name	Ajith Kumar
birth date	May 01, 1971
birth place	Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
residence	Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
height
birthname	Ajithkumar Subramaniam
other names
occupation	Actor, screenwriter, producer, auto racing driver
yearsactive	1992–present
spouse	Shalini(2000–present)
children	Anoushka }}

Ajith Kumar (; ; born 1 May 1971) is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller ''Aasai'' (1995). A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with ''Kadhal Kottai'' (1996) and ''Kadhal Mannan'' (1998) being the most notable. He later forayed into method acting, as seen in ''Vaali'' (1999), ''Mugavaree'' (2000), ''Kandukondain Kandukondain'' (2000) and ''Citizen'' (2001) before establishing himself as an action hero with popular films including ''Amarkalam'' (1999), ''Dheena'' (2001), ''Villain'' (2002), ''Varalaru'' (2006) and ''Billa'' (2007).

He has won three Filmfare Best Actor Awards in Tamil, all for films which showcased him in multiple roles. Ajith performs predominantly in leading roles in major studio films, genres ranging from romantic comedies and drama to action thrillers. In addition to his acting, Ajith, in a sabbatical, participated in the 2004 British Formula Three season as a race driver for a minor outfit, and was ranked the third best motor car driver in India at his peak., Ajith remains a popular figure in the media of Tamil Nadu, making headlines for his relationships before his marriage to former actress Shalini, his long-running media-built rivalry with actor Vijay and his controversial statements in a few occasions.

Acting career

Early career

Ajith Kumar was born as the middle child in Secunderabad, a city north of Hyderabad to a Palakkad Iyer from Kerala and a Sindhi mother, and was brought up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Ajith began speaking Tamil only after entering films. He dropped out of Asan Memorial Senior Secondary School in 1986 before completing his higher secondary. He took up work as a two wheeler auto mechanic, and got himself a driver's licence to coincide with his interests, that of car / bike racing. At 18, Ajith had to take up a job to support his career in racing. Joining as an apprentice, he rose to be a merchandiser with a garment export company, doing small-time press ads and TV commercials occasionally. He had put a lot of money into racing and would borrow tyres from his friends who used to help when the chains wore out as there was no money in racing at that time. Following an accident, several business agencies pushed him into modeling for advertisements in print media. He had to make a choice between films and racing, and as the movies were happening and generating him some money, he began concentrating on it.

Aged 20, Ajith was selected by Telugu film producers, Lakshmi Productions, to star in their film; however shooting was stalled soon after filming began, following the death of the film's director. Ajith then started his film career at the age of 21 appearing in the low budget Telugu film, ''Prema Pustagam'' in 1992, which remains his last direct Telugu film to date. His first Tamil film ''Amaravathi'', directed by then newcomer Selva, was a moderate success and his voice was rendered by fellow actor, Vikram. After the release, Ajith whilst training for an amateur motor race, suffered a fall, injuring his back and underwent three major surgeries resulting in a bed rest for one and a half years. Following the injury in 1993, Ajith played a supporting role in the Arvind Swamy starrer, ''Paasamalargal'', before appearing in a supporting lead role in the family drama, ''Pavithra'', which featured him as an ailing patient shown maternal affection from Raadhika.

Breakthrough (1995–2000)

In 1995, after a supporting role in the Vijay starrer ''Rajavin Parvaiyile'', Ajith appeared in his first major success, ''Aasai''. The film directed by Vasanth and produced by Mani Ratnam, featured him in the lead role opposite Suvalakshmi, whose brother-in-law infatuates about her. The film became a big success and established Ajith as an upcoming actor in the Tamil film industry. He later played the lead in ''Kalloori Vaasal'' co-starring Prashanth and Pooja Bhatt. Ajith's second blockbuster came in the form of National Award winning ''Kadhal Kottai'', in which Ajith reunited with Agathiyan, the director of the earlier project ''Vaanmathi''. The film which told the tale of two people falling in unconditional love without seeing each other until the climax. The film paired him opposite Devayani, with Heera Rajgopal, who Ajith fell in love during the making of the project, playing a supporting role.

After the success of his films in 1996, the following year saw a series of five failures, the most notable being Amitabh Bachchan's Tamil production ''Ullaasam'' with Maheswari, in which he was paid a salary of Rs. 2 million for the first time. Ajith returned with another successful project in Saran's ''Kadhal Mannan'', with the "masala film" setting the foundations for an expanding fan base. Following films ''Aval Varuvala'' and ''Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen'' also became successes, with the latter featuring Ajith in a praised guest role. After a couple of average grossers in ''Uyirodu Uyiraga'' and Ramesh Khanna's ''Thodarum'', Sundar C's romantic drama ''Unnaithedi'' opposite Malavika became another comeback film and set the tone for a series of big successes. S. J. Suryaah's thriller, ''Vaali'', which portrayed him in dual roles opposite Simran, became his biggest hit til date following its release. The film told the story of a deaf and mute brother setting his eyes on his younger brother's wife, with Ajith's portrayal of the two brothers winning him his first of many awards for Filmfare's Best Actor. Furthermore Ajith's portrayal of the brothers was also praised, with critics claiming that the film was an"instant classic" with Ajith showing that he is a "talented actor". The two following supporting roles in the drama films ''Anandha Poongatre'' and ''Nee Varuvai Ena'' also brought Ajith plaudits for his portrayals. His final film before the new millennium was another blockbuster, ''Amarkalam'' directed by Saran and featuring Shalini, whom he married shortly after the film. ''Amarkalam'' told the story of a negelected child who grew up and fails to show feelings of love or affection, becoming a gangster in the process, with Ajith's depiction of his rogue character appreciated by critics.

