Rahul Riji Nair is an Indian film director, scriptwriter, producer and actor active in the Malayalam film industry. His debut feature film Ottamuri Velicham won 4 awards at the 2017 Kerala State Film Awards, including Best Feature Film.[1] Rahul won the 67th National Film Awards for Best Malayalam Film in 2019 for his third feature film Kalla Nottam.[2]
Rahul Riji Nair | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 21 March 1988 |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2017–present |
| Spouse | Nithya Vijay |
| Parents |
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| Awards |
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Personal life
editRahul was born in Kollam, Kerala on 21 March 1988 to Dr. Riji G. Nair and Rajasree Nair. He did his schooling from SN Trusts Central School, Kollam and graduated in Engineering from Amrita School of Engineering in 2009.
He worked as a Software Engineer and then as Marketing Manager with multiple companies in Technopark, Trivandrum before venturing into filmmaking.[3] He is married to Nithya Vijay.[4]
Career
editRahul started his career in the Malayalam film industry in 2017 as the writer, producer and director of the Malayalam feature film Ottamuri Velicham. This film won 4 awards in Kerala State Film Awards 2017, including Best Feature Film of the year. His third feature film, Kalla Nottam won the 67th National Film Award for Best Malayalam Feature Film.
His films have premiered at prestigious film festivals in Mumbai, Kolkata, New York, Stuttgart, Chicago etc. He has also won multiple international wards including the prestigious Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for Best Feature Film at the 26th Kolkata International Film Festival and German Star of India Award for Best Feature film at the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart.
Rahul pioneered the production of mainstream Web Series in Malayalam by creating the first Originals for Major OTT platforms like Disney+ Hotstar and Sony LIV. [5] He's noticed for his diverse body of work that has successfully traversed both Independent and Mainstream Cinema.
Rahul founded the production house First Print Studios in 2011 and is currently serving the company as its CEO. As a self taught filmmaker, he ventured into independent filmmaking through Documentaries, Short Films and Music Videos. Rahul's first independent directorial was the documentary The Human Boundaries in 2012 and it was widely screened across India, Europe and the United States. His Tamil Music Video titled Mounam Sollum Varthaigal gave his first major break through as it went viral with over 25 million views.
Filmography
edit| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Feature Films
edit| Year | Film | Credited As | Language | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | Producer | ||||
| 2017 | Ottamuri Velicham | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam |
|
| 2018 | Dakini | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | ||
| 2019 | Kalla Nottam † | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam |
|
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam |
|
| 2022 | Keedam | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | |
Web series
edit| Year | Title | Network | Credited As | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creator | Director | Writer | Producer | ||||
| 2023 | Kerala Crime Files | Disney+ Hotstar | Yes | First Malayalam Originals on Disney+ Hotstar [6] | |||
| 2024 | Jai Mahendran | Sony LIV | Yes | Yes | Yes | First Malayalam Originals on Sony LIV [7][8] | |
As actor
edit| Year | Film | Role | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Vinod | Malayalam | Debut as Actor [9] |
| 2022 | Keedam | Vijay | Malayalam | |
| 2023 | Tholvi F.C. | CEO | Malayalam | |
| 2024 | Jai Mahendran | Balagopal / Balu | Malayalam | Digital Debut As Actor [10] |
As Lyricist
edit| Year | Film | Song Name | Music Director | Singers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Theeram Thane Unarum | Sidhartha Pradeep | Nandagopan V | Debut As Lyricist |
Music Video
edit| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Mounam Sollum Varthaigal | Tamil | Screenplay & Direction |
Short films
edit| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Survival Stories | Malayalam | Anthology created during the COVID-19 Lockdown [11] |
| 2016 | Troll Life | Malayalam | Platinum Film of the Year - India Film Project 2016 |
| 2016 | Netaji | Malayalam | Musical Short |
| 2015 | Rs. 2 | Malayalam | Audience Choice Winner - 48 Hour Film Project, Mumbai |
| 2015 | MJ | Malayalam | Best Film #9 - India Film Project 2015 [12] |
| 2014 | Malai Kofta | Malayalam |
Documentary
edit| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | The Human Boundaries | English-Hindi | Widely screened across India, UK & USA |
Awards
edit- 2019 - 67th National Film Awards - Best Malayalam Film : Kalla Nottam[13]
- International Awards
- 2021 - Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for Best Feature Film, 26th Kolkata International Film Festival: Kalla Nottam [16]
- 2021 - Best Screenplay, Yellowstone International Film Festival: Kalla Nottam
- 2020 - Best Film Innovation Award, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
- 2018 - German Star of India [Best Feature Film], 15th Indian Film Festival Stuttgart: Ottamuri Velicham[17]
- 2018 - Second Best Feature Film, Chicago South Asian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham
- Nominations
- 2020 - Best Film, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
- 2020 - Best Screenplay, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
- 2020 - Best Screenplay, New York Indian Film Festival: Kalla Nottam[18]
- 2018 - Best Film, New York Indian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham[19]
- 2018 - Best Director, New York Indian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham
- 2018 - Director's Vision Award, 15th Indian Film Festival Stuttgart: Ottamuri Velicham
- 2018 - Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality, Mumbai Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham
References
edit- ^ Deepa Somanl. "Kerala State Film Awards 2017". Times of India. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ 67th National Film Awards: From 'Jallikattu' to 'Kalla Nottam', check out Malayalam cinema's wins here
- ^ Kumar, Aswin J (9 March 2018). "'Ottamuri velicham': A dark horse that sheds artistic light". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
- ^ Rahul Riji Nair with 4 Awards
- ^ Rahul Riji Nair: There'll be a 'content-battle' between streamers in the next two years
- ^ "Aju Varghese and Lal feature in the first Malayalam web series on Disney+ Hotstar "Kerala Crime Files"". 8 March 2023.
- ^ "Indian Streamer SonyLIV Reveals 35-Strong 2023 Series Slate, 24 Million Paid Subscribers". 21 March 2023.
- ^ "Saiju Kurup to star in SonyLIV's first Malayalam original series Jai Mahendran". 18 April 2023.
- ^ Kho Kho movie review: Rajisha Vijayan strikes a chord in an uneven but pleasant sports drama
- ^ Sony LIV’s original Malayalam show ‘Jai Mahendran’ goes on floors
- ^ Survival Stories: Here is how these filmmakers made an anthology amid lockdown
- ^ "'MJ,' film by Rahul bags top honours at IFP". Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
- ^ 67th National Film Awards: ‘Kalla Nottam’ is the best Malayalam film
- ^ I Wanted To Tell The World About Marital Rape
- ^ "Kerala Film Critics Award". Archived from the original on 13 September 2021. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
- ^ "Kolkata International Film Festival".
- ^ "IFF Stuttgart Award Winners" (PDF). Archived from the original on 30 July 2018. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
- ^ NYIFF 2020 Award Nominations
- ^ NYIFF 2018 Award Nominations