M. Rajesh

Last updated

M. Rajesh
6Z9A9049.jpg
M Rajesh at JR 30 Pooja
Born
Nagercoil
Alma mater National Engineering College, Kovilpatti
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter
Years active2009–present
SpouseShakthi

Muthukumarasamy Rajesh is an Indian film director and screenwriter, working primarily in the Tamil film industry. Known for making romantic comedy films, he made his directorial debut with Siva Manasula Sakthi in 2009 and followed it up with Boss Engira Bhaskaran (2010) and Oru Kal Oru Kannadi (2012), all three of which emerged very successful at the box office. This was followed by a career setback, as his subsequent films were poorly received.

Contents

Early life

Rajesh was born in Nagercoil. [1] After studying engineering at National Engineering College in Kovilpatti, he worked as an IT professional in Mumbai for six months before deciding to pursue a career in film. [2]

Career

Rajesh worked with the production unit Cosmic Blues, and as an assistant on many short films and advertisement films for 1.5 years before shifting to Chennai. He began his feature film career as an assistant director under Ameer in Mounam Pesiyadhe (2002) and later assisted S. A. Chandrasekhar on a few films including Sukran (2005) and Nenjirukkum Varai (2006). After deciding to turn director, Rajesh opted against imitating Ameer or Chandrasekhar's directing styles but wanted his own style that would appeal to youngsters, and wrote the script of Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009). [2] [3] The film became a commercial success, as did his next two directorial ventures, Boss Engira Bhaskaran (2010) and Oru Kal Oru Kannadi (2012). All three films were described by Sify as having reinvented "the trend of light-hearted comedy entertainers without big storylines". [4] Rajesh later wrote the dialogues for Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam (2013), also a success. [5]

However, his subsequent directorial ventures All in All Azhagu Raja (2013), Vasuvum Saravananum Onna Padichavanga (2015), [4] Kadavul Irukaan Kumaru (2016), and Mr. Local (2019) became box-office bombs. [6] [7] By the time of Vasuvum Saravananum Onna Padichavanga's release, he was described by Sify as having lost his "Midas touch", and the website said he "should work on something out of the box to taste the much needed success". [4] His next venture, Vanakkam Da Mappilei , premiered on Sun NXT in 2021 and too suffered the same fate. [8] In 2022, Rajesh directed "Mirrage", an episode of the anthology thriller series Victim , deviating from his usual comedy films. [9] He also began work on the film Brother . [10]

Criticism

Rajesh's films have been heavily criticized for seemingly glorifying stalking, drinking and degrading women. Ashutosh Mohan wrote for Film Companion that Rajesh's initial films appeared harmless: "Why shouldn't wastrels get the good girls? It stopped being funny from All in All Azhaguraja, when it became clear that misogyny, more than comedy, was really Rajesh's thing". Mohan felt the lead characters in Rajesh's films are "paragons of unproductivity. They have online degrees in stalking, which somehow seems to help them get girls who are otherwise sensible and independent" and lamented that these characterestics seemed to have influenced the lead characters in films not directed by Rajesh, such as Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam (2013), Idhu Kathirvelan Kadhal (2014) and Nannbenda (2015).

Though Rajesh initially said Mr. Local would not feature any drinking or smoking scene, the film received criticism because of its toxic treatment of the female lead character, body shaming, shaming of transgender people and glorifying other activities not considered socially proper. [11] [12]

Personal life

Rajesh is married to Shakthi, whom he met while working as an assistant under Chandrashekhar. [2] Rajesh's father died on 2 October 2010. [13]

Filmography

YearFilmCredited asNotes
DirectorWriter
2009 Siva Manasula Sakthi YesYes
2010 Boss Engira Bhaskaran YesYes
2012 Oru Kal Oru Kannadi YesYes
2013 Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam NoDialogues
2013 All in All Azhagu Raja YesYes
2015 Vasuvum Saravananum Onna Padichavanga YesYes
2016 Kadavul Irukaan Kumaru YesYes
2019 Mr. Local YesYes
2021 Vanakkam Da Mappilei YesYes
2022 Victim YesYesAnthology series; episode: "Mirrage"
2023 MY3 YesYesStreaming television series [14]
TBA Brother YesYes

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References

  1. ↑ "Rajesh says All in All Azhagu Raja will be a 'different' film". Kollytalk. 3 June 2013. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Kamath, Sudhish (26 September 2013). "Master of Bromance". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  3. ↑ Inian. "BEB Rajesh Interview". Behindwoods. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 "Directors who lost their Midas touch". Sify . slide 6. Archived from the original on 8 June 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  5. ↑ "Rajesh to direct Sivakarthikeyan's next?". The Times of India . 18 March 2018. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Sun Pictures to produce Rajesh's next with GV Prakash". Sify . 18 December 2020. Archived from the original on 18 December 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "This Day Last Year: Sivakarthikeyan shared his happiness on the talented Nayanthara getting a bigger role with 'Mr. Local'". The Times of India . 13 May 2020. Archived from the original on 15 May 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Chandar, Bhuvanesh (16 April 2021). "Vanakkam Da Mappilei Movie Review: Uninspiring and problematic". Cinema Express . Archived from the original on 30 May 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  9. ↑ "Victim review: Pa.Ranjith's brilliant movie makes Venkat Prabhu, Rajesh, Chimbudevan look like amateurs". The Indian Express . 5 August 2022. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  10. ↑ "Jayam Ravi's film with M Rajesh titled 'Brother'; first look revealed". The Times of India . 18 September 2023. Archived from the original on 18 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  11. ↑ Mohan, Ashutosh (16 March 2020). "Even Stars Like Rajinikanth, Vijay And Ajith Can't Escape Stereotyping. Here Are 10 Tamil Cinema Tropes We Can Live Without". Film Companion . Archived from the original on 13 July 2023. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  12. ↑ K, Janani (23 May 2019). "Why Sivakarthikeyan and Nayanthara's Mr Local is a mighty problematic film". India Today . Archived from the original on 5 October 2019. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "Director's father passes away". Behindwoods. 2 October 2010. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  14. ↑ "Hansika Motwani Collaborates With Director M Rajesh For This Web Series". News18 . 24 August 2023. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
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