A. L. Vijay
Encyclopedia
A. L. Vijay is a Tamil film director. Earlier he worked as an assistant and close associate of director Priyadarshan
. His father A. L. Azhagappan was the president of Tamilnadu Producers Council and appeared in the film Eesan. His brother, Udhaya, has also starred in Tamil films. Presently A. L. Vijay is signed for directing the Harris: On The Edge
concerts by music composer Harris Jayaraj
He made his directorial debut with Kireedam
in 2007, a remake of the 1989 film of the same name directed by Sibi Malayil
and written by A. K. Lohithadas. Vijay's version featured Ajith Kumar
in the lead role with Trisha Krishnan
, Rajkiran
, Saranya
and Vivek
also a part of the cast, while the cinematographer was Tirru
, music was composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar
and the film was edited by Anthony
. Vijay revealed that he "reworked about 80 per cent" from the original version. The film opened to positive reviews with a critic from Sify
.com citing that "Kireedam is quality cinema, one that is daringly different from the run-of-the mill films" claiming that Vijay had "a lot of guts and conviction to make a realistic film". The reviewer from The Hindu
also praised the film labelling that "Vijay has neatly packaged a strong storyline with a sensibly balanced mix of sentiment and action", but claimed that "Vijay could have worked on the lead character more". The final scene in the film was changed after release from a sad to an upbeat ending after the producers felt that the original scene may keep audiences away. The film consequently went on to become a profitable venture at the box office. Vijay then returned to work as an assistant to Priyadarshan in his award-winning Kanchivaram by helping with the dialogues and described his work in the project as "a liberating experience".
Priyadarshan then approached Vijay to remake the Hindi film Khosla Ka Ghosla
in Tamil under his production house and hence they collaborated to make Poi Solla Porom
. The film was completed within 34 days, with a cast containing veteran actors such as Nassar
and Nedumudi Venu
as well as relative newcomers including Karthik Kumar
and Piaa Bajpai
. The film also became one of the first ventures in Tamil cinema to feature a promotional song, with Vijay maintaining that the song reflected the story of the film. The film won above average reviews from critics with The Hindu
citing that "Vijay’s dialogue, both humorous and thought-provoking, tickles the viewer almost throughout" and that "Vijay has understood the pulse of the audience even while sticking to his stand of providing standard fare".
Vijay revealed that Madrasapattinam was supposed to happen later in his career, but the intervention of producer Kalpathi S. Aghoram helped realise the viability of the film earlier.. Vijay had first explored the script in his college days and drew inspiration from an English professor who used to talk to us about the freedom movement a lot, furthering Vijay's interest in history. He visualizes about the people who lived in the pre-independence period of India and explored the concept of how it would have been if an English girl fell in love with an Indian boy, laying the foundations for the script. The script took six months to write, with leading Tamil writer Prabanjan and visits to see independence veterans being helpful in understanding the history of the city of Madras between 1945 and 1947. Arya
was finalised to play the lead role and English Miss Teen World
winner Amy Jackson
was selected after Vijay had found a picture of the internet and tracked her down. Despite being a period film, the film was finished in eight months and released in July 2010.
The production of the film took five months from start to finish, however Vijay claimed that the film had been in his plans for four years, but he waited for Vikram to give him dates. Amala Paul
was selected after Vijay was pleased with her award-winning work in Mynaa
. Sara had appeared in a commercial for Vijay when she was two but he then lost touch with Sara's family, before he met them and cast Sara in Deiva Thirumagal, following a visit to Mumbai.
He has expressed that he prefers "to mould actors" telling them to react and not act, drawing such inspiration from the work of Priyadarshan
.
Furthermore, Vijay has showed interest in training people and mentoring their careers, citing that he likes to be the oldest member of his crew. His films comprise of a "regular crew" which includes cinematographer Nirav Shah
, music director G. V. Prakash Kumar
, production designer Selva Kumar and editor Anthony
.
Priyadarshan
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter. In a career spanning over two decades, Priyadarshan has directed over 80 films in several Indian languages including Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu...
. His father A. L. Azhagappan was the president of Tamilnadu Producers Council and appeared in the film Eesan. His brother, Udhaya, has also starred in Tamil films. Presently A. L. Vijay is signed for directing the Harris: On The Edge
Harris: On The Edge
Harris: On The Edge is the first concert tour by an Indian film composer Harris Jayaraj. The tour will strat in India and will go all around Europe, Canada, South Africa and North America. The tour will also feature the original singers crooning the numbers.- Background :In 2011, Harris announced a...
concerts by music composer Harris Jayaraj
Harris Jayaraj
Harris Jayaraj is an Indian film composer. He has written scores and soundtracks for Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films.- Early life :Harris Jayaraj hails from a pious Christian Nadar family and was born and brought up in Chennai. Harris studied at Krishnaswamy Matric School, Nungambakam. His father,...
