Bala | |
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![]() Bala at Salim Movie Audio Launch. | |
Born | Bala Palanisamy [1] 11 July 1966 |
Alma mater | Madurai American College |
Occupation(s) | Film director, Screenwriter, Film producer |
Years active | 1998–present |
Spouse | Muthumalar (m. 2004;div. 2022) |
Bala is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and film producer, working in Tamil cinema. Bala has been praised for "revolutionizing Tamil cinema" [2] [3] [4] through his realistic, dark and disturbing depiction of the working class on celluloid screen. [2] [5] Shaji N. Karun, who headed the jury of the 56th National Film Awards, said, "Bala is unique in many ways. The way he changed Tamil cinema's character was commendable ... There were many who tried for a change. Among the new generation of filmmakers, Bala leads the pack in bringing a change in Tamil cinema's outlook and approach." [6]
Bala was introduced by lyricist Arivumathi to director Balu Mahendra. [7] Initially, he began working as a production assistant under him. [8] Later Bala turned to work with him as assistant director in his movies. [9] [10] Bala made his directorial debut with Sethu in 1999, that gave a break to Vikram, the film's lead actor, who was also struggling in the Tamil film industry for almost a decade without a hit and recognition. More than 60 distributors saw the film and hesitated to screen it because of its tragic ending. The film was released on a low profile without any advertisement but after the first days the film started running to packed houses just through 'word of mouth'. [11] [12] The film was said to have initiated a 'new wave' [13] as it received critical acclaim and became a hit. Its success led to remakes in Kannada ( Huchcha ), Telugu ( Seshu ), and Hindi ( Tere Naam ) languages. He next made Nandha in 2001, which gave a breakthrough for Suriya in the industry. [14]
In 2009, Naan Kadavul featuring Arya and Pooja Umashankar, won its first National Film Award for Best Direction. [15] In 2011, Arya and Vishal playing the lead roles in the comedy drama Avan Ivan . [16] Produced by Bala himself under the banner of B Studios, Paradesi (2013), takes on the challenge of transforming the boy-next-door looks of Atharvaa into an almost bald, unsophisticated village simpleton of a bygone era. After working with Ilaiyaraaja and Yuvan Shankar Raja in his earlier films, director Bala for the first time teams up with G. V. Prakash Kumar for the music of Paradesi. [17] In 2016, overall the performances in Tharai Thappattai are of superior quality and so is the technical aspects. [18] In 2018, Naachiyaar stars Jyothika in the titular role, while G. V. Prakash Kumar and newcomer Ivana play important supporting characters in this engaging crime thriller. [19] In 2020, the romantic drama Varmaa was disappointed with critics. [20]
Bala was chosen as the director of Varmaa , the Tamil remake of Arjun Reddy , for which the rights were bought by E4 Entertainment. Principal photography was wrapped up in September 2018. On 7 February 2019, E4 Entertainment issued a press statement stating that they would go for a complete re-shoot as they were not satisfied with the final cut provided by Bala. They added that the film would be relaunched with a completely new cast and crew while retaining lead actor Dhruv. [21] Bala disagreed with these comments, saying it was his own decision to quit the film "in order to safeguard creative freedom" because he was asked to make changes. [22] This became the first such incident in Tamil cinema that the producer of the film refused to release the film due to unsatisfactory final cut despite the completion of the film. [23]
Bala was born and brought up in Madurai. His father worked in a bank in Madurai and his mother was a homemaker. Bala completed his graduation from American College with an aim to dive into the Tamil film industry. [24] Bala married Muthumalar in 2004 and has a daughter. Bala and Muthumalar divorced in 2022, after 18 years of marriage. [25]
This is a list of films that he produced but did not direct.
Year | Film | Notes |
---|---|---|
2005 | Maayavi | |
2014 | Pisaasu | |
2015 | Chandi Veeran | |
2022 | Visithiran | |
Jyothika Saravanan, known mononyomusly as Jyothika, is an Indian actress and film producer who predominantly appears in Tamil films in addition to Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi films. Appeared in over 50 Films, Jyothika has received several accolades including a National Film Award, five Filmfare Awards South, four Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and the Kalaimamani Award. Jyothika is regarded as one of the most prolific actresses in Tamil cinema, and has been ranked among the best actresses of South India by the media.
Naan Kadavul is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by Bala and produced by K. S. Sreenivasan. The film is based on the Tamil novel Yezhaam Ulagam by Jeyamohan, who also penned the dialogues for the film. The film stars Arya, Pooja Umashankar and Rajendran in the lead roles. The background score and soundtrack were composed by Ilaiyaraaja.
G. V. Prakash Kumar is an Indian composer, playback singer, actor, and film producer known for his work in Tamil cinema. His first film was S Pictures' Veyil (2006) and he gained fame in Tamil films by the early 2010s. He made his debut in acting on 2015 through Darling. He has won one National Award, three Filmfare Awards and three SIIMA Awards in his film career.
The Vijay Award for Best Actress is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films. It was given from the second ceremony onwards.
The Vijay for Best Director is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films.
The Vijay Award for Favorite Director is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films.
