Priyadarshan | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Born | Priyadarshan Soman Nair (1957-01-30)30 January 1957 (age 68) Thiruvananthapuram,Kerala, India |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Works | Full list |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2; includingKalyani |
PriyadarshanSoman Nair (born 30 January 1957)[1][2] is an Indian film director andscreenwriter. He has worked primarily inMalayalam andHindi cinema since 1982, directing over 98 films in multiple Indian languages, with notable works inTamil andTelugu. Known for his memorable comedic films, he has received several accolades, including threeNational Film Awards, multipleKerala State Film Awards, and thePadma Shri in 2012.[3] Most of his Hindi films are remakes of Malayalam films, some of which Priyadarshan helmed both versions.
He began his cinematic journey in the early 1980s, primarily working inMalayalam cinema. He directed several notable films during this period, includingMazha Peyyunnu Maddalam Kottunnu (1986),Thalavattam (1986),Vellanakalude Nadu (1988),Chithram (1988),Vandanam (1989), andKilukkam (1991). Throughout the 1990s, he continued directing successful films such asAbhimanyu (1991),Mithunam (1993),Thenmavin Kombath (1994),Kaalapaani (1996),Chandralekha (1997), andMegham (1999).
While working in Malayalam cinema, Priyadarshan also made his foray intoBollywood with the action thillersGardish (1994) andVirasat (1997). In the 2000s, he gained widespread recognition in Bollywood for his Hindi adaptations of Malayalam films, particularly in the comedy genre. Some of his most notable Bollywood films includeHera Pheri (2000),Hungama (2003),Hulchul (2004),Garam Masala (2005),Bhagam Bhag (2006),Chup Chup Ke (2006),Dhol (2007),De Dana Dan (2009), andBhool Bhulaiyaa (2008).[4][5]
Priyadarshan received his early education at theGovernment Model School inThiruvananthapuram, and later aMaster of Arts inPhilosophy fromUniversity College Thiruvananthapuram.[6] His father, a college librarian, nurtured his love for literature, which led to a passion for storytelling. He was an avid reader in his teens, and during college, he began writing short plays and skits forAll India Radio. He was influenced by the films of directorP. Venu. His friends during this time includedMohanlal,M. G. Sreekumar, Suresh Kumar, Sanal Kumar,Jagadish,Maniyanpilla Raju, and Ashok Kumar. Mohanlal entered thefilm industry, and his friends followed him toChennai in search of opportunities. With Mohanlal's help, Priyadarshan worked as an assistantscriptwriter on a few films and began writing his own scripts, some of which became successful. Eventually, he returned to Kerala.[7]
Though he initially aspired to become a cricketer, an eye injury shifted his focus toward filmmaking.[8]
Priyadarshan has been active inIndian cinema since 1984 as a director and screenwriter, directing over 95 films across Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi, and Telugu.
In 1984, Priyadarshan made his directorial debut withPoochakkoru Mookkuthi, a slapstick comedy produced by his friends Suresh Kumar and Sanal Kumar, with financial backing from Thiruvenkadam.Mohanlal, who had become a well-known actor by then, starred alongsideShankar as the parallel lead. The film received critical acclaim and became a commercial success, running for 100 days in Kerala theaters.[9]
Following this success, Priyadarshan continued making comedies, directingOdaruthammava Aalariyam andOnnanam Kunnil Oradi Kunnil. He then experimented with a family thriller,Parayanumvayya Parayathirikkanumvayya, starringMammootty and Shankar. His first film without Mohanlal,Punnaram Cholli Cholli, was followed byBoeing Boeing andAram + Aram = Kinnaram, both of which were well received.
However,Rakkuyilin Ragasadassil, despite featuring hit songs, failed at the box office. He regained success withMazha Peyyunnu Maddalam Kottunnu,Ayalvasi Oru Daridravasi, andDheem Tharikida Thom. The family dramaThalavattam established him as a director capable of handling serious themes, further strengthening his position in the Malayalam film industry.
During this period, Priyadarshan also directed a Tamil film,Chinnamanikkuyile, which remained unreleased. Meanwhile, his Malayalam filmCheppu achieved commercial success.
He then madePunnaram Cholli Cholli, his first film withoutMohanlal, followed byBoeing Boeing andAram + Aram = Kinnaram. He was later criticised forRakkuyilin Ragasadassil. Despite hit songs, the film flopped. However,Mazha Peyyunnu Maddalam Kottunnu,Ayalvasi Oru Daridravasi andDheem Tharikida Thom were successful. Priyadarshan gained recognition as a serious director with the successful family dramaThalavattam. HisTamil filmChinnamanikkuyile remained unreleased, while his work in Malayalam continued withCheppu, which was a success.[10]
In 1988, Priyadarshan directed multiple films that contributed to his growing recognition in Indian cinema.Vellanakalude Nadu, scripted by Sreenivasan and starring Mohanlal, tackled themes of corruption and land mafia, becoming a significant film in his career. He then directedAryan, an action film written byT. Damodaran, which depicted theMumbai underworld and achieved commercial success, running for over 150 days in theaters.[11]
That same year,Chithram, a comedy-drama starring Mohanlal, was released. The film ran for 366 days in theaters, setting box office records at the time, later surpassed by his own filmKilukkam in 1991.[11] Priyadarshan's other releases in 1988 includedOru Muthassi Katha andMukunthetta Sumitra Vilikkunnu. However, he faced setbacks in 1990 withKadathanadan Ambadi andAkkare Akkare Akkare, which did not perform well commercially.
In 1991,Kilukkam, starring Mohanlal,Jagathi Sreekumar, andRevathi, became a box office success, further cementing Priyadarshan's reputation. His subsequent films,Abhimanyu (1991),Advaitham (1992), andThenmavin Kombathu (1994), all ran for over 100 days in theaters.[12]Midhunam (1993) andMinnaram (1994) also received positive responses from audiences.
Priyadarshan expanded into Tamil cinema when he was invited byM. Karunanidhi to directGopura Vasalile for his son's production house. In 1991, he directed his firstTelugu film,Nirnayam, when actorNagarjuna approached him to remake the Malayalam filmVandanam. He made his Bollywood debut in 1992 withMuskurahat, a remake ofKilukkam, though it failed at the box office.[13]
In 1993, Priyadarshan returned to Bollywood withGardish, an adaptation of the Malayalam filmKireedom, written byA. K. Lohithadas. In 1994, he directed his second and, to date, lastTelugu film,Gandeevam, starringBalakrishna. He gained national recognition in 1996 when he directed the Miss World pageant held inBangalore. That same year, he releasedKalapani, a period drama about India's independence struggle, scripted byT. Damodaran. The film, starring Mohanlal,Tabu,Prabhu, andAmrish Puri, was originally made in Malayalam and later dubbed into Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi.Kalapani won multiple awards and was widely praised for its historical narrative and cinematography.[14]
In 1997, Priyadarshan directed two commercially successful films:Chandralekha in Malayalam andVirasat in Hindi, the latter being an adaptation ofBharathan's Tamil filmThevar Magan. In 1998, he directed three Hindi films—Saat Rang Ke Sapne (a remake ofThenmavin Kombathu),Doli Saja Ke Rakhna (inspired byAniyathi Pravu), andKabhi Na Kabhi—all of which underperformed at the box office. In 1999, he collaborated withMammootty forMegham, marking their first film together in several years.
In 2000, Priyadarshan directedHera Pheri, a Hindi adaptation of the Malayalam filmRamji Rao Speaking (1989). The film, starringAkshay Kumar,Sunil Shetty, Tabu, andParesh Rawal, became a box office success and is regarded as a landmark in Hindi cinema. It also marked the beginning of a long-term collaboration between Priyadarshan and Akshay Kumar,[15] while Paresh Rawal became a regular in many of his subsequent films.[16]
FollowingHera Pheri, Priyadarshan directed several Hindi films, includingYeh Teraa Ghar Yeh Meraa Ghar,Hungama,Hulchul,Garam Masala, andKyon Ki. In 2000, he also directedRaakilipattu, a bilingual Malayalam-Tamil thriller (Snegithiye in Tamil), starring Tabu andJyothika. Adapted from theMarathi filmBindhaast, the film was notable for its all-female cast and received critical acclaim. While the Tamil version was released in 2000, the Malayalam version and a dubbed Hindi version (Friendship) were released in 2007.[17][18]
Priyadarshan'sEnglish-languageepic period film titledThe Last Revolutionary, produced by20th Century Fox and based on the life of Indian freedom fighterChandrasekhar Azad, was planned for filming in 2001 but was eventually shelved.[19][20] During this time,Kamal Haasan was working onAnbe Sivam and approached Priyadarshan to direct it. Pre-production commenced, but Priyadarshan left the project due to creative differences, leading toSundar C. taking over as director. In 2001, Priyadarshan directed the comedy filmKakkakuyil, reuniting Mohanlal andMukesh, a successful duo from the 1980s and 1990s. The film became a box-office hit. However, his next two Malayalam films,Kilichundan Mampazham (2003) andVettam (2004), had only an average performance at the box office, prompting him to shift focus toward Bollywood. In Hindi cinema, Priyadarshan maintained his success with films such asChup Chup Ke,Bhagam Bhag,Malamaal Weekly,Dhol,Bhool Bhulaiyaa,De Dana Dan, andMere Baap Pehle Aap. However, subsequent films likeBillu,Bumm Bumm Bole,Khatta Meeta,Aakrosh, andTezz did not meet expectations at the box office. His 2013 filmRangrezz also failed commercially.
Priyadarshan releasedKanchivaram, a film about weavers in Kanchipuram.Prakash Raj won theNational Film Award for Best Actor in 2008 for his performance.Kanchivaram also won awards at film festivals.[21]
Returning to Malayalam cinema, Priyadarshan directedArabeem Ottakom P. Madhavan Nayarum in Oru Marubhoomikkadha, starring Mohanlal. However, his subsequent filmsGeethaanjali (2013) andAamayum Muyalum (2014) were box-office failures.
In late 2015, Priyadarshan announced a crime thriller inMalayalam withMohanlal.[22][23] The production was confirmed, and the titleOppam was announced in December 2015. Due to weather constraints inRussia, another big-budget Mohanlal film was delayed, allowing Priyadarshan to begin work onOppam.[24] The screenplay and dialogues, written by Priyadarshan based on a story byGovind Vijayan, received positive reviews[25] and became a blockbuster, breaking records[26] and becoming the highest-grossing Malayalam film of the year within 16 days of release.[27]
%2c_in_Panaji%2c_Goa_on_November_25%2c_2015.jpg)
In early 2018, Priyadarshan began pre-production onMarakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham, aMalayalam-language historical period film set in the 16th century. The film, starring Mohanlal, is based on the battle exploits ofKunjali Marakkar IV—the naval chieftain of theZamorin of Calicut who organized the first naval defense of the Indian coast by safeguardingCalicut fromPortuguese invasion for almost a century. The film was released on December 2, 2021, and while it received mixed reviews, it failed at the box office due to its high production costs.
Before the release ofMarakkar, Priyadarshan directed a spiritual sequel to his 2003 Hindi filmHungama, titledHungama 2. Released directly on 23 July 2021 onDisney+ Hotstar, the film received negative reviews. It was loosely based on Priyadarshan's 1994 Malayalam filmMinnaram.[28]
In 2023, Priyadarshan produced and directedCorona Papers, a Malayalam film starringShane Nigam. The film, an official remake of the Tamil film8 Thottakkal (inspired by Akira Kurosawa's 1949Stray Dog), was released on April 6, 2023. It received positive reviews and was a moderate success at the box office.[29]
In the same year, Priyadarshan directed the Tamil filmAppatha, starring Urvashi in the lead role. Released directly on 29 July 2023 onJioCinema, the film was celebrated as Urvashi's 700th project and was showcased at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Film Festival.[30][31][32]
In 2024, Priyadarshan announced the release ofBhooth Bangla, a horror-comedy film starring Akshay Kumar, marking their long-awaited collaboration after 14 years.[33]
In August 2025, he announced his intention to retire following the completion of several landmark projects, includingBhoot Bangla,Haiwaan,Hera Pheri 3, and a highly anticipated 100th film starring his longtime collaboratorMohanlal. He is currently filming Hindi thrillerHaiwaan a remake of his own Malayalam filmOppam starringAkshay Kumar andSaif Ali Khan, which will also feature a cameo appearance byMohanlal.[34][35] Priyadarshan also confirmed plans to helmHera Pheri 3. The director expressed that he feels "tired" and hopes to step away from active filmmaking upon completing these projects.[36][37]
Priyadarshan has also directed numerous advertisement films for brands such asCoca-Cola,American Express,Nokia,Parker Pens, Asian Paints,Kinley, andMax New York Life Insurance.[38]
He married actressLissy on 13 December 1990.[39] They have two children, actressKalyani and Sidharth.[40][41] The couple divorced on 1 September 2016, after 26 years of marriage.[42]
Priyadarshan has received numerous awards from both the State and Central governments, as well as from various film organizations. He has won the prestigiousNational Film Award three times and has been recognized for his exceptional contributions to Indian cinema.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
