Dinesh Baboo (also known as Dinesh Babu) is an Indian film director, cinematographer, actor and screenwriter who works predominantly in

Kannada cinema 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'' directed ...

. In a career spanning five decades he has directed more than 40 films, filmed more than 20 films and been the scriptwriter for 6 films. He is the recipient of several accolades including two

Karnataka State Film Awards Karnataka State Film Awards are the most notable and prestigious film awards given for Kannada film industry in Karnataka, India. These are considered the highest awards for Kannada language films. They are given annually by the Government ...

, two

Filmfare Awards South Filmfare Awards South is the South Indian segment of the annual Filmfare Awards, presented by the Filmfare magazine of The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Indian film industry encompassing ...

and two Cinema Express Awards. Baboo has created many critical and commercially successful films, like ''

Suprabhatha ''Suprabhatha'' is a 1988 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film directed, written and filmed by Dinesh Babu, making his debut as a director. The film stars Vishnuvardhan and Suhasini in lead roles, along with Srividya, Maanu and Vijay K ...

Idu Saadhya ''Idu Saadhya'' ( This is possible) is a 1989 Indian Kannada-language film directed by Dinesh Babu. It is heavily inspired by the 1987 Italian slasher film ''Stage Fright'' (original title : ''Deliria'') directed by Michele Soavi. ''Idu Saadhya' ...

Hendthighelbedi ''Hendthighelbedi'' () is a 1989 Indian Kannada-language comedy thriller film, written and directed by Dinesh Babu. It stars Anant Nag and Mahalakshmi. The supporting cast features Sundar Krishna Urs, Devaraj, Tara and Bangalore Nagesh. The fil ...

Amrutha Varshini ''Amruthavarshini'' () is a 1997 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film written, photographed and directed by Dinesh Baboo. It stars Ramesh Aravind, Suhasini and Sharath Babu, with Nivedita Jain appearing in a cameo role. It features Ram ...

Laali ''Laali'' ( kn, ಲಾಲಿ) is a 1997 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed, written and scripted by Dinesh Babu, starring Vishnuvardhan, Mohini and Shanthi Krishna in the lead roles. The film was produced by Rockline Venkatesh under ...

Nishyabda ''Nishyabda'' ( kn, ನಿಶ್ಯಬ್ದ; ''Silence'') is a 1998 Indian Kannada thriller film directed and written by Dinesh Babu and stars Vishnuvardhan, Sumanth, Mohini and Revathy in the lead roles. The film was produced by Jayashri De ...

Abhi Abhi (Devanagari अभि) is a preposition in Sanskrit, also found in Pali, Bengali, Assamese and Hindi. Today, it remains a productive element in forming names. Origin The first reference to the word "Abhi" is found in the ancient Hindu sacre ...

, Chitra,

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

Magic Ajji ''Magic Ajji'' ( ''Magic Grandma'') is a 2005 Indian Kannada language fantasy film directed by Dinesh Baboo. It was the first digital film shot in high-definition in Kannada, and the second to be released. The first being Baboo's 2004 '' Ka ...

, Neenello Naanalle'' and ''

Bellary Naga ''Bellary Naga'' is a 2009 Indian Kannada-language romantic action film starring Vishnuvardhan, Manasi and Avinash. The film is directed by Dinesh Babu and based on the Malayalam language film ''Rajamanikyam'' (2005) starring Mammootty This wa ...

.'' His 1989 comedy-thriller film '' Inspector Vikram'' was an average grosser at the time of release but as over the years attained a ''

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

'' status. He has also been the cinematographer for many commercially successful films, like ''

Paadu Nilave ''Paadu Nilave'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language romantic musical film, directed by K. Rangaraj and written by M. G. Vallaban from a story by R. Selvaraj. The film stars Mohan and Nadhiya, with Ravichandran, Senthil, Vennira Aadai Moorth ...

Ninaive Oru Sangeetham ''Ninaive Oru Sangeetham'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film, directed by K. Rangaraj and produced by S. Greeta. The film stars Vijayakanth, Radha, Srividya and Rekha. The soundtrack is composed by Ilaiyaraaja. The film ...

, Dhruvam,

Ammayane Sathyam ''Ammayane Sathyam'' (അമ്മയാണെ സത്യം, English: ''I Swear on my Mother'') is a 1993 Malayalam film written and directed by Balachandra Menon. The film stars Mukesh, Annie, Balachandra Menon, Narendra Prasad, Jagathy S ...

