Tamil cinema (also known as the Kollywood, the Tamil film industry, the Cinema of Tamil Nadu or the Chennai film industry) is the film industry based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, dedicated to the production of feature films in the Tamil language. It is based in Chennai's Kodambakkam area, where several South Indian film production companies are headquartered. With reference to this, the industry is also colloquially referred to as Kollywood, a portmanteau of Kodambakkam and Hollywood. Tamil cinema is known for being India's second largest film industry in terms of films produced, revenue and worldwide distribution,^[1] with audiences mainly including people from the four southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka, placing the industry among the largest in the world.^[2][3]

Silent films were produced in Chennai since 1917 and the era of talkies dawned in 1931 with the film Kalidas.^[4] By the end of the 1930s, the legislature of the State of Madras passed the Entertainment Tax Act of 1939. Tamil cinema later had a profound effect on other filmmaking industries of India, establishing Chennai as a secondary hub for Telugu cinema, Malayalam cinema, Kannada cinema, and Hindi cinema.^[5][6] In its modern era, Tamil films from Chennai have been distributed to various overseas theatres in Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Malaysia, Japan, Oceania, the Middle East, Western Europe, and Northern America.^[7] The industry also inspired filmmaking in Tamil diaspora populations in other regions, such as in Europe and Canada.^[8]

Film studios in Chennai are bound by legislation, such as the Cinematography Film Rules of 1948,^[9] the Cinematography Act of 1952,^[10] and the Copyright Act of 1957.^[11]

Etymology[link]

Tamil cinema is often referred to as Kollywood, a portmanteau of the words Kodambakkam, an area of Chennai, where Tamil language feature films are produced, and Hollywood.^[12] The term Kollywood dates back to the 1940-80s when the term began to be widely used for describing Tamil cinema, the age when the term Bollywood was also starting to be used widely.^{[citation needed]}

History[link]

Early exhibitors[link]

In 1897, a European exhibitor first screened a selection of silent short films at the Victoria Public Hall in Madras. The films all featured non-fictional subjects; they were mostly photographed records of day-to-day events. In Madras (present-day Chennai), the Electric Theatre was established for the screening of silent films. It was a favourite haunt of the British community in Madras. The theatre was shut down after a few years. This building is now part of a post office complex on Anna Salai (Mount Road). The Lyric Theatre was also built in the Mount Road area. This venue boasted a variety of events, including plays in English, Western classical music concerts, and ballroom dances. Silent films were also screened as an additional attraction.^[13] Swamikannu Vincent, an employee of the South Indian Railways in Trichy, purchased a film projector and silent films from the Frenchman Du Pont and set up a business as film exhibitor.^[14] He erected tents for screening films. His tent cinema became popular and he travelled all over the state with his mobile unit.^[15] In later years, he produced talkies and also built a cinema in Coimbatore.^[16]

To celebrate the event of King George V's visit in 1909, a grand exhibition was organised in Madras. Its major attraction was the screening of short films accompanied by sound. A British company imported a Crone megaphone, made up of a film projector to which a gramophone with a disc containing prerecorded sound was linked, and both were run in unison, producing picture and sound simultaneously. However, there was no synched dialogue. Raghupathy Venkiah Naidu, a successful photographer, took over the equipment after the exhibition and set up a tent cinema near the Madras High Court.^[13] R. Venkiah, flush with funds, built in 1912 a permanent cinema in the Mount Road area named Gaiety Theatre. It was the first in Madras to screen films on a full-time basis. The theatre later closed for commercial developments.^[17]

Samikannu Vincent, who had built the first cinema of South India in Coimbatore, introduced the concept of "Tent Cinema" in which a tent was erected on a stretch of open land close to a town or village to screen the films. The first of its kind was established in Madras, called "Edison's Grand Cinemamegaphone". This was due to the fact that electric carbons were used for motion picture projectors.^[18]

Influences[link]

Tamil cinema has been impacted by many factors, due to which it has become the second largest film industry of India. The main impacts of the early cinema were the cultural influences of the country. The Tamil language was the medium in which many plays and stories were written since the ages as early as the Cholas. They were highly stylized and nature of the spectacle was one which could attract the people. Along with this, music and dance were one of the main entertainment sources.^[19]

