernity.
Roufa, who's handsome and tanned, wants to leave lives from his body. His dream was to leave Sousse. Europe has always fascinated and attracted. He has both double moral and behaviour standards. He tends to be very permissive with his customers, and repressive and conservative with the people around him, especially with his young fiancee, Khomsa. This movie is a portrait of the struggle of the youth, confronted with the contradictions between the west and the east, traditions and modernity.


List of Sudanese submissions for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film

Sudan submitted a film for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film for the first time in 2020. The award is handed out annually by the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States that contains primarily non-English dialogue. It was not created until the 1956 Academy Awards, in which a competitive Academy Award of Merit, known as the Best Foreign Language Film Award, was created for non-English speaking films, and has been given annually since.
Submissions.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has invited the film industries of various countries to submit their best film for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film since 1956. The Foreign Language Film Award Committee oversees the process and reviews all the submitted films. Following this, they vote via secret ballot to determine the five nominees for the award. Below is a list of the films that have been submitted by Sudan for review by the Academy for the award by year and the respective Academy Awards ceremony.


Relangi Narasimha Rao

Relangi Narasimha Rao (30 September 1951) is an Indian film director and screenwriter predominantly known in Telugu cinema. He is well known for his comedy films, especially his collaborations with actors Chandra Mohan and Rajendra Prasad. His notable movies include "Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police", "Edurinti Mogudu Pakkinti Pellam", "Police Bharya", "Chinnodu Peddodu", "Dabbevariki Chedu", "Samsaaram", "Mama Alludu", and "Gundammagari Krishnulu".
He has directed over 70 films, mostly in Telugu and others in Kannada, as well as one film in Tamil. He also director two TV series in Telugu. He won a Nandi Award for screenwriting for the film "Sundari Subbarao", which he directed too. He introduced writers like Diwakar Babu and Sankaramanchi Parthasarathy. He also introduced Telugu cinema actors like Suman, Revathy, and Kinnera.
His latest and his 75th film "Eluka Majaka" was released on 26 February 2016 across the two states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Early life.
Narasimha Rao was born on 30 September 1951 to Relangi Sri Ranganayakulu and Siva Ramayamma in Palakol, a town in West Godavari District of Andhra Pradesh.
Career.
Entry into film industry.
Narasimha Rao entered the Telugu film industry in 1971 as an apprentice to the director B V Prasad for the film "Mohammad Bin Tughluq". He worked as an assistant director under the director K S R Das for the movie "Ooriki Upakari" in 1972. He then joined under Dasari Narayana Rao for the film "Samsaram Sagaram" in 1973. He continued to work under the tutelage of Dasari Narayana Rao as an assistant director, associate director and co-director till the year 1980 when he turned director.
Director of comedy films.
Narasimha Rao made his directorial debut in 1980 with the Telugu film "Chandamama". It was a family drama. But the release of the film was delayed and was not screened until the year 1982. His second, third and fourth films, "Nenu Maa Avida", "Evandoi Sreemathigaru", and "Illantha Sandadi", were all successful comedies and he earned a reputation for directing low-budget clean comedies. The films also incidentally started a successful collaboration with the actor Chandra Mohan with whom he went on to direct a total of 18 films. He has also worked with icons like Akkineni Nageswara Rao ("Dagudumuthala Dampathyam", 1990), Sobhan Babu ("Samsaaram",1988), and Krishnam Raju ("Yama Dharma Raju", 1990).
Entry into Kannada and Tamil cinema.
Two of Narasimha Rao's biggest hit comedies were the Telugu films "Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police" and "Edurinti Mogudu Pakkinti Pellam", both from 1991. These hits paved the way for his foray into Kannada and Tamil cinema. Over the next five years, Narasimha Rao directed seven films in Kannada. He was invited to remake the two Telugu hits into Kannada in 1992. "Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police" was remade as "Ibbaru Hendira Muddina Police" and "Edurinti Mogudu Pakkinti Pellam" was remade as "Edurmaneli Ganda Pakkadmaneli Hendthi". Both the films starred Kannada actor Shashi Kumar and both were runaway hits in Kannada. He went on to direct two more Kannada movies - "Hendthi Helidare Kelabeku" and "Enondre".
His another Kannada film, "Geluvina Saradara" (which had few comedy sequences taken from director's own Telugu movie "Ketu Duplicatu") starred legendary Kannada actor Rajkumar’s second son Raghavendra Rajkumar.
The success of this comedy movie paved way for his collaboration with the Rajkumar sons for two more films - one with elder son Shivrajkumar titled "Raja" and another titled "Ibbara Naduve Muddina Aata" incidentally starred both Shivrajkumar and his brother Raghavendra Rajkumar and till date remains the only movie in which the two brothers were seen on-screen.
Narasimha Rao directed one Tamil film, "Rendu Pondatti Kaavalkaaran", in 1992, which was a remake of his own Telugu movie "Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police" with the actor Nagesh's son Anand Babu in the lead role.
Successful collaboration.
Narasimha Rao teamed up with the comedy actor Rajendra Prasad for 32 films, including hits like "Gundammagari Krishnulu", "Dabbevariki Chedu", "Chinnodu Peddodu", "Mama Alludu", "Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police" and Edurinti Mogudu Pakkinti Pellam.
Current Works.
He is currently busy with the post-production of his 75th film Eluka Majaka starring Brahmanandam, Vennela Kishore and Pavani. The story revolves around a mouse, played by Brahmanandam, who wreaks havoc in the life of a young man.
Other works and achievements.
He was awarded the Nandi Award for Best Screenwriter along with writer Adi Vishnu for the film "Sundari Subbarao". The film starred Chandra Mohan and Vijayashanti. It was produced by Ramoji Rao under the banner of Ushakiran Movies. Incidentally, it was the second movie for the banner.
He was also adjudged Best Low Budget Director in the year 1991 by the Delhi Telugu Academy.
He acted as the Asian Panorama Jury Member for the 15th International Children's Film Festival by CFSI in 2007. He was also a Jury Chairman for the Nandi Television Awards for the years 2005-2006.
He directed a few TV series in Telugu including "Bujji Bujjibabu" for ETV in 2008.
Personal life.
Narasimha Rao is married to Sailakshmi and has two sons, Kiran Relangi and Satish Relangi.


Eliot Salt

Eliot Mary Salt (born 18 January 1994) is an English actress, theatre maker, comedian, and writer.
Early life and education.
Salt is from Stockport, Greater Manchester. She studied English at the University of Bristol and later trained in Acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).
Career.
Salt made her television debut in 2019 in 4 episodes of the Channel 4 sitcom "GameFace". In 2020, Salt began playing Evelyn in the Sky One spy comedy series "Intelligence" appeared as Joanna, Marianne's friend at Trinity College Dublin, in the BBC Three and Hulu miniseries "Normal People". She starred as Terra in the 2021 Netflix series "".
She was cast in "Manor" at the National Theatre.
Deadpan Theatre and Mack and Salt.
Salt founded Deadpan Theatre with Artemis Fitzalan Howard in 2013. The pair co-wrote "Low Tide in Glass Bay", "Changing Partners", and "Get Your Shit Together".
It was here Salt formed a comedy duo with Jude Mack, whom she met at university, later known as Mack and Salt. Mack and Salt's productions through Deadpan include "Predrinks / After Party" and "Third Wheel". It was announced in January 2021 that BBC Three had picked up Mack and Salt's pilot "Amicable", a screen adaptation of the former, which they would write and star in.
Personal life.
Salt lives in London with her girlfriend.


Robin Campillo

Robin Campillo (; born 16 August 1962) is a Moroccan-born French screenwriter, editor and film director. He is known for his work on films such as "The Class" (2008), "Heading South" (2005), the French zombie film "They Came Back" (2004), "Eastern Boys" (2013), and "Time Out" (2001), the latter of which was placed at ninety-nine on Slant Magazine's best films of the 2000s, number nine of "The Guardian's" Best Films of the noughties, and number eleven at "The A.V. Club's" top fifty films of the 2000s. In 2017, he released "120 BPM (Beats per Minute)" which received mass acclaim and went on to garner many awards, including the Grand Prix and 2017
César Award for Best Film.


Dhol Taashe

Dhol Taashe is a 2015 drama, action Marathi language film that was directed by Ankur Kakatkar. The film is got its theatrical release on 3 July 2015. It stars Abhijeet Khandkekar and Hrishitaa Bhatt with Jitendra Joshi playing a negative role. "Dhol Taashe" was Ankur Kakatkar's first political drama film.
Plot.
"Dhol Taashe" depicts the culture of people who play the musical instruments dhol (a drum instrument) and "taashe" in cultural processions in Maharashtra. The main character is Amey Karkhanis (Abhijeet Khandkekar), a young man who loses his job in the IT sector due to economic recession. After losing his job, Amey involves himself with a group of "Dhol Taashe" artistes who play dhol for cultural reasons and not money. Amey tries to corporatise this cultural tradition and bring it into mainstream.
In this process, Amey files a Public Interest Litigation in court to safeguard the interests of several groups playing "Dhol Taashe". As he files a litigation, he also wins the case where a political party leader Aditya Deshmukh (Jitendra Joshi) is also safeguarded and is saved from a police arrest.
Aditya absorbs Amey into his party and they start working together. In the process of working together a conflict arises and the film depicts the extent of violence that continues.
Critical reception.
The film received mixed reviews from critics. "The Times of India" rated movie with two stars saying, "The story of a youngster's dreams, aspirations and the measures he has to take to turn them into reality."