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

Pidakkozhi Koovunna Noottandu ''Pidakkozhi Koovunna Noottandu'' () is a 1994 Indian Malayalam-language comedy-drama film directed by Viji Thampi and written by Sasidharan Arattuvazhi from a story by Urvashi, who also produced the film. Starring Urvashi, Manoj K. Jayan, Ja ...

'' and ''

The King In the British English-speaking world, The King refers to: * Charles III (born 1948), King of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms since 2022 As a nickname * Michael Jackson (1958–2009), American singer and pop icon, nicknamed "T ...

.''

Career

Cinematographer

His career in cinema started as a cinematographer. He stood behind the camera for noted

Malayalam film Malayalam cinema is an Indian cinema, Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ...

blockbusters like '' Dhruvam'', '' Ullasa Poonkattu'' and the 1994 blockbuster ''

'' which was instrumental in raising Suresh Gopi, to stardom. His most successful film as a cinematographer was the

Shaji Kailas Shaji Kailas (born 8 February 1965) is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Malayalam cinema. Shaji got a breakthrough with the comedy film ''Dr. Pasupathy'' (1990). He is best known for his action films with mainl ...

' 1995 blockbuster ''The King'' , which was the highest grossing Malayalam film at the time. Great talent in cinematography was the springboard that launched him to great success in the world of cinema. This also helped him to have first hand knowledge of every technical aspect of cinema, which a director need not be necessarily familiar with. He also directed a Malayalam film named ''

Mazhavillu ''Mazhavillu'' () is a 1999 Indian Malayalam-language romantic thriller film directed by Dinesh Baboo. It is a remake of director's own 1997 Kannada movie ''Amrutha Varshini''. It stars Kunchacko Boban, Preeti Jhangiani and Vineeth in the lead r ...

'' starring

Kunchacko Boban Kunchacko Boban (born 2 November 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer. Sometimes referred to as Chackochan, he works in the Malayalam film industry and has acted in more than 90 films in more than two decades. He is a member of the List ...

and Preeti Jhangiani. Although his camera skills were widely appreciated in Mollywood, his ambition took him to the world of Kannada films where he chose to direct rather than handle the camera.

Director

His directorial career in the Kannada film world took off with ''

'' - a film with Vishnuvardhan and Suhasini which became a

box office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicke ...

hit creating many records and gave a major boost to the career of Dinesh babu. His next movie was the hugely successful thriller ''

'' in 1989. The movie, featuring eight stars, was made on a shoestring budget of just 1.5

million One million (1,000,000), or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian ''millione'' (''milione'' in modern Italian), from ''mille'', "thousand", plus the au ...

INR and shot at a single location within 36 hours then creating a record for the fastest completion of an

Indian film The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...

. He followed it up with the comedy cop thriller - '' Inspector Vikram'' - which was a first of its kind in Kannada cinema at that time. Though an average success at the time of its release, the movie has gained cult following among the viewers over the years. As a

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

, his craftsmanship has been lauded by columnists and reviewers - especially for his screenplay which revolves around very few locations and for successfully blending the comedy and thriller genre.

Actor

He appeared in front of the camera for the first time as a Police officer in the film '' Accident'' which is Directed by Ramesh Aravind.

Filmography

Films

;Cinematographer only ;Director only

Television

*''Mane Mane Kathe'' *''Akansha'' *''Swati Muttu''

References

External links

# # # https://m.dailyhunt.in/news/india/malayalam/malayalivartha+new-epaper-malvart/kannadayile+prashastha+sinima+samvidhayakande+makalaya+anjanayum+bijuvum+thammil+pranaya+vivahitharayathin+pinnale+villanayethiyath+achande+sahodhara+puthran+bharthavinde+maranashesham+aabhichara+kriyakalkkum+manthravadhathinumoduvil+yuvathiyude+aduthethi+bijuvinepole+samsarikkukayum+anukarikkukayum+cheyth+thande+dhehath+aathmav+kudiyittundennum+thanan+bijuvennum+parany+vishvasippichu+nigudathakalude+churulazhiyumbol+bijuvine+konnatho+samshayangal+bakkiyakumbol+arunin+anjana+svanthamayath+ingane-newsid-112498788 {{DEFAULTