Krishna vamsi interview

What prompted you to make Mahatma movie?
Some of the real incidents and news items ignite the spark in me to make movies. I was watching a program on Channel V in which the anchor shows the photograph of famous personality and ask the passers-by on the road to identify the celebrity. In one such episode, the anchor was showing Mahatma Gandhi. The passers by were answering it as father of Indira Gandhi/Sonia Gandhi etc. I felt ashamed that lots of people are unaware about Gandhi and his contribution to free India. That is when Lage Raho Munna Bhai was released. It became a blockbuster. Till then I was under impression that a movie on Gandhi would never appeal to common moviegoers. Then I decided that I should make commercial movie with Mahatma as a theme.

How can your film based on Mahatma ideology appeal to masses?
My Mahatma is a masala movie. I wanted Mahatma movie to appeal to the raw instincts of the people, especially in B and C centers where the rate of literacy is pretty low. I tried to make Mahatma as a masala movie without losing my distinct signature, flavor and soul.

Is that the reason why you roped in Paruchuri brothers?
Partly yes. Paruchuri brothers can contribute more to politically motivated movies. I liked their progressive nature in old films like Ee Pillaku Pellavutunda. I loved Krishna's Eenadu movie. I want them to contribute Mahatma like the way they did in the beginning of their career for progressive films.

You touched the subject of current politics with this movie?
I tried to project the point of view of Mahatma towards politics. Mahatma movie represents my understanding of Mahatma teachings. Das character in Mahatma movie doesn't reflect the personal opinions of Krishna Vamsi.

Did you do any research while doing Mahatma script?
Yes. I read most of the literature of Mahatma like 'My experiments with Truth', 'Lets Kill Gandhi', 'Autobiography of Mahatma Gandhi' etc. I also watched several movies on Gandhi like Gandhi, Hey Ram, Gandhi My Father etc.

It is revealed in music launch that Mahatma movie is about bringing out the goodness in people to eradicate the evil within?
Yes. There is goodness in everybody. But we try to hide it for selfish reasons out of necessity. We camouflage the goodness in us. Some of the incidents in real life bring out the goodness in us depending on the intensity.

There is film backdrop in Mahatma like Khadgam. How extensive is it?
If Khadgam had 30% of film backdrop, Mahatma had only 2-3% of film backdrop. There are two scenes and a song regarding films. The perception of film industry in Mahatma is different from that of Khadgam.

You were highly courageous and forthright when you commented that the Muslims who support Pakistan against the interest of India are traitors of India. No other film (including Hindi flicks) dared to call spade a spade. Were you not afraid of it?
I don't shrink back to evade from the common responsibility to say truth and cinema is a powerful media. That is the reason why I had that dialogue in Khadgam. Back of my mind, I was little afraid that somebody might attack me. But I was single (unmarried) at that time and I was prepared to get attacked if needed. I might not make the same statement if I have to now because I am currently married. But I feel that when I make a comment, I make it on the system/issues, but not on individuals. It was done in noble intentions.

There is talk that Mahatma movie suffered at the scissors of the censor board for the objectionable content?
I had to show the current political scenario at local level through Mahatma film. After watching the movie for censoring, the censor board developed a cold feet about passing the film. They told me that though there is no objectionable content in the movie, it is vulnerable for some politically motivated organizations making a controversy out of it. We had to make the RC (revising committee) to watch Mahatma. They asked me to remove the lyric 'Indiramma Inti' part of the song. I was convinced with their point of view and altered it. There are also a couple of dialogues featuring Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi which were removed. They felt that one of the party buildings in the movie resembled Gandhi Bhavan (Congress head quarter in Hyderad). Hence I remove the exterior shot. One of the character in the film is called kaka. They objected it as there is a politician with a nickname of Kaka in Congress and I changed it to dada.

Is not it a pity that we can't even have the names of politicians and parties in movies in India. Where as in USA films like Fahrenheit and W. are made on the present government prior to the elections.
Yes. The people in USA are more matured and more educated. The people of India are driven by emotions. I think this is the case with all third world countries.

You had bitter remarks on Slumdog Millionaire movie in Jajjinaka song?
I found Slumdog Millionaire to be highly offensive for Indians. I do agree that it is a fantastic movie that deserves an Oscar. But the way they shown India is highly offensive. When those kids say 'This is India' in Agra, the Americans thrown money at them and say 'This is America'. How this scene and this dialogue is relavant to the movie. They just kept it to insult Indians. Sekhar Kapoor made a Hollywood movie on Queen Elizabeth. I read so many articles on how Sekhar Kapoor is restricted from doing certain scenes in the movie. If Sekhar Kapoor keeps such content on UK, would they allow him to get away with it? Fahrenheit 911 was banned in USA. What is stopping Indian government from banning Slumdog Millionaire in India? Satyajit Ray was condemned in India that he became a great filmmaker by showing India in poor light. I do admire AR Rehman and I feel that he deserved Oscar much before Slumdog. I wonder why all these Indian technicians and actors didn't protest when they are making offensive scenes on India. Though it is out of context in Mahatma movie, I wanted to inserted those lyrics to express my views on that movie.

I heard that you had severe criticism on all political parties like Congress, TDP, PRP and TRS in Mahatma?
I am a grown man now. I am unemotional now compared to Khadgam days. Whatever is been criticized in Mahatma movie reflects my point of view on the system. I didn't pinpoint and target any of the individuals.

Tell us about the characters in Mahatma?
Srikanth plays the role of street rowdy called Das who gets attracted to Gandhi's principles. Paruchuri Gopala Krishna plays the role of Bhikya, a suspended police constable. Uttej plays a vibrant character called Rehman. There is another character called Thagubothu Ramesh who says jai to a party that gives him money. Bhavana plays the role of a lawyer who gets bail to hero whenever he gets in jail on petty charges. Pellam Voorelithe Jyothi did the character of a lady politician. Ram Jagan plays the role of a street-play actor Ballary who appears in different get-ups in different parts of the movie. His character ends with the appearance of Gandhi character. Charmme did the role of herself in the movie and she did a song. I hired lots of competent actors from stage like MS Chowdary, Jayavani, Bhavana, Naidu Gopi, Priya and Jonna. All of them gave superb performances.

You are known for extracting intense work from the actors. How did you master that craft?
I can't act. Hence it is not possible for me to act and show it to the actors. But I create a comfortable environment for the actors and explain the situation to them. I also tell the necessity of that scene and expression. When an actor is given the minute details of the scene and is created a comfortable environment, he will excel.

You created lots of real life characters that became highly entertaining and memorable in movies. How did you do it?
I create characters from real lives. I get inspired by real people with peculiar characteristics. Then I would try to identify actors who are near to those real life characters. For example, the character of Ahuti Prasad in Chandamama is inspired by a real person whom I know back from my village. And I realized that Ahuti Prasad also possess half of those characteristics in real. That is why that character played by Ahuti Prasad in Chandamama got so much popular.

Are you satisfied with what you have achieved so far in your career?
I am yet to reach my high point. I want to do a film to my uttermost satisfaction. But various things like box office elements stop from doing it. I want to make brutally honest and naked movies like Irreversible and Fahrenheit 911

But, you Ninne Pelladatha was a big commercial blockbuster and at the same time, it became a trend setter where innumerable films followed that pattern?
The same formula of love story in a household has been narrated in Telugu films since Gundamma Katha time. I followed the same patten. But the style of narration was fresh and it hit off well with the movie lovers. But I don't think I have done a path breaking work with Ninne Pelladatha. Sindhuram was a path breaking film, but fared badly at box office. I started balancing art and commerce in my own way. I can't make a personal film now.

What motivates you. Is it money or appreciation?
The appreciation from people lead to high box office returns. If people like a movie, it automatically will become a winner at box office. But I feel that I should make movies to appeal to the crowds of B and C center. I sincerely feel that all my movies have something good to tell to the society. If B and C center people appreciate my film, they will try to change after watching it. I honestly feel that the real change in the society starts with the people B and C centers. The multiplex crowds will watch the movie, appreciate it and get on with their lives. They don't carry movie along with them once they leave theaters.

From Gulabi movie to Mahatma it has been a journey for me where I understood how Box Office work from film to film. I feel that I had been improving with every film regarding understanding the box office.

