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.
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.
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.
Wamiqa Gabbi is an Indian actress who predominantly appears in Punjabi and Hindi films and series, alongside a few Malayalam films. She made her screen debut as a child with a brief role in the Hindi film Jab We Met (2007). She then expanded to Punjabi cinema and had success as the leading lady in the films Tu Mera 22 Main Tera 22 (2013), Ishq Brandy (2014), Nikka Zaildar 2 (2017) and its sequel Nikka Zaildar 3 (2019), and Kali Jotta (2023).
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).
Aparna Balamurali is an Indian actress who primarily works in Malayalam and Tamil films. She is recipient of a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award South. Aparna is known for her roles in Maheshinte Prathikaaram (2016), Sunday Holiday (2017), Soorarai Pottru (2020), Raayan (2024) and Kishkindha Kaandam (2024). For her performance in Soorarai Pottru, she won the National Film Award for Best Actress.
Rashmika Mandanna is an Indian actress who works in Telugu, Kannada and Hindi films. She has received several accolades including four SIIMA Awards and a Filmfare Award. One of South India's highest-paid actresses, she was featured in Forbes India's 2024 list of "30 Under 30".
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.
Anketa Maharana, credited as Apsara Rani, is an Indian actress who predominantly appears in Telugu films.
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.
Indian Predator: The Butcher of Delhi is an Indian Netflix true crime docuseries which premiered on 20 July 2022. Produced by VICE India and directed by Ayesha Sood, The Butcher of Delhi explores both the police investigation and the motives of Chandrakant Jha, a serial killer who, in 2006–2007, left three decapitated victims outside the Tihar Jail accompanied by mocking notes.
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.
Maamannan is the soundtrack to the 2023 Tamil-language political drama film of the same name directed by Mari Selvaraj and starred Vadivelu, and Udhayanidhi Stalin. The music and original score is composed by A. R. Rahman, replacing Selvaraj's norm composer Santhosh Narayanan, for their first-time collaboration. Lyrics for the songs were written by Yugabharathi, while one song was written by Arivu. The album was released on 1 June 2023 at an audio launch event held in Chennai.
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.