The Bharata Natyam, a classical dance was the oldest performed dance form of India and so impacted the cultural heritage to a very great extent. Usually the kings sitting in the court were seen admiring dancers, and enjoying the music and dance along with the courtiers. These kind of themes were commonly found in the movies. The theory of rasa dating back to ancient Sanskrit drama is believed to be one of the most fundamental features that differentiate Indian cinema.^{[citation needed]}

Along with the music and dance of ancient India, the novels and books written by many authors were used for making the movies and sometimes, the entire story was adopted from the book alone and made into films. The ancient Indian epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana which have exerted a profound influence on the thought and imagination of popular Indian cinema, particularly in its narratives. Examples of this influence include the techniques of a side story, back-story and story within a story. Indian popular films often have plots which branch off into sub-plots which were common in the early Tamil cinema.^[20]

There is a strong Indian tradition of narrating mythology, history, fairy tales and so on through song and dance. Whereas Hollywood filmmakers strove to conceal the constructed nature of their work so that the realistic narrative was wholly dominant, Indian filmmakers made no attempt to conceal the fact that what was shown on the screen was a creation, an illusion, a fiction. However, they demonstrated how this creation intersected with people's day to day lives in complex ways.^[21] By the end of the 1930s, the State of Madras legislature passed the Entertainment Tax Act 1939.

Studios[link]

AVM studios in Chennai, the oldest surviving studio in India.

The year 1916 marked the birth of Tamil cinema with the first Madras production and South Indian film release Keechaka Vaadham produced and directed by R. Nataraja, who established the India Film Company Limited.(English: The Destruction of Keechaka).^[22] During the 1920s, silent Tamil language film were shot at makeshift locations in and around Chennai, and for technical processing, they were sent to Pune or Calcutta. Later, some films featuring M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar were shot in those cities as well.In 1935, A Ramaiah from Thanjavur established the first studio, Star Combines, in Kodambakkam. In the 1930s AVM set up its makeshift studioIndependent Tamil film production in places outside of India, including Sri Lanka, Singapore, Canada, and Europe, took prominence over the late-20th century. The history of filmmaking of Tamil language films in Canada dates back to the early 1990s. It is primarily based in the metropolitan region of the Greater Toronto Area in Southern Ontario. Tamil films are also made in Sri Lanka where Tamil is one of the official languages since the ancient times. The film My Magic directed by Singaporean Eric Khoo became Singapore's first film to be nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes. Some of these films have involved one or more film personalities from the Chennai industry as well. in the town of Karaikudi, and during the same decade, full-fledged Movie studios were built in Salem (Modern Theatres Studio) and Coimbatore (Central Studios, Neptune, and Pakshiraja). By the mid 1940s, Chennai became the hub of studio activity with two more movie studios built in Chennai, Vijaya Vauhini Studios and Gemini Studios. Later, AVM Studios shifted its operations to Chennai. Thus, with the undivided Madras Presidency being the Capital to most of South India, Chennai became the center for Tamil- and Telugu-language films. Also, most of the pre-independence era drama and stage actors joined the film industry from the 1940s, and Chennai became the hub for South Indian–language film production and the cinema of Sri Lanka before independence.

Distribution[link]

The Chennai film industry produced the first nationally distributed film across India in 1948 with Chandralekha.^[23] They have one of the widest overseas distribution, with large audience turnout from the Tamil diaspora alongside Hindi films. They are distributed to various parts of Asia, Africa, Western Europe, North America and Oceania.^[24]

Keechaka Vadham (1918) was the first Silent film made in South India.^[25] Kalidas (1931) was the first Tamil talkie film made in 1931.^[26] Kalava was the first Full-length Talkie made entirely in Tamil.^[27] Nandanar (1935) was the first film for American film director Ellis R. Dungan^[28] Balayogini released in 1937 was considered to be first children's film of South India.^[29] Marmayogi that starred M. G. Ramachandran was the first Tamil film to receive an "Adult" certificate from the film censor board.^[30] It is estimated by the Manorama Yearbook 2000 (a popular almanac) that over 5,000 Tamil films were produced in the 20th century. Tamil films have also been dubbed into other languages, thus reaching a much wider audience. There has been a growing presence of English in dialogue and songs in Chennai films.