H. C. Venugopal

H. C. Venugopal is an Indian cinematographer, who has worked in the Kannada and Tamil film industries.
Career.
H. C. Venugopal is a cinematographer who has predominantly worked for Kannada films. He has been active since the late 1990s, regularly collaborating for high-profile Kannada films including "A" (1998), "Sparsha" (1999), "H2O" (2002), "Aa Dinagalu" (2007), "Jaggu Dada" (2016) to name a few. He was also involved in the shoot of the first 3D Kannada film "Katari Veera Surasundarangi" (2012) .
In recent years, he has collaborated with Arjun Sarja for the bilingual films, "Jaihind 2" (2014) and "Prema Baraha" (2018).
Personal life.
Venugopal married actress-politician Tara in 2005. They have a son named Shreekrishna (b. 2013) together.


Mulan (2009 film)

Mulan: Rise of a Warrior (), also known as Mulan: Legendary Warrior, is a 2009 Chinese action war film starring Zhao Wei as the titular protagonist. The director, Jingle Ma, has explained that this film is vastly different from the 1998 Walt Disney animated film and that the looks from the character in this movie adheres more to his imagination. Zhao Wei was cast by Ma as Hua Mulan over actresses Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, and Liu Yifei, who were all considered for the role.
Plot.
In 450 A.D., the ruling Chinese dynasty of Northern Wei is under constant threat from the Rouran tribes. The Chinese army conducts a nationwide draft. A retired soldier named Hua Hu insists on enlisting again to serve his country. Hua Mulan (Zhao Wei), his young daughter, is quite intelligent and skilled in various martial arts. But because she is a woman, she cannot enlist. At night, Mulan takes her father's armor and weapon, disguises herself as a man and slips out of the house with the family horse. Enlisting with the Wei army in her father's place, she is recognized by her friend Fei Xiaohu "Tiger" (Jaycee Chan), who agrees to keep her secret.
Mulan befriends Wentai (Chen Kun), the battalion's sub commander, as well as other recruits "Scholar" and "Fatso" and his younger brother. Throughout the harsh military training, Mulan proves to be courageous and already skilled in combat, defending others from the bullying of the army commander's nephew, "Turtle".
One night, when Mulan is taking a bath in a secluded hot spring, Wentai unexpectedly runs into Mulan. After a brief skirmish, Mulan escapes without exposing her identity. However, Wentai becomes determined to uncover the woman hiding in the camp. To make matters worse, during training Turtle unknowingly dropped a valuable jade pendant, which Tiger furtively kicked into a nearby lake as an act of revenge. Accusing the battalion of theft, the army commander orders a strip-search. Tiger is unable to find the jade pendant in the lake and Mulan, terrified to reveal herself as a woman and tarnish her father's reputation, admits to having committed the theft.
In prison awaiting execution, she tells Wentai the truth that she is a woman and asks him to keep her death secret from her father. Wentai agrees and states that he will personally burn her body so that nobody will know her secret. However, the Rourans launch a surprise attack on the camp and in the confusion, Wentai releases Mulan from jail. Mulan, however, stays to fight and ends up killing the Rouran assault's commander. As a result, she is pardoned and is promoted to be a sub-commander. A funeral is held for the army commander, who died in the assault, and, having lost his uncle, Turtle ceases bullying and befriends the other soldiers.
Gaining further achievements throughout the war, eventually both Wentai and Mulan become generals, however, Mulan has had to witness the deaths of her comrades including Fatso and his brother. During one excursion, Wentai and his men are ambushed and Wentai orders Mulan to stay behind to guard the army's supply train as he reinforces the front. Afraid for Wentai, Mulan delegates the order to Scholar and follows after him. Scholar and his men are ambushed in turn, and Mulan is devastated at the deaths she has caused. Wentai reminds her not to become emotionally invested on the battlefield. When she asks whether he would have done the same for her, Wentai says, "I wouldn't." When Mulan wishes to leave the army and no longer serve as a general, Wentai reminds her that none of them wish to fight and that she must do her duty regardless.
Allowing an apathetic Mulan to stay in camp, Wentai leaves for another battle. Tiger returns to inform Mulan that Wentai has died and that his final words were for her to remain strong. Mulan is devastated and takes to drinking. With the help of Tiger, however, she returns to her army life and achieves many successive victories. It is revealed that Wentai is, in fact, alive; he and Tiger are keeping this secret so that Mulan can remain emotionally unattached and strong.
Unhappy that the Rouran tribes are discussing ending their raids due to heavy casualties, Prince Mendu murders his own father and succeeds him as chief, just after his sister the princess of all the rourans proposed to her father the Danyu that she should become the queen of the wei and the 150 year old rourans people for peace and commerce between north and south, her father confessing she should be a younger Girl, thus not in Danyu lineage. Prince Mendu silences dissent in the Rourans and launches a huge attack force into the Wei land, intent on finally gaining metal-rich lands that the Rourans have lacked for generations.
Mulan proposes a strategy to the Wei army commanders that her army will initially engage the Rourans at a predetermined location, allowing for a larger Wei force to ambush the Rourans from behind. Mulan's troops fight strongly against the Rourans, but many, including Mulan, are injured in a volley of arrow fire. Suddenly, a huge dust storm known as the Poison Dragon appears, and everyone on the battlefield is consumed by it. When they regain consciousness, Mulan is reunited with Wentai and, seeing Rouran reserves entering the battlefield, orders a retreat back into the closed canyon. Injured Wei soldiers, including Tiger, are left behind in the hasty retreat. Knowing that Mulan is trapped within the canyon, Mendu stops his army at the entrance. Supplies that were supposed to be pre-delivered are found to be missing, and so Mulan's forces rapidly languish in the following days. Mulan is very sick but is kept alive by Wentai, who gives her his own blood to drink as the provisions of water have run out.
The Rourans goad Mulan's troops, executing the captured injured Wei troops, including Tiger, that were left behind during the retreat. Turtle is killed in an emotional attempt to stop the executions. When Mulan realizes that the Wei Commander-in-Chief isn't bringing his troops and has betrayed Mulan out of jealousy of her skill, she prepares her impoverished troops for a final fight to the death. However, Wentai goes to the front line and announces he is the 7th Prince of Wei; he offers to be taken prisoner in return for Mulan and her soldiers' freedom. Mendu takes him prisoner and delivers provisions and medics to Mulan and her troops.
Ordering her soldiers to return home without her, Mulan disguises herself as a Rouran woman and infiltrates Mendu's camp to save Wentai. Secretly meeting with the Rouran princess, she reveals her gender as a woman and two share their dream to stop the war and have peace. Mendu announces that the Wei emperor has agreed to Wentai's ransom and noisy celebrations initiate throughout the camp. Scuffling in Mendu's tent, Mulan assassinates Mendu with the help of the Rouran princess and the previous Rouran chief's loyal servant, Gude. She then returns to the Wei capital, where she at last reveals herself as a woman. The Wei emperor offers her any reward but Mulan asks only to return to her village to take care of her ill father. The emperor also announces the engagement of the Rouran princess and Wentai to bring peace to the two empires, the Rourans and the Wei civilisation, just as the princess oracled. Back at Mulan's hometown, Wentai visits her to ask her to run away with him, but Mulan chooses the good of the country over their romantic relationship. He respects her decision, and the two share a long passionate embrace before Wentai departs.
The movie ends with Mulan saying, "Someone once said, go too far from home and you will lose your roots. Kill too many people, and you will forget yourself. If you die in battle, your life will sink into the ground like rain and vanish without a trace. If at that time, you fall in love with someone, hope will blossom again from the earth and embrace life passionately. Thank you, Wentai."
Cast.
This was the second collaboration between Beijing Film Academy classmates Zhao Wei and Chen Kun after "Painted Skin".
Reception.
On the film's opening day Beijing Screen, the Chinese government recognized Mulan: In 2011, "Mulan" earned the 9th Henan province governmental award - movie category of Achieving Five Top Project Prize
Theme song.
The end theme song performed by Stefanie Sun, "Mulan Qing" (木蘭情; "Mulan Love") was composed by Lee Shih Shiong with lyrics by Kevin Yee. It was nominated for Best Original Song at the 29th Hong Kong Film Awards. Vitas covered it in English as "Beneath the Glory".
An insert song, "Mulan Xing" (木蘭星; "Mulan Star"), was performed by Jane Zhang.