His next, ''Mugavaree'', won him commercial and critical praise. The film revolved around the life of a struggling music composer who faces sacrifices to proceed in his career. The film featured dual endings, one with Ajith succeeding in his career, the other with Ajith dejected. Ajith's performance was yet again praised with critics from Rediff, claiming that "Ajith is the real winner", drawing an allusion with the film's script, whilst adding that "it is amazing to see how Ajith has grown as an actor. He brilliantly portrays the vulnerable and sad Sridhar". He also appeared in A. R. Rahman's 2000 musical ''Kandukondain Kandukondain'' directed by Rajiv Menon. The blockbuster featured Ajith alongside prominent actors Mammooty and Abbas and actresses Aishwarya Rai, Tabu and Srividya. In a similar role to his previous film, Ajith played a struggling film director facing an oscillating relationship with Tabu, with the pair being unanimously praised for their roles. His first failure in eight films, came in the form of the military based ''Unnai Kodu Ennai Tharuven'' co-starring Simran.

Ups and downs (2001–05)

In 2001, Ajith appeared in ''Dheena'', A. R. Murugadoss's debut film co-starring Laila Mehdin and Suresh Gopi. The film, indirectly marked the beginning of a new image of Ajith, that of an action hero that would appeal to the masses. Furthermore from the successful film, Ajith's nickname in the film, ''Thala'', Tamil for Leader, became a new identity for the actor amongst his fans. His next was the much-hyped thriller, ''Citizen'', portraying Ajith in ten different get-ups and it became an above average success at the box office, despite being labelled a disappointment from critics. A role in the family drama, ''Poovellam Un Vasam'' followed opposite Jyothika and was a success commercially and critically earning a Special Best Actor Award from the Tamil Nadu State. The year ended off with an appearance in Santosh Sivan's Hindi project, ''Asoka'', in which Ajith appeared in a brief negative role alongside Shah Rukh Khan. 2002 saw Ajith appear in three films, the first two; ''Red'' and ''Raja'' being average grossers, the former further building up his image as an action hero. The third film, ''Villain'', in which Ajith appeared in dual roles, one as a mentally ill handicap, became a blockbuster and in return earning Ajith his second Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award.

The following years, from 2003 til 2005, saw Ajith appear in a fewer amount of films due to his career in motor racing becoming more prominent. 2003 saw the release of his long-delayed ''Ennai Thalatta Varuvala'' and the police-drama ''Anjaneya'', both failing commercially. His next ''Jana'' with Sneha also became a big failure, with the Saran film, ''Attagasam'' being his only hit in the period. The film, saw Ajith portray dual roles, with a song, ''Thala Deepavali'' penned to promote his action image.In 2005, the failure of the Linguswamy film ''Ji'', despite garnering positive reviews and taking a strong opening, saw Ajith take a sabbatical from acting to re-work his image.

Success and stardom (2006–present)

During 2006, Ajith returned from his hiatus by appearing in P. Vasu's ''Paramasivan'' for which he had lost twenty kilograms to portray the lead role. The film enjoyed a moderate success, scoring over Vijay's ''Aadhi'', which also released in the same week, at the box-office. Critics from The Hindu stated Ajith looked "trim and taut" in the film with "only his eyes seeming to have lost some of its sparkle", following the major weight loss. Furthermore, for ''Paramasivan'' and his two other projects in 2006, Ajith sported long hair, which was being grown for Bala's project, ''Naan Kadavul'', which Ajith eventually opted out of. Similarly his next, AVM Productions's, ''Thirupathi'' directed by Perarasu performed above average business at the box-office, despite garnering poor reviews, with Rediff critics citing that the film is "anything but sensible" but that Ajith "salvages the situation with a spirited performance". Ajith summed up a successful comeback by the release of his long-delayed film, ''Varalaru'' which went on to become his biggest success til date. The K. S. Ravikumar film co-starring Asin, portrayed Ajith in three roles, including that of a classical dancer, with his portrayals being critically praised. Moreover, the film fetched Ajith his third Filmfare Best Actor Award, on its way to becoming a blockbuster. Ajith's first release in 2007, ''Aalwar'' became a debacle at the box-office, with his previous film still continuing to run in theatres even after ''Aalwar'' had stopped its brief theatrical run. ''Kireedam'', a remake of the 1989 National Award winning Malayalam film of the same name was released to positive reviews, with the film also becoming a moderate success. During the shoot of the film, Ajith developed a further spinal injury, a recurrence of his problem earlier in his career.

