Indian director Koduri Srisaila Sri Rajamouli was born on October 10, 1973, and he specializes in Telugu movies. His epic, action, and fantasy genre films are well-known. In addition to being the highest-paid Indian filmmaker, he is also the highest-grossing Indian director of all time .
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S. S. Rajamouli has won numerous awards both domestically and abroad, including four National Film Awards, five Filmfare Awards, two Saturn Awards, a Critics’ Choice Movie Award, a New York Film Critics Circle award, and five Critics’ Choice Awards. In recognition of his contributions to the arts, the Indian government awarded him the Padma Shri in 2016. He was listed as one of the top 100 influential individuals in the world by Time in 2023.
cinema trade expert Komal Nahta has referred to Rajamouli as “the biggest Indian film director ever”.He was referred to as “India’s most significant director today” by Rachel Dwyer, a professor of Indian Cultures and Cinema at SOAS. To date, he has directed twelve feature films, all of which have performed well at the box office. Three of his movies, RRR (2022), Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017), and Baahubali: The Beginning (2015), are among the top ten biggest grossing movies in India to date.
At the time of its release, all three of these movies were also the most costly Indian productions ever. With nearly 10 crore (100 million) tickets sold throughout its box office run, Baahubali 2 is presently the highest grossing movie in India. It also had the greatest estimated admissions of any movie since Sholay (1975).
At the time of its release, the 2009 fantasy action movie Magadheera held the record for highest Telugu box office earnings. At the Toronto After Dark Film Festival in 2012, Eega took home nine honors, including Most Original Film. Six Saturn Award nominations have gone to Baahubali films, with Baahubali 2 taking up the Best International Film title. A number of international awards were given to RRR, including a Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Foreign Language Film, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for the song “Naatu Naatu”.
Larger-than-life characters with historical and mythological allusions, stylish action scenes, unrestrained bravery, and epic grandeur are hallmarks of Rajamouli’s works. His movies are renowned for fusing real-world effects with computer-generated imagery. The pan-Indian film movement has been spearheaded by him with his Baahubali movie. Additionally, he is responsible with bringing Telugu and South Indian film to the attention of audiences in North India and abroad.
S. S. Rajamouli Childhood
Born on October 10, 1973, into a Telugu family , Koduri Srisaila Sri Rajamouli was the son of V. Vijayendra Prasad and Raja Nandini. At the time of his birth, his parents were residing at Hire Kotnekal in the Raichur district of Mysore state, which is now known as Karnataka. His mother is from Visakhapatnam, and his father is from Kovvur, which is close to Rajahmundry, both of which are in Andhra Pradesh.
Rajamouli’s father is a Kamma, and his mother was a Kapu caste member. His parents later got married in an intercaste love marriage after meeting in Vizag. As a protest against the caste system, Vijayendra Prasad removed the first “K” from his name because he believed it to be a sign of his caste.The parents of Rajamouli are devoted followers of Lord Shiva. He was conceived as a result of a dream his mother experienced while visiting the Srisailam pilgrimage site. As a result, Srisaila Sri Rajamouli became his name. His eldest sister currently resides in Australia. Rajamouli was raised in a mixed household, sharing a home with his father and his five brothers and their families.
The estates owned by Prasad’s family in Kovvur were lost when railway lines were built across them. Then, in 1968, Prasad and his family relocated from Kovvur to Karnataka. Prasad purchased seven acres of paddy fields at Hirekotikal village, close to Manvi, in the Raichur district, together with his older brother K. V. Sivashankar. In 1977, their family returned to Kovvur.
Rajamouli received his education up until the fourth standard in Kovvur before moving to Eluru to complete his first year of intermediate school. After taking a two-year hiatus, he completed his second year of intermediate school in Kovvur. He didn’t seek any more formal education after that.
Storytelling was Rajamouli’s passion when he was in his second grade. His grandmother first exposed him to the epics Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavata when he was seven years old. Around the same time, his father exposed him to Amar Chitra Katha comics, which told tales of religious mythology, folktales, and historical Indian people. It greatly influenced him and shaped his preference for fantastical characters. He would retell such tales to his pals in his own unique style after remembering them from the movies and stories he had seen.
His mother was determined that he learn the language, so she would take him to the local towns to see English-language movies. She never put any academic pressure on him and instead encouraged him to read comic books and storybooks in his spare time. When talking about Rajamouli’s early years, his father remarked, “He was not an ambitious child. We had no idea what piqued his curiosity for a very long time. He displayed a slight interest in movies. He was in a movie that I directed as a young Krishna.”
The paternal grandfather of Rajamouli was a prosperous landowner with 360 acres of property. A large portion of their riches was lost by the time Rajamouli was ten or eleven years old. Due to their love of cinema, his uncle Siva Shakthi Datta and father Vijayendra Prasad sold the majority of their possessions and moved to Madras to pursue their careers as filmmakers. They began a lot of incomplete movies.
They had to start working as ghostwriters to make ends meet after suffering financial difficulties. His large family moved into a two-room Madras apartment with thirteen members. Rajamouli remembers that his family would joke around when they sat down and made fun of their circumstances, but they never seemed to take it personally.
Later, with roles in movies like Gharana Bullodu (1995) and Bobbili Simham (1994), Prasad made a name for himself as a scriptwriter. Then, wanting to make another movie, his father used his life resources to co-produce and direct the 1996 movie Ardhangi alongside Katragadda Prasad. Rajamouli remembers that movie:
As an assistant director, I took an active part in the project. Despite not being the film’s director, I felt it was my child. It was an ignominious failure. My family became ensnared in debt. Years passed before we could finally put the puzzle pieces together. I could not get all of that out of my head. For me, that was a really dark time. I then made the decision to never assume anything. No matter how minor or insignificant a scene or shot may be, it instilled in me the work ethic to make everything flawless and captivating for the viewer. It was during that worst time in my life that I learned how to work in my future career.
S. S. Rajamouli Career
Early work
Rajamouli began his film career as an apprentice, spending six months working under seasoned film editor Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao. “Even in my early 20s, I didn’t know how to plan for my future,” remembers Rajamouli. My dad used to chastise me all the time for doing nothing. I only joined movies to avoid his pestering. I gradually discovered that I like directions.” He spent a few days working at the AVM recording theatre in Chennai. He also served as Kranthi Kumar’s assistant director for a while. After that, he spent six years helping his father, Vijayendra Prasad. When he first began writing screenplays for movies, he was often let down by the way other directors handled his ideas. His dissatisfaction as a writer inspired him to pursue a career in directing, enabling him to flawlessly translate his literary vision onto the screen.
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After that, he moved from Chennai to Hyderabad to work with his relative Gunnam Gangaraju, who taught him about the practical side of filmmaking. Later, he directed ads with a social message under the direction of K. Raghavendra Rao. In addition, he directed a couple of Telugu Desam Party commercials. Following that, he spent 1.5 years directing the Telugu TV series Santhi Nivasam, co-produced by Raghavendra Rao alongside Vara Mullapudi. It was broadcast on ETV. Working seventeen hours a day, Rajamouli described it as the most difficult time in his life during a 2005 interview. He remembered:
2009–2014: Acclaim and recognition from critics
The fantasy-action movie Magadheera (2009), starring Ram Charan and Kajal Aggarwal, was Rajamouli’s next project. Produced with a budget of ₹35–44 crore (about US$7–10 million), it was the priciest Telugu movie to date.[A] In the credits, it was the first Telugu movie to mention a “visual effects producer”. At the conclusion of its theatrical run, Magadheera was the highest-grossing Telugu film and went on to become one of the biggest commercial triumphs in Telugu cinema.
Rajamouli received the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Director and the Nandi Award for Best Director for Magadheera. In addition, the movie took home nine Nandi Awards, six Filmfare Awards South, and the National Award for Best Special Effects and Choreography at the 57th National Film Awards. Due to the film’s success, both of the stars became extremely famous.
On May 27, 2011, Magadheera—which had been dubbed into Malayalam as Dheera: The Warrior and into Tamil as Maaveeran—was released. Both of the dubbed versions were well received and helped Ram Charan gain a sizable following in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. When the movie was released in August 2018 with a Japanese dubbing, it quickly rose to the top of the list of highest-grossing Indian movies in Japanese theater history.
He was the director of the 2010 action comedy Maryada Ramanna, which starred Saloni and Sunil. Rajamouli thoroughly enjoyed the silent comedy Our Hospitality, which debuted in 1923. He desired to narrate the same tale in his own unique style. When he attempted to get in touch with the film’s original makers, he discovered that they had passed away and that the copyright had lapsed because the movie had been out of theaters for more than 75 years.
Then, he and his cousin S. S. Kanchi reworked that tale against the backdrop of Rayalaseema, emphasizing the factional violence and hospitality that coexisted in the area. “I decided that my next project would be Maryada Ramanna during Magadheera shooting itself because Magadheera is a one and a half year project that demands a lot of physical labor and mental strain,” he said in reference to his choice to create a short film similar to Maryada Ramanna. After Magadheera, I didn’t want to work on another physically demanding movie.
Critics gave Maryada Ramanna positive reviews when she debuted. It rose to become one of 2010’s highest-grossing Telugu movies. Four Nandi Awards were given to it, including Best Popular Feature Film. Maryada Ramanna has been remade in Malayalam, Bengali, Tamil, Kannada, and Hindi as Son of Sardaar. During a 2012 interview with Maa TV, Rajamouli declared that Maryada Ramanna was his personal favorite movie he had ever directed.