Bill Condon

William Condon (born October 22, 1955) is an American director and screenwriter. Condon is known for writing and/or directing numerous successful and acclaimed films including "Gods and Monsters", "Chicago", "Kinsey", "Dreamgirls", ', and '. He has received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay; "Gods and Monsters" and "Chicago", winning for the former.
Early life.
Condon was born in New York City on October 22, 1955, the son of a police detective, and was raised in an Irish Catholic family. He attended Regis High School and Columbia College of Columbia University, graduating in 1976 with a degree in philosophy.
Two films had a significant impact of Cordon's early life. At the age of twelve, he found himself drawn to screenplay writing with his first viewing of "Bonnie and Clyde". In college he saw "Sweet Charity" (1969), which lead to "a lifelong love affair with movies that are reviled and rejected in their time.".
After completing college, Condon worked as a journalist for film magazines, including "American Film" and "Millimeter". In 1981, he won "the world's most difficult film trivia quiz" sponsored by the "Village Voice".
Career.
His career as a filmmaker began with screenplays for the independent feature "Strange Behavior" (1981), an homage to the pulp horror films of the 1950s, and the science-fiction feature "Strange Invaders" (1983), which starred Nancy Allen and Wallace Shawn.
His directorial debut was "Sister, Sister" (1987), an eerie Southern Gothic mystery starring Eric Stoltz and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Test screenings led to major changes to the film, which still proved a critical failure that set back Condon's career.
Condon emerged a few years later directing a series of made-for-TV thrillers, including "Murder 101" (1991), which earned Condon and co-writer Roy Johansen a 1992 Edgar Award for their screenplay. During this period he also wrote the screenplay for the thriller "F/X2" (1991), which was directed by Australian director Richard Franklin.
In 1994, he directed the television movie "The Man Who Wouldn't Die," which was met with mixed reviews. He directed "" (1995), a sequel to Bernard Rose's 1992 horror film. It was a critical and commercial failure. Reminded years later of this phase of his career, Condon said: "It's hard to be lower on the totem pole than being the director for a sequel to a horror movie."
Condon wrote and directed "Gods and Monsters" (1998), which was based a novel by Christopher Bram. His screenplay won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. "The New York Times" said Condon "may have been the most stunned person at the Academy Awards when his name was announced as the winner for the best adapted screenplay. He has struggled for years in Hollywood as a screenwriter and journalist and is unaccustomed to the hoopla that is now around him." He was nominated for the same award for his screenplay for "Chicago", based on the Broadway musical of the same name. He received a second Edgar Award for his "Chicago" screenplay as well.
In 2004 he wrote and directed the film "Kinsey", chronicling the life of the controversial sex researcher Alfred Kinsey. In "The New York Times", A.O. Scott wrote that "Bill Condon's smart, stirring [film] has a lot to say on the subject of sex, which it treats with sobriety, sensitivity and a welcome measure of humor." He continued: "I can't think of another movie that has dealt with sex so knowledgeably and, at the same time, made the pursuit of knowledge seem so sexy. There are some explicit images and provocative scenes, but it is your intellect that is most likely to be aroused... Mr. Condon's great achievement is to turn Kinsey's complicated and controversial career into a grand intellectual drama."
In 2005, he received the Stephen F. Kolzak Award at the GLAAD Media Awards.
Condon wrote the screenplay for and directed "Dreamgirls", an adaptation of the acclaimed Broadway musical of the same name. It was released in December 2006. Condon received Directors Guild of America and Broadcast Film Critics Association nominations for directing. The film was nominated in eight Academy Awards in six categories.
Condon was executive producer of the 81st Academy Awards television broadcast that aired on February 22, 2009, working with producer Laurence Mark.
Condon directed both parts of "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn" (2011 and 2012), adapted from the fourth and final novel in "The Twilight Saga" by Stephenie Meyer. He was twice nominated for a Razzie for Worst Director for these films, winning for "Part 2".
Condon directed "The Fifth Estate" (2013), a thriller about WikiLeaks starring Benedict Cumberbatch. He said he chose the project for a change of pace and liked its non-ideological approach to a very complex subject. He saw it "in the great tradition of journalistic thrillers". It received mixed responses from critics and underperformed at the box office.
In late 2013, he directed a revised version of the 1997 stage musical "Side Show" at the La Jolla Playhouse. A production of this revision played in June and July 2014 at the Kennedy Center. Charles Isherwood described it in "The New York Times" as "a full-scale reimagining" of the musical that involved "the addition and subtraction of several songs ..., the reordering of others", and new dialogue contributed by Condon. That production received excellent reviews when it moved to Broadway in the fall, but it proved a failure at the box office and closed after just seven weeks.
In 2015, Condon directed "Mr. Holmes" starring Ian McKellen. Condon noted its similarity to "Gods and Monsters", not only because of its lead actor but because "[b]oth movies are about aging and mortality. You have a celebrated man facing the decline of his public image."
Condon directed the 2017 Disney live action film adaptation of the animated 1991 film "Beauty and the Beast". A few weeks before the film's scheduled release on March 17, 2017, Condon announced that one character, LeFou, has "a nice, exclusively gay moment", which resulted in an "internet meltdown" of contrasting support and condemnation.
He co-authored the screenplay for "The Greatest Showman", a biography of P.T. Barnum, starring Hugh Jackman and released in December 2017. He rewrote the draft of co-author Jenny Bicks.
In October 2017, Condon postponed pre-production of a remake of "Bride of Frankenstein" for Universal Pictures. "Deadline Hollywood" reported that Condon and David Koepp wanted to rework the script.
Condon is a member of the Independent Feature Projects (IFP) in Los Angeles, a non-profit organization which supports independent films, as well as the Independent Writers Steering Committee, which was initiated by the Writers Guild of America (WGA).
Personal life.
Condon is openly gay. He is in a long-term relationship with Jack Morrissey.


I (soundtrack)

I is the soundtrack album to the 2015 Indian romantic thriller film of the same name written and directed by S. Shankar. A. R. Rahman had composed the original songs and background score for the film. The album consists of seven tracks, which include a remix and a reprise. Recording of the songs began in 2012 and was completed by 2014. Songs in the film vary in genre like EDM, bhangra, opera, urban. The original version of the soundtrack has youth oriented voices. The original version of the album was released on 6 September 2014. The audio was launched at a grand function at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai on 12 September 2014, with Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Chief Guest. The dubbed Hindi version of the album was released at a promotional event held in PVR, Mumbai on 31 December 2014. The dubbed Telugu version of the album was released digitally on the same day.
The soundtrack as well as the score received a very positive critical reception and it was declared one of the top twenty best selling albums of 2014 by iTunes India. At the 2016 Filmfare Awards, A. R. Rahman won the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director whereas lyricist Madhan Karky won Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist for his lyrics to the song "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal". Shreya Ghoshal was nominated for the same track under Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer. Lyricist Kabilan was nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist for the track "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal". However, Sid Sriram won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer for the song.
Development.
A. R. Rahman was selected to compose the original songs and background score for the film. In early July 2012, singer Vijay Prakash recorded the track "Pareshanayya" (Telugu version of "Mersalayitten"). In January 2013, the song "Aila Aila" was recorded. Karky called it as the "most challenging song" he had ever worked on. As some part of the film's story is about modeling, his team created a compilation of six-seven commercials that play to this song. According to Karky, "The lyrics of Aila Aila was the most difficult to pen as each line will have two different meanings, one is what you hear and one is what you are going to watch on the screen". The five and a half minute track blends genres like pop, bhangra, opéra comique elements and electronic beats. In an interview with "The Hindu", S. Shankar stated that he wanted unusual music for "I" with extensive experimentation. He called the experimentation most evident in this track especially the operatic part. The song slightly touches underlying feeling of romance. Portions of the track "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" sung only by Sunitha Sarathy were recorded on 14 February 2013. Rahman was supposed to have sung "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" but chose Sid Sriram because the latter sang it well and Rahman felt that Sriram didn't earn the deserving recognition through track "Adiye" from "Kadal", thus gave a second opportunity. Lyricist Madhan Karky's third song in the film was recorded by mid – September 2013. In May 2014, Rahman through his bulletin board system of Reddit stated that the film songs have more youth-oriented voices. The track "Mersalaayiten" was recorded by Anirudh Ravichander and Neeti Mohan in the span of July – August 2014. On 4 July 2014, the recording of all the songs for both the versions – the original Tamil version and the dubbed Telugu version were completed. Pravin Mani was involved in post-production of the album for two months. He was recruited for the work of recording ancillaries and corrections. Madhan Karky explained the meanings of the Tamil words he had used in the song "Ladio" on his Twitter page.
Release.
On 24 March 2014, Sony Music India acquired the audio rights of the film. The official soundtrack album cover of the film was released on 6 September 2014. The audio launch was planned for a release in Canada, but the film's producer, Venu Ravichandran, asserted that the music of the Tamil version would be released at a grand event at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on 12 September 2014. On 1 September 2014, Arnold Schwarzenegger confirmed himself as an invitee at the forthcoming event; also Kannada actor and singer Puneeth Rajkumar and Telugu actor Rana Daggubati was as chief guests. Ravichandran said Rahman would present the songs in a fashion similar to a live music concert.
International bubble artist Ana Yang, wife of the 16-time Guinness World Record holder, Fan Yang, performed as part of the event. Weta Workshop artists who have worked on the film would provided the makeup for the background dancers, who delivered the performances wearing the actual costumes from the respective songs. A fashion show by the film's costume designer took place. A rough cut version of the song "Merasalaayiten" leaked onto the internet a day prior to the music launch.
Bobby Simha and singer Chinmayi hosted the audio launch. Anirudh Ravichander, Karthik, Keba Jeremiah, Neeti Mohan, Haricharan, Natalie Di Luccio, A. R. Rahman, Amy Jackson and Vikram were part of the stage performances. The team from Weta Workshop was introduced after the song "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" was performed. In addition to the songs from the soundtrack album, Rahman also performed a few tracks from his previous compositions, which were "Oorvasi Oorvasi", "Chikku Bukku Rayile", "Ottagathai Kattiko", "Muqabala", "Petta Rap", "Maya Machindra", "Shakalaka Baby", "Girlfriend", "Colombus Columbus", "Athiradi Kaalam" and "Irumbile Oru Irudhaiyam". The audio launch event was telecasted on Jaya TV on 3 October 2014, coinciding with Vijayadasami celebrations.
Critical reception.
Songs.
The album received very positive reviews upon release. Critic Baradwaj Rangan for "The Hindu" called the soundtrack "wholly individual" that liberates A. R. Rahman. He felt, "The soundtrack that sets Rahman apart. At his most playful, he’s capable of synthesising sound and tunesmanship to produce music that’s the equivalent of a modern-art mural. You may not want it on your wall, but this isn’t about wanting it on your wall." "Sify" said, "Despite the fact it is not among Isaipuyal’s greater works, ’I’ still has 2-3 numbers that are bound to get stuck in our playlists. The simpler tunes like "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" and "Pookale Satru Oyvedungal" are here to stay while the peppy "Mersalaayiten" and the Shankar-esque "Aila Aila" are bound to get enriched by the visuals." and rated the album 3.5 out of 5. "Behindwoods" chose "Merasalaayiten", "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal" and the track "Ennodu Nee Irudhaal" as well as its reprise as the album's picks and gave a rating of 3.5 out of 5, concluding that "Rahman & Shankar are back to doing what they do best, churn out chart busters !" Vipin of "Music Aloud" stated, "Three winning songs in a half-and-half soundtrack from A R Rahman. Still would rate in the lower half of the ARR-Shankar repertory". However, he called "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal" as "the best of the soundtrack, a charming melody", and gave the album a rating of 8 out of 10.
Background score.
Writing the critical reception for "Firstpost", Latha Srinivasan stated, "Shankar has done justice to A.R. Rahman’s tunes and that’s a visual treat in the film." Rachel Saltz of "The New York Times" wrote called it a score that 'engage ones senses', further noting, ""I" could easily be a silent movie—though a noisy one, with a boom-boom score by A.R. Rahman that signals at each turn how the audience should feel, and with flurries of drums, speeds the film along."" Gulte" called, Rahman's music 'average', comparing it its standards to his previous works done for Shankar's films. Nandini Ramnath at "Scroll" writes that the film has, "AR Rahman’s least memorable scores with background music set at the level that reads 'This has the potential of damaging eardrums.'" An "IANS"review mentions, "A.R. Rahman's score to the film doesn't make much of a difference but for remaining mostly soothing and melodic." Subramanian Harikumar of "Bollywood Life" stated, "The songs, composed by Rahman, are brilliant, especially Tum Todo Na (Ennodu Nee Irunthaal) song will leave you mesmerised. A great background score from AR Rahman." Suhani Singh for "India Today"" "writes, "Music by A.R. Rahman is top class! He has obviously given his best to match up to Shankar's vision." R. Vishal at "United Internet" "wrote"," "The songs fail to allure the viewer in the way Shankar’s previous movies have." For "Bangalore Mirror", R. S. Prakash stated, "A R Rahman has been the composer of all of Shankar's directorial ventures, but here Rahman seems to have been in a hurry to wrap up as none of the songs are effective." Surabhi Redkar for "Koimoi" writes, "A R Rahman’s music too does not turn out endearing and overall during the songs." Writing for "Mumbai Mirror", Rahul Desai praised the score in film, calling it 'throbbing hours of an operatic musical'. Critic based at "Bollywood Hungama" felt, "The film suffers in the music department (A. R. Rahman), wherein the songs seem to be thrusted into the film's situation."
Track listing.
Tamil.
The official track listing of the original version was released by Sony Music South on 10 September 2014.
Album credits.
Backing Vocals
Nivas, Santhosh Narayanan, Deepak, Arjun Chandrasekar, Pooja A. V., Aanchal Singh, Maria Roe Vincent
K.M.M.C. Choir conducted by Neuman Pinto for the song "Ennodu Nee Irundhal"
Personnel
Production