Tamil films have enjoyed consistent popularity among populations in South East Asia. Since Chandralekha, Muthu was the second Tamil film to be dubbed into Japanese (as Mutu: Odoru Maharaja^[31]) and grossed a record $1.6 million in 1998.^[32] In 2010, Enthiran grossed a record $4 million in North America.

Many Tamil-language films have premiered or have been selected as special presentations at various film festivals across the globe, such as Mani Ratnam's Kannathil Muthamittal, Vasanthabalan's Veyyil and Ameer Sultan's Paruthiveeran. Kanchivaram (2009) was selected to be premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Tamil films have been a part of films submitted by India for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language on eight occasions, next only to Hindi.^[33] Mani Ratnam's Nayagan (1987) was included in Time magazine's "All-TIME" 100 best movies list.^[34]

Tamil films enjoy significant patronage in neighbouring Indian states like Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharastra, Gujarat and New Delhi. In Kerala and Karnataka the films are directly released in Tamil but in Andhra Pradesh they are generally dubbed into Telugu. Many successful Tamil films have been remade by other film industries. It is estimated by the Manorama Yearbook 2000 (a popular almanac) that over 5,000 Tamil films were produced in the 20th century. Tamil films have also been dubbed into other languages, thus reaching a much wider audience. There has been a growing presence of English in dialogue and songs in Chennai films. It is not uncommon to see movies that feature dialogue studded with English words and phrases, or even whole sentences. Some movies are also simultaneously made in two or three languages (either using subtitles or several soundtracks). Chennai's film composers have popularised their highly unique, syncretic style of film music across the world. Quite often, Tamil movies feature Madras Tamil, a colloquial version of Tamil spoken in Chennai.

Independent Tamil film production in places outside of India, including Sri Lanka, Singapore, Canada, and Europe, took prominence over the late-20th century. The history of filmmaking of Tamil language films in Canada dates back to the early 1990s. It is primarily based in the metropolitan region of the Greater Toronto Area in Southern Ontario. Tamil films are also made in Sri Lanka where Tamil is one of the official languages since the ancient times. The film My Magic directed by Singaporean Eric Khoo became Singapore's first film to be nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes. Some of these films have involved one or more film personalities from the Chennai industry as well.

Economics[link]

Average annual film output in Tamil film industry peaked in 1985.^{[citation needed]} The Tamil film market accounts for approximately 0.1% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the state of Tamil Nadu.^[35] For the purpose of entertainment taxes, returns have to be filed by the exhibitors weekly (usually each Tuesday).^[36] Costs of production have grown exponentially from just under 40 lakhs in 1980 to over 11 crores by 2005 for a typical star-studded big-budget film. Similarly, costs of processing per print have risen from just under 2,500 in 1980 to nearly 70,000 by 2005.^{[citation needed]}

The Government of Tamil Nadu made provisions for an entertainment tax exemption for Tamil films having titles in words from the Tamil language only.^[37] This is in accordance with Government Order 72 passed on July 22, 2006. The first film to be released after the new Order was Unakkum Enakkum. The original title had been Something Something Unakkum Ennakkum, a half-English and a half-Tamil title.^[37] In July 2011, strict norms on entertainment tax were passed which stated that films which were given a 'U' certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification alone were eligible for tax exemption and those with an 'A' certificate could not fit into this category.^[38]

There are 3 major roles in the Tamil film value chain viz producer, distributor and exhibitor.^[39] The distributor purchases theatrical distribution rights from the producer for exhibiting the film in a defined territory. The distributor performs enhanced functions such as:

1. part-financing of film (in case of minimum guarantee / advance based purchase of film rights)
2. localised marketing of film
3. selection of exhibition halls
4. managing the logistics of physical print distribution

There are three popular approaches to transfer of distribution rights via distribution contracts:

