Mani Ratnam

Mani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer who works predominantly in Tamil cinema. He is credited with redefining the “range and depth of Tamil cinema“, and is regarded as one of the greatest Indian filmmakers. As of 2016, he has directed 24 films and produced over 15 under his production company Madras Talkies. Although working in the mainstream medium, his films are noted for their realism, technical finesse, and craft. The Government of India honored him with the Padma Shri, acknowledging his contributions to film in 2002.

He has won several film awards, including six National Film Awards, seven Filmfare Awards South and three Bollywood Filmfare Awards.

Early Life of Mani Ratnam

He was born on June 2, 1956, as Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam. He is commonly known by his screen name Mani Ratnam. Filmmaking was in his blood; he was the son of film producer ‘Venus Gopalratnam‘ and his brother was G. Venkateswaran, a film distributor turned producer.

Mani Ratnam grew up in Madras (now Chennai), along with his siblings and cousins in a joint-family. Despite being a film family, the children were not allowed to watch films as the elders considered it a “taboo”.

Mani Ratnam is married to Tamil actress Suhasini and has a son with her.

Career of Mani Ratnam

The man who revolutionized Tamil-language cinema, Mani Ratnam is the biggest director in south India and one of the most respected directors in all of India. Each of his films contains its own unique style, with beautifully photographed songs and unique back-lighting. However, his films contain substance as well as style–Ratnam has dealt with a wide variety of topics, from the classic Indian love story to political thrillers.

Ratnam made his directorial debut, without formal training or education in filmmaking, with the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983).

In 1997, Mani Ratnam co-produced and directed the political drama film Iruvar, which was loosely based on the relationship between cinema and politics in Tamil Nadu. The following year, he made his Bollywood debut with Dil Se.., (starring Shahrukh Khan and Manisha Koirala) the third film in his “terrorism trilogy“. A box-office failure in India, the film emerged as a success overseas; it became the first Indian film to be placed among the top 10 at the United Kingdom box-office.

Profile of Mani Ratnam

Full Name: Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam
Other Names: Mani Ratnam
Born: June 2, 1956
Birth Place: Madurai, India
Star Sign: Gemini
Height:
Profession: Film Director, Producer, Screenwriter
Citizenship: Indian

Education: He studied schooling at Besant Theosophical School, Adyar, Madras. Upon completing his schooling, he graduated with a degree in commerce from the Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda College, affiliated to the Madras University. Later, he did his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in finance from Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai.

Family of Mani Ratnam

Spouse: Suhasini Maniratnam (m. 1988)
Siblings: G. Venkateswaran, G. Srinivasan, Sethu Sriram, Sharda Ratnam
Children: Nandan Maniratnam (b.1992)

Indian musician A. R. Rahman has been composing music for many of Mani Ratnam’s film. They have 25+ years of friendship.

Cited by the media as one of India’s influential filmmakers, Mani Ratnam is widely credited with revolutionizing the Tamil film industry and altering the profile of Indian cinema. Mani Ratnam grew up watching the films of K. Balachander, Guru Dutt, and Sivaji Ganesan. He is greatly influenced by the film-making styles of Akira Kurosawa, Martin Scorsese, Krzysztof Kieślowski, Ingmar Bergman and J. Mahendran.