Saran (director)

{{short description|Indian film director and screenwriter}} {{Use British English|date=September 2014}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}} {{Infobox person | name = Saran | image = | image_size = | birth_name = K. V. Saravanan<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://tamilfilmdirectorsassociation.com/profile.php?sno=1640 |title=TANTIS |access-date=2 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302115606/http://tamilfilmdirectorsassociation.com/profile.php?sno=1640 |archive-date=2 March 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> | birth_place = [[Coimbatore]], [[Tamil Nadu]], India | occupation = [[Film director]], [[screenwriter]] | years_active = 1998–present | spouse = Shoba | children = 2 }} '''K. V. Saravanan''', better known as '''Saran''', is an Indian film director and screenwriter who active mainly in [[Tamil cinema]]. He was once an assistant to [[K. Balachander]]. He owns a production house called Gemini Productions.

==Early life and career== {{BLP sources section|date=November 2022}} Saran's father T. Kulandaivelayudam worked with the directorate of examinations and many of his relatives are teachers. He finished diploma in visual communications from the College of Arts And Crafts and became an instructor in textile designing. Saran worked as instructor for a year and, during this time, he did some work with a lady called Mohana who was art director for [[K. Balachander]]. KB was the director whom Saran admired above all others. Saran hoped this relationship would be the key to get to him. He joined as an assistant director to KB when he was making ''[[Pudhu Pudhu Arthangal (film)|Pudhu Pudhu Arthangal]]'' (1989).

By then, Saran was also a cartoonist for ''[[Ananda Vikatan]]''. He would do this work at two in the morning, sleep for a bit and get back to work with KB by 7 am. Finally, Sarann gave up working as a cartoonist because assisting KB was too demanding. Then his first film happened.<ref name="rediff2000">{{cite web|url=https://www.rediff.com/movies/2000/feb/10saran.htm|title=Rediff on the NeT, Movies: Director Saran on matters close to his heart|website=Rediff.com}}</ref> He describes that he "was wondering what would happen if a girl, who is engaged to a particular person, falls in love with someone else" and this formed the basis of his plot for his first film ''[[Kadhal Mannan]]'' (1998). The film saw veteran music composer [[M. S. Viswanathan]] make his acting debut in a supporting role, whilst the lead actress [[Maanu]] from [[Assam]] and music composer [[Bharadwaj (composer)|Bharadwaj]] also debuted.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.indolink.com/tamil/cinema/Specials/97/Oct/a-z/atoz-3.htm |title=A-Z (III) |access-date=2014-09-15 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927193802/http://www.indolink.com/tamil/cinema/Specials/97/Oct/a-z/atoz-3.htm |archive-date=27 September 2013 }}</ref> The film's soundtrack gained rave review prior to release.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/regional/news-interviews/Time-to-Rock/articleshow/5407401.cms | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105214513/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-04/news-interviews/28137960_1_audio-release-tamil-films-music | url-status=live | archive-date=5 November 2012 | work=[[The Times of India]] | title=Time to Rock! | date=4 January 2010}}</ref> Viswanathan had initially waded away the approach but actor Vivek later convinced him to partake in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-news-1/dec-08-04/m-s-viswanathan-22-12-08.html|title=What Vaali borrowed from Rajini - Behindwoods.com - Vasanth TV Daily Thanthi MS Viswanathan YMCA Royapettah Vivek Kadhal Mannan Viswanathan Rajinikanth Balachander Tamil movie news images picture gallery images|website=Behindwoods.com}}</ref> The film won positive reviews from critics, with a reviewer praising the film for tackling a [[taboo]] subject. The critic claimed that [[Ajith Kumar]] "was back at his best", whilst also crediting success to Maanu's performance and Bharadwaj's soundtrack.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.indolink.com/tamil/cinema/Reviews/articles/kmannan.htm |title=Kaadhal Mannan: A Movie Review |access-date=11 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318001228/http://www.indolink.com/tamil/cinema/Reviews/articles/kmannan.htm |archive-date=18 March 2012 |url-status=usurped }}</ref> The film received a good response at the box office. The first copy was worth Rs 22 million, but was only sold for Rs 16 million.<ref name="rediff2000"/> Despite all this, it ran 100 days and re-established Ajith Kumar's market after a string of failures. The producers of the previous collaboration of [[Ajith Kumar]] and Sarann during ''[[Kadhal Mannan]]'', Venkateswaralayam had lost a lot of money on that film so Ajith insisted on doing another film for the studio, ''[[Amarkkalam]]'' (1999). Sarann initially approached Shalini, who was studying at the time and she refused but after a three-month pursuit, he finally got her to sign on as well.<ref name="rediff2000"/> The role of Tulasi Das was initially offered to [[Amitabh Bachchan]] who accepted before later pulling out of the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/1998/apr/30ss.htm |title=Rediff on the Net, Movies: Where is Karisma? |work=Rediff.com |date=30 April 1998 |access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref> The film began production in January 1999 and during the production of the film, the lead pair [[Ajith Kumar]] and [[Shalini (actress)|Shalini]] fell in love and eventually got married in April 2000.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2006/09/15/stories/2006091517700200.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304152603/http://www.hindu.com/2006/09/15/stories/2006091517700200.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 March 2009 |title=Tamil Nadu / Tiruchi News : From a child artiste to badminton player |date=15 September 2006 |access-date=4 January 2012 |work=[[The Hindu]] |location=Chennai, India}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2000/04/26/stories/0426223j.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303231759/http://www.hindu.com/2000/04/26/stories/0426223j.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 March 2009 |title=Talk of the Town |date=26 April 2000 |access-date=4 January 2012 |work=[[The Hindu]] |location=Chennai, India}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/1999/sep/15ajit.htm |title=Rediff on the NeT, Movies: The Ajit-Shalini romance |work=Rediff.com |date=15 September 1999 |access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref> The film won predominantly positive reviews upon release with a reviewer describing the film as having an "okay storyline made very good because of its brilliant execution" whilst stating that the "climax is also very well-developed" and praising the performance of Ajith Kumar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thiraipadam.com/cgi-bin/movie_review.pl?id=35&user_name=subashawards&review_lang=english&lang=english |title=Amarkalam – Tamil Movie Review |publisher=Thiraipadam.com |access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref> The film went on to become a large commercial success at the box office, extending the lead actor [[Ajith Kumar]]'s success after his previous film ''[[Vaalee (1999 film)|Vaalee]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/2000/jun/14spice.htm |title=rediff.com, Movies: Gossip from the southern film industry |work=Rediff.com |date=14 June 2000 |access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://downloads.movies.indiatimes.com/site/dec2000/ivw8.html |title=Filmfare – Print Edition |publisher=Downloads.movies.indiatimes.com |access-date=4 January 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006164915/http://downloads.movies.indiatimes.com/site/dec2000/ivw8.html |archive-date=6 October 2013 }}</ref> Ajith went on to purchase Sarann a car as a token of gratitude for the success.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/2000/aug/11ss.htm |title=rediff.com, Movies: Gossip from the Southern film industry |work=Rediff.com |date=11 August 2000 |access-date=4 January 2012}}</ref>