Arthur A. Wilson is an Indian cinematographer. He predominantly works in Tamil and Telugu cinema. He is best known for his collaborations with directors like Kamal Haasan, Bala, K. S. Ravikumar, N. Lingusamy, and Boyapati Srinu. He won the Tamil Nadu State Award twice for Best Cinematography.
Paradesi (transl. Vagabond) is a 2013 Indian Tamil-language period drama film written and directed by Bala starring Atharvaa, Vedhika, and Dhansika. The film's music was scored by G. V. Prakash Kumar. The film was based on the novel Eriyum Panikadu, a Tamil translation of the 1969 English novel Red Tea by Paul Harris Daniel and inspired by real-life incidents that took place before independence in the 1930s. It was released on 15 March 2013. The dubbed version of Telugu was released under the same name. The film opened to highly positive reviews with critics mainly praising the performances of the cast and the direction of Bala. The movie was an average grosser at the box office
A. Rajendran, credited as Motta Rajendran or Naan Kadavul Rajendran, is an Indian stunt double and actor working mainly in Tamil cinema. He debuted in 2003 with the Tamil film Pithamagan and has worked as a stunt double in over 500 South Indian films since then. He played the role of a villain in Naan Kadavul (2009) which won huge critical acclaim and fetched him the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Villain. Since then, he has continued to play villainous and later humorous supporting characters in a number of Tamil films. He is noted for his rough voice and alopecia universalis, which he claims was the result of coming into contact with industrial waste during a stunt sequence.
Naachiyaar is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language action crime film written, produced and directed by Bala. The film featured Jyothika in the title role, with G. V. Prakash Kumar and Ivana in other leading roles. The film tells the tale of the policewoman working to uncover the truth after a young man is accused of sexually assaulting his minor girlfriend. Featuring music composed by Ilaiyaraaja and cinematography by Eashwar, the film began production during March 2017 and was released on 16 February 2018.The film was one of the most commercial successful film of that year and team had a success party, attended by the cast and crew members of the film.
Raiza Wilson is an Indian actress and model who appears in Tamil films. She rose to fame following her appearance in the Tamil reality TV show Bigg Boss. She won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South for her role as Sindhuja in Pyaar Prema Kaadhal. After her success she continued to act in films such as Dhanusu Raasi Neyargale (2019), Varmaa (2020), FIR (2022), Poikkal Kuthirai (2022) and Coffee With Kadhal (2022).
Adithya Varma is a 2019 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Gireeshaaya in his directorial debut and produced by Mukesh Mehta under E4 Entertainment. The film stars Dhruv Vikram in his acting debut and Banita Sandhu in her Tamil debut, while Priya Anand appears in a supporting role. A remake of the Telugu film Arjun Reddy (2017) directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, it follows Dhruv Vikram, as the titular character Adithya Varma, a wealthy and high-functioning alcoholic surgeon who has anger management problems. He pushes himself down a self-destructive path after the marriage of his girlfriend Meera; following which, the film focuses on his downfall and subsequent resurgence.
B Studios is an Indian film production and distribution company headed by Bala. In the recent past, B Studios has financed several of Bala's directorial ventures, and other films by filmmakers including Mysskin and Sarkunam.
Aleena Shaji, known by her stage name Ivana is an Indian actress who works predominantly in Tamil cinema, in addition to few Malayalam and Telugu films. Starting her career as a child artist in several Malayalam films, she made her lead debut role in Naachiyaar (2018) and get well known for her role as Nikitha in Love Today (2022) among audiences.
Varmaa is a 2020 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Bala and produced by Mukesh Mehta of E4 Entertainment. A remake of the 2017 Telugu film Arjun Reddy, directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, the film stars Dhruv Vikram and Megha Chowdhury, the latter in her Tamil debut. The film features music composed by Radhan, with M. Sukumar handling the cinematography and Sathish Suriya, taking in-charge of the editing.
Jyothika is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Tamil films. She also acted in some Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu, and Kannada films. She debuted in Bollywood in the Hindi film Doli Saja Ke Rakhna (1997), directed by Priyadarshan. She starred in her first Tamil film Vaali (1999) and her first Telugu film Tagore (2003), opposite Chiranjeevi.She won one National Award, four Filmfare Awards, six Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, two Cinema Express Awards, one South Indian International Movie Award, International Tamil Film Award and four Dinakaran Awards. She is also a recipient of the Kalaimamani Award. She is regarded as one of the most prolific actresses in Tamil cinema. She has been ranked among the best actresses of South India by The Times of India and The Hindu.
Megha Chowdhury is an Indian actress who has worked in Bengali, Telugu, and Tamil-language films.
Dhruv Vikram is an Indian actor, singer and lyricist who works in Tamil films. The son of actor Vikram, he made his acting debut with the 2019 romantic drama Adithya Varma and starred with his father in Mahaan (2022). Since 2022, he has worked primarily as a singer, both on films and non-film songs.
Poornima Ramaswamy is an Indian fashion costume designer and entrepreneur. She won a National Film Award for her first film Paradesi (2013), and has continued to work in Indian cinema and stage.
E4 Entertainment is an Indian film production and distribution company founded by Mukesh R. Mehta and C.V. Sarathi. Established in 2012, the company's headquarters are located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.