Sudha Kongara

Last updated

Sudha Kongara
Sudha Kongara Prasad at Irudhi Suttru Thanks Giving Meet.jpg
Kongara at Irudhi Suttru thanksgiving meet in 2016
Born
Other namesSudha Kongara Prasad [1]
Alma mater Women's Christian College, Chennai
Occupation(s)Film director
screenwriter
Years active2002–present

Sudha Kongara Prasad, known professionally as Sudha Kongara, is an Indian film director and screenwriter who predominantly works in Tamil. [2] She made her directorial debut with the Tamil film Drohi . In 2016, she directed the bilingual Irudhi Suttru (Saala Khadoos in Hindi) for which she won the Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil. She subsequently directed the film's Telugu remake, Guru (2017). In her career, working over 3 languages, she has won two National Film Awards, two Filmfare Awards South and two South Indian International Movie Awards.

Contents

In 2020, she scripted, and directed Soorarai Pottru which was nominated for the Best Foreign Film at the 78th Golden Globe Awards. Soorarai Pottru was featured in the Panorama Section of the Shanghai International Film Festival. At the 68th National Film Awards, it won five awards including Best Feature Film, and Best Screenplay for Sudha Kongara. [3]

Early life

Sudha Kongara was born in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, into a Telugu-speaking family. [4] Sudha grew up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. She obtained a degree in History and Mass Communication from the Women's Christian College, Chennai. [5]

Career

Kongara worked as a screenwriter for the English film Mitr, My Friend (2002). [6] She worked as associate director for seven years with Mani Ratnam. [7] [8] [9] [1] [10]

During the production of her first Tamil directorial venture Drohi (2010), Kongara began writing a sports drama film on boxing which was titled Irudhi Suttru . In mid-2013, she approached Madhavan, who was on a sabbatical from Tamil films, to portray the lead role in the film and his presence in the project, helped take the financial viability of the venture to a higher level. [11] The pair had previously collaborated in Madhavan's films under the direction of Mani Ratnam, where Sudha had been an associate director. [12] She then remade Irudhi Suttru in Telugu as Guru. Her next film was Soorarai Pottru which is based on life of Air Deccan founder Captain GR Gopinath feature and it is produced by Suriya's 2D Entertainment and co-produced by Guneet Monga of Sikhya Entertainment. [13] [14]

Filmography

Key
Denotes films that have not yet been released
YearFilmDirectorScreenwriterLanguageNotes
2002 Mitr, My Friend NoYesEnglish
2008Andhra AndagaduYesYesTelugu [15]
2010 Drohi YesYesTamil
2016 Irudhi Suttru/ Saala Khadoos YesYesTamil
Hindi
Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil [16]
2017 Guru YesYesTelugu
2020 Putham Pudhu Kaalai YesYesTamilAnthology film; segment: Ilamai Idho Idho [17]
Soorarai Pottru YesYesTamil National Film Award for Best Feature Film
SIIMA Award for Best Director - Tamil
Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil [18]
Paava Kadhaigal YesYesTamilNetflix Anthology film; segment: Thangam [19]
2024 Sarfira YesYesHindiCompleted [20]
TBA1965: PurananooruYesYesTamilAnnounced [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suriya</span> Indian actor

Saravanan Sivakumar, known by his stage name Suriya, is an Indian actor and film producer. He primarily works in Tamil cinema where he is one of the highest paid actors. He has received numerous awards including two National Film Awards, six Filmfare Awards South, five Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and two South Indian International Movie Awards. Suriya has featured six times in the Celebrity 100 list of Forbes India, which takes into account the earnings of Indian celebrities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R. Madhavan</span> Indian actor and film producer (born 1970)

Ranganathan Madhavan is an Indian actor, writer, director, and producer who predominantly appears in Tamil and Hindi films. Over the course of his career, he has been a recipient of several accolades including one National Film Award, four Filmfare Awards South and two Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. Currently, he serves as the President of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jyothika</span> Indian actress

Jyothika Saravanan is an Indian actress and film producer who predominantly appears in Tamil films in addition to Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi films. Jyothika has received several accolades including a National Film Award, four Filmfare Awards South, six 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.

The Filmfare Best Director Award is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards South for Tamil (Kollywood) films. The awards were extended to "Best Director" in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R. Madhavan filmography</span> List of films of Indian actor R. Madhavan

R. Madhavan is an Indian actor known for his work predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, and also in few Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films. He began his acting career in the early 1990s by featuring in Hindi soap operas like Banegi Apni Baat, Sea Hawks, Ghar Jamai and Saaya. In 2000, Madhavan gained recognition in Tamil cinema by playing the lead role in Mani Ratnam's romantic drama film Alai Payuthey. He followed this with appearances in two commercially successful Tamil films, Gautham Vasudev Menon's directorial debut Minnale (2001) and Madras Talkies' Dumm Dumm Dumm (2001), as well as his first Hindi film in a leading role, Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein (2001).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">YNOT Studios</span> Indian film production company

YNOT Studios is an Indian film production company in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, established by producer S. Sashikanth. As of 2023, the company has produced 21 feature films, which includes productions made in the Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi film industries of India. It has collaborated with filmmakers including Sudha Kongara, Balaji Mohan, Pushkar–Gayathri and Karthik Subbaraj.

<i>Irudhi Suttru</i> 2016 film by Sudha Kongara

Irudhi Suttru is a 2016 Indian sports drama film written and directed by Sudha Kongara. Filmed simultaneously in Tamil and Hindi, with the latter being titled as Saala Khadoos, the film stars R. Madhavan as boxing coach who is ignored by the boxing association, tries to accomplish his dream by training an amateur boxer, Madhi, played by Ritika Singh in her acting debut. Both the Tamil and Hindi versions are produced by S. Sashikanth for YNOT Studios and UTV Motion Pictures, while C. V. Kumar's Thirukumaran Entertainment and Dream Factory distributed the Tamil version and the Hindi version was jointly distributed by Madhavan himself under the Tricolour Films banner along with Rajkumar Hirani Films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2D Entertainment</span> Indian film studio

2D Entertainment is an Indian film production and distribution company established by Suriya. Other key people involved are Rajsekar Pandian, Suriya's wife Jyothika and Suriya's brother Karthi. The company was named by the starting letter of Suriya's children Diya and Dev. The company was established in 2013.

Sathish Suriya is an Indian film editor, who has worked on Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Kannada language films.

Dheekshitha Venkadeshan, known professionally as Dhee, is an Australian singer known for her work as a playback singer in Indian Tamil cinema. Born to a Sri Lankan father and an Indian mother, she was raised in Sydney and has sung songs mostly in her stepfather Santhosh Narayanan's albums. She has once been nominated at the Filmfare Awards for Best Singer, and is known for her distinctive alto voice.

<i>Guru</i> (2017 film) 2017 film by Sudha Kongara

Guru (transl. Mentor) is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language sports drama film written and directed by Sudha Kongara and produced by S. Shashikanth on YNOT Studios banner. The film stars Venkatesh and Ritika Singh with the music composed by Santhosh Narayanan. The film is remake of Kongara's own film Irudhi Suttru/Saala Khadoos (2016).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ritika Singh</span> Indian actress and former martial artist

Ritika Mohan Singh is an Indian actress and former mixed martial artist who predominantly features in Tamil films, in addition to Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam films. After competing for India at the 2009 Asian Indoor Games and then participating in the Super Fight League, she played a leading role in Sudha Kongara Prasad's Tamil film Irudhi Suttru alongside R. Madhavan. She won Special Mention at the 63rd National Film Awards for her performance in the film. She received Filmfare Awards three times for the same role in three languages: Tamil, Hindi and Telugu (Guru). She has won a National Award, one SIIMA award, one Tamil Nadu State Film Award special Prize and three Filmfare Awards respectively.

Sanchana Natarajan is an Indian model and actress who has appeared in predominantly Tamil-language films. Having appeared in small roles in films including Irudhi Suttru (2016) and 2.0 (2018), Sanchana rose to fame with her role in Balaji Mohan's web series As I'm Suffering From Kadhal (2017).

<i>Soorarai Pottru</i> 2020 film directed by Sudha Kongara

Soorarai Pottru is a 2020 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by Sudha Kongara, who wrote the screenplay with Shalini Usha Nair. The film, co-produced by Suriya, Jyothika and Guneet Monga, stars Suriya, Aparna Balamurali and Paresh Rawal, while Mohan Babu, Urvashi and Karunas appear in supporting roles.

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.

<i>Soorarai Pottru</i> (soundtrack) 2020 soundtrack album by G. V. Prakash Kumar

Soorarai Pottru is the soundtrack album, composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, to the 2020 Indian Tamil-language drama film of the same name, directed by Sudha Kongara, starring Suriya and Paresh Rawal in the lead roles, along with Aparna Balamurali, Urvashi, and Mohan Babu in other prominent roles. The soundtrack album consists of 9 songs all of them were penned by lyricists Snehan, Yugabharathi, Vivek, Arunraja Kamaraj, Ekadesi, Maya Mahalingam and Arivu. The soundtrack album was released digitally on 24 July 2020, through the Sony Music record label.