Career
Prior to directing his first film, Vijay was a successful ad filmmaker with Venus Ad Films and had completed more than 100 ad films, with his SBI commercial winning CNBC’s Best Corporate Advertisement Award in 2009. Vijay has claimed that "advertisements teach you how to translate a story idea onto screen with maximum impact in minimum time" and is influenced by the ad works of Priyadarshan, Prahlad Kakkar and Babu Shankar. In 2003, he began his career in feature films by joining Priyadarshan as an assistant director in his films.He made his directorial debut with Kireedam
Kireedam (2007 film)
Kireedam is a 2007 Tamil film directed by A. L. Vijay, who made his directorial debut with the film. The film was a reworked version of Sibi Malayil's 1989 Malayalam classic film, Kireedam starring Mohanlal, with Na. Muthukumar assisting with writing the dialogues...
in 2007, a remake of the 1989 film of the same name directed by Sibi Malayil
Sibi Malayil
Sibi Malayil is an Indian film director of Malayalam cinema best known for his melodramas of the 80s and 90s. Since the mid-1980s he has directed some 40 movies. Movies like Kireedam, Dasharatham, Thaniyavarthanam, His Highness Abdullah, Bharatham, and Akashadoothu defined the way Malayalam movies...
and written by A. K. Lohithadas. Vijay's version featured Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
in the lead role with Trisha Krishnan
Trisha Krishnan
Trisha Krishnan is an Indian film actress and model, who primarily appears in Tamil and Telugu language films, but has also appeared in Hindi language films. She was noticed after winning several beauty pageants like the Miss Madras contest , which marked her entry into filmdom...
, Rajkiran
Rajkiran
RajKiran is a film actor, producer and director, who has acted in more than 150 Tamil films.-Film career:...
, Saranya
Saranya Ponvannan
Saranya Ponvannan, is an Indian film actress, who has predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. Saranya made her debut in a lead role in Mani Ratnam's Nayagan and went on to play lead roles in a few films during the late 1980s...
and Vivek
Vivek (actor)
Vivekananthan is an Indian film actor and comedian. He has won four Filmfare Best Comedian Awards for his performances in Run, Saamy, Perazhagan and Sivaji, respectively. In April 2009, Vivek received the Padma Shri award by the Government of India for his contribution to the arts. He was...
also a part of the cast, while the cinematographer was Tirru
Tirru
Thirunavukarasu, Tirru, is a cinematographer in the Indian film industry, specialising in documentaries and advertising. Tirru's films are in the Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam languages. He has worked for the veteran cinematographer P. C. Sriram and for Kamal Hassan . He was born in Mullukuruchi a...
, music was composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar
G. V. Prakash Kumar
G. V. Prakash Kumar is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer and singer. He has mainly scored music for Tamil, while also doing three Telugu films and a Hindi film...
and the film was edited by Anthony
Anthony (film editor)
Anthony is a Tamil film editor. He has worked in over twenty Tamil, Malayalam, and Telugu language films. This makes him one of the few editors to have worked for all the 3 biggest film industries in India.-Personal life:Anthony studied BA Lit in Madras Christian College, Tambaram, Chennai...
. Vijay revealed that he "reworked about 80 per cent" from the original version. The film opened to positive reviews with a critic from Sify
Sify
Sify Technologies Limited is an Internet service provider established in 1998, based in Chennai, India.-Company profile:...
.com citing that "Kireedam is quality cinema, one that is daringly different from the run-of-the mill films" claiming that Vijay had "a lot of guts and conviction to make a realistic film". The reviewer from The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
also praised the film labelling that "Vijay has neatly packaged a strong storyline with a sensibly balanced mix of sentiment and action", but claimed that "Vijay could have worked on the lead character more". The final scene in the film was changed after release from a sad to an upbeat ending after the producers felt that the original scene may keep audiences away. The film consequently went on to become a profitable venture at the box office. Vijay then returned to work as an assistant to Priyadarshan in his award-winning Kanchivaram by helping with the dialogues and described his work in the project as "a liberating experience".
Priyadarshan then approached Vijay to remake the Hindi film Khosla Ka Ghosla
Khosla Ka Ghosla
Khosla Ka Ghosla is a 2006 Indian comedy drama film directed by Dibakar Banerjee in his directorial debut. It stars Anupam Kher and Boman Irani. Though made on a small budget this film managed to do very well at the box office...
in Tamil under his production house and hence they collaborated to make Poi Solla Porom
Poi Solla Porom
Poi Solla Porom is a Tamil comedy film starring Nedumudi Venu, Karthik Kumar and Piaa Bajpai released in 2008. The film is a remake of the Bollywood cult film, Khosla Ka Ghosla.-Plot:...
