While cinema itself is a male-dominated industry, direction is doubly so. Despite this, women have proved themselves as filmmakers in Tamil cinema right from black and white era.
The likes of T P Rajalakshmi, Bhanumathi, Suhasini Mani Ratnam, B R Vijayalakshmi, Priya, Madhumitha, Aishwarya R Dhanush and Lakshmy Ramakrishnan have set an example, and more and more women are now taking up direction in Kollywood.
As part of its Friday special articles series, Mykollywood.com throws light on some modern-day women directors who are making their presence felt in Tamil cinema.
GAYATHRI
Pushkar and Gayathri are a husband and wife filmmaker duo from India. They are the only married couple directors in Asia and are a part of a small community worldwide. Their films are noted for their unique style and technical finesse.
Probably most famous for their 2017 film, ‘Vikram Vedha’, the couple has been in the industry since 2007. They have, till date, written and directed three feature Tamil movies – ‘Oram Po’, ‘Va- Quarter Cutting’ and ‘Vikram Vedha’. The first two movies earned them a niche cult fan-club both in India and abroad while their third movie has received strong critical reviews.
HALITHA SHAMEEM
Halitha Shameem is a director, screenwriter and editor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. She worked as an assistant director with Pushkar-Gayathri and Mysskin. In 2014, she made her Tamil cinema debut with ‘Poovarasam Peepee’.
Halitha was born in Dharapuram. She moved to Chennai to pursue opportunities in a creative career. After assisting in movies such as ‘Oram Po’, she debuted as a director with ‘Poovarasam Peepee’ in 2014.
After a gap of more than five years, she then directed the critically and commercially successful anthology film ‘Sillu Karupatti’ in 2019. She has now completed filming of her next movie ‘Aela’.
PRIYA KRISHNASWAMY
‘Baaram’, a film written in two weeks and shot in 18 days, has won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil this year. Directed by Priya Krishnaswamy, ‘Baaram’ deals with the illegal and seldom-talked-about topic of ‘Thalaikoothal’, which is a form of senicide where elderly people are led to their death by their family members.
Priya says in an interview, “I really believe in the audience. I’ve been one, and I enjoy watching movies. I believe the audience is a very smart entity. It can download or stream all kinds of cinema today and has learnt to make discerning, strong choices.”
On ‘Baaram’, she says, “It is based on a true story. I began to research it years ago, in 2012. Then in 2015, I went to the location where the incident happened, and met the people involved, so I had a very clear idea of how the film should look, feel and sound.”
PRIYADARSHINI
More than a year ago, an announcement from Chennai based production house Papertales Pictures was made. It said that young filmmaker A Priyadarshini will be directing the most anticipated biopic in the country – that of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, whose life events are contentious even today.
The film, titled ‘The Iron Lady’, which has been on the floors for over a year now, stars Nithya Menen as Jayalalithaa, who was popularly known as Amma.
“The film consists of many technical departments operating synchronously towards exploring our creative potential and at the same time refrain misrepresenting the real facts,” says Priyadarshini.
She adds: “The cast characters’ reveal is sure to be an interesting and exciting one and definitely worth the wait! It is necessary to wait to fully understand the logic and reason behind the timing of the reveal.”
By Naveen
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