Koose Munusamy Veerappan was an Indian poacher, smuggler, domestic terrorist and bandit who was active for 36 years, and kidnapped major politicians for ransom. He was charged with sandalwood smuggling and poaching of elephants in the scrub lands and forests in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. He was wanted for killing approximately 184 people, about half of whom were police officers and forest officials. He was also responsible for poaching approximately 500 of the 2000 elephants killed in the peninsular region where he was active and for smuggling ivory worth US$2.6 million and about 65 tons of sandalwood worth approximately US$22 million.
Gowri Shankar, better known as 'Auto' Shankar, was an Indian criminal, murderer and gangster from Tamil Nadu, who was active in Chennai throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Nakkheeran Gopal is a veteran writer and journalist from Tamil Nadu, India. He is the editor and publisher of the Tamil political investigative journal Nakkheeran. He came to national fame in the 1990s when he interviewed sandalwood and ivory smuggler Veerappan, who was surviving in the forests and committing crimes on the Tamil Nadu–Karnataka border, eluding the police of the two states. Footage from his encounters with Veerappan have been used to create Koose Munisamy Veerappan.
Tamanna Bhatia, credited as Tamannaah Bhatia, is an Indian actress known for her work in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi cinema. She has acted in 85 films. She has received several awards, including two Santosham Film Awards, two SIIMA Award and the Kalaimamani Award. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in the Telugu and Tamil film industries.
Bharath Srinivasan, known professionally as Bharath, is an Indian actor, who works predominantly in Tamil cinema, along with few films in Malayalam, Hindi and Telugu.
Saiju Govinda Kurup is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema and occasionally in Tamil cinema. He is credited as Anirudh in Tamil movies. He debuted in Mayookham (2005) by Hariharan. As of June 2021, he has starred in over 100 films as the main lead, comedian actor and supporting role.
Attahasa (transl. Defiance) is a 2013 Indian Kannada-language biographical film directed by A. M. R. Ramesh, based on the notorious forest brigand Veerappan. Kishore plays the role of Veerappan in the film, whilst featuring Arjun Sarja and Suresh Oberoi. After much delay in the theatrical release the film was opened to screens on 14 February 2013 all across the southern states of India to positive reviews. The film was partially reshot in Tamil as Vana Yuddham. The film was dubbed into Telugu as Veerappan.
Sai Tamhankar is an Indian film and television actress known for her work primarily in Marathi, as well as in Hindi films. She has established herself as a prominent figure in Marathi films and is recognized for her versatility and impactful performances. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in Marathi cinema and is the recipient of several awards including a Maharashtra State Film Award, a Filmfare Award, three Filmfare Marathi Awards, and eight Maharashtracha Favourite Kon awards.
Operation Cocoon was an operation launched by the Special Task Force of Tamil Nadu Police to capture the forest brigand Veerappan and his associates, who were dominant in Sathyamangalam Forest in the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The operation was headed by K. Vijay Kumar, and N. K. Senthamarai Kannan.
Vineeth Kumar is an Indian actor, director and screenwriter known for his work in the Malayalam film industry. He has had a career spanning decades, transitioning from a child artist to an accomplished director.
Vaigai Express is a 2017 Tamil-language thriller film directed by Shaji Kailas and produced by R. K. The film stars R. K. himself and Neetu Chandra, while Ineya essays a supporting role. Beginning production in late 2014, the remake of the Malayalam film Nadiya Kollappetta Rathri, was released across Tamil Nadu on 24 March 2017.
Rajesh Tailang is an Indian actor, known for his appearance in films and web series. He garnered a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actor at the 2nd Canadian Screen Awards. He is also a poet, showcasing his creativity beyond acting. He is the brother of late cartoonist Sudhir Tailang.
Veerappan is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language biographical action crime film written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma. The film is based on the real-life Indian bandit Veerappan and the events leading to Operation Cocoon, a mission to capture and kill him. The film is a remake of the Kannada film Killing Veerappan (2016) starring Shiva Rajkumar. The film stars Sandeep Bharadwaj, Sachiin J Joshi, Lisa Ray and Usha Jadhav.
Nikhila Vimal is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Malayalam and Tamil films, in addition to Telugu films. After appearing in a minor role in Bhagyadevatha (2009), her lead role came in Love 24x7 (2015).
Cricket Fever: Mumbai Indians is a 2019 Indian sports documentary television series that follows the 2018 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, the Mumbai Indians, as they seek to defend their 2017 championship. The series was produced by Condé Nast Entertainment and premiered worldwide on Netflix on 1 March 2019. Cricket Fever is the first international series produced by Condé Nast Entertainment, and the first Indian sports documentary on Netflix.
House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths is a 2021 docuseries by Netflix. Created by Leena Yadav and Anubhav Chopra, the three-part series explores the theories surrounding the demise of 11 members of the same family on 30 June 2018. Termed as the Burari deaths by the media, the true-crime docuseries released on 8 October 2021. The series is directed by Leena Yadav and Anubhav Chopra. A. R. Rahman and his ensemble of musician group, Qutub-E-Kripa, composed and produced the score of the docuseries, dialogues by Tyson Newton Fernandez. Yogendra Mogre and Katherine Leblond are the producers while Aseem Bajaj and James Haygood are the executive producers.
Crime Stories: India Detectives is a 2021 Indian Netflix original docuseries created and directed by N Amit and Jack Rampling.The series was produced by Claire Cahill under the production banner Minnow Films. It stars N. Shashi Kumar, Roopa K. S. and Gopala Nayak. This four episodes Docu-series chronicles the workings of the Bengaluru city police as they attempt to solve four violent crimes; Three are related to murder and one involves the kidnapping of a child. It released via Netflix on 22 September 2021.
Priyansh Jora is an actor who has worked in Indian films, web series, and television shows. He is known for his portrayal of lead character Titu in 2014 comedy-drama soap opera Tu Mera Hero which premiered on 22 December 2014 on Star Plus. Priyansh Jora made his film debut with the movie Khandaani Shafakhana. Released in 2019, "Khandaani Shafakhana" is a comedy-drama film directed by debutant Shilpi Dasgupta, and starring Sonakshi Sinha, Varun Sharma and Badshah.
Koose Munisamy Veerappan is a 2023 Indian Tamil-language True Crime docuseries by ZEE5, created by Jeyachandra Hashmi, Prabbhavathi and Vasanth Balakrishnan. It is directed by Sharath Jothi and produced by Prabhavathi RV. It premiered on 14 December 2023. The series explores the life of Veerappan using footage shot by Nakkeeran Gopal and archived by Nakkheeran.
