Lenin Rajendran

Indian filmmaker and politician (1951–2019) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lenin Rajendran (1951 – 14 January 2019) was an Indian film director and screenwriter who worked in Malayalam cinema.[1] He served as the Chairman of Kerala State Film Development Corporation from 2016 to January 2019.[2]

Born1951
Died (aged 67)
OthernamesRajendran
Occupations
Quick facts Born, Died ...
Lenin Rajendran
Born1951
Died (aged 67)
Other namesRajendran
Occupations
Years active1981–2019
Children2
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Career

Beginning his film-making career as an assistant to director P. A. Backer,[3] Rajendran made his directorial debut with Venal (1982).[4] Although Rajendran mainly worked in independent and serious cinema, his films retained elements of mainstream film production.[5] His works, the last of which was the film Edavappathy (2016),[6] are distinguished by the absence of traditional happy endings.[5]

An active member of the Communist party, Rajendran at times integrated his political orientation into his screen work: his 1985 film Meenamasithile Sooryan was about the anti-feudal upheaval of the 1940s in Kerala from a Communist viewpoint. As a CPI(M) nominee, he contested against Shri K. R. Narayanan in Ottapalam in both the 1989 and 1991 Lok Sabha elections.[7]

Swathi Thirunal (1987), a period film was a biographical work of a 19th-century king of Travancore, better known as a musical composer. While Daivathinte Vikrithikal (1992) was the cinematic adaptation of M. Mukundan's novel of the same name, Kulam (1997) was a loose adaptation of C. V. Raman Pillai's historical novel Marthandavarma, Mazha (2001) was adapted from Madhavikutty's Nashtapetta Neelambhari. One of his other films, Anyar (2003) deals with the hot topic of communal polarisation in Kerala.[8]

His other films are Prem Nazirine Kanmanilla (1983),[9] Puravrutham (1988), and Vachanam (1989).[5]

Не was the chairman of Kerala State Film Development Corporation.[10]

Death

Lenin Rajendran died on 14 January 2019 in Apollo Hospital Chennai after a liver transplant, at the age of 67.[11] His body was taken back to his native place, and was cremated with full state honours.[12] He is survived by his wife Dr. Ramani, son Gouthaman and daughter Parvathi.

Awards

Lenin Rajendran (right), being felicitated at IFFI (2010)

Kerala State Film Awards

International Film Festival of Kerala

  • 2010 - FIPRESCI Prize for Best Malayalam Film - Makaramanju

Kerala State Television Awards

  • 1999 - Second Best Teleserial: Balyakalasmaranakal
  • 2011 - Best Documentary (Biography): Kaviyoor Revamma
Kerala Film Critics Award

Filmography

References

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