Santhakumar

Last updated
Santhakumar
Occupation Film director Screenwriter
Years active2001-2004 (Assistant director)
2006-present

Santhakumar is an Indian director and screenwriter who predominantly works in tamil cinema. [1] He is known for directing Mounaguru (2011) and Magamuni (2019).

Contents

Career

Santhakumar worked as an assistant director to Dharani for Dhill (2001), Dhool (2003) and Ghilli (2004) before commencing work on Mounaguru in 2006. [2] [3] Mounaguru notably featured no lip-sync songs, a staple of Indian films, as he felt that it would ruin the film's narrative. [2] A ten minute sequence featuring Arulnidhi on his knees took ten days to shoot. [2] The film faced no significant competition during release and was a success. [4] A critic wrote that the film "has everything that might count as a cliche but the marvel of it is that it never descends into mediocrity or becomes predictable". [5] He commenced work for his next film Magamuni based on the two namesake characters in 2015, [3] and first wrote Maga before Muni. [6] Arya was cast in the titular roles after the producer suggested him after the script was finished, [7] and Santhakumar decided to cast him after Arya was mentally strong and became a cyclist despite having a commercial failure. [6] Regarding her character Deepa, Mahima Nambiar called her a female version of the director. [8] Regarding the film, a critic wrote that "Director Santhakumar comes back to filmmaking after a eight-year gap [...] but has not lost touch with the craft, going by Magamuni. Not only is his story narrative unique, his writing of the various characters are also well fleshed out and detailed". [9] [10] Unlike his previous two films, he turned producer with Rasavathi (2024), [11] [12] which was not well received with a critic noting that "To call the film’s pacing slow is an understatement and it’s understandable given the wafer-thin plot, which the director tries to accentuate by adding more characters that in turn lead to more scenes". [13] [14]

Personal life

[6] He studied at American College, Madurai. [7] Between films, Santhakumar likes to do solo traveling for soul searching and writing. [7]

Filmography

List of Santhakumar film credits
YearTitleCredited asNotes
DirectorWriterProducer
2011 Mounaguru YesYesNo
2019 Magamuni YesYesNo
2024 Rasavathi YesYesYes

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References

  1. ↑ Shrikumar, A. (7 May 2024). "Director Santhakumar on 'Rasavathi': 'I am curious about the lives of every character I write'". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 8 May 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 S. R. Ashok Kumar (2011-12-03). "Arts / Cinema : Twin treat". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 2012-01-15. Retrieved 2012-01-12.
  3. 1 2 "Director Santhakumar of Mouna Guru fame updates on his second project". Behindwoods. June 16, 2015. Archived from the original on April 9, 2023. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  4. ↑ "Mounaguru Movie Review". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2024-05-15. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
  5. ↑ Srinivasan, Pavithra. "Review: Mounaguru is a must watch". Rediff. Archived from the original on 2024-05-15. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
  6. 1 2 3 Subhakeerthana, S.; Chakraborthy, Antara (10 September 2019). "I am not into the business of commercialising cinema: Magamuni director Santhakumar". The Indian Express . Archived from the original on 16 September 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 Shrikumar, A. "'My stories emerge from my travels,' says director Santhakumar". Archived from the original on 11 May 2024.
  8. ↑ Darshan, Navein (September 12, 2019). "INTERVIEW | I played the female version of the director: 'Magamuni' actor Mahima Nambiar". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on May 15, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  9. ↑ "'Magamuni' movie review: Arya headlines this offbeat, non-commercial revenge saga that gets many things right - The Hindu". web.archive.org. 2024-05-10. Retrieved 2024-05-23.
  10. ↑ "Magamuni Movie Review : A worthy follow-up to Santhakumar's debut film, Mouna Guru". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2019-09-09. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
  11. ↑ Bureau, N. T. (April 30, 2024). "Santhakumar plans big in Rasavathi - The Alchemist". Archived from the original on May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  12. ↑ R, Chandhini (November 4, 2022). "Santhakumar's next with Arjun Das to be a multi-genre film". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  13. ↑ "'Rasavathi' movie review: This predictable revenge drama dearly misses Santhakumar's Midas touch". web.archive.org. 2024-05-12. Retrieved 2024-05-23.
  14. ↑ "Rasavathi Movie Review : A few compelling characters trapped in a non-compelling film". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2024-05-10. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
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