<i>Irudhi Suttru</i> (soundtrack) 2016 soundtrack album by Santhosh Narayanan

Irudhi Suttru is the soundtrack album for the 2015 bilingual film of the same name starring R. Madhavan and Ritika Singh. The film directed by Sudha Kongara, is produced by YNOT Studios and UTV Motion Pictures.

"Veyyon Silli" is the 2020 Tamil-language song featured in the soundtrack of the Tamil film Soorarai Pottru. Directed by Sudha Kongara, and produced by Suriya under his 2D Entertainment banner, starring himself in the lead role. The song is composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, and sung by Harish Sivaramakrishnan and written by Vivek. It is a fusion of melody, folk and progressive rock, and was picturised on Suriya and Aparna Balamurali. The track was launched on 13 February 2020 at a special Boeing 737 aircraft flying on mid-air, the first time in Tamil cinema to do so.

Sarfira is an upcoming Indian Hindi-language drama film directed by Sudha Kongara, and produced by Abundantia Entertainment, 2D Entertainment and Cape Of Good Films. The film stars Akshay Kumar, Paresh Rawal, Radhika Madan and Seema Biswas. It is a remake of Sudha's directorial Soorarai Pottru (2020), which itself is an adaptation of G. R. Gopinath's memoir Simply Fly: A Deccan Odyssey. The film follows a man who sets out to make the common men fly, while several enemies try to get in the way.

References

  1. 1 2 "It was a struggle to make 'Saala Khadoos': Director Sudha Kongara Prasad". The Indian Express. 26 January 2016.
  2. "Changing gears successfully". The Hindu. 3 September 2002. Archived from the original on 7 May 2005. Retrieved 13 August 2006.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. "68th National Film Awards". The Hindu . 22 July 2022. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  4. Prema and Sudha Kongara (10 November 2020). Sudha Kongara with prema the Journalist - Full Interview #75. PREMA the Journalist. Event occurs at 10m5s.
  5. B, Jayabhuvaneshwari (5 July 2021). "All You Need To Know About The Soorarai Pottru Director Sudha Kongara!". Just for Women.
  6. "Sudha Kongara made her film debut with Mitr- My Friend". The Times of India .
  7. Rangarajan, Malathi (10 September 2010). "Intriguing features". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X.
  8. "The girl brigade of Tamil cinema - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Movie Slide Shows - Drohi - Sudha - Anjana - Suhasini Mani Ratnam - Revathy - Priya - Madhumita - J S Nandhini".
  9. "Saala Khadoos Director on Mani Ratnam and Rajkumar Hirani". NDTVMovies.com.
  10. Vadla, Praveen Kumar (20 November 2020). "Sudha Kongara: ఎక్కడ మొదలై.. ఎక్కడి వరకు.. సుధా కొంగర సక్సెస్ జర్నీ." News18 Telugu .
  11. Gupta, Rinku (16 December 2014). "Madhavan's New Boxer Look Revealed". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  12. "Hollywood Ho! - Hosur". The Hindu. 29 September 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  13. "Suriya's next with director Sudha Kongara titled 'Soorarai Pottru'". The News Minute. 13 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  14. "Suriya is best actor in our country: Guneet Monga". The New Indian Express. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  15. "Sudha Kongara Andhra Andagadu: నేష‌న‌ల్ అవార్డ్ విన్నింగ్ డైరెక్ట‌ర్ సుధా కొంగ‌ర ఫ‌స్ట్‌ మూవీలో కృష్ణ భ‌గ‌వాన్ హీరో".
  16. "Winners of the 64th Jio Filmfare Awards of Indian Cinema(South)". Filmfare.com. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  17. "'Putham Pudhu Kaalai': Amazon Prime Video announces anthology of five Tamil short films". Cinema Express. 9 September 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  18. "Soorarai Pottru and Asuran wins big at SIIMA 2020 and 2021!". Sify . 21 September 2021. Archived from the original on 21 September 2021.
  19. "Netflix announces its first Tamil film; Gautham Menon, Vetri Maaran, Vignesh Shivan, Sudha Kongara to direct". First Post. October 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  20. "'Sarfira': Akshay Kumar-Radhika Madan's 'Soorarai Pottru' remake title announced". India Today. 13 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  21. "GV Prakash Kumar Reveals An Oneliner About The 'Suriya 43' Script". The Times of India . 25 December 2023.