There is a beautiful song
on Telugu Tejam. Can you explain it?
There are only two popular songs on Telugu like 'Cheyyetti Jai Kottu Telugoda' and 'Maa Telugu Talliki'. If you look at Tamil people that are always proud of Tamil Thimiri (Tamil proud) and we Telugu guys lack it. The level of self respect is low in Telugu people compared to our neighboring states. I want Telugu Tejam song to become a Telugu national anthem. This song comes on the screen during titles and I have showcased all prides of Telugu from Viswamitra, Sathavahana to YSR.

You are appearing a lot in media for Mahatma unlike your earlier movies. What is the reason?
Irony is that I had to promote it and hype it more because I made a film on Mahatma Gandhi. And Srikanth is not a commercial star. We need to create all the hype this movie deserves.

What is your gut feeling on the movie?
I am pretty much confident about the movie's success. The last 20 minutes of the movie is going to be the high point. I have shown the violence in the climax using the concept of non-violence.

Tell us about your next movie?
My next movie has Ravi Teja. Ravi Teja plays a character of a guy who is from Sri Krishna Devaraya's dynasty. It is an entertaining movie which is linked up with a burning social issue of the present times.

What is the purpose of Mahatma movie?
Even if Mahatma movie could change one person per theater, I feel that my efforts gone into making the movie are justified.

Selling a Movie and Brand Loyalty

Most cinema tickets are one-off purchases. You don't buy a cinema ticket in the same way as you might buy a particular brand of soft drink, knowing that you will go back to this brand again and again and again (ie you have brand loyalty). You base your decision to buy a ticket on the basis of the marketing you have seen for an individual movie. You might be quite loyal to that brand while it lasts (you might buy a t-shirt, a soundtrack CD and the DVD when itÕs released), but in most cases, it's a short-lived loyalty. And that's a loyalty that is very expensive to purchase. With each new movie release, a studio has to create a new brand. This is why they like sequels and franchises so much — a string of movies all based around the same brand are easy to market as audiences have already had a taste of them.
The Star Wars movies are perhaps the most successful example of this, with consumers demonstrating rabid brand loyalty, and the brand being associated with a whole range of merchandising, from pillowcases to happy meals. Although many fans of the first three movies had major “issues” with The Phantom Menace, they all felt compelled to see Attack of The Clones, and no matter how many “issues” they had with AOTC, they will still all go and see whatever the third one is going to be called. They are loyal to the brand, and the marketing of the movie reflects that.
Stars may also be considered brands, particularly if they are associated with only one type of movie. Audiences feel comfortable going to see a movie starring, say, The Rock, because they know that they are going to get a specific sort of action movie (lots of pro-wrestling moves, not much talking). However, stars as brands go stale after a while, as audiences tire of actors doing the same thing over and over again (think of how Meg Ryan's career has faltered of late). People may be fans of an individual actor, and will go to see a movie because he or she is in it, but actors do not like to be restricted in their choice of scripts, otherwise they will quickly become typecast. Just consider the variety of movies that Tom Cruise or Johnny Depp has done in the past couple of years. Therefore the marketing of a movie is all about creating instant brand identity. A movie's brand is established by signalling to consumers what it is like (another movie maybe) and where it has come from.

Marketing A Blockbuster Movie

The purpose of marketing is to maximise the audience for a film and to therefore maximise its earnings ie to make as much money as possible.
Most blockbuster movies already have an audience. The studio has pumped millions of dollars into the movie because they already know people will go and see it Ð because it is based on a media text that already has an audience. This may be a previous film (eg Spiderman 2's audience will consist of many people who are fans of the first movie), or the source material (the first Spiderman movie was based on the comic book of the same name created by Stan Lee in 1962). However, the studios need a guarantee that the film is going to be make not just a small profit, but a comfortable one, and after spending, say $100 million dollars on a movie they will usually spend around half as much again on marketing it.

మహేష్ బాబు Khaleja మూవీ పిక్స్

Khaleja On లొకేషన్

Jhummandi Naadam Movie story

Balu (Manoj Manchu) has only one mission in his life - to become a great playback singer like SP Balu. He challenges a landlord in his village and comes to Hyderabad to become a singer. Captain Rao (Mohan Babu) stays in the opposite house. He is an old-fashioned man who hates the lifestyle of new generation. Sravya (Tapsee) is an NRI girl who stays in her father’s friend Captain Rao’s house. She is in India to do documentary on traditional Telugu music. Balu acts as a local guide to her and in the process, they fall in love. Captain Rao doesn’t like them fall in love. The rest of the story is all about Captain Rao’s restrictions and how the lovers emerge unscathed.