Ajith then starred in ''Billa'', a remake of the 1980 Rajinikanth starrer of the same name, which became a blockbuster. The Vishnuvardhan directorial fetched critical praise for Ajith, becoming a trend-setter for stylish art direction and cinematography in India. ''Billa'', yet again, featured Ajith in dual roles one of a notorious don whilst the other played an innocent person who had to act as the don, following the former's death. After ''Billa'', Ajith appeared in the film Ayngaran International production ''Aegan'', directed by the choreographer turned director Raju Sundaram. The film, a remake of the 2004 Hindi comedy ''Main Hoon Na'', only managed to do average business at the box office. Following a year's worth of production, Ajith's latest release, ''Aasal'' released in February 2010, taking a grand opening at the box office. The film, which also featured Ajith in dual roles, saw Ajith credited as a screenwriter along with his role of being a don neglected by his brothers in the quest for their father's will. After a second foray into motor racing, Ajith signed up to star in a film directed by Venkat Prabhu, titled ''Mankatha'', which started in late October 2010.

Racing career

Ajith is a keen race car driver and has driven in circuits around India in places such as Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi. He has also been abroad for various races including Germany and Malaysia. He drove in the 2003 Formula Asia BMW Championships. He is presently racing in the 2010 Formula 2 Championship along with two other Indians, Armaan Ebrahim and Parthiva Sureshwaren.

Formula BMW Asia (2003)

After a one-off race during the Formula Maruti Indian Championships in 2002, where he finished in fourth place, Ajith signed a contract with manager Akbar Ebrahim confirming his participation in the inaugural Formula BMW Asia Championship. Despite spinning out in the first lap of his first race, Ajith successfully completed the season by finishing seventh in the season.

Formula 2 (2010)

After a six year sabbatical, Ajith signed up for his third season of car racing by participating in the 2010 season of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The decision to be involved in the sport was made after Ajith's film directed by Gautham Menon was delayed, allowing Ajith to participate for the whole season. Prior to signing up, Ajith competed in the final round of the MRF racing series in Chennai in February 2010, but failed to finish the race due to mechanical problems. Further trials in Sepang, Malaysia followed suit as he practised for the season's beginning in April 2010 in his Formula Renault V6 car with Eurasian Racing, shedding 11 kilograms during training.

Personal life

Family

Ajith Kumar was born on 1 May 1971 to a Palakkad Iyer Iyer named P. Subramaniam and his wife Mohini, of Sindhi origin from Kolkata, West Bengal. Ajith later created the non-profit organisation "Mohini-Mani Foundation", named after his parents, in order to promote self-hygiene and civic consciousness and to help ease the problems of urban sprawl. Ajith Kumar was the middle son out of three brothers, the others being Anoop Kumar, a stock broker in New York and Anil Kumar, an IIT Madras graduate working in Seattle. Moreover, Ajith had younger twin sisters, both of whom died young. Through his marriage to actress Shalini, Ajith became brother-in-law to actor, Richard Rishi, and actress Shamili, who appeared as his sister-in-law in Rajiv Menon's ''Kandukondain Kandukondain''.

Relationships

In 1999, during the shoot of Saran's ''Amarkalam'', Ajith began to date his co-star Shalini. At that time, their involvement made him a regular subject of tabloid gossip, a role to which he was accustomed following his previous relationship. Ajith proposed to Shalini in June 1999, and following consultations with her family, she agreed. They were married in April 2000 in Chennai in a grand ceremony. As both were of different religions, Ajith being a Hindu Brahmin and Shalini being Protestant Christian, they were married together under the customs of both religions. After their marriage, Shalini retired as an actress and became a full time housewife, following the completion of two unfinished projects. On 3 January 2008, their daughter, Anoushka, was born in Chennai.

Awards and nominations

;Filmfare Awards South

Best Actor Award for ''Vaali'' (1999)

Best Actor Award for ''Villain'' (2002)

Best Actor Award for ''Varalaru: History of Godfather'' (2006)

;Tamil Nadu State Film Awards

Tamil Nadu State Film Special Award for Best Actor for ''Poovellam Un Vasam'' (2001)

Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary MGR Award (2006)

;Vijay Awards

Vijay Award for Favourite Hero (2006)

Cinema Express Award for Best Actor - Tamil - ''Citizen'' (2001)

Nominated:

Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role for ''Asoka'' (2001)

Filmography

''Amaravathi (1993 film) ''Paasamalargal'' ''Pavithra'' ''Rajavin Parvaiyile'' ''Aasai'' ''Vaanmathi'' ''Kalloori Vaasal'' ''Minor Mappillai'' ''Kadhal Kottai'' ''Nesam'' ''Raasi'' ''Ullaasam'' ''Pagaivan'' ''Rettai Jadai Vayasu'' ''Kadhal Mannan'' ''Aval Varuvala'' ''Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen'' ''Uyirodu Uyiraga'' ''Thodarum'' ''Unnai Thedi'' ''Vaali'' ''Anantha Poongathe'' ''Nee Varuvai Ena'' ''Amarkalam'' ''Mugavaree'' ''Kandukondain Kandukondain'' ''Unnai Kodu Ennai Tharuven'' ''Dheena'' ''Citizen (film) ''Poovellam Un Vasam'' ''Asoka (2001 film) ''Red (2002 film) ''Raja (film) ''Villain (2002 film) ''Ennai Thalatta Varuvala'' ''Anjaneya (film) ''Jana (film) ''Attagasam'' ''Ji (film) ''Paramasivan'' ''Thirupathi'' ''Varalaru (film) ''Aalwar'' ''Kireedam (2007 film) ''Billa (2007 film) ''Aegan'' ''Aasal'' ''Mankatha'' ''Billa 2''