Aambala

Aambala () is a 2015 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film co-written, co-produced and directed by Sundar C. Produced by Vishal, it features him in the leading role alongside an ensemble cast including Hansika Motwani, Prabhu, Ramya Krishnan, Vaibhav, Santhanam, Sathish, Kiran Rathod, Aishwarya, Maadhavi Latha, Madhuurima, and Pradeep Rawat. The music was composed by Hiphop Tamizha.The film released on 15 January 2015 on the occasion of Pongal with mixed reviews and ended up as a decent hit clashing towards with I and Darling.
Plot.
Saravanan (Vishal) lives in Ooty, and runs a business of gathering people for politicians and events. One day, he meets Maya (Hansika Motwani), and falls for her. However, "RDX" Rajasekhar (Santhanam) also falls in love with her. Saravanan convinces Rajasekhar to not fall for Maya by saying she's too high class. Rajasekhar is a police inspector. Due to several mishaps caused, he is fired and starts working as a hotel doorman. He is shocked to find Saravanan and Maya going out together. He asks Saravanan how he made Maya fall in love with him. As Saravanan finishes his story, it is revealed Saravanan indirectly caused those mishaps that led to Rajasekhar's firing. Enraged, Rajasekhar hires Kumaran (Vaibhav), who is a specialist in breakups. Kumaran then sends a woman (Andrea Jeremiah) to cause a conflict in Saravanan and Maya's relationship.
Due to his love failure, Saravanan becomes drunk and falls unconscious. Kumaran, who is also at the bar, drops Saravanan off at his house. Saravanan's mother Thulasi (Tulasi), ashamed of his behavior, sends him to meet his father Aalavanthan (Prabhu) and younger brother Shakthi (Sathish) at Madurai. There, they meet Aalavanthan and rejoin him. They come to know that Kumaran is also the son of Aalavanthan's ex-lover.
Aalavanthan reveals to his sons that they have three aunts: Periya Ponnu (Ramya Krishnan), Nadu Ponnu (Aishwarya), and Chinna Ponnu (Kiran Rathod). Aalavanthan wants his sons to marry the daughters of their aunts so that their family can reunite once and for all. A reluctant Saravanan helps his brothers and father attend a temple function in disguise to kidnap and marry their cousins, but they kidnap their aunts. They run away before getting caught. Saravanan agrees to the plan after finding out that Periya Ponnu's daughter is none other than Maya.
Periya Ponnu believes the kidnapping was by Pasupathy (Pradeep Rawat), the MLA and ex-servant of Aalavanthan's family. Periya Ponnu decides to run against him in the next election. Pasupathy sends men to kill the aunts, but the brothers save them, disguised as police officers. Using this disguise, the trio gains access to their aunts' house. There, their uncles (Abhishek, Sriman, Gowtham Sundararajan) help facilitate the brothers' affection to their daughters. The trio succeeds in gaining the daughters' love.
Pasupathy provokes Periya Ponnu by wagering that if he loses to her, he will work at her home as a servant, but if she loses, her daughter Maya will marry his son (Rajeev Govinda Pillai). Using his knowledge of politics, Saravanan helps his aunt gain popularity. However, a few days before the elections, the aunts find out that Saravanan's father is their brother Aalavanthan, who they believe killed their father. Their hatred towards Aalavanthan results in them getting Saravanan and his brothers arrested.
Aalavanthan is hurt by his sisters' harsh words at him, and is hospitalized after suffering a heart attack. As Saravanan and his brothers are stuck in jail, his aunt has lost her popularity, due to Pasupathy's manipulation. Saravanan calls Rajasekhar, who bails out the brothers, and inadvertently exposes Pasupathy's dirty tricks. Refusing to lose, Pasupathy tries to bribe people to vote for him, but Saravanan and Kumaran foil his plan, giving Periya Ponnu the edge. Pasupathy arrives at the home to kill the family and take Maya, but Maya already escaped to elope with Saravanan. Saravanan, though, insists they go back. A furious Pasupathy reveals that he was the one who killed Aalavanthan's father, not Aalavanthan. He attacks Periya Ponnu just as Maya and Saravanan return. Saravanan fights Pasupathy and his son. At last, when Pasupathy goes to get his men(more than a lakh), he finds that all his men were the gang members of Saravanan, hence defeating him. The family reunites, and celebrate the weddings of all three brothers to their cousins.
Production.
Vishal and Sundar C. announced that they would collaborate for a second venture in late May 2014, despite their first film, "Madha Gaja Raja", remaining unreleased. Hansika Motwani was selected for the project, collaborating with director Sundar C for his third consecutive film and Yuvan Shankar Raja was selected to compose the music for the film. He later opted out of the project and Sundar C announced that five different composers would work on the project including Adhi of Hiphop Tamizha. It was confirmed that Hiphop Tamizha's Adhi would be the only music director to compose all tracks for this film instead of five music directors. In the song "Aye Aye Aye" Kushboo made a cameo appearance. Three former lead actresses were reported to play Vishal's aunts in the film. Simran was rumored to have been signed for one of the three roles, before "a source close to the unit" informed that Ramya Krishnan, Aishwarya and Kiran Rathod had been finalized for the roles. Besides Motwani, the film was said to feature two more heroines, who played the daughters of the three aunts, with Telugu actresses Madhuurima and Maadhavi Latha being recruited for the roles in September 2014.
The team began production work on the film from 10 July 2014. The team shot some scenes in Kumbakonam with Vishal and Sathish. After a single schedule, the team announced that a non-stop schedule would take place from September 2014. Filming was then moved to Senthil studios, located at Vadapalani, Chennai. The audio was released on 27 December 2014 in Sathyam Cinemas.
Soundtrack.
The soundtrack was composed by Hiphop Tamizha (a duo consisting of Adhi and Jeeva), making their debut as film music directors. The album consists of six tracks with one of them being a remix of the song "Inbam Pongum" from "Veerapandiya Kattabomman" (1959). All lyrics were written by Hip-hop Tamizha's Adhi, who had also sung three numbers.
"IBTimes" rated the album 3.5 out of 5 and stated that the songs are "highly energetic, which are mixed with some heavy beats". "Indiaglitz" gave it 3.5 out of 5.
Release.
The film was released on 15 January 2015 coinciding with Pongal festival.
Critical reception.
The film received mixed reviews from critics. Behindwoods rated the film 2.25 out of 5 and stated, "Sundar C's box office winning formula of comedy, glamour, drama and action continues this time too". Indiaglitz gave 3 out of 5 and stated, ""Aambala" sums up action, masala and romance in the totality of rib-tickling humor. There is a clean romance, a thick storyline, packed with agreeable fights, crafted beautifully and delivered on a platter of humour, that hardly a moment skips without laughing. Vishal, Sundar C and team have launched themselves unshakable, devoid of being overshadowed, on a high entertainment genre, this festive season". Rediff gave 3.5 stars out 5 and called it a "masala entertainer with plenty of romance, over-the-top action, humour and great music". Sify stated, "There isn't one quiet moment in "Aambala", a masala comic entertainer which is purely targeted at audiences seeking mindless actioners laced with family sentiments, comedy and plenty of glamour" and added, "If you leave your logic minds at home; there are chances that you might enjoy this ride.".
IBN Live rated 1.5 out of 5 and stated, "Sundar C shines in moments... Yet the film turns out to be, at the end, a reckless stitching up of humorous GIFs. This is because the film has no scope for entertaining the audience anew". The Times of India rated the film 2.5 out of 5 and called "Aambala" a "masala movie that is a trip through time, and not in a good way. The film is filled with tropes that would have been acceptable in the 90s. We have families that are separated because of an incident in the past, lost-and-found moments, henpecked husbands, botched up kidnapping plans, outdated athai ponnu romance, and so on. It is only the comedy scenes that keep reminding us that we are watching a Sundar C film, but even these become tiresome and even crass at times". IANS gave 1 star out of 5 and called it "unarguably the worst product to have come out of Sundar's factory... the film turns out to be a clichéd rehash of several family stories with adequate dose of action and nauseating comedy".


