M. Rajesh | |
---|---|
![]() M Rajesh at JR 30 Pooja | |
Born | |
Alma mater | National Engineering College, Kovilpatti |
Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
Years active | 2009–present |
Spouse | Shakthi |
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.
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]
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]
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]
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]
Year | Film | Credited as | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Director | Writer | |||
2009 | Siva Manasula Sakthi | Yes | Yes | |
2010 | Boss Engira Bhaskaran | Yes | Yes | |
2012 | Oru Kal Oru Kannadi | Yes | Yes | |
2013 | Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam | No | Dialogues | |
2013 | All in All Azhagu Raja | Yes | Yes | |
2015 | Vasuvum Saravananum Onna Padichavanga | Yes | Yes | |
2016 | Kadavul Irukaan Kumaru | Yes | Yes | |
2019 | Mr. Local | Yes | Yes | |
2021 | Vanakkam Da Mappilei | Yes | Yes | |
2022 | Victim | Yes | Yes | Anthology series; episode: "Mirrage" |
2023 | MY3 | Yes | Yes | Streaming television series [14] |
TBA | Brother | Yes | Yes |
Santhanam Neelamegam is an Indian actor and film producer who mainly works in Tamil cinema. Beginning his career as a comedian on television, he rose to fame through his performances in STAR Vijay's Lollu Sabha enacting the lead role in spoofs of Tamil films. He was subsequently given a chance by actor Silambarasan to feature in a supporting role in Manmadhan (2004) and then was signed on to appear in a host of films, notably winning good reviews for his work in Sachien (2005) and Polladhavan (2007). He appeared in a one-off leading role in Shankar's production Arai En 305-il Kadavul (2008) and became a staple feature as a comedian with his brand of insult comedy becoming very successful during the period, with his market popularity helping stuck films find distributors.
Siva Manasula Sakthi also known by the initialism SMS, is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by debutant M. Rajesh. It stars Jiiva and newcomer Anuya Bhagwat, a student of Pune Film Institute, in the lead roles, with Santhanam, Urvashi and Sathyan appearing in supporting and Arya appearing in a cameo role.
The Vijay for Best Comedian is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil (Kollywood) films.
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Boss Engira Bhaskaran is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by M. Rajesh who earlier directed Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009). Starring Arya, Nayanthara and Santhanam in lead roles, the film is produced by K. S. Sreenivasan and features music scored by Yuvan Shankar Raja and cinematography handled by Sakthi Saravanan.
Oru Kal Oru Kannadi abbreviated as OKOK is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by M. Rajesh. It stars film producer Udhayanidhi Stalin, Santhanam and Hansika Motwani in lead roles, while Saranya Ponvannan and Azhagam Perumal play supporting roles. The film's music was composed by Harris Jayaraj with cinematography by Balasubramaniem and editing by Vivek Harshan. The film was named after the song of the same name from Rajesh's film Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009).
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OK OK may refer to:
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