1. Minimum Guarantee + Royalty – Here, the producer sells the distribution rights for a defined territory for a minimum lump sum irrespective of the box office performance of the film. Any surplus is shared between the producer and distributor, in a pre-set ratio (typically 1:2) after deducting entertainment tax, show rentals, commission, print costs and publicity costs. Effectively, the distributor becomes a "financier" in the eyes of the market. This is the most common channel available to high budget producers.
2. Commission – Here, the distributor pays the producer the entire box office collection after deducting commission. So, the entire risk of box office performance of the film remains with the producer. This is the most common channel available to low budget producers.
3. Outright Sale – Here, the producer sells all distribution and theatrical rights for a defined territory exclusively to a distributor. Effectively, the distributor becomes a "producer" in the eyes of the market. So, the entire risk of box office performance of the film remains with the distributor.

There are four popular approaches to transfer of exhibition rights via exhibition contracts:

1. Theatre Hire – Here, the exhibitor pays the distributor the entire box office collection after deducting entertainment tax and show rentals. So, the entire risk of box office performance of the film remains with the distributor. This is the most common channel for low budget films, casting rank newcomers, with unproven track record.
2. Fixed Hire – Here, the exhibitor pays the distributor a maximum lump sum irrespective of the box office performance of the film. Rental is not chargeable per show. Any surplus after deducting entertainment tax is retained by the exhibitor. Effectively, the exhibitor becomes a "producer" in the eyes of the market. So, the entire risk of box office performance of the film remains with the exhibitor. This is the most common channel for high budget films, casting established front-runners, with proven track record.
3. Minimum Guarantee + Royalty – Here, the exhibitor pays the distributor a minimum lump sum irrespective of the box office performance of the film. Any surplus after deducting entertainment tax and show rental is shared in a pre-set ratio (typically 2:1) between the exhibitor and distributor. But risk of deficit remains with the exhibitor. This is the most common channel preferred by single screens.
4. Revenue Share – Here, the exhibitor shares with the distributor, in a pre-set ratio (typically 1:2), the entire box office collection of the film after deducting entertainment tax. Rental is not chargeable per show. So, the entire risk of box office performance of the film is shared between the exhibitor and distributor. This is the most common channel preferred by multiplex screens.

Crew[link]

Actors[link]

M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar was considered to be first superstar of South Indian cinema.^[40] P. U. Chinnappa, another popular actor in Tamil cinema was slotted second only to Bhagavathar, died suddenly in 1952.^[41] M. G. Ramachandran became a prominent actor in the mid 1950s and continued to be a popular actor till the late 1970s before stepping into politics.^[42] On the other hand, Sivaji Ganesan, the media-built rival of Ramachandran, was considered to be one of the finest method actors in India of his time.^[43][44] Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth have been the biggest names in Tamil cinema for over twenty-five years despite the arrival of the next generation of stars, including Joseph Vijay,Ajith Kumar,and Suriya Sivakumar . K. B. Sundarambal, a popular carnatic singer made her film debut with Nandanar in 1935 was considered to be one of the finest actresses of her time. She was paid a renumeration of 1 lakh for acting in her debut film.^[45]

Musicians[link]

Music composers such as Ilaiyaraaja and A. R. Rahman received international recognition.^[46] These two composers also hold the record of having won the most number of awards for Best Music Director from the National Film Awards. A. R. Rahman has won two Academy Awards for his work in the British film, Slumdog Millionaire. His debut film Roja was the only Indian film to feature in Time magazine's "10 Best Soundtracks" of all time.^[47][48] In the 2003 BBC International poll, "Rakkamma Kaiya Thattu" from the film Thalapathi, scored by Ilaiyaraaja was voted by people from 155 countries as fourth in the world's top 10 most popular songs of all time.^[49]

Several international composers have used Chennai's studios to record music for projects, as have composers from other film industries. G. Ramanathan was a famous composer for Tamil Movies in the 1950s and was considered to be one of the most influential composers. He won the Best Music Compser award for Veerapandiya Kattabomman at the Afro-Asian Film Festival held at Cairo in 1960.^[50] K. V. Mahadevan, a prominent composer in the 1960s and 1970s was the first South Indian music composer to win a National Film Award. M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy duo was popular in the 1960s and 1970s, with interest in Tamil film songs being re-ignited with the audio revolution.^[51] Other prominent Tamil film score and soundtrack composers of the present include Yuvan Shankar Raja who is the first Indian to win the Cyprus International award for music, Harris Jayaraj, Vijay Antony, Deva, Karthik Raja, Vidyasagar, Bharathwaj, G. V. Prakash Kumar and Shankar Mahadevan who is a part of the Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy trio, who are prominent composers in Bollywood.