Little Boxes (film)

Little Boxes is a 2016 American dramedy film, directed by Rob Meyer and written by Annie Howell. It stars Melanie Lynskey, Nelsan Ellis, Armani Jackson, Oona Laurence, Janeane Garofalo, and Christine Taylor.
The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 15, 2016. It was released on April 14, 2017, by Gunpowder & Sky.
Plot.
An interracial family struggles to adjust when they move from Brooklyn, New York to a small town in Washington State.
Production.
In May 2015, it was announced Rob Meyer would direct the film from a screenplay by Annie Howell, with Cary Fukunaga executive producing. In August 2015, Melanie Lynskey and Nelsan Ellis were reported to have been cast in the leads.
Release.
The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 15, 2016. Shortly after, Netflix acquired SVOD rights to the film. Gunpowder & Sky later acquired distribution rights and set the film for an April 14, 2017, release.
Reception.
It received a 67% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Neal Genzlinger of the "New York Times" said, "Countless movies have examined what happens when a country mouse goes to the city; this one shows that leaving a gentrified urban oasis for a small-town world can be just as jolting."


Madhavapeddi Satyam

Madhavapeddi Satyam (11 March 1922 – 18 December 2000) was an Indian singer and stage-actor working mainly in Telugu cinema. He entered films as a singer-actor in Y.V. Rao's Tamil-Hindi bilingual movie Ramadas in the year 1946, playing the role of Kabir. However, he became more popular as a playback singer due to his booming voice. His voice suited artists like S. V. Ranga Rao, Relangi and Ramana Reddy. He also sang for others like Akkineni Nageswara Rao, N.T. Rama Rao, Kongara Jaggaiah and Padmanabham. In a five-decade long career he sung numerable songs of which few became popular, like "Vivaha Bhojanambu", from the film Maya Bazar for S.V Ranga Rao, and "Ayyayyo Jebulo Dabbulu Poyene", from the film "Kulagothralu" for Ramana Reddy.
Biography.
Madhavapeddi Satyam was born on 11 March 1922 at Brahmanakoduru village in Ponnur, Andhra Pradesh. He is the son of Sri Madhavapeddi Lakshmi Narasiah and Late Smt. Sundaramma. From his childhood he showed talent for singing and acting in dramas, inspiration being his paternal uncle Sri Madhavapeddi Venkatramayya, a well noted dramatist. He started portraying different roles in drama and one of them "Chalo Delhi" a social drama in which his singing, acting and music calibre was brought out for the first time in Madras (now Chennai). Spotted by director-producer Y.V. Rao in 1946, Satyam was fortunate to get an opportunity to act as Kabir in Y.V. Rao's film "Ramadas" and singing three songs in this bilingual film in Tamil and Hindi under the musical supervision of C.R. Subbaraman.
Immediately followed his entry into the Telugu film industry with his first Telugu song "Manasu Gaadha Khudha Thodai..." with Sri Ghantasala for the film "Laila Majnu" in the year 1949. He sang for S.V. Ranga Rao in Maya Bazar and it was well received by audience.
He died in Chennai on 18 December 2000, at the age of 78.
Madhavapeddi Satyam Award.
Madhavapeddi Satyam's son, Madhavapeddi Murthy, a Kuchipudi exponent, instituted the Madhavapeddi Awards. Some of the film personalities who have received this award include:


Aai Tuza Ashirwad

Aai Tuza Ashirwad is a Marathi film, which released on 9 August 2004.
Cast.
The cast in this movie includes Alka Kubal, Ashok Saraf, Ramesh Bhatkar, Seva More, & Others
Soundtrack.
The music has been directed by Prakash More and the songs in the movie are:


R. K. Kalaimani

R. K. Kalaimani is an Indian film director who has worked on Tamil language films. He was active in the early 2000s and has worked on films featuring Prabhu and Vijayakanth.
Career.
Kalaimani apprenticed under directors including Arjun, Singeetham Srinivasa Rao and B. R. Vijayalakshmi, before making his directorial debut with the Prabhu starrer "Thai Poranthachu" (2000). He collaborated with the actor again in the following year, with the comedy drama "Super Kudumbam" (2001).
Kalaimani returned with "Engal Aasan" (2009), a drama film featuring Vijayakanth and Vikranth, with the team filming schedules around Vijayakanth's political commitments. In 2013, he made a film titled "Apple Penne" featuring newcomers in the lead roles, which had a low profile release and opened to poor reviews.


G. Govindarajulu Naidu

G. Govindarajulu Naidu was an acclaimed music director in 1940s and 50s in the south Indian film industry. Hailing from Tiruchirappalli, he was one among the musicians who defined the way of music in South Indian film industry. He composed music for Tamil and Telugu movies.
Early life.
Govindarajulu Naidu came from a Telugu speaking family from Thiruchi. This is where M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar (MKT) used to sing in their house and Naidu introduced MKT to his children. G. Govindarajulu is a harmonium player in special dramas, but was also known as the one who taught music for K. B. Sundarambal. He also sold musical instruments and gramophone in Thiruchi, but the business was not doing very well. In 1940, Naidu took his family to Madras to look for greener pasture there.
T. G. Lingappa was the second son of Naidu and had learned to play several musical instruments from him. His grandchildren live in Dubai.
Career.
Few may be the films that came his way in a career spanning 3 decades, G. Govindarajulu Naidu but has left a lingering impact in his creations especially movies like Andhaman Kaidhi, Manidhanum Mirugamum, Maya Manithan, Baghdad Thirudan and Raja Bakthi.
He worked with singers like Thiruchi Loganathan, M. L. Vasanthakumari, C. S. Jayaraman, R. Balasaraswathi Devi, P. Leela, Jikki, T. V. Rathinam, A. P. Komala, N. L. Ganasaraswathi, A. M. Rajah, Ghantasala, T. M. Soundararajan, Seerkazhi Govindarajan, Radha Jayalakshmi, K. Jamuna Rani, P. Susheela.
The singing actors N. C. Vasanthakokilam, V. V. Sadagopan, K. Sarangkapani, N. S. Krishnan, T. A. Madhuram, J. P. Chandrababu and P. Bhanumathi also sang memorable songs under his compositions.
Works.
Some compositions of G. Govindarajulu Naidu:
Filmography.
Music direction in Tamil Movies.