Artists Performance:

Manoj Manchu: Manoj Manchu comes up with another rocking performance in this movie. His styling and dialogue delivery is more like of those characters we see in comic books and video games that are developing using comic books. His performance in the confrontation scene leading to interval is good. He matched the screen presense and comedy timing of Mohan Babu in the scenes involving both of them. Telugu Movie Reviews

Tapsee: K Raghavendra Rao gives Telugu film industry another commercial heroine in the form of Tapsee. She has good camera friendly looks and reminded me of Rambha in many ways. She is effervescent and bubbly. She is good at acting too. It is no wonder that she grabbed many projects before the release of her first movie. She is going to be a good glamorous heroine in Telugu. It is up to her to choose right projects to make herself a performing actress too.

Others: Mohan Babu plays the third most important character in the film. It is nice of Mohan Babu to allow others (including comedians) to have satires on him (especially ‘I appreciate you’ dialogue). He is comical most of the time and performed with extreme passion in intense scenes. Brahmanandam entertains though his comedy is of old-fashioned type. Ali is humorous as ‘naa name ranjith. Naa game encounter’. MS Narayana is extremely funny as the sidekick of Mohan Babu. Suman, Dharmavarapu, Apoorva, Sudha, Ahuti Prasad and Aishwarya are adequate. Tanikella Bharani is powerful in a small role.

A R రెహమాన్ Komaram Puli

A R Rahman composing music exclusively for a Telugu film, simultaneous makes notwithstanding, is a rarity. Director S J Surya, whose last collaborative effort with Rahman was for Nani (Mahesh Babu, Ameesha Patel), convinces the Mozart of Madras to compose music for Komaram Puli starring ‘Power Star’ Pawan Kalyan and a debutante Nikeesha Patel in the lead roles.

Innovative sound, magical beats, mirthful marriage of varied musical genres; all these that have become more prominent post Rahman’s eminent international embellishments, are all served in delightful doses in this soundtrack. But what about the proverbial striking the right chord, whose echoes linger in our hearts long after the movie phases out from bountiful publicity overdoses? What about songs that touch our hearts than those that just make us tap our feet? Those are few and far between.

A rampant rant about Rahman’s songs in Telugu that the lyrics, for most part, act as mere fillers with scant attention to sensible poetic aesthetics is accentuated in this soundtrack, even when this is a straight Telugu movie, unlike the usual dubbed ones through which Rahman’s popularity among Telugu movie lovers thrives. More so, when the single card lyricist here is Chandrabose, and not Vennelakanti or such others that usually word Rahman’s dubbed soundtracks.

Moving beyond the gripe about lyrics and the other forlorn complaint about pronunciations by playback singers (which by the way applies not just to Rahman’s songs), this is a fairly enjoyable soundtrack with at least three songs that grow on you.

Power Star, the quintessential hero worship track, is high on frenzied and eclectic mix of sound and is sung by Vijay Prakash and Tanvi Shah.

Even though the zippy yet zingy rendition of Shweta Mohan (whose Chinukai Varadai from Village lo Vinayakudu is a piece of delight) sounds like it was technically altered for that effect, Amma Thalle, sounding a wee bit like Theekuruvil [from Kangalal Kaithu Sei, one of those rare Tamil films with Rahman’s music that hasn’t been dubbed into Telugu] is an interesting number with underlying classical music flavor. Naresh Iyer does his part with equal finesse.

Maaraalante in Rahman’s rousing vocals, KMMC choir’s spirited chorus and Chandrabose’s stirring words that change starts with you and within you, is a rabble rousing song that will work well on the screen.

Drenched in Javed Ali’s fabulous vocals that even sprinkle a tapori nuance when uttering chekumukE, sasimukhE, and Suchitra’s deliciously husky voice, Maham Maaye, is one hell of a catchy track, even with the absence of a myriad mix of beats like other tracks. The sound of cymbals, least expected in such a song, adds a perky charm to this number that has Chandrabose, in his inimitable style, coming up with quirky phrases like meesam molichenu manasuki and using words like teeyaga that could mean both sweet/opening and challaga as both cool/showering.