Upcoming projects
Rajamouli is determined to work with Mahesh Babu, the actor. Production on the movie, which is billed as an African jungle adventure, is anticipated to start in 2024. He provided more information about the film when in attendance at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022. “I’m working with Mahesh Babu on a global action adventure picture for my next project. It’s going to be an Indian-inspired James Bond or Indiana Jones movie.” A “coup for the agency” was allegedly made when he signed with the American talent agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in September 2022.
Additionally, there were rumors that he was developing an animated movie with Indian themes. He disclosed in August 2022 that he was working on a few scripts that may be adapted into animated movies.38
Rajamouli has made no secret of his desire to one day direct a movie based on the epic Mahabharata in India. He estimates that it will take six to 10 years and involve at least four parts. He stated in May 2017 that he didn’t want to cut corners in order to complete the massive project, which might take ten years. I am concerned about my ability to carry out this technically challenging project (in the near future).” Additionally, he had disclosed that well-known actors might not appear in the film series. “Adding stars to this kind of movie won’t make it work.
“After designing the various characters, I would need to find the appropriate artists and shape them appropriately,” he remarked. “Mahabharata has been my long, long, dream project, but it will take a long time for me to step into that ocean,” he stated in July 2022. Maybe three or four films are what I want to do before I tackle Mahabharata.” He stated in May 2023, “It would take me a year to read the Mahabharata versions that are available in the country if I ever got to the point of making Mahabharata.” I can only speculate at this time that it would be a ten-part movie.”
Additionally, he frequently stated that he would like to see movies based on the lives of historical figures such as Rani Abbakka, Rajaraja Narendra, Kakatiyas, and Sri Krishnadevaraya.
S. S. Rajamouli Individual Life
My lifestyle, my beliefs, and my personal ideas are unrelated to my line of work. I don’t discuss that at all. In a professional sense, I am unique. I don’t try to force my opinions on my narrative or my characters.
In 2001, Rajamouli wed Rama, his cousin Keeravani’s sister-in-law. Following their union, Rama contributed to numerous Rajamouli films as a costume designer. Karthikeya, the son of Rama from her first marriage, was adopted by him. Mayookha is the couple’s adoptive daughter as well. Karthikeya is wed to Pooja Prasad, who is Jagapathi Babu’s niece from Telugu.
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M. M. Keeravani, Rajamouli’s cousin, composed the soundtrack for each of his films. M. M. Srilekha and Kalyani Malik, his other cousins, are also composers of music. One of his cousins is S. S. Kanchi, an actor and playwright best known for his part in the sitcom Amrutham. In addition to acting in four of Rajamouli’s films, he worked as a script doctor on several of his productions. His relative is Raja Koduri, an executive vice president at Intel. K. Raghavendra Rao is regarded by Rajamouli as his mentor and guru. He referred to Gunnam Gangaraju as his mentor and philosopher, who had an influence on his outlook.
Rajamouli is referred to as Jakkanna in honor of the fabled sculptor Jakanachari, or Jakkanna in Telugu, who is credited with constructing a number of temples during the Hoysala era in the 12th century. Actor Rajeev Kanakala came up with the nickname while working on the Rajamouli-directed TV series Santhi Nivasam (about 2000). It was a reference to his meticulous work ethic and desire for perfection, much like the renowned sculpture.
In an interview from March 2022, Rajamouli discussed his religious beliefs, saying, “I don’t believe in God or religion the way it is portrayed now.” However, I wouldn’t know if you asked me if I believed in God’s existence.” Rajamouli stated at Beyond Fest 2022 in Los Angeles that although he is “very much” a Hindu, he is not a Hindu in the traditional sense. Instead, he views Hinduism as Dharma. He declared, “I adhere to Hindu dharma.”
Andhra Pradesh’s chief minister, Chandrababu Naidu, sought Rajamouli’s opinion in 2017 over the layout of Amaravati, the state’s planned capital.
S. S. Rajamouli Style Of Filmmaking
A “film freak” in her own right, The word “emotion” perfectly describes Rajamouli’s love of making movies. He frequently claimed that the stories in his films are motivated by human emotions. One recurrent motif in his films is revenge. The past of the protagonist is presented in a number of Rajamouli films through flashback sequences, usually in the second part of the movie. Simhadri, Vikramarkudu, Magadheera, Baahubali: The Beginning, and RRR all employ this narrative technique.
Rajamouli took part in the 2022 film polls conducted by the British magazine Sight & Sound. Every ten years, the magazine asks well-known modern authors and filmmakers to list their ten favorite movies. Forrest Gump (1994), Mayabazar (1957), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Kung Fu Panda (2008), Aladdin (1992), Braveheart (1995), Apocalypto (2007), Ben-Hur (1959), Django Unchained (2012), and The Lion King (1994) were the ten movies that Rajamouli listed in chronological order.
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