style="background:#B0C4DE;"	Year	Film	Role	Notes
1992	''Prema Pustagam''	Siddharth
1993	Amaravathi'' ||	Arjun
1994	|	Kumar
1994	|	Ashok
1995	|	Chandru
1995	|	Jeeva
1996	|	Krishna
1996	|	Vasanth
1996	|	Sunil
1996	|	Surya
1997	|	Nathan
1997	|	Kumar
1997	|	Guru
1997	|	Prabhu
1997	|	Sivakumar
1998	|	Shiva
1998	|	Jeeva
1998	|	Sanjay	Guest appearance
1998	|	Ajay
1999	|	Anand
1999	|	Raghu
1999	|	Shiva,Deva	Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Tamil>Filmfare Award for Best Actor in Tamil
1999	|	Jeeva
1999	|	Subramani	Guest appearance
1999	|	Vasu
2000	|	Sridhar
2000	|	Manohar
2000	|	Surya
2001	|	Dheena
2001	Citizen'' ||	Arivanandham,Subramani	Cinema Express Award for Best Actor - Tamil
2001	|	Chinna	Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize>Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for Best Actor
2001	Asoka'' ||	Suseema	Hindi filmNominated—Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role
2002	Red'' ||	Red
2002	Raja'' ||	Raja
2002	Villain'' ||	Shiva,Vishnu	Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Tamil>Filmfare Award for Best Actor in Tamil
2003	|	Satish
2003	Anjaneya'' ||	Paramaguru
2004	Jana'' ||	Jana
2004	|	Guru,Jeeva
2005	Ji'' ||	Vasu
2006	|	Paramasivan(Subramaniya Siva)
2006	|	Thirupathi
2006	Varalaru'' ||	Shivshankar,Vishnu,Jeeva	Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Tamil>Filmfare Award for Best Actor in TamilVijay Award for Favourite Hero
2007	|	Shiva
2007	Kireedam'' ||	Sakthivel Rajarajan
2007	Billa'' ||	David Billa,Saravanavelu	Nominated—Vijay Award for Favourite Hero
2008	|	Shiva	Nominated—Vijay Award for Favourite Hero
2010	|	Shiva,Jeevanandham	Also screenwriterNominated—Vijay Award for Favourite Hero
2011	|	Vinayak Mahadevan
2011	|	David	Filming

References

External links

Category:1971 births Category:Living people Category:Indian actors Category:Indian film actors Category:Tamil film actors Category:Tamil sportspeople

de:Ajith Kumar fr:Ajith Kumar hi:अजित कुमार it:Ajith Kumar ml:അജിത് കുമാർ mr:अजितकुमार (अभिनेता) nl:Ajith Kumar pl:Ajith Kumar sv:Ajith Kumar ta:அஜித் குமார் te:అజిత్ కుమార్

name	Suresh Gopi
birth name	Suresh Gopinathan Nair
birth date	June 26, 1960
birth place	Kollam, Kerala, India |
occupation	Film actor, playback singer
years active	1965, 1986 - present
parents	K Gopinatha Pillai, V Gyanalaxmi
spouse	Radhika
children	Lekshmi (died), Gokul, Bhagya, Bhavna, and Madhav
other names	Suresh
website	http://www.bharatsureshgopi.com }}

Suresh Gopinathan Nair (born 26 June 1960), often credited as Suresh Gopi (), is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Malayalam cinema; he is famous for his roles in police dramas. He is noted for his leading roles as much as his character roles. He is also famous for his philanthropic efforts.

Personal life

He was born in KollamChettiar-Pillai (community) to Gnanalekshmi and Gopinathan Pillai. Suresh Gopi did his schooling at the Infant Jesus Anglo-Indian High School at Thangasseri. He graduated in English Literature from Fatima Mata National College in Kollam. He is married to Radhika, the granddaughter of Aranmula Ponnamma, and has four children: Lekshmi (deceased), Gokul, Bhagya, Bhavna, and Madhav. He is settled at Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) and is currently living in Sasthamangalam.

Career

1965: Child artist

Suresh Gopi first appeared onscreen as a child in K. S. Sethumadhavan's ''Odeyil Ninnu'' (1965). It was a popular film that had Sathyan in the lead role along with Prem Nazir.