Union associations[link]

The industry includes several groups who organize their own events based on different issues of major concern. Rather than forming separate and distinct groups, each association occasionally collaborate for certain events. These associations are based on profession in the industry, such as a directors' association or producers' association. The most notable association is the South Indian Film Artistes' Association which is a group of all prominent Tamil film actors. Formed in 1952 under the leadership of actor Sivaji Ganesan, the association governs film or media-related issues that may arise to its members. The association has also continued to conduct philanthropic activities, as well as public outcries for certain political and humanitarian issues. The current president of the association is the actor-turned-politician R. Sarath Kumar.^[52]

Other associations include the Association of Tamil Film Directors which is headed by director P. Bharathiraja and the Tamil Film Producers' Council, headed by film director Rama Narayanan, who often meet to make financial decisions in the economy. A more broader association that incorporates all kinds of film personalities includes the well-known Film Employees' Federation of South India (FEFSI). They often successfully pledge for the welfare of low-income film workers, such as lighting technicians and stunt coordinators.

Film schools[link]

The Madras Film Institute was the first film school in south India. This institute along with the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune and the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata is among the oldest film schools of India.^[53] An Indo-Russian film institute is about to be set up soon.^[54]

See also[link]

• Cinema of the world
• Cinema of India
• Filmfare Awards South
• Cinema Express Awards
• Tamil Nadu State Film Awards
• Vijay Awards
• International Tamil Film Awards

Further reading[link]

• Arnold, Alison (2000). "Pop Music and Audio-Cassette Technology: Southern Area – Film music". The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-8240-4946-1. http://books.google.com/?id=ZOlNv8MAXIEC&pg=RA2-PA554&dq=A.+R.+Rehman+tamil. 
• Bhaskaran, Theodore, Sundararaj (1996). Eye of The Serpent: An Introduction to Tamil Cinema. Chennai / University of Michigan: East West Books. 
• Gokulsing, K.; Moti Gokulsing, Wimal (2004). Indian Popular Cinema: A Narrative of Cultural Change. Trentham Books. p. 132. ISBN 1-85856-329-1. http://books.google.com/?id=_plssuFIar8C&pg=PA132. 
• Shohini Chaudhuri (2005). Contemporary World Cinema: Europe, the Middle East, East Asia and South Asia. Edinburgh University Press. p. 149. ISBN 0-7486-1799-X. http://books.google.com/?id=qOXoeyesZOIC&pg=PA149. 
• Chinniah, Sathiavathi (2001). Tamil Movies Abroad: Singapore South Indian Youths and their Response to Tamil Cinema. 8. Kolam. 
• Guy, Randor (1997). Starlight, Starbright : The Early Tamil Cinema. Chennai. OCLC 52794531. 
• Hughes, Stephen P. (February 24–25, 2005). "Tamil Cinema as Sonic Regime: Cinema Sound, Film Songs and the Making of a Mass Culture of Music". New Perspectives on the Nineteenth and Twentieth Century. Keynote address: South Asia Conference at the University of Chicago. Chicago, Illinois. 
• Kasbekar, Asha (2006). Pop Culture India!: Media, Arts and Lifestyle. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-636-7. http://books.google.com/?id=Sv7Uk0UcdM8C&pg=PA215&dq=A.+R.+Rehman+tamil. 
• Ravindran, Gopalan (March 17–18, 2006). "Negotiating identities in the Diasporic Space: Transnational Tamil Cinema and Malaysian Indians". Cultural Space and Public Sphere in Asia, 2006. Seoul, Korea: Korea Broadcasting Institute, Seoul. 
• Nakassis, Constantine V.; Dean, Melanie A. (2007). "Desire, Youth, and Realism in Tamil Cinema". Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 17: 77–104. DOI:10.1525/jlin.2007.17.1.77. 
• Velayutham, Selvaraj (2008). Tamil Cinema: The Cultural Politics of India's Other Film Industry. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-39680-6. http://books.google.com/?id=65Aqrna4o5oC&dq=Tamil+cinema. 