. The film was completed within 34 days, with a cast containing veteran actors such as Nassar
Nassar
Nassar is a Tamil actor, producer, writer, director, lyricist, and singer. He has appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi and English films. He is often cited as part of India's specialist character actors, along with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Nana Patekar...
and Nedumudi Venu
Nedumudi Venu
Nedumudi Venu is a popular Malayalam film actor from Kerala, India. He has also written screenplays and has directed one film.- Early life :...
as well as relative newcomers including Karthik Kumar
Karthik Kumar
Karthik Kumar is a noted theatre and Kollywood actor. He is popularly known as 'Evam' Karthik, due to his theater connections.He studied chemical engineering in sri venkateshwara college of engineering,chennai.He is married to playback singer Suchitra Ramadurai.-Filmography:-External links:...
and Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
. The film also became one of the first ventures in Tamil cinema to feature a promotional song, with Vijay maintaining that the song reflected the story of the film. The film won above average reviews from critics with The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
citing that "Vijay’s dialogue, both humorous and thought-provoking, tickles the viewer almost throughout" and that "Vijay has understood the pulse of the audience even while sticking to his stand of providing standard fare".
Vijay revealed that Madrasapattinam was supposed to happen later in his career, but the intervention of producer Kalpathi S. Aghoram helped realise the viability of the film earlier.. Vijay had first explored the script in his college days and drew inspiration from an English professor who used to talk to us about the freedom movement a lot, furthering Vijay's interest in history. He visualizes about the people who lived in the pre-independence period of India and explored the concept of how it would have been if an English girl fell in love with an Indian boy, laying the foundations for the script. The script took six months to write, with leading Tamil writer Prabanjan and visits to see independence veterans being helpful in understanding the history of the city of Madras between 1945 and 1947. Arya
Arya (actor)
Arya is an Indian film actor who mainly appears in Tamil films. He is best known for his roles in the films Pattiyal , Naan Kadavul , Madrasapattinam , and Boss Engira Bhaskaran.-Personal life:...
was finalised to play the lead role and English Miss Teen World
Miss Teen World
Miss Teen World is an annual international beauty pageant held in the USA. Due to litigation with Miss World, claiming that the pageant was infringing on their trademark, the new title of the pageant is "The Teen World Competition." Contestants of the pageant include teen girls, with one...
winner Amy Jackson
Amy Jackson
Amy Louise Jackson is a British model and film actress. Before starting her acting career, Jackson won the Miss Teen World competition in 2008 and went on to win Miss Liverpool in 2010 and was hotly tipped to be Miss England in 2010 but lost out to Jessica Linley...
was selected after Vijay had found a picture of the internet and tracked her down. Despite being a period film, the film was finished in eight months and released in July 2010.
The production of the film took five months from start to finish, however Vijay claimed that the film had been in his plans for four years, but he waited for Vikram to give him dates. Amala Paul
Amala Paul
Amala Paul 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 was acclaimed for the portrayal of a controversial character in the film, Sindhu Samaveli...
was selected after Vijay was pleased with her award-winning work in Mynaa
Mynaa
The film score and soundtrack for Mynaa was composed by D. Imman. The album consists of 5 tracks, featuring lyrics penned by Yugabharathi and Eknaath. The songs, especially the title track, had become very popular, while the album was widely considered Imman's finest work yet.-Awards:...
. Sara had appeared in a commercial for Vijay when she was two but he then lost touch with Sara's family, before he met them and cast Sara in Deiva Thirumagal, following a visit to Mumbai.
Style of work
Vijay has described that he wants his audience "to immerse themselves" in his films and hence uses scenes which reflect the local culture, describing his scenes should mirror society and "lend it an element of timelessness". He revealed that while constructing a film he "first thinks of the plot, then the screenplay and then the characters", and tries to portray human values in his films.He has expressed that he prefers "to mould actors" telling them to react and not act, drawing such inspiration from the work of Priyadarshan
Priyadarshan
Priyadarshan is an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter. In a career spanning over two decades, Priyadarshan has directed over 80 films in several Indian languages including Malayalam, Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu...
.
Furthermore, Vijay has showed interest in training people and mentoring their careers, citing that he likes to be the oldest member of his crew. His films comprise of a "regular crew" which includes cinematographer Nirav Shah
Nirav Shah
Nirav Shah is an acclaimed Indian cinematographer. He has worked on a number of major box office hits in Hindi and Tamil since his debut with the 2004 Hindi film Paisa Vasool.-Career:...
, music director G. V. Prakash Kumar
G. V. Prakash Kumar
G. V. Prakash Kumar is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer and singer. He has mainly scored music for Tamil, while also doing three Telugu films and a Hindi film...