1980s: Early career

He returned to acting in the mid-80s with Sathyan Anthikkad's ''T.P. Balagopalan M.A.'' (1986), where he played a prospective groom in a small scene. He went on to play supporting and villain roles. Some other roles of his include Balan in ''Nandi Veendum Varika'' (1986), Kumar in ''Rajavinte Makan'' (1986), Vinod in ''January Oru Orma'' (1987), Shekaran Kutty in ''Irupatham Noottandu'' (1987), Suresh in ''New Delhi'' (1987), Harry in ''Oru CBI Diary Kurippu'' (1988), Unni in ''1921'' (1988), and Aromal Chekavar in ''Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha'' (1989). He played the comic role of Inspector "Minnal" Prathapan in ''Manu Uncle'' (1988) and of Dr. Narendran in Padmarajan's ''Innale'' (1989).

He played Sethumadhavan in Siddique-Lal's blockbuster ''In Harihar Nagar'' (1990). Another role was of Christopher Luke in Viji Thampy's ''Nagarangalil Chennu Raparkam'' (1990). The film that helped him get noticed as a serious police officer was the satirical comedy ''Aanaval Mothiram'' (1990), where he played Sub-Inspector Nandakumar and co-starred with Sreenivasan.

1990s: Peak

The films that made Suresh Gopi a bankable lead actor were ''Thalastaanam'' (1992), ''Ekalavyan'' (1993), ''Mafia'' (1993) and ''Commissioner'' (1994), all by Shaji Kailas and scripted by Ranji Panicker. All of them were police dramas and had, more or less, similar themes. He became immensely popular with his role as Bharathchandran IPS in the block-buster movie ''Commissioner''. Renji Panicker's dialogues employed by Suresh Gopi in English became quite popular with the masses.

During this period, most of his films were dubbed and simultaneously released in Telugu, which made him a sensation in Andhra Pradesh.

During the early to mid 90s, he also played characters of substance in films such as Jayaraj's ''Paithrukam'' (1993), Fazil's ''Manichithrathazhu'' (1993), Sathyan Anthikkad's ''Samooham'' (1993) and Sibi Malayil's ''Sindoora Rekha'' (1995).

The success of his cop roles led to more films of such nature, where he either played police officers or other tough characters in films such as ''City Police'' (1993), ''The City'' (1994), ''Rudraksham'' (1994), ''Kashmeeram'' (1994), and ''Mahatma'' (1996), with most of them failing to get noticed.

In 1997, with Jayaraj's ''Kaliyattam'' (1997), an adaptation of Shakespeare's ''Othello'', Suresh Gopi won the National Film Award for Best Actor for playing Kannan Perumalayan. He proved he was more than just another mainstream actor. This was a turning point in his career.

In the late 90s, Suresh Gopi was noted for playing in Joshi's films such as ''Lelam'' (1998) and ''Pathram'' (1999), again, scripted by Ranji Panicker. He played Nasrani character Chackochi in ''Lelam'' and journalist Nandagopal in ''Pathram''where he co-starred with Manju Warrier. Suresh Gopi, Jayaram, and Manju Warrier teamed up in Sibi Malayil's ''Summer in Bethlahem'' (1998) which was a commercial success.

2000s

He started off 2000 with ''Millennium Stars'' directed by Jayaraj. The movie was a colossal flop and severely affected the careers of all the stars involved. But he had a success later the same year in ''Thenkasipattanam''. After 2000, when his films were doing fairly well, he decided to stop acting in movies depicting violence, a decision he would later regret. It was also rumored that he was giving up his acting career for pursuing a political career. He acted in off-beat movies and accepted only soft roles from 2001 to 2005. With his movies failing to make an impact, he had just one release each in 2002 and 2003. In 2005, he decided to return to action movies. Ranji Panicker, scriptwriter of his most successful movie, ''Commissioner'', directed the sequel ''Bharathchandran I.P.S.'' portraying him as the police commissioner. The movie was a super hit and was followed by a number of movies in the same genre, in which he played the typical police officer or detective. Some of them were successful, like ''The Tiger'', ''Chinthamani Kolacase'' directed by Shaji Kailas, ''Nadiya Kollappetta Rathri'' directed by K. Madhu and ''Detective''. All the others, such as ''Time'', ''Aayudham'', ''Thavalam'', ''Rashtram'', ''Pathaka'', ''Bullet'' and ''Smart City'', were flops. In between he attempted to do a different role with negative shades in ''Lanka'' which, flopped at the box office and ignited a controversy for an unaesthetic kissing scene with his female co-star, Mamta Mohandas. In 2006 he reunited with his favorite director Shaji Kailas for the movie ''Time'', which had huge expectations but bombed at the box office. It was dubbed into Telugu as ''Police Ante Veedera'' and Hindi as ''On Duty'', but failed to fetch better results.

Before coming to the film world, he had displayed great interest in the field of literature; his favourite authors are Bernard Shaw and Shakespeare. He is famous for his philanthropic efforts.

In 2008, Suresh Gopi appeared in multi-starrer ''Twenty: 20'' produced by AMMA. Again, he acted with Mohanlal in ''Pakal Nakshatrangal'', an off-beat movie directed by Rajiv Nath.

In 2010, he appeared with Mohanlal, Dileep and Sarath Kumar for another multi-starrer ''Christian Brothers''.