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tamil cinema

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K. S. Ravikumar (Tamil: கே. எஸ். ரவிகுமார்; born May 30, 1957) is an Indian film director and actor, primarily working in Tamil cinema. He has directed numerous films ranging from comedy and drama to action thrillers. His film Dasavathaaram (2008) went on to gross $16 million worldwide in the first four weeks and eventually became one of the highest-grossing Indian films of all time.^[1][2] Ravikumar began his career as an assistant to director Bharathi Raja and subsequently directed his first film Puriyaadha Pudhir (1990). One fact that adds to his popularity is that he makes a guest appearance in any film he directs.

Filmography[link]

As director[link]

As actor[link]

• Cheran Pandiyan as Villain
• Putham Pudhu Payanam as Sivalingam
• Gollmal (unknown) as ACP myil pandian
• Madhumathi (1995)
• Muthu as Village landlord
• Pagaivan (1997)
• Ponnu Veetukaaran (1998)
• Kannaal Pesavaa (2000)
• Thamizh (2002)
• Arul (2004)
• Thalainagaram (2006)
• Thottal Poo Malarum (2007)as a taxi driver
• Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya (2010)

As writer[link]

• Kochadaiyaan (2012)

References[link]

External links[link]

• K. S. Ravikumar at the Internet Movie Database

Amala Paul
Amala Paul at a public relations event (2010)
Born	Amala Paul (1991-10-26)October 26, 1991 Kochi, Kerala, India
Other names	Anakha
Occupation	Actress, model
Years active	2009 – present

Amala Paul (born October 26, 1991) is an Indian film actress, who works primarily in the Tamil film industry. After appearing in supporting roles in a few low budget ventures, she received critical acclaim for the portrayal of a controversial character in the film, Sindhu Samaveli. Despite the failure of that film, Amala became noted after playing the title role in Mynaa, receiving critical acclaim for her work. Since then, she has been signed on for several notable projects and is considered the leading upcoming actress in Tamil films.^[1]

Career[link]

Early career[link]

Amala Paul, after finishing her Plus Two education, took a year out before planning to pursue engineering. At the time, her modelling portfolio was spotted by noted Malayalam director Lal Jose who offered her a supporting role in his remake, Neelathamara (2009). Despite emerging a success, the film failed to attract any further offers, as she had anticipated.^[2] She pursued roles in Tamil films and went on to sign the low-budget comedy film Vikadakavi which was delayed and ultimately became her sixth release, while also signing on to play the lead role in another small budget film Veerasekaran (2010). The film, which became her maiden Tamil release, was panned by critics and went completely unnoticed,^[3][4] while Amala's role was being labelled as 'minimal',^[3] and she later cited that she regretted doing the film and many of her scenes were edited out.^[2] Amala Paul then went on to work in Samy's controversial Sindhu Samaveli (2010), portraying the role of Sundari, who has an illicit relationship with her father-in-law. The director of the film had previously drawn criticism for his depictions of illicit romances as well as for assaulting his previous lead actress in a film, but Amala played down the issue citing that she had no problem with the director.^[2] She was approached after the major portions of her next release, Mynaa were ready and signed on before listening to the entirety of the story, claiming that she was shocked but not upset with the controversial scenes which she heard later.^[2] Upon release, the film met with contrasting reviews, whilst some critics refused to give the film a rating, declaring their disgust at the film's plot.^[5][6] Amala's performance won her critical acclaim. However her success was marred with extreme reactions from the public, with Amala claiming she received death threats from anonymous callers and was publicly scolded by women at a cinema hall in Chennai.^[7]

[edit] Mynaa and the future (2010 - present)

Amala's next release, the romantic drama film Mynaa (2010) by Prabhu Solomon, made her a recognised actress in the industry. The film had garnered much anticipation prior to release, with noted distributors Udhayanidhi Stalin and Kalpathi S. Aghoram purchasing the rights of the film after being impressed with it.^[8] Amala played the village belle Mynaa, attaining unanimous praise from critics for her portrayal; a critic labelled her work as "outstanding" and that she put in a "riveting performance",^[9] while other reviews claimed she had "immense talent" and scores in "every instance" in the title role.^[10] The film, which also saw her gain recognition from noted actors Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth, subsequently became a large commercial success at the box-office.^[8] Amala Paul gained recognition from several award committees and notably secured the Vijay Award for Best Debut Actress, while also gaining nominations in the Best Actress category at the Filmfare Awards and the Vijay Awards.