His next film was ''[[Parthen Rasithen]]'' (2000) with [[Prashanth]] and [[Simran (actress)|Simran]] (their third time pair after successful hits such as ''[[Kannedhirey Thondrinal]]'' and ''[[Jodi (1999 film)|Jodi]]''). which did well at the box office and Simran's performance was well praised by critics (her first Villainous role).

But his next film ''[[Alli Arjuna]]'' (2002) was a flop in spite of A. R. Rahman's compositions. Then he directed a film for [[Vikram (actor)|Vikram]] in a production under [[AVM Productions]] in ''[[Gemini (2002 Tamil film)|Gemini]]'' (2002), it became a mass success at the time, it made Vikram very popular and one of the hit film, Ajith neglect to act because of his Racing Career Then he directed ''[[Jay Jay (film)|Jay Jay]]'' (2003) with [[R. Madhavan|Madhavan]] which was a hit. After ''Jay Jay'', Saran works for the first time with [[Kamal Haasan]] in ''[[Vasool Raja MBBS]]'' (2004) which was a remake of the Hindi film ''[[Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.]]''. The film received positive reviews and was a commercial success. His next film is again with [[Ajith Kumar|Ajith]] in ''[[Attahasam]]'' (2004) also this film became a commercial success. After this films Saran directed ''[[Idhaya Thirudan]]'' (2006) with [[Jayam Ravi]] and was produced by veteran Director [[K. Balachander]], The film received mixed reviews and was later considered a flop at the Box-office. His next venture is ''[[Vattaram]]'' with [[Arya (actor)|Arya]] the film received positive reviews and was a hit at the box office.