Awards

National Film Awards:

Best Actor - 1998 - ''Kaliyattam''

Kerala State Film Awards:

Best Actor - 1998 - ''Kaliyattam''

Film Critics Awards:

Film Critics Best Actor Award (three times)

Best Supporting Actor Award (four times)

In July 2005, he was considered for the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of a mentally distressed person in ''Ullam'' and as a doctor in ''Makalkku'', but lost out to Mammootty.

Trivia

Suresh Gopi's father was a friend of producer Balaji and they both named their sons Suresh. Suresh Balaji is also a well known producer in South Indian industry. Balaji is superstar Mohanlal's father-in-law.

Suresh Gopi films of 1990's were criticized for excessive violence and after 2000 Suresh Gopi pledged not to use a gun in any of his movies. This led to a five year downfall to his career. He revoked his pledge in 2005 to appear in Bharathchandran I.P.S. in which he appears with a revolver in the first scene.

He is a strong supporter of Indian National Congress and was close to former Kerala Chief Minister late K. Karunakaran.

See also

Cinema of Kerala

References

External links

Official Website

Suresh Gopi biography and filmography

Category:Indian actors Category:Malayali actors Category:People from Thiruvananthapuram Category:Indian child actors Category:National Film Award winners Category:Kerala State Film Award winners Category:Living people Category:People from Kollam Category:1959 births

ml:സുരേഷ് ഗോപി ta:சுரேஷ் கோபி

name	Gautham Vasudev Menon
birth date	February 25, 1973
birth place	Ottapalam, Kerala, India
occupation	Film director Film writer Film producer
years active	2001–present
nationality	Indian
spouse	Preethi
children	}}

Gautham Vasudev Menon (; ) is an Indian film director and producer. Mainly working in Tamil cinema, he has also directed Hindi and Telugu films which are remakes of his Tamil films. Many of his films have been critically acclaimed, most notably his semi-autobiographical ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' (2008), romantic classic ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' (2010), his action-thrillers ''Kaakha Kaakha'' (2003) and ''Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu'' (2006). ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.

Early life and education

Gautham was born to a Malayali father and Tamil mother on 25 February 1973 in Kerala. Although, born in Kerala he grew up in Trichy. He did his schooling in Vailankanni Raj Mat. Hr., Sec School at K.K Nagar, Trichy and did his Mechanical Engineering in Mookambigai College of Engineering, Trichy, Tamil Nadu .

Directorial career

Early work and ''Minnale'', 2001

Gautham Menon was a student of mechanical engineering at Mookambikai college of engineering in the batch of 1993, and his time there inspired him to make his lead characters of ''Minnale'' and ''Vaaranam Aayiram'', students of the same course. He claims to have been inspired by films such as ''Dead Poet's Society'' and ''Nayagan'' and expressed his desire to his parents to change career path and become a filmmaker and consequently wrote his first film at his college hostel. His mother insisted he became an ad film maker by shooting various commercials and took an apprenticeship under filmmaker Rajiv Menon. He went on to work as an assistant director for ''Minsaara Kanavu'' in 1997, in which he also appeared in a cameo role.

Gautham Menon launched a Tamil romantic film ''O Lala'' in 2000 with the project eventually changing producers and title into ''Minnale'' with Madhavan, who was at the beginning of his career, being signed on to portray the lead role. About the making of the film, Menon revealed that he found it difficult as the team was new to the industry with only the editor of the film, Suresh Urs, being a prominent technician in the industry. Menon had come under further pressure when Madhavan had insisted that Menon narrated the story to his mentor, Mani Ratnam, to identify if the film was a positive career move after the success of his ''Alaipayuthey''. Despite initial reservations, Menon did so and Ratnam was unimpressed; however Menon has cited that he thought that Madhavan "felt sorry" and later agreed to continue with the project. The film also featured Abbas and newcomer Reemma Sen in significant roles, whilst Menon introduced Harris Jayaraj as music composer with the film. The film was advertised as a Valentine's Day release in 2001 and told the tale of a young man who falls in love with the girl engaged to his ex-college rival and how he manages to get married to her. Upon release it went on to become a large success commercially and won positive reviews from critics with claims that the film had a lot of " lot of verve and vigour" and that it was "technically excellent".

The success of the film led to producer Vashu Bhagnani signing him on to direct the Hindi language remake of the film, ''Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein'', which also featured Madhavan with Diya Mirza and Saif Ali Khan added to the film. Menon was initially apprehensive but said it took "half an hour" to agree and against his intentions, the producer opted against retaining the technical crew of the original. He changed a few elements, deleted certain scenes and added some more for the version. However in comparison, the film gained poor reviews with a critic citing that "the presentation is not absorbing" though stating that he " handled certain sequences with aplomb"; the film subsequently went on to become a below average grosser at the box office. The failure of the film left him disappointed, with Menon claiming in hindsight that the film lacked the simplicity of the original with the producer's intervention affecting proceedings. In 2011, the producer of the film approached him to remake the film with the producer's son Jackky Bhagnani in the lead role, but Menon was uninterested with the offer.