Baboo Band Baaja

Baboo Band Baaja is a Marathi film directed by debutante Rajesh Pinjani and produced by Nita Jadhav. The film tells the riveting tale of a father reluctant to educate his son, a mother who fiercely believes in its liberatory value, and the son who is caught in the crossfire. It stars Milind Shinde, Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar and Vivek Chabukswar in the lead roles. The film received three National Film Awards, including for Best Actress (Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar) and Best Debut Film of a Director, and six Maharashtra State Film Awards.
Plot.
"Baboo Band Baaja" is a story of a man (Milind Shinde) who plays in a local band to earn a living. He wants his son (Vivek Chabukswar) also to take up the same profession. The mother (Mitalee Jagtap Varadkar), on the other hand, wants to provide education to her son. The film shows the irrepressible surge to soar in life pitted against the vicious grip of circumstances.
Production.
Rajesh Pinjani was inspired by his mentor Purshottam Jadhav, an IAS officer who supported his cause of making short films on subjects such as no smoking, save the girl child and so on. Pinjani was also inspired by the various films shown at Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) and decided to make one of his own. Pinjani says, "I was inspired by the various films shown at PIFF and decided to make one of my own. A friend suggested that I should make a film on brass bands. I was looking for a director for six months, but eventually decided to direct the film myself. The film, because of its extensive research, took almost one and a half years to complete. Pinjani says, "I stayed in Kamthi near Nagpur for a while to study the lives of bandwallahs. My elder brother helped me with newspaper cuttings on the subject."
Among the lead players, only Milind Shinde is a known name from Marathi cinema. Varadkar has done a few TV serials and Marathi films. Chabukswar was selected after Pinjani watched his audition videos.
References.
[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:Films featuring a Best Actress National Award-winning performance]]
[[Category:2012 films]]
[[Category:Best Debut Feature Film of a Director National Film Award winners]]
[[Category:2012 directorial debut films]]
[[Category:2010s Marathi-language films]]


Javier Ambrossi

Francisco Javier García de la Camacha Gutiérrez-Ambrossi (born 24 June 1984), better known as Javier Ambrossi, is a Spanish actor, stage, film and television director and writer. He is best known for creating and directing the musical "La llamada" and its film adaptation together with Javier Calvo, as well as the television series "Paquita Salas" and "Veneno".
Early life.
Ambrossi was born in Madrid, he graduated in Journalism at the Complutense University of Madrid and studied Dramaturgy at the Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático. His younger sister, Macarena García, is also an actress.
Career.
Ambrossi has had supporting roles in a number of television series, including "El comisario", "Amar en tiempos revueltos", "Sin tetas no hay paraíso", and "Cuéntame cómo pasó".
Since 2013 he co-directs "La llamada" at the Teatro Lara in Madrid, a musical he created alongside Javier Calvo.
In August 2015, the Mexican production of "La llamada" opened at the López Tarso theatre in Mexico City, with a Mexican cast.
In July 2016 the web television series "Paquita Salas", created by Ambrossi and Calvo, premiered on Flooxer. Due to the success of the series, Netflix acquired the rights to air the second season of the series.
In September 2017, the film adaptation of "La llamada", directed by Ambrossi and Calvo, premiered in Spain.
Along with Calvo, Ambrossi was listed 47th in El Mundo's list of most important LGBT people in Spain in 2017.
From October 2017 to February 2018, Ambrossi and Calvo appeared on reality television talent competition "Operación Triunfo" as the teachers of acting in the "Academy".
In 2020, the Ambrossi and Calvo-created biographical television limited series "Veneno" aired on Atresplayer Premium and HBO Max.
Since 2020, Ambrossi is a panelist for "", the Spanish version of the international music game show "Masked Singer". On 1 March 2021, Ambrossi was announced as a judge for "Drag Race España", the Spanish version of the television drag queen competition "Drag Race".
Personal life.
Ambrossi has been in a relationship with actor and director Javier Calvo since 2010.


Mahesh Manjrekar

Mahesh Vaman Manjrekar (born 16 August 1958) is an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, alongside Marathi and Telugu films. He is credited with directing the critically acclaimed films "Vaastav: The Reality" (1999), "Astitva" (2000) and "Viruddh... Family Comes First" (2005). He has won a National Film Award and two Star Screen Awards.
Career.
Manjrekar has acted in several films, including some of his own productions. He was first seen in the Door darshan Marathi series named Kshitij, in which he played a leprosy patient. He first gained acclaim as an actor for his performance in the 2002 film "Kaante", and later played negative roles in the Tamil film "Arrambam" (2013), Telugu film "Okkadunnadu" (2007) and as the gangster Javed in the film "Slumdog Millionaire" (2008). He played Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the Marathi film "Me Shivajiraje Bhosale Boltoy". He also played the role of Harpeez Dongara in the "Aakhri Chunauti" series of episodes in the Indian TV series "C.I.D.". Manjrekar was acclaimed for the role as inspector D.R. Talpade in the movie "Wanted".
He was a MNS candidate from Mumbai North West in the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections but lost to Gajanan Kirtikar of Shiv Sena.
Personal life.
Manjrekar is married to Medha Manjrekar. They have a daughter, Saiee Manjrekar, who is a Bollywood actress. He has a stepdaughter, Gauri Ingawale, from his wife Medha Manjrekar's first husband.


Butterfly Man

Butterfly Man () is a 2002 Thai-British adventure-romantic drama film directed and written by Kaprice Kea and starring Stuart Laing and Napakpapha Nakprasitte.
Plot.
Adam, an English backpacker, breaks up with his girlfriend immediately after arriving with her in Thailand. He then strikes out on his own, leaving Bangkok for Ko Samui. There, he meets Em, a young masseuse. At first, their relationship is innocent, but Adam soon grows frustrated and starts hitting the bars and becoming a sex tourist, or "butterfly man", flirting from woman to woman. Meanwhile, the ugly side of Samui starts to reveal itself, with a human trafficking, slavery, and prostitution ring, run by British mafia exposed. Adam gets in trouble with the British mafia. Em helps him get away, so the British mafia beats her severely. Adam manages to escape via small boat, taking Em with him. They get married on the boat but then Em dies. He keeps his promise to take her body to her home village and ends up staying in Thailand.


D. Madhusudhana Rao

Dukkipati Madhusudhana Rao (27 July 1917 – 26 March 2006) was an Indian film producer and screenwriter, known for his works in Telugu cinema. He owned the film production houses named Annapurna Pictures Limited based in Chennai. As a producer, he garnered four National Film Awards and two Filmfare Awards. He was awarded the Raghupathy Venkaiah award by the State Government of Andhra Pradesh for his contribution to Telugu cinema in 1993.
Awards.
National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu (producer)


Aggi Barata

Aggi Barata () is a 1966 Telugu-language swashbuckling fantasy film, produced and directed by B. Vittalacharya under the Sri Vital Combines banner. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Rajasree with music composed by Vijaya Krishna Murthy.
Plot.
Once upon a time, there was a Kingdom Amaravathi, ruled by King Amarasimha (Mikkilineni). His chief commander Gajapathi (S. V. Ramadas) is a demonic person whose intention is to marry the princess Vasavi (Rajasri) and grab the kingdom. Once Gajapathi catches a dangerous dacoit Ranga Raju and kills him. In guise of Ranga Raju, Gajapathi performs a lot of atrocities in the kingdom when an attack on a village, Ramanapalem, a young dynamic guy Raja (N. T. Rama Rao) chases him out. Meanwhile, in hunting, Gajapathi sets fire to Amarasimha's tent but a few loyal aides protect and secretly hide him in a cave. Now Gajapathi takes over the reign of the kingdom. After some time, in annual competitions at the fort, Raja suspects Gajapathi's dual face. He defeats Gajapathi and acquires the title "Aggi Barata" when Vasavi likes Raja. She silently meets him, explains her situation, the state of affairs and cruelties of Gajapathi. Raja promises that he will protect her and both of them fall in love. Meanwhile, Raja's maternal uncle Bham Bham Basaviah (Ramana Reddy), is a great magician the villagers provoke him to beat powerful wizard Konda Buchodu (Mukkamala) who lives in their outskirts, but he fails. Eventually, Gajapathi plans to marry Vasavi forcibly. At that time, the loyal aides of the king take Raja into the cave where Amarasimha reveals the double face of Gajapathi and appoints him as the protector of the kingdom to stamp out Gajapathi. Raja rescues Vasavi and takes her to the cave. Frustrated, Gajapathi sets fire to Raja's village when he goes to rescue, Gajapathi captures him and tortures badly. Parallelly, Gajapathi also notices the secret cave and imprisons the King along with the Princess and keeps Konda Bhuchodu as a security to the fort. Raja is saved by Basavaiah and with his help, Raja enters the fort. Basaviah intelligently kills Konda Bhuchodu and Raja eliminates Gajapathi. Finally, Amarasimha crowns Raja and the movie ends on a happy note with the marriage of Raja & Vasavi.
Soundtrack.
The music was composed by Vijaya Krishna Murthy.


Brooks, Meadows and Lovely Faces

Brooks, Meadows and Lovely Faces (, translit. Brooks, Meadows and Lovely Faces) is a 2016 Egyptian comedy film directed by Yousry Nasrallah. It was selected to be screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.


