Ananya Kasaravalli is an Indian actress and director in the

Kannada film industry Kannada cinema, also known as Sandalwood, or Chandanavana, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Kannada language widely spoken in the state of Karnataka. The 1934 film '' Sati Sulochana'' directe ...

, and a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

artist in Karnataka, India. Born into a family of filmmakers, she had a successful acting career in films, television and theater before taking up filmmaking at LV Prasad Film and TV Academy, Chennai. Ananya's notable films as an actress include ''

Kaada Beladingalu ''Kaada Beladingalu'' ( kn, ಕಾಡ ಬೆಳದಿಂಗಳು) is a Kannada language film released in 2007 and directed by B. S. Lingadevaru. The movie is about the impact of urbanization on the old people living in the rural areas. The film ...

(2007)'' and '' Naayi Neralu'' (2006). Her debut directorial feature Harikatha Prasanga/Chronicles of Hari (2016) won the Best film in the Indian Cinema Competition section in the 9th Bengaluru International Film Festival.

Career

Ananya started her career in the industry as an actress. She first appeared as a child actor in Goodininda Gaganakke, a tele-serial which aired on

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...

. She has since appeared in several films such as Naayi Neralu,

as well as popular television serials like Guptagamini, Malebillu, among others. In addition to her work in films and TV, Ananya was also actively involved in several Kannada theatre productions. Ananya took a hiatus from her acting career to pursue filmmaking. In 2014, she graduated from LV Prasad Film & TV Academy,

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

with a master's degree in filmmaking. Ananya worked as an assistant director before helming her own productions. She began by assisting her father, Girish Kasaravalli, on his films, '' Naayi Neralu'' and '' Hasina''. She also worked as an assistant director on

Oggarane Tempering is a cooking technique used in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in which whole spices (and sometimes also other ingredients such as dried chillies, minced ginger root or sugar) are roasted briefly in oil or ghee to lib ...

directed by

Prakash Raj Prakash Raj (born Prakash Rai; 26 March 1965) is an Indian actor, film director, producer, television presenter, and politician. Known for his works in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, and Malayalam-language films, he is the recipient of several ...

and

Vidaaya ''Vidaaya'' ( kn, ವಿದಾಯ; ''Farewell'') is a 2015 Indian Kannada film written and directed by P. Sheshadri, starring Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, Suchendra Prasad, H. G. Dattatreya and Pratham in lead roles. Plot Vasuki is a father of two chil ...

directed by P Sheshadri. She was also the costume designer for Naayi Neralu and

Koormavatara ''Koormavatara'' ( kan, ಕೂರ್ಮಾವತಾರ) is a 2011 Indian Kannada drama film directed by Girish Kasaravalli, based on short story of the same name written by Kum. Veerabhadrappa. It stars Shikaripura Krishnamurthy, Jayanthi and Ap ...

. Ananya came into her own as a young director with short films like ''Wasiyat Nama, Beyond Binary'' (a documentary on transfeminity) and ''Kappu Kallina Shaitana''. All of them have been highly acclaimed in festival circuits and have won several awards in the short film category. In 2016, she directed her first feature film ''Harikatha Prasanga/Chronicles of Hari'' which was based on a short story named ''Beladi Harishchandra'' by writer

Gopalakrishna Pai Gopalakrishna Pai is an Indian author who writes fiction and non-fiction books in the Kannada language. Pai has received the Karnataka Sahitya Academic award, Centre's Kendra Sahitya Academi Award. Pai is the author of the book ''Swapna Saraswa ...

. ''Harikatha Prasanga'' won in the Best Film category at the Jaffna International Cinema Festival as well as the Best Film in the Indian Cinema Competition at the 9th Bengaluru International Film Festival. It competed for the Centenary Award (Best Debut Feature of a Director) at

IFFI The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually, currently in the state of Goa, on the western coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common pla ...

. It was also the first Kannada cinema to be selected for the

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

. The film was also screened at the Museum of Moving Image - MOMI New York, South Asian International Festival, Singapore and the Jio MAMI International Film Festival among several others. Ananya is also an associate professor at her alma mater, LV Prasad Film & TV Academy, where she teaches a course in direction.

Personal life

Ananya is the daughter of

Girish Kasaravalli Girish Kasaravalli (born 3 December 1950) is an Indian film director, in the Kannada cinema, and one of the pioneers of the Parallel Cinema. Known internationally for his works, Kasaravalli has garnered fourteen National Film Awards, including f ...

and

Vaishali Kasaravalli Vaishali Kasaravalli (12 April 1952 – 27 September 2010) was a noted Kannada actress, television serial director, and costume designer. Early life She was born on 12 April 1952 in Gulbarga to theatre enthusiast parents Dr. Chitagopi and Ni ...

, and sister of Apurva Kasaravalli. She is married to M S Santosh.

Filmography

As actor

Films

Telefilms and teleserials

Theatre

As director

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kasaravalli, Ananya Actresses in Kannada cinema Living people Kannada people Actresses from Karnataka Indian film actresses 21st-century Indian actresses Year of birth missing (living people)