In early 2007, Saran agreed terms to direct his second film with Kamal Haasan in the lead role, while also taking up the role of producer. Saran later sold the production rights of the move to [[Ayngaran International]], a move which irked Kamal Haasan and his team. As a result, the actor opted out and the film was shelved.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-news/apr-07-03/19-04-07-kamal.html|title = Tamil movie news kamal dasavatharam ksravikumar ayngaran saran vasool raja MBBS muni kamalahassan asink.s.ravikumar Tamil movies kamal hasan gallery}}</ref> Later he directed ''[[Modhi Vilayadu]]'' (2009) starring [[Vinay Rai]] and [[Kajal Aggarwal]], the film was released to mixed reviews and fared poorly at the box office. His next film is ''[[Aasal]]'' in which film Saran works once again with Ajith met with mixed reviews upon release but was an average at the box-office.

His next movie ''[[Aayirathil Iruvar]]'' starring [[Vinay Rai]] released in September 2017. His movie ''[[Market Raja MBBS]]'' with [[Arav]] was released in 2019.

Saran is known for his collaboration with Tamil film music composer [[Bharadwaj (composer)|Bharadwaj]] in a majority of his films and the director-composer duo was one of the most successful ones in Tamil film music.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-03-06 |title=Bharadwaj - Saran {{!}} Magical director & composer combo that produced a gem of albums! |url=https://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies/slideshow/tamil-cinemas-best-director-and-music-director-combo-listed/bharadwajs-combo.html |access-date=2026-02-24 |website=Behindwoods}}</ref>

==Personal life== Saran and his wife Subha have two kids Sanjanaa and Sanjith.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chennaionline.com/reeltalk/dec104.asp |title=Yet to see daylight! |website=Chennai Online |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020106004545/http://www.chennaionline.com/reeltalk/dec104.asp |archive-date=6 January 2002 |url-status=dead}}</ref> His younger brother [[K. V. Guhan]] works as cinematographer in Tamil film industry.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/saran-gets-arav-and-keeps-his-title-market-raja-mbbs/articleshow/67365262.cms|title=Saran gets Arav and keeps his title 'Market Raja MBBS'|website=The Times of India |last1=Suganth |first1=M. }}</ref>

==Filmography== {{BLP unreferenced section|date= November 2022}} {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! rowspan="2" | Year ! rowspan="2" | Film ! rowspan="2" | Notes |- |- | 1998 || ''[[Kadhal Mannan]]'' ||Director debut; credited as Sharan |- | 1999 || ''[[Amarkkalam]]'' || |- | 2000 || ''[[Parthen Rasithen]]'' || |- | rowspan="3|2002 || ''[[Alli Arjuna]]'' || |- | ''[[Gemini (2002 film)|Gemini]]'' || |- | ''[[Gemeni (2002 Telugu film)|Gemeni]]'' ||Telugu film; remake of ''[[Gemini (2002 film)|Gemini]]'' |- | 2003 || ''[[Jay Jay]]'' || |- |rowspan="2"| 2004 || ''[[Vasool Raja MBBS]]'' || |- | ''[[Attagasam]]'' || |- |rowspan="2"| 2006 || ''[[Idhaya Thirudan]]'' || |- | ''[[Vattaram]]'' || |- | 2009 || ''[[Modhi Vilayadu]]'' || |- | 2010 || ''[[Aasal]]'' || |- |2017 || ''[[Aayirathil Iruvar]]'' || Also producer |- |2019 || ''[[Market Raja MBBS]]'' || |- |}

=== As producer === {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Film ! Notes |- | 2005 || ''[[Aaru (film)|Aaru]]'' || |- | 2007 || ''[[Muni (film)|Muni]]'' || |- |}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120224144601/http://www.spicevienna.org/showPerson.php?p=1529 Saran] at the Society Promoting Indian Cinematic Entertainment

{{Saran (director)}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saran}} [[Category:People from Coimbatore]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Indian film directors]] [[Category:Tamil film directors]] [[Category:Telugu film directors]] [[Category:Film directors from Tamil Nadu]] [[Category:Tamil screenwriters]] [[Category:Screenwriters from Tamil Nadu]] [[Category:21st-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]] [[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]] [[Category:1966 births]]