, production designer Selva Kumar and editor Anthony
Anthony (film editor)
Anthony is a Tamil film editor. He has worked in over twenty Tamil, Malayalam, and Telugu language films. This makes him one of the few editors to have worked for all the 3 biggest film industries in India.-Personal life:Anthony studied BA Lit in Madras Christian College, Tambaram, Chennai...
.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Cast | Language | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Kireedam Kireedam Kireedam is a 1989 Indian film directed by Sibi Malayil and written by A. K. Lohithadas. The film is about a Keralite youth whose hopes and aspirations are shattered by a combination of fate and human failing. It explores how society typecasts individuals and forces them to act that part whether... |
Ajith Kumar Ajith Kumar Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with... , Trisha Krishnan Trisha Krishnan Trisha Krishnan is an Indian film actress and model, who primarily appears in Tamil and Telugu language films, but has also appeared in Hindi language films. She was noticed after winning several beauty pageants like the Miss Madras contest , which marked her entry into filmdom... |
Tamil | ||
| 2008 | Poi Solla Porom Poi Solla Porom Poi Solla Porom is a Tamil comedy film starring Nedumudi Venu, Karthik Kumar and Piaa Bajpai released in 2008. The film is a remake of the Bollywood cult film, Khosla Ka Ghosla.-Plot:... |
Karthik Kumar Karthik Kumar Karthik Kumar is a noted theatre and Kollywood actor. He is popularly known as 'Evam' Karthik, due to his theater connections.He studied chemical engineering in sri venkateshwara college of engineering,chennai.He is married to playback singer Suchitra Ramadurai.-Filmography:-External links:... , Piaa Bajpai Piaa Bajpai Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko... |
Tamil | ||
| 2010 | Madrasapattinam | Arya Arya (actor) Arya is an Indian film actor who mainly appears in Tamil films. He is best known for his roles in the films Pattiyal , Naan Kadavul , Madrasapattinam , and Boss Engira Bhaskaran.-Personal life:... , Amy Jackson Amy Jackson Amy Louise Jackson is a British model and film actress. Before starting her acting career, Jackson won the Miss Teen World competition in 2008 and went on to win Miss Liverpool in 2010 and was hotly tipped to be Miss England in 2010 but lost out to Jessica Linley... |
Tamil | Nominated, Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil Nominated, Vijay Award for Best Director Vijay Award for Best Director The Vijay for Best Director is given by STAR Vijay as part of its annual Vijay Awards ceremony for Tamil films.-The list:Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won.-Nominations:*2007 Vetrimaaran - Polladhavan... |
|
| 2011 | Deiva Thirumagal Deiva Thirumagal Deiva Thirumagal is a 2011 Tamil drama film written and directed by A. L. Vijay and produced by Mohan Natarajan that features Vikram in the lead role as a mentally challenged adult with the maturity of a six-year-old boy, while Baby Sarah, Anushka Shetty, Amala Paul and Nassar portray other... |
Vikram Vikram (actor) Vikram is an Indian film actor who has predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. During his years in the Indian film industry, he has won five Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award amongst other recognitions and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate... , Baby Sara Sara Arjun Sara Arjun is an Indian child actress who has appeared in films and commercials. Born in Mumbai, India, Sara had appeared in a series of commercials and a short Hindi film before the age of six. In 2010, she was signed on to portray a lead role in A. L... , Anushka Shetty Anushka Shetty Anushka Shetty is an Indian film actress who works mainly in the Telugu and Tamil film industries. She debuted in the 2005 Telugu film Super and rose to fame following her performance in Vikramarkudu... , Amala Paul Amala Paul Amala Paul 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 was acclaimed for the portrayal of a controversial character in the film, Sindhu Samaveli... |
Tamil | ||
| 2012 | Thaandavam Thaandavam Thaandavam is an upcoming Tamil action film directed by A. L. Vijay. The film will feature Vikram, Anushka Shetty and Amy Jackson co-starring lead roles. It is produced by UTV Motion Pictures and features background score and soundtrack composed by G. V... |
Vikram Vikram (actor) Vikram is an Indian film actor who has predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. During his years in the Indian film industry, he has won five Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award amongst other recognitions and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate... , Anushka Shetty Anushka Shetty Anushka Shetty is an Indian film actress who works mainly in the Telugu and Tamil film industries. She debuted in the 2005 Telugu film Super and rose to fame following her performance in Vikramarkudu... , Amy Jackson Amy Jackson Amy Louise Jackson is a British model and film actress. Before starting her acting career, Jackson won the Miss Teen World competition in 2008 and went on to win Miss Liverpool in 2010 and was hotly tipped to be Miss England in 2010 but lost out to Jessica Linley... |
Tamil | Pre-production | |
| 2013 | Untitled Vijay Project | Vijay | Tamil | Announced |