Anaamika

Anaamika is a 2014 Indian drama thriller film directed by Sekhar Kammula, starring Nayanthara in the titular role, alongside Vaibhav Reddy, Pasupathy, and Harshvardhan Rane. A remakes of the Hindi film "Kahaani", the film was simultaneously shot in Telugu and Tamil, the latter titled Nee Enge En Anbe ().
Plot.
There was a bomb blast in People's Plaza at Hyderabad. Six months later, Anaamika (Nayantara), an IT professional, comes to Hyderabad in search of her missing husband. As soon as she arrives in Hyderabad, she goes to the police station and waits to give a complaint. The police officers do not pay attention to her, and she almost faints. One policeman in the station named Sarathy (Vaibhav Reddy), decides to help her realizing that she was coming here for a huge reason; and the search for her missing husband begins. She goes to the hotel where her husband last stayed. While staying there, she makes the acquaintance of a little boy named Raju who tells her everything.
She goes to places with Sarathy in search of her husband. In one place she finds out that her husband has resigned 2 weeks prior to her coming to India. She also visits the head of a mosque where she tries really hard to find her husband but is soon after murdered. She continuously searches for her husband in various places, and at one point the police inspector proposes that Anaamika should have an affair with him at his guesthouse, and in return he'd find her husband. Anaamika rejects him, and at the same time that the inspector had told Anaamika to come to his guest house, he is mysteriously murdered. The reason was believed to be because they knew where Anaamika's husband was.
The police find out that Anaamika is hiding something and tell Sarathy to lay off of her. As Anaamika was getting closer to revealing a plot of conspiracy, she was expected to be the third murder victim. CBI officer Khan (Pasupathy), who was investigating the bomb blast, tells Anaamika that her husband resembles a terrorist named Milan Damji, who was the main cause for the bomb blast in People's plaza, but she is able to justify that her husband was with her when the bomb blast took place. That night, the murderer comes to kill Anaamika. Stung by bees, he runs away.
Amongst all of these clues and confusing circumstances, how Anaamika finds her husband and what the truth is makes up the rest of the story.
Production.
Nayantara with an all new look, kick-started her Sekhar Kammula bilingual in Telugu and Tamil on 28 April in Hyderabad. Initially for the female lead, the director approached actress Anushka Shetty, but later Anushka Shetty opted out because her magnum opus projects dates directly clash with this film. Nayantara was given a bounded script with the look of her costume was given. She has an all new look in the film and the actress has given bulk dates for the film. Her character name is Anamika. The film is being co-produced by Endemol India, Logline Productions and Select Media Holdings.
The shoot on Sunday in the dusty streets of Old City, Hyderabad. Instead of Kolkata in the original, Sekhar chose Old City where the film will be set.
Sekhar was planning to complete the project under 50 days by shooting continuously in old Hyderabad. Sekhar in an interview had said: "Since this untitled film is a bilingual, there's lot of work involved even before we start shooting. I want to shift all focus on the project which will be adapted and customised to the local sensibilities."
Release.
Critical reception.
"Nee Enge En Anbe" was rated 3 by Rediff who said that ""Kahaani" was a huge hit so much was expected of the remake. Unfortunately, "Nee Enge En Anbe" is not in the same league". "Deccan Chronicle" said that "For those who have not seen "Kahaani", this is a perfect 10 on 10 movie and for those who have, well all we can say is it is one of the better remakes". Sifi gave 4/5, stating "" Nee Enge En Anbe" on the face of it is a decent thriller, marked by an outstanding performance by Nayanthara, who is scintillating as she brings depth and poise to her character. Plus technically it is fab, with excellent background score by MM Keeravani which is in sync with the theme of the film along with camera work of Vijay C Kumar." "Hindustan Times " said ""Nee Enge En Anbe's" plot and narrative style gripped me as much as "Kahaani"’s did. The Tamil movie is mounted well, and although it is not a nail-biting thriller, it is still very engaging. I did not find a dull moment, thanks also to some smart" and gave 3 out of 5 Baradwaj Rangan of the Hindu wrote "Without atmosphere, a movie is just a collection of scenes that fit oddly, like misshapen jigsaw pieces. We may be able to get a sense of the whole puzzle, but only in our heads. We sense what could have been. What we see, though, is someone labouring to make the pieces fit. It isn't pretty".
The "Times of India" gave "Anaamika" three out of five stars and wrote that "Comparisons are inevitable when one remakes a critically acclaimed film like Vidya Balan starrer Kahani and in the case of Anaamika, Sekhar Kammula almost gets away because he deviates from the original plot to a large extent".


Upendra Madhav

Upendra Madhav(original name : Vintha Upendra Reddy) is an Indian film screenwriter, director and dialogue writer known for his works in Telugu cinema. He is known for his works in box office hits such as "Baadshah", "Dookudu", "Aagadu" and "Bruce Lee - The Fighter".
Selected filmography.
Career.
He came to the Telugu film industry wanting to become a director. He worked with Priyadarshini Ram as an assistant director for Manodu and Toss and directed some corporate films and films for the government. He would get a chance to join the direction department of big budget films but one thing led to another and he became a screenwriter including writing for Dookudu as associate writer which led to further screenwriting. His debut as a feature film director was the 2018 film MLA.


Agadbam

Agadbam is a Marathi film released on 18 December 2010. This film is directed by Satish Motling and produced by Trupti Bhoir.
Cast.
The film stars Makarand Anaspure, Trupti Bhoir, Usha Nadkarni, Tejaswi Patil, Chitra Navathe, Vikas Samudre, Narayan Jadhav & Others.
Soundtrack.
The music has been directed by Ajit – Sameer, while the lyrics have been provided by Guru Thakur.


Adhikari (film)

Adhikari (English : "Official") is a 1991 Tamil action film directed by P. Vasu. The film features C. Arunpandian and Gautami in the lead roles, with Anand, Goundamani, Senthil, Sethu Vinayagam, Srividya, Anju, Rocky, Rajeshkumar, Choudary and Abhilasha playing supporting roles. The film, produced by K. Kanagasabai, had musical score by Gangai Amaran and was released on 14 April 1991. The film is a remake of P. Vasu's own 1986 Kannada film "Guri" starring Rajkumar and Archana.
Plot.
Duraipandi (C. Arunpandian) escapes from jail to take revenge on the gold smuggler Varadappan (Sethu Vinayagam). Varadappan tried many ways to kill Duraipandi in jail, but his henchmen failed each time. Pursued by the police, the fugitive Duraipandi lands in a remote village where a woman named Ponni (Gautami) helps him hide. There, he meets his former colleague Anbu (Choudary), surprised by Duraipandi, Anbu runs away and dies by getting hit by a car. Anbu is none other than Ponni's brother. After the funeral, Duraipandi tells Ponni the reason of his desire for revenge on Varadappan.
In the past, Duraipandi was a sincere and fearless custom officer. He lived happily with his mother (Srividya) and his sister Seetha (Anju). One day, Duraipandi seized a cargo full of illegal gold bars belonging to Varadappan. In the meantime, Seetha got engaged with the police inspector Sarath (Anand). Everything went well until Varadappan planned to send Duraipandi behind bars. Under the orders of Varadappan, Duraipandi's co-workers Mary (Abhilasha), Rocky (Rocky), Raghu (Rajesh Kumar), and Anbu betrayed Duraipandi, and Duraipandi was sent to jail by Sarath for trying to rape Mary. Seetha's wedding was cancelled; thus Seetha committed suicide and Duraipandi's mother became mentally ill.
Duraipandi knows that Mary was killed by Varadappan and the only information he had was Anbu's location. Duraipandi and Ponni fall in love with each other and start to live together. Later, Rocky is blackmailed by Varadappan, so Rocky tries to murder Duraipandi. During the fight, however, Rocky accidentally falls off a mountain cliff and dies. Duraipandi decides to take care of Rocky's baby son. Afterwards, Raghu gets killed by Varadappan's henchmen.
Duraipandi is still in pursuit of Varadappan to kill him, whereas the police want to capture the fugitive Duraipandi. What transpires later forms the crux of the story.
Soundtrack.
The film score and the soundtrack were composed by film composer Gangai Amaran. The soundtrack, released in 1991, features 5 tracks with lyrics written by Vaali.


S. Kumar

S. Kumar is an Indian cinematographer, who works in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi film industry. His first independent work was with the film, "Thiranottam" in 1978. He is a founding member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).
Personal life.
S. Kumar is married. His son, Kunjunni S. Kumar is also a cinematographer.


Teddy Award

The Teddy Award is an international film award for films with LGBT topics, presented by an independent jury as an official award of the Berlin International Film Festival (the Berlinale). In the most part, the jury consists of organisers of gay and lesbian film festivals, who view films screened in all sections of the Berlinale; films do not have to have been part of the festival's official competition stream to be eligible for Teddy awards. Subsequently, a list of films meeting criteria for LGBT content is selected by the jury, and a 3,000-Euro Teddy is awarded to a feature film, a short film and a documentary.
At the 66th Berlin International Film Festival in 2016, a dedicated "Teddy30" lineup of classic LGBT-related films was screened as a full program of the festival to celebrate the award's 30th anniversary.
History.
In 1987 German filmmakers Wieland Speck and Manfred Salzgeber formed a jury called the International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Association (IGLFFA) to create an award for LGBT films. It was originally named the Teddy Bear Award, in accordance with the Berlinale's main awards being named as the Golden and Silver Bear; the name was later shortened to Teddy Award, although the statuette presented to winners is still shaped like a teddy bear.
The first Teddy Award was given to Pedro Almodóvar for his film "La ley del deseo", which featured Antonio Banderas.
The awards were originally founded in a gay bookshop in West Berlin, they were named after the cuddly toys which were sent as prizes to the winners.
They were then upgraded to metal trophies but are still thought to be a deliberate parody of the main Berlin Film Festival’s Golden Bear trophy.
1990 was the first bigger festival in the LGBT centrum SchwuZ in Berlin with around 400 guests. The evening was organized from "BeV StroganoV" and workers of the bookstore "Eisenherz" in Berlin. In 1992 the award was officially made part of the Berlin International Film Festival. In 1997 "TEDDY e.V.", a non-profit organisation was founded, which lobbied the award.
Categories.
There are three main categories in which the award is given:
One additional film is singled out for a Jury Award. A Special Award is commonly, but not always, given to one or more individuals for a distinguished achievement in LGBT cinema, such as a career lifetime achievement as a director or performer, or for a person's role in a project of significance to the history of LGBT cinema.
The German LGBT magazine "Siegessäule" formerly sponsored an award which was given to a film selected by a panel of the magazine's readers. This was discontinued after 2012, but was reinstituted in 2016 under the new sponsorship of the magazine "Männer"; in 2017, the award was named the Harvey in honour of Harvey Milk.