Police duology, 2003-2006

Menon returned in 2003 by directing the realistic police thriller ''Kaakha Kaakha'' featuring Suriya, Jyothika and Jeevan in the lead roles. The film portrayed the personal life of a police officer and how his life is affected by gangsters, showing a different perspective of police in comparison to other Tamil films of the time. Menon revealed that he was inspired to make the film after reading of articles on how encounter specialists shoot gangsters and how their families get threatening calls in return, and initially approached Madhavan, Ajith Kumar and then Vikram for the role without success, with all three actors citing that they did not want to play a police officer. The lead actress Jyothika asked Menon to consider Suriya for the role, and he was subsequently selected after Menon saw his portrayal in ''Nandha''. He did a rehearsal of the script with the actors, a costume trial with Jyothika and then enrolled Suriya in a commando training school before beginning production, which he described as a "very planned shoot". The film consequently opened to very positive reviews from critics on the way to becoming another success for Menon, with critics labeling it as a "career high film". Furthermore, the film was described as for "action lovers who believe in logical storylines and deft treatment" with Menon being praised for his linear narrative screenplay.

Gautham Menon subsequently remade the film in the Telugu language for producer Venkata Raju and went on to claimi that the new version was better than the previous version and that his new lead actor Venkatesh was more convincing that Surya in the role. The film also featured actress Asin and Saleem Baig in prominent roles and went on to earn commercial and critical acclaim with reviewers citing that "film redeems itself due to the technical excellence and masterful craft of Gautham", drawing comparisons of Menon with noted film makers Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma. In July 2004, Menon also agreed terms to direct and produce another version of ''Kaakha Kaakha'' in Hindi with Sunny Deol in the lead role and revealed that the script was written five years ago with Deol in mind, but the film eventually failed to take off. Producer Vipul Shah approached him to direct the Hindi version of the film in 2010 as ''Force'' with John Abraham and Genelia D'Souza, and Menon initially agreed before pulling out again. Menon and the original producer, Dhanu, also floated an idea of an English version with a Chechnyan backdrop, though talks with a potential collaboration with Ashok Amritraj collapsed.

Gautham Menon was then signed on to direct a venture starring Kamal Haasan and produced by Kaja Mohideen, and initially suggested a one-line story which went on to become ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'' for the collaboration. Kamal Haasan wanted a different story and thus the investigative thriller film, ''Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu'', was written with Jyothika, Kamalinee Mukerji, Prakash Raj, Daniel Balaji and Saleem Baig added to the cast. The film told another episode from a police officer's life, with an Indian cop moved to America to investigate the case of psychotic serial killers before returning to pursue the chase in India. During the shooting, the unit ran into problems after the producer had attempted suicide and as a result, Kamal Haasan wanted to quit the project. Menon subsequently convinced him to stay on as they had taken advance payments. He has since revealed that unlike Kamal Haasan's other films, he did not take particular control of the script or production of the film. The film however had gone through change from the original script with less emphasis on the antagonists than Menon had hoped and he also revealed that scenes for songs were forced him and shot without him. The film released in August 2006 and went on to become his third successive hit film in Tamil and once again, he won rave reviews for his direction. Menon later expressed interest in remaking the film in Hindi with Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role without the love angle, though the project fell through after discussions. He has stated his intent on making a trilogy of police episode films, with a possible third featuring Vikram in the lead role.

Experimentation and success, 2007-2011

His next project, ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'', based on the novel ''Derailed'' by James Siegel, featured Sarath Kumar and Jyothika in the lead roles and was released in February 2007. Initially the lead role was offered to Kamal Haasan who passed the opportunity, while actors Cheran and Madhavan declined citing date and image problems respectively. Menon met Sarath Kumar at an event where he cited he was looking to change his 'action' image and Menon subsequently cast him in the lead role. During production, the film ran into further casting trouble with Simran dropping out her assigned role and was replaced by Shobana after another actress, Tabu, also rejected the role. Shobana was also duly replaced by a newcomer, Andrea Jeremiah to portray the character of Kalyani in the film. The film was under production for over a year and coincided with the making of his previous film which was largely delayed. The film initially opened to positive reviews with a critic citing that Menon is "growing with each passing film. His style is distinctive, his vision clear, his team rallies around him and he manages to pull it off each time he attempts". However the film became a financial failure for the producer, Venu Ravichandran and in regard to the failure of the film, Menon went on to claim that Sarath Kumar was "wrong for the film" and that he tweaked the story to fit his image; he also claimed that his father's ailing health and consequent death a week before the release had left him mentally affected.