Bravo Rahman and his ladies singing Dochey for giving us a sensual song with rap, jazz and even the bygone era aura of a melodious ditty through echo effect at appropriate lines. Singapore’s singing duo Lady Kash, handling the rap bit and Krissy, singing the opening lines, with Shreya Goshal’s seductive yet sweet vocals make this an alluring track.

Nammakameeyara is the only track in this soundtrack that I went back to instantaneously after the first listening. Despite slight traces of Aparanji Madanude [Merupu Kalalu] in the opening portions and overall lyrical essence of O Paalanhaare [Lagaan] this is a strikingly soothing prayer track in a magical confluence of gifted voices like Chitra and Madhushree. Wonder what kind of contribution Harini made to this track for she is barely audible. Rahman is probably the only contemporary music director that has composed quite a few delectable devotional/bhajan tracks, in commercial films, like O Paalanhaare [Lagaan], Ishwar Allah [1947 – Earth], Ek Tu Hi [Pukar], Aparanji Madanude [Merupu Kalalu], Pal Pal [Swades], Man Mohana [Jodhaa Akbar], Piya Haji Ali [Fizaa], Khwaja Mere Khwaja [Jodhaa Akbar], Arziyan [Delhi 6], Maherbaan [Ada], each outshining the other.

Rahman’s straight compositions for Telugu have never been as magical as his straight compositions for Tamil or Hindi. Directors are perhaps to be blamed for that idiosyncrasy but S J Surya, this time, extracts a better soundtrack from Rahman for Komaram Puli than Nani, which probably augurs well for the movie.

పులి లేటెస్ట్ స్టొరీ & పవన్ కలయన్ వాల్ల్పపెర్

Tamil Actor Rajinikanth Profile

Actor Nick Name	Rajinikanth
Actor Brith Name	Shivaji Gaekwad
Date of birth	12th December 1949

Rajinikanth was born on December 12 1949 in Karnataka, India. He was the fourth child to his parents, Jija bai and Ramoji Rao Gaekwad. His original name was Sivaji Rao Gaekwad. He lost his mother at the age of five.

He had his schooling at the Acharya Patasala in Bangalore and then at the Vivekananda Balak Sangh, a unit of the Ramakrishna Mission. His mother tongue is Marathi, though he has not done many films in it.

There is a famous saying about Rajinikanth in southern part of India, recited as “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Rajini is a Super Star. Before starting his career in the film industry, he had to take up all sorts of odd jobs.

He served as a bus conductor for Karnataka state transport corporation in Bangalore. It was during this time that he nurtured his acting interests by performing in various stage plays.A friend helped him to join the Madras Film institute where Rajinikanth completed basic acting course in 1974 at the age of 25.

He started his acting career in Kannada in the movie Kathaa Sangama, directed by Puttanna Kanagal, in 1976.

In Tamil, he started with playing supporting roles, beginning as a cancer patient in Apoorva Raagangal (1975), directed by K. Balachander, who assigned him his stage name Rajnikanth.

After several films in the Eighties, he played a Hindu saint in his 100th movie, Sri Raghavendra. Many others followed, among them dramas, comedies (notably Thillu Mullu, a remake of Amol Palekar’s Golmaal) and, at the end of the eighties, action-oriented family entertainers like Velaikkaran and Manidhan.Annamalai, which released in 1992, was the first Rajini film to gross almost Rs. 100 million at the box office.

Unlike the eighties, several movies during his nineties were successful, like Muthuor Basha. At 53, his Baba released amid fanfare. Although the film grossed enough to cover its budget, it was viewed as a miserable showing and fell short of market expectations accumulating heavy losses for the distributors. Rajnikanth himself returned the losses back to the distributors who had immense faith in him. The whole affair cost him dear in terms of repute of making a comeback.

Chandramukhi, a remake of the Malayalam movie Manichitrathazhu. Chandramukhi was claimed as one of the most successful Tamil films ever as it ran in theatres (particularly in one theatre in Mount Road, Chennai) for over 600 days since release and still running. His next film, Sivaji: The Boss, directed by S. Shankar will be released in 2007.Apart from Tamil, Rajnikanth has acted in over 160 movies, including Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and Bengali. He has also acted in a Hollywood movie Bloodstone in 1988.