Manmadha Leelayai Vendrar Undo

Manmadha Leelayai Vendrar Undo is a Tamil song sung by M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar in his 1944 film "Haridas". The song is considered one of the first important film songs composed in Charukesi raga. Video clippings from the song are featured in almost all documentaries and short films on pre-independence Tamil cinema.
The song is sung by the lead character Haridas (played by Bhagavathar) for a "sadir" performance by a devadasi (played by T. R. Rajakumari). Haridas' wife (played by N. C. Vasanthakokilam) clandestinely views the performance and is incensed by the amorous courtship between Haridas and the devadasi.
The popularity of the song has triggered remixes in recent times. The song also propelled the popular usage of the term "Manmadha Leelai". A film named "Manmadha Leelai" was made in 1976 with Kamal Haasan in the lead. The song was remixed in the 2002 film, "Panchathantiram", also starring Haasan.


Mithran Jawahar

Mithran R.Jawahar (born 8 June 1979) is an Indian film director who works predominantly with the actor Dhanush in Tamil films.
Career.
Jawahar, an erstwhile assistant of Selvaraghavan, began working on his first film starring Dhanush in December 2004. A remake of the Telugu film "Arya" (2004), the film was later put on hold and restarted at a later date. As a result, his debut venture was the 2008 film "Yaaradi Nee Mohini", starring Dhanush and Nayantara, which was a runaway hit. His next two films "Kutty" (2010) and "Uthamaputhiran" (2010), both again featuring Dhanush in the lead role, also became successful.
In 2014, he began work on "Saamiyattam", a remake of the Telugu film "Swamy Ra Ra", produced and featuring Srikanth in the lead role but it was later shelved. He then moved on to direct a remake of the Malayalam film "Thattathin Marayathu", titled "Meendum Oru Kadhal Kadhai" (2016).
In 2021, his social drama film was titled "Mathil" starring director and actor K. S. Ravikumar.


Cinema of Iraq

The cinema of Iraq went through a downturn under Saddam Hussein's regime. The development of film and film-going in Iraq reflects the drastic historical shifts that Iraq has experienced in the 20th century. The Iraq War which began in 2003 had an influence on many films being produced.
History.
While Iraq's first film projection took place in 1909, cinema was not truly regarded as a cultural activity or pastime until the 1920s. The first cinemas, like the famous al-Zawra cinema on Baghdad's bustling thoroughfare al-Rashid, played mostly American silent films for British citizens.
In the 1940s under the rule of King Faisal II of Iraq, a real Iraqi cinema began. Supported by British and French financiers, movie production companies established themselves in Baghdad. The Baghdad Studio was established in 1948, but soon came apart when tensions between the Arab and Jewish founders flared up. For the most part, the product was purely commercial, fluffy romances with plenty of singing and dancing often set in small villages. The World of Arts (Dunyat Alfann) studio, which was founded by actors, reached for more serious fare. In 1955, they produced Haidar Al-Omar's Fitna wa Hassan, an Iraqi retelling of Romeo and Juliet, that received international attention. But for the most part, the strong-fist rule of the state discouraged any socially relevant films.
In 1959 when King Faisel II's government was overthrown, the Cinema and Theater General organization came into existence with the purpose of promoting the political goals of the new regime both in documentaries and features. Typical were documentaries like the 1969 Al Maghishi Project, which showcased the government's irrigation campaigns and the 1967 A Wedding in Heaven, which celebrates the air force and their weapons system. The 1968 revolution that put the Ba'ath party in power further solidified the government's control of film material, and the state's need to make all films validate its power.
Saddam Hussein's ascension to power in 1979 pushed the Iraqi cinema in a slightly different direction. The drain on national resources from the 1980 Iran–Iraq War brought film production to a near halt. The few films put into production were mainly intent on glorifying a mythic Iraqi history or celebrating Hussein's rule. In 1981, the government commissioned Egyptian filmmaker Salah Abouseif to make "Al-Qadisiya", a period epic recounting the triumph of the Arabs over the Persians in 636 AD. Likewise Mohamed Shukri Jameel's melodramatic "The Great Question ("al-Mas' Ala Al-Kubra")" cast British actor Oliver Reed as the vicious Lt-Col Gerard Leachman who is righteously killed in the 1920 Iraqi revolution.
In 1980 Hussein promoted his own mythology with the autobiographical 6-hour epic "The Long Days" ("al-Ayyam al-tawila"), the saga of Hussein's participation in the 1958 failed assassination attempt on Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim, and his subsequent heroic escape back to Tikrit. The film was edited and partially directed by Terence Young, the British director who made his name helming the early James Bond films "Dr. No" and "Thunderball (film)". Hussein is played by Saddam Kamel, a cousin and son-in-law of Hussein's, who eventually ran afoul of the leader and was murdered in 1996.
After Iraq started attacks against Kuwait, Iraq sanctions made filmmaking an impossibility in the country, although a new generation of filmmakers is coming alive in Baghdad.
Film directors.
, (1978–), starred in the California State University, Northridge screenwriting and film
Films.
List of Iraqi films


Puli (soundtrack)

Puli is the soundtrack to the 2010 Telugu action film of the same name, directed by S. J. Suryah and starring Pawan Kalyan. The soundtrack includes six songs composed by A. R. Rahman and lyrics written by Chandrabose. The album was released on 20 August 2010 by Sony Music. The album was released under the film's working title "Komaram Puli", with the title of the film being changed to "Puli" upon release.
The album and background score received positive critical reception upon release. It was nominated for various music awards such as Best Music Director and Best Background Score (Rahman), and Best Female Playback (Shweta Mohan for "Amma Thalle"), but most of the awards in the Best Music Direction and Background Score categories mainly lost to "Ye Maaya Chesave", composed by Rahman himself. Shweta Mohan won Best Female Playback for the song "Amma Thalle" in the 2010 Mirchi Music Awards South.
Release.
The release rights of the album was purchased by Sony Music for 2 crores. The track listing was published on A. R. Rahman's official website on 13 August 2010. A 30 second promo of the song "Maaralente" was released through this website on the same day. Promos of other songs were released the next day. The audio was launched on 20 August 2010 by the then Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah, Rahman and his mother Kareema Begum in a function held at H.I.C.C Novotel, Hyderabad. The function was attended by K. Rosaiah, S. J. Suryah, Allu Aravind, Pawan Kalyan, Nikeesha Patel, Shriya Saran, A. R. Rahman, Chandrabose, Anand Sai and many others.
Overview.
The picturisation of the songs were also noted. Two songs were choreographed by Bollywood choreographer Ahmed Khan. The songs choreographed by him were "Power Star", the introduction song of Pawan Kalyan and "Dochey", the item number featuring Shriya Saran. The songs were filmed in two schedules at Annapurna Studios beginning from 18 May. Out of the six songs, four songs were directly included while the remaining two were background songs. Lyricist Chandrabose collaborated with Rahman for the first time through this film. However, the lyrics penned by him got notably mixed reviews and even his name was not credited in the front CD cover. The lyricist was also criticised for using certain words like "heroin" and "cocaine" in the track "Power Star". He took almost three months to write the song "Amma Thale" while all it took to write the song "Maaralente" was 30 minutes. The original score, composed by Rahman also won critical appreciations. He collaborated with artists from three European countries for re-recording the background score.
The first song in the movie is "Namakame", picturised on Saranya, when she prays at a temple before the birth of her son. The next song, "Maham Maye" is a duet, picturised on Nikeesha Patel, when she tries to grab the attention of Pawan Kalyan. "Amma Thale" comes in close succession and is of the similar theme. Fourth song, "Dochey" is an item number by Shriya Saran, who is a casino dancer in the film. "Power Star", is picturised on Nikeesha and Pawan and it praises the style and hero qualities of Pawan. The last song, "Maaralente", is a background song used throughout the movie, notably during the Puli team formation and the climax scenes.
Reception.
The soundtrack got generally positive reviews and has become a hot seller during recent days. 3 lakh units of the audio CD was sold within few days after audio release.
The soundtrack has also received positive critical reviews. Behindwoods commented that the soundtrack as usual is a great piece from Rahman. A review on NDTV said, "As far as music is concerned, the re-recording is excellent, but the songs are only so good." Nowrunning reviewed the music saying "A.R. Rahman's music and background score is as always melodious." However, a review by Rediff said, "Rahman's music is not as great as expected except for the song Maaralente which seems touching, fairly powerful and reverberates in the mind even after the film is over."
Track listing.
The official track listing:


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