Following the success of Mynaa, Amala became touted as the "new star of 2011" as she subsequently signed on to several prominent projects.^[1] Her first release of 2011 was in a supporting role in the Malayalam drama film, Ithu Nammude Katha, a remake of the successful Tamil film Naadodigal and the second was meant to be her launch in Tamil films, the coming-to-age tale of five friends Vikadakavi with the film opening to limited screens. Both films opened to limited screens due to the moderate budget of the projects, with her performance in the latter being described as "full of potential".^[11] She went on to sign three big budget films with established production houses, with the drama Deiva Thirumagal directed by Vijay, featuring her opposite Vikram and alongside Anushka,^[12] becoming her next release. Her portrayal of school correspondent Shwetha Rajendran won critical acclaim with a reviewer citing that her "expressive eyes help her leave a mark in a small but important role" whilst another critic claimed she "acquits herself well".^[13][14] Her final release of 2011 was Ram Gopal Varma's Bejawada which marked her début in Telugu language films. The film saw her portray college girl, Geetanjali, and featured her opposite Naga Chaitanya, but the film opened to negative reviews and became a surprise box office failure.^[15]

Amala Paul's first release of 2012 was in Linguswamy's multi-starring action entertainer, Vettai, alongside Arya, Madhavan and Sameera Reddy.^[12] The film opened to critical and commercial acclaim with The New York Times claiming the film "entertains without breaking any new ground, though it can also surprise".^[16] Amala Paul won mixed feedback for her performance; while the critic from Sify mentioned she "is lovely to look at and her feisty performance proves that a star is born",^[17] Pavithra Srinivasan of Rediff cited she "struts, pouts and hams to the hilt".^[18] The actress had three films released on the Valentine's Day weekend of 2012, with Balaji Mohan's bilingual Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi and Love Failure becoming critical and commercial successes. The film, made in Tamil and Telugu, featured her alongside Siddharth and portrayed as her college girl, Parvathi, showing her romantic encounter. About the Tamil version, a reviewer from The Hindu wrote: "Amala Paul, after coming across as convincing in her last few movies, looks finally set as a leading lady", while another critc labelled that she "comes across as natural" and "it is a pleasure to see her in a role and costumes that suit her age as compared to her recent movies".^[19][20] Rediff.com called the Telugu version of the film "refreshing", highlighting that the lead pair's on-screen chemistry "sparkles".^[21] The romantic musical Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal opposite Adharvaa, also released on the same day in which she played Charulatha, a modern girl based in Bangalore. She played a notable role in renowned director Dr. Biju's Aakashathinte Niram, which was her first art-house film. The film was screened at the competition section for the Golden Goblet Award in the 15th Shanghai International Film Festival.

Personal life[link]

Amala was born on October 26, 1991 in Ernakulam, Kerala to Christian Malayali parents, Paul Varghese and Annice Paul.^[22] After completing her Plus Two examinations at Nirmala Higher Secondary School, Aluva she took a sabbatical to begin a career in films, but has since joined St. Teresa's College in Kochi, to pursue a BA degree in English and is currently in her third year.^[12][23] Her father had been strictly against Amala pursuing an acting career, but was forced to accept her decision with her older brother, Abijith, strongly backing her ambition.^[12] She later claimed she had performing arts in her DNA, revealing that her mother was a singer and her dad was into theatre in college.^[24] Amala had changed her on-screen name to Anakha, on director Samy's insistence, who cited that another actress, Amala had already made her name popular. However, after the failure of Sindhu Samaveli, she reverted to her birth name since she felt that the replacement had brought her bad luck.^[12]

Filmography[link]

Awards[link]