His next release, ''Vaaranam Aayiram'', saw him re-collaborate with Suriya, who played dual roles in the film. The film illustrates the theme of how a father often came across in his son's life as a hero and inspiration, and Menon dedicated the film to his late father who had died in 2007. The pre-production of the film, then titled ''Chennaiyil Oru Mazhaikaalam'' began in 2003, with Menon planning his a romantic film with Suriya as a follow up to their successful previous collaboration, ''Kaakha Kaakha''. Abhirami was signed and then dropped due to her height before a relatively new actress at the time Asin was selected to make her debut in Tamil films with the project. The first schedule of the film began in January 2004 in Visakhapatanam and consequently romantic scenes with Suriya and Asin were shot for ten days and then a photo shoot with the pair. The film was subsequently stalled and was eventually relaunched with a new cast including Divya Spandana, Simran and Sameera Reddy in 2006 with Oscar Ravichandran stepping in as producer, who opted for a change of title. Menon has described the film as "autobiographical and a very personal story and if people didn’t know, that 70% of this [the film] is from my life". The film's production process became noted for the strain and the hard work that Suriya had gone through to portray the different roles with production taking close to two years. The film released to a positive response, with critics heaping praise on Suriya's performance while claiming that the film was "just a feather in Gautam's hat" and that it was "hardly a classic". The film was made at a budget of 15 crore rupees and became a commercial success, bringing in almost 22 crore rupees worldwide. It went on to become Menon's most appreciated work till date winning five Filmfare Awards, nine Vijay Awards and the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil for 2008 amongst other accolades.

In 2010, Menon made a return to romantic genre after nine years with the Tamil romantic film ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'', starring Silambarasan and Trisha Krishnan. The film explored the complicated relationship between a Hindu Tamil assistant director, Karthik, and a Syrian Christian Malayali girl, Jessie and their resultant emotional conflicts. The film featured music by A. R. Rahman in his first collaboration with Menon whilst cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa was also selected to be a part of the technical crew. Menon cited that he was "a week away from starting the film with a newcomer" before his producer insisted they looked at Silambarasan, with Menon revealing that he was unimpressed with the actor's previous work. The film was in production for close to a year and throughout the opening week of filming, promotional posters from classic Indian romantic films were released featuring the lead pair. Prior to release, the film became the first Tamil project to have a music soundtrack premiere outside of India, with a successful launch at the BAFTA in London. Upon release, the film achieved positive reviews, with several critics giving the film "classic" status, whilst also become a commercially successful venture. Reviewers praised Menon citing that "credit for their perfect portrayal, of course, goes to Gautam Menon. This is one director who's got the pulse of today's urban youth perfectly" and that "crafted a movie that will stay in our hearts for a long, long time." The film was simultaneously released with a Telugu version, titled ''Ye Maaya Chesave'' featuring a fresh cast of Naga Chaitanya and debutante Samantha in the lead roles. Like the Tamil version, the film won critical acclaim and being given "classic" status from critics. Both films also went on to become large commercial successes, and the films have received awards from award committees.

Menon had also made progress over the previous two years directing the psychological thriller ''Nadunisi Naaygal'' featuring his assistant and debutant Veera Bahu and Sameera Reddy in the lead roles. Menon claimed that the film was inspired by a true event from the USA, while also claiming that a novel also helped form the story of the film. During the making, he explicitly revealed that the film was for "the multiplex audience" and would face a limited release, citing that "it will not cater to all sections of the audience". He promoted the film by presenting a chat show dubbed as ''Koffee with Gautham'' where he intereviewed Bharathiraja and Silambarasan, both of whom had previously worked in such psychological thriller films with ''Sigappu Rojakkal'' and ''Manmadhan''. The film, which was his first home production under Photon Kathaas and did not have a background score, told the story of a victim of child abuse and the havoc he causes to women, narrating the events of a particular day. The film opened to mixed reviews with one critic citing it as "above average" but warning that "don’t go expecting a typical Gautham romantic film" and that it "is definitely not for the family audiences", while criticizing that "there are too many loopholes in the story, raising doubts about logic". In contrast another critic dubbed it as an "unimpressive show by star director Menon, as it is neither convincing nor appealing, despite having some engrossing moments".

Future ventures, 2011-present

Since July 2010, Menon has been involved in pre-production work on the Hindi language remake of his film, ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'', with delays still forcing the film to postpone its first schedule. Workshops and rehearsals for the film were held in early 2011 with Prateik Babbar and Amy Jackson playing the lead roles in the version given the working title of ''Prem Katha''. Furthermore, he will kick start his new Tamil film produced by R. S. Infotainment with Jeeva and Samantha in the lead roles.

Filmography

As a director

''Kaakha Kaakha'' ''Gharshana'' ''Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu'' ''Pachaikili Muthucharam'' ''Vaaranam Aayiram'' ''Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa'' ''Nadunisi Naaygal''

Year !! Title !! Language !! Notes
rowspan="2"	2001	''Minnale''	Tamil language>Tamil
''Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein''	Hindi
2003	|	Tamil	Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil>Filmfare Award for Best Director (Tamil)
2004	|	Telugu language>Telugu
2006	|	Tamil
2007	|	Tamil
2008	|	Tamil	Winner, Vijay Award for Favourite DirectorNominated, Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil
rowspan="2"	2010	|	Tamil	Nominated, Vijay Award for Best DirectorNominated, Vijay Award for Favourite Director
''Ye Maaya Chesave''	Telugu
rowspan="3"	2011	|	Tamil
''Prem Katha''	Hindi
''Nithya (film)	Nithya''	Tamil

References

External links

Category:Indian film directors Category:Tamil film directors Category:Telugu cinema Category:Malayali people Category:Indian people Category:Living people Category:People from Tiruchirapalli Category:People from Kerala Category:1973 births

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