Rajnikanth was awarded the Padma Bhushan award in the year 2000 and was rated as one of the most influential persons in South Asia by Asiaweek. Rajnikanth has won the Filmfare Best Actor Award, South on 2 occasions.

He is the highest paid actor in India and the second highest paid actor in Asia after Jackie ChanRajinikanth was requested by his fans for many years to stand in the State election of Tamil Nadu, but has consistently resisted entering politics directly. But he did some indirect attempts in politics by announcing support to a Political Party in Tamil Nadu.

Nayanthara Personal Profile (Personal Biography):Nayanthara

Nick Name: NayanEducation: B.A (English Literature)
Date of Birth (Birthday): 8th Nov 1984

Height: 5′4
Weight: 54 KgHair Color: Black
Birth Place: Thiruvalla (Kerala)

Religion: Hindu
Marital Status: Single
Languages: English, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam
Hobbies: Listening to Music, Love to Travel
Contact Address:
Family Background
Father’s Name: Kurian Kodiyattu
Mother’s Name: OmanaBrother’s Name: Lenu

Film Background (Filmography)
Debut Film: Manassinakkare (Malayalam)
Famous Movies: Ayya, Ghajini, E, Lakshmi, Dubai Seenu , Thalaimagan, Chandramukhi , Kalvanin Kadhali , Vismayathumbath

Other Facts: She also knows classical dance

Personal Profile (Personal Biography): Namitha Kapoor

Zodiac Sign: Taurius
Education: B.A (English Literature)
Date of Birth (Birthday): May 10, 1981
Height: 6′0
Hair Color: Black
Birth Place: Gujarat
Religion: Hindu
Marital Status: Single
Languages: English, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada
Hobbies: Watching TV, Travelling, Reading Books
Likes: Family, Friends, Self Confidence

Film Background (Filmography)
Debut Film: Engal Anna (Tamil)
Famous Movies: Aai, Bambrakannaley, Gemini, Sontam, Nayakudu, Chanakya, Englishkaran, Kovai Brothers

Favorites
Favorite Flower: Roses
Favorite Color: White and black
Favorite Place: Surat
Favorite Author: Sidney Sheldon
Favorite Actors: Kamalhassan, Amitabh Bachhan and Vikram
Favorite Actress: Jyothika, Tabu and Nandita Das

Personal Profile (Personal Biography): Meera Jasmine

Nick Name: Jas
Education: Home Science
Date of Birth (Birthday):Feb 15, 1984
Height: 5′3
Weight: 52kg
Hair Color: Black
Birth Place: Kuttapuzha (Kerala)
Religion: Christian
Marital Status: Single
Languages: English, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada
Hobbies: Watching Hindi films and Hearing of Songs
Family Background
Father’s Name: Joseph Philip
Mother’s Name: Aleyamma
Brother’s Name: George
Film Background (Filmography)
Debut Film: Soothradaran (Malayalam)
Famous Movies: Run, Anjaneya, Geethai, Bala, Aayitha Ezhuthu, Joot,
Gramaphone, Kastoorimaan, Chakram, Achuvinte Amma etc
Latest Movies: Parattai Engra Alagusundram, Vinodayathra, Thirumagan
Upcoming Movies: Ore Kaadhal, Nepali, Calcutta News
Favorites
Favorite Food: Fish Curry
Favorite Dress: Saree
Favorite Color: Any Color
Favorite Place: Kerala
Favorite Actors: Rajini, Mammotty
Favorite Actress: Arundathi Ray

Personal Profile (Personal Biography): Malavika

Nick Name: Shweta
Education: B.com

Date of Birth (Birthday): July 19^th, 1979
Height: 5′3

Weight: 55kg

Hair Color: Black
Birth Place: Mumbai (Maharastra)
Religion: Hindu
Marital Status: Married

Mother Tongue: Kannada

Languages: English, Tamil, Hindi and Kannada

Hobbies: Singing and Modeling

Film Background (Filmography)
Debut Film: Unnai Thedi (Tamil)
Famous Movies: Lovely, Seenu, Priya Nestama, Shubhkarayam, Thiruttu Payale, Pasakiligal, Chithiram Pesuthadi etc

Personal Profile (Personal Biography): Jyothika

Nick Name: Jyo, Sona

Education: Psychology Degree
Date of Birth (Birthday): October 18, 1978

Height: 5′5
Hair Color: Black
Birth Place: Mumbai (Maharastra)

Religion: Hindu
Marital Status: Married
Languages: English, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam
Hobbies: Listening to Music

Contact Address: No.5, First cross street Seethama colony extension, Alwarpet, chennai-18

Family Background
Father’s Name: Chander Sadanah
Mother’s Name: Seema Sadanah
Brother’s Name: Rahul
Sister’s Name: Nagma and Roshini
Spouse Name: Surya (Actor)

Film Background (Filmography)
Debut Film: Doli Saja Ke Rakhna(Hindi)
Famous Movies: Vaali, Arul, Maayavi,Thirumalai,Chandramukhi,Kakka Kakka,Dhool,12B,Star,Thenali,Khushi,Tagore,Shock,Mass etc

Latest Movies: Mozhi, Pachai Kili Muthucharam

Other Facts: She has won three times Film fare Awards

Favourites
Favorite cartoon characters - Tom and Jerry
Favourite author - John Grisham
Favorite holiday/vacation spot - London
Favourite English Movie - French Kiss
Favorite Dish - Butter Chicken
Favourite Perfume- Jean Paul Gaultier

From movies you’ll love to drugs you’ll take

Drug companies could save millions on research by employing a mathematical strategy akin to the one Netflix uses to suggest movies you’ll love.

Scientists have developed an algorithm that ranks chemical compounds based on their potential drug activity. The new technique, reported online in the Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling, outperforms current computational methods that seek therapeutic needles in enormous chemical haystacks.

The cost of developing a new drug is estimated by industry to be more than $1 billion. Much of this expense comes from the cost of pursuing initially promising molecules that ultimately fail, notes study coauthor Shivani Agarwal of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. Of 10,000 tested compounds, only one or two will make it to market.

Many researchers are turning to computers for help sorting through the millions of molecules in chemical libraries. Machine-learning techniques, which train computers with known solutions to a problem so it can then seek novel solutions on its own, can help researchers focus on the small number of really promising molecules, says Cynthia Rudin, an MIT expert in machine learning who was not involved with the research.

Such learning methods are used by outfits such as Netflix, where users rate how much they like a movie, and the computer uses that information to suggest others of the same ilk.

The new work used a particular kind of machine-learning algorithm, known as a ranking algorithm. Rather than just estimating the probability that a molecule will have some desired activity, the computer also ranks the molecules compared to each other. This can bring the cream of the crop to the top. So instead of knowing only that someone is a fan of 30 particular movies, the ranking method also asks, is Chinatown better than Star Wars? Is Parenthood better than The Big Lebowski?

The researchers began with five data sets, each of which had 50 compounds of known therapeutic activity buried among 2,092 inactive molecules. Half of these molecules were used to train the algorithm, by feeding it chemical information such as bond length, molecular weight, and which parts of the molecule have electrical charge. After being told which 25 of the 1,046 training compounds were winners for each data set, the algorithm had to figure out how to weigh all of the chemical information in order to find the other 25 promising compounds.

The technique outperformed, albeit modestly, standard algorithms that had scoured the same data. But this is just the beginning, says Agarwal. She and her colleagues are developing other ranking algorithms that really focus on ranking the best as the best. “It could really help pinpoint compounds,” she says.

“Ranking methods are relatively new, and have not been discovered by many industries,” adds Rudin. “My guess is that these new methods would really make a difference in finding the best candidates.”

Iran's Home Movies

Earlier this week, a prominent Iranian filmmaker, Mohammad Nourizad, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for "insulting" Iran's leaders in the aftermath of last June's presidential election. He is hardly the first filmmaker to get in trouble with the regime; today, artists like Nourizad are at the center of Iran's internal struggle. For 31 years, social commentary under the Islamic Republic of Iran has become increasingly politicized. With the regime viewing the enforcement of strict religious values as one of its fundamental goals, the line between personal expression and criticism of the government has become blurred. Censors from the country's Ministry of Culture have clamped down, but filmmakers have also pushed back, using their work to test the regime's limits. Some, such as Jafar Panahi, have been thrown in jail, while others, such as Mohsen Makhmalbaf, have chosen exile.

That's what happened to another of Nourizad's peers -- Kurdish-Iranian filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi. After leaving Tehran for the Cannes Film Festival in April 2009, Ghobadi decided it was just too risky to return home. After years of filming in Iran, Ghobadi has now joined the ranks of fellow filmmakers abroad, splitting his time between Kurdistan, Europe, and the United States. His most recent film, No one Knows About Persian Cats, screened on Monday night at the Washington D.C. International Film Festival, explores the little-known underground music scene in Iran and the fight for creative freedom. In an interview with Foreign Policy's Kayvan Farzaneh, Bahman Ghobadi discusses how he got his start, the importance of Iran's creative culture, the repression of art under the Islamic Republic, and the green shoots emerging among Persian youth that make him optimistic in an otherwise bleak moment.

Foreign Policy: Why did you get into filmmaking?

Bahman Ghobadi: I was never in love with cinema. When I was young I used to love these sandwiches that my uncle used to buy me [when we went to the movies]. I think that my love for sandwiches just pulled me toward cinema.

When I was 18 years old, my parents separated. We were seven children with my mother, and I, as the eldest son, had to look for work. Then I got my hands on a book called Cinema of Animation and I wanted an outlet for my energy and so I went and bought an 8-mm camera and I read this book 20 times, because there was no other source -- there was no university or film school. So I made a movie about the competition between Iranian and foreign cigarettes. Then someone told me to send it in to a film festival, which I did even though I didn't know what a festival was. I won the top prize. They gave me three gold coins and I gave them to my mother -- that paid the rent for our house for five or six months. So my mother told me, "Go make more movies."

Then I realized that animation was very difficult, so I started to make documentaries. It started as a way to pay for things -- and in the process of living and working and supporting my family, I learned the art of filmmaking. It became a weapon in my hands to express my opinions. As I grew more mature and my vision expanded, I thought I could raise questions and show the problems and hardships of the Kurds.

FP: Do you believe that film has a special place in Iranian culture?

BG: Iran has always been a land of culture. Although we were later torn apart, that gene never died. Now, once again, it seems that is coming back and no dictatorial government can ever stop it. Music and cinema, for as long as they have been around, have pulled Iran forward. If it had not been for the last 31 years, Iranian music could have been one of the most powerful in the world.

Ninety percent of the artistic production in Iran is now underground, and most foreigners are unaware of it. For 31 years, and even before the revolution, we've had these young artists, but you just can't see them. It was even a shock to me when I discovered them. I realized that beneath the underground was another underground -- even three or four layers -- and we were not aware of this. [The government] is trying to blind us so we don't see it. But now, I think and I hope -- perhaps unreasonably -- that it is starting to show itself.

FP: So do you believe that Iranian film is more rooted in freedom of expression than other film industries?

BG: No, I don't think so. You cannot judge Iranian work on the basis of censorship.

FP: Are you optimistic about the future for Iran?

BG: Very. Iran is a powerful country. No people could have endured such assaults like the Iranian people have.

FP: What are some of the obstacles in terms of censorship and financing your movies?

BG: There are many. This kind of art is not supported. [The government] has the money and the power and they will only support the kind of work that they want. It's what they want, not what you want. What's worrisome is that the reins of the youth are in the hands of these merciless people. Art must swim against the current; [the government] can't exploit art.

FP: Do your films have to be shown underground? Do they reach a wide audience?

BG: I sent my [most recent] film to Iran. The first country where it was screened was Iran. I gave it out for free; I told them that I didn't need money and that they could copy it. This was only for the Iranians in the country, not for those outside of Iran, because they'll bring some 20 foreigners with them to see the movie.

Since I gave the film out freely, everyone is watching it. And I told them, look around you and if there is any money, give it to these young people who are trying to create art. Now I'm getting emails from the young people in Iran telling me, "The people are looking at us differently; we're getting much more positive reception."

FP: If you had the choice to either work in the West or in Iran, which would you choose?

BG: Iran, of course. It's my country. I have to serve them. We artists form the basis of every culture and we take pride in our cultural past -- not in our political or military past or nuclear past. That is why we need to preserve that foundation. If these young people cannot reach their ideals, then it is better for the world to die.

Now they've thrown me out. I'm waiting for the chance to return.