Changes between Initial Version and Version 1 of Balu Mahendra

Timestamp:

Jun 25, 2012, 5:30:40 PM (12 years ago)

Author:

Trupti

Comment:

--

Balu Mahendra

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+'''Balu Mahendra (b. 1946)'''
+
+
+Tamil cameraman and director, born in Sri
+Lanka as Benjamin Mahendra. Son of a college
+professor. Voracious film viewer; developed an
+early interest in photography. Graduated from
+London University and from the FTII (1969) as
+cinematographer, going on to shoot Nellu
+(1974) for Kariat. Pioneered innovative camera
+style for colour in South India. Worked mainly
+in the Malayalam avant-garde shooting films for
+Sethumadhavan and P.N. Menon, Telugu
+directors Bapu and K. Vishwanath and Tamil
+director J. Mahendran. Made his first film in
+Kannada (Kokila); later work mainly in
+Malayalam and Tamil. Regards his Malayalam
+films, made with greater freedom in a less
+demanding economic system, as his personal
+work. Pioneered a new brand of Tamil art
+cinema with Veedu and Sandhya Ragam.
+Films have a strong literary base but rely on
+sharply defined visuals (often using natural
+light) sparse dialogue and few characters. The
+greater emphasis on cinematicism, making
+dialogue secondary to visual, cleared the way
+for Mani Rathnam’s films. Shot Rathnam’s
+debut Pallavi Anupallavi. His moral tales are
+often concerned with the status of women
+(Kokila), the aged (Sandhya Ragam), sexual
+violence (his most famous film, Moondram
+Pirai) or bureaucracy (Veedu). Although he
+claims an affiliation with the realism of De Sica
+and Satyajit Ray, film-maker and critic K.
+Hariharan points to similarities with the French
+New Wave’s fascination with the American
+cinema from which Mahendra borrowed
+themes and stylistic devices: Moodupani was
+based on Psycho (1960); Olangal borrows from
+Dick Richards’ Man, Woman and Child (1982);
+Irattaival Kuruvi is based partly on Blake
+Edwards’s Micki and Maude (1984) and
+Azhiyada Kolangal borrows from Summer of
+’42 (1971). The emphasis on psychological
+realism at times combines with popular
+elements such as calendar art and novelettes
+(e.g. the climactic scene of Moondram Pirai).
+Writes, edits and shoots own films as well as
+closely controlling make-up, costumes, etc.
+
+
+'''FILMOGRAPHY:''' 1977: Kokila; 1979:
+Azhiyada Kolangal; 1980: Moodupani; Manju
+Moodal Manju; 1982: Moondram Pirai;
+Nireekshana; Olangal; 1983: Sadma;
+Oomakuyil; 1984: Neengal Kettavai; 1985: Un
+Kannil Neer Vazhindal; Yathra; 1987: Rendu
+Thokala Titta; Irattaival Kuruvi; Veedu; 1989:
+Sandhya Ragam; 1991: Vanna Vanna
+Pookkal; Chakravyuham; 1993:
+Marupadiyam; 1995: Sati Leelavathi.
+
+[[Camera]]
+
+[[Director]]