Vijay Kumar (director)

Vijay Kumar
Born
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
NationalityIndian
Alma materGovernment College of Engineering, Salem
Occupations
Years active2013 - present

Vijay Kumar is an Indian actor, writer, director, lyricist and producer. His directorial debut, Uriyadi, a political thriller set in the 1990s, was released in 2016[1][2][3] and was lauded as one of the best political thrillers in Tamil cinema.[4][5] His second project Uriyadi 2 released in April 2019.

Early life

[edit]

Vijay was born in Chennai where he spent his schooling years.[6] He then studied Metallurgical Engineering at the Government College of Engineering, Salem.[citation needed] A software engineer by profession, he quit his career in reputed companies like IBM and Infosys to pursue his passion in cinema.[7]

Film career

[edit]

Vijay was a Project Lead in IBM when he quit his job to pursue his passion in filmmaking.[8] He made a short film and applied to the first season of the Nalaya Iyakunar show in 2009.[7][6] He was selected and subsequently screened two short films on the show. However, he left for personal reasons.[6]

He moved to the United States in 2010 and began writing the script for Uriyadi in early 2011. It was initially titled Vidiyum Varai VinmeengalaaVom (V4). He spent over a year on the script, sketching more than 2500 shots for its storyboard.[9]

Back in India, Vijay Kumar started his production house Souvenir Productions in April 2013.[citation needed] He conducted a three-month acting workshop for the actors as almost all of them were debutants.[9]

Uriyadi was released in theaters on 27 May 2016.[citation needed] Upon its release, The Hindu had a chat with Vijay and cited that Uriyadi is "A throwback to the 90s".[10] Uriyadi 2, produced by Suriya's 2D Entertainment, directed by and starring Vijay Kumar released on 5 April 2019.

Vijay Kumar's next film was Fight Club, a youth action-drama that went on floors on 16 July 2021. It stars Vijay Kumar and Monisha Menon in the lead and is produced by Reel Good Films.[11] The principal photography was completed on 3 July 2022.[12] Presented by Lokesh Kanagaraj's production company, G Squad,[13] the film released on 15 December 2023 to favorable reviews.[14]

Vijay Kumar will also play the lead in Reel Good Films second production, Election.[15] The film, directed by Thamizh, co-stars Preethi Asrani. It also features Pavel Navageethan, George Maryan and Dileepan, with music by Govind Vasantha. The principal photography wrapped up on 4 September 2022 and the film will release on 17 May 2024. Vijay Kumar has also written the dialogues of the film.[16]

Filmography

[edit]
Year Film Credited as Role Notes
Writer Director Actor Producer Background Music
2016 Uriyadi Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY Lenin Vijay [17]
2019 Uriyadi 2 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY Red XN Red XN Lenin Vijay [18]
2020 Soorarai Pottru Dialogues Red XN Red XN Red XN Red XN — [19]
2023 Fight Club Dialogues Red XN Green tickY Creative Producer Red XN Selvaa [20]
2024 Election Dialogues Red XN Green tickY Creative Producer Red XN Nadarajan [15]

Awards and nominations

[edit]
Year Film Award Category Notes Ref
2016 Uriyadi Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards Best Debut Actor Won [21]
2017 SIIMA Best Debut Actor Nominated [22]
Tentkotta Awards Most Watched film of a Debutant Filmmaker Won [23][better source needed]
Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards Best Production Won [24]
Tamil Nadu Murpoku Ezhuthalar Kalaingargal Sangam Film Awards Special Award for Production Won [25][26]
Special Award for Writing and Direction Won
Radio Mirchi Madurai Awards Best Director Won [27][better source needed]
SIIMA Best Debut Director Nominated [22]
Filmibeat Tamil Cinema Award Best Debut Director Won [28][better source needed]
Behindwoods Gold Medals Direction Wall of Fame [29]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Rangan, Baradwaj (28 May 2016). "Uriyadi review: A gritty little film by a solid filmmaker". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
  2. ^ "Uriyadi Movie review". Times of India. 28 May 2016.
  3. ^ "Uriyadi Review: An unmissable masterpiece that deserves our support!". Fullyfilmy.in. 30 May 2016. Archived from the original on 5 April 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
  4. ^ "Uriyadi director Vijay Kumar spills the beans on his next". Hindustan Times. 8 March 2017.
  5. ^ "Vijay Kumar stuns audience by his performance in Uriyadi". Awesome Machi. 31 July 2017.
  6. ^ a b c "Uriyadi movie director and technicians interview". Ananda Vikatan. 15 June 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Uriyadi director Vijay Kumar interview". Behindwoods. 2 June 2016.
  8. ^ "Uriyadi director Vijay Kumar interview". Behindwoods. 2 June 2016.
  9. ^ a b "More than 2000 shots created for story board". The Times of India. 16 January 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  10. ^ "The Hindu Interview". The Hindu. 28 May 2016.
  11. ^ "'Fight Club' will capture the life journey of youngsters: Abbas". The Times of India. 30 November 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  12. ^ "It's a wrap for Vijay Kumar's next". Cinema Express. 3 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Vijay Kumar's next is 'Fight Club', presented by Lokesh Kanagaraj's G Squad banner". The Hindu. 29 November 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Fight Club Movie Review : Filmmaking flair trumps familiarity to make Fight Club engaging". Times of India. 15 December 2023.
  15. ^ a b "'Election': Vijay Kumar's film with 'Seththumaan' director gets a release date". The Hindu. 30 April 2024. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  16. ^ "Uriyadi Vijay Kumar raises expextations". New Cinema Express. 5 September 2022.
  17. ^ "Uriyadi review: A gritty little film by a solid filmmaker". The Hindu. 28 May 2016. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  18. ^ Kumar, Karthik (5 April 2019). "Uriyadi 2 movie review: A political thriller that asks all the right questions".
  19. ^ "Soorarai Pottru Review". Cinema Express. 12 November 2020.
  20. ^ "'Fight Club' will capture the life journey of youngsters: Abbas". The Times of India. 30 November 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  21. ^ "Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards of 2016". Ananda Vikatan. 28 December 2016.
  22. ^ a b "Nominations list for the SIIMA 2017 announced!". Sify.com. Archived from the original on 5 June 2017.
  23. ^ "Tentkotta Awards". Tentkotta. 28 April 2017.
  24. ^ "Norway Tamil Film Festival: Complete list of winners". Times of India. 7 March 2017.
  25. ^ "Uriyadi gets a new recognition from Tamil literary world". NDTV Tamil. 1 September 2017.
  26. ^ "Visaranai, Joker, Uriyadi get valuable recognition". Indiaglitz Tamil. 4 September 2017.
  27. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  28. ^ "Filmibeat Tamil Cinema Awards of 2016". Filmibeat. 13 January 2017.
  29. ^ "Behindwoods Gold Medals Wall of Fame". Behindwoods. 12 April 2017.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vijay_Kumar_(director)&oldid=1256923686"