Actress Saritha turns 65 today.
Saritha is a veteran of more than 150 films in a career spanning more than 45 years. She was introduced to the Tamil screen by K. Balachander who cast her in the female lead opposite Rajinikanth in Thappu Thaalangal. She went on to have a successful career in Tamil films, often playing challenging and unusual […]
OPINION PIECE: Kamalhaasan’s Thug Life Response to Karnataka
The recent controversy surrounding Kamalhaasan’s comments about the Kannada language have ignited lots of discussions on both sides of the issue after Kamalhaasan announced that Thug Life will not release in Karnataka. This follows a threat to ban the film if he did not apologise for comments he made about the Kannada language. It is […]
Remembering the Golden Voice of S.P. Balasubramanyam on his birth anniversary.
S.P. Balasubramanyam was born on 04 June 1946 into a Telugu family in Nellore district in Andhra Pradesh. He received six national awards across songs in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi – a feat that will be extremely difficult to replicate. He has also won 32 national awards, the Padmashri, Padma Bhushan and the Padma […]
Radha – Kanavu Kani of the 1980s – turns 60
Udaya Chandrika is better known by her screen name, Radha. Born on 03 June 1965, she made her acting debut in Bharathiraja’s 1981 film, Alaigal Oyvathilai opposite fellow newcomer, Karthik. The film was a huge hit and won for her the Tamil Nadu State Award for Best Female Debut. Her second role was a small […]
A fresh look at Illaiyaraja on the eve of his 82nd Birthday – with 100 of his best songs
Illaiyaraja was born in Pannaipuram on 03 June 1943. He had a close friendship with former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Karunanidhi. It was Karunanidhi who first referred to Illaiyaraja as “Isai Gnani”. Since Karunanidhi’s birthday was also on 03 June, Illaiyaraja decided to celebrate his birthday on 02 June as a mark of […]
Mani Ratnam’s 69th birthday comes three days before his ambitious film “Thug Life”: Here is a peek into his impressive career in films.
Mani Ratnam, whose real name is Gopalaratnam Subramaniam, is one of India’s most respected directors. He was norn on 02 June 1956 in Madurai. He has won seven National Film Awards, four Filmfare Awards, six Filmfare South Awards and the Padmashri Award from the Government of India. He made his directorial debut in the Kannada […]
Exploring the Enigma Called Illaiyaraja – Episode 10
Illaiyaraja’s first release for 1981 – Meendum Kokila – had an interesting history. It was to have been directed by Mahendran and was meant to mark the Tamil debut of actress Rekha, daughter of Gemini Ganesan. Mahendran and Rekha both dropped the project and Kamalhaasan then approached G.N. Rangarajan to direct the film, where the […]
R Madhavan’s film career is an inspiration to all – A look at the highlights of his career on his 55th birthday.
R. Madhavan was born on 1 June 1970 in North East India where he grew up and completed his education. He won a scholarship as a cultural ambassador to India in Canada where he stayed for a year before returning to India He began his acting career playing various roles in Hindi TV serials, including […]
K.S. Ravikumar turns 67 as he celebrates 35 years as a film director.
After apprenticing under various directors like Bharathiraja, Vikraman and K. Rangaraj, K.S. Ravikumar worked as co-director to Vikraman in the film Pudhu Vassantham produced by RB Choudary (father of actor Jiiva). Choudary noticed Ravikumar’s speed and attention to detail and signed him on to direct his next venture. Titled Puriyaadha Pudhir, this film marked K.S. […]
Exploring the Enigma called Illaiyaraja – Episode 9
As indicated in Episode 8, by the middle of 1980, Illaiyaraja had become a household name and a much sought after music composer. Even those who had gleefully predicted a short career for him had to accept that he was now a major role-player. For the first time, listeners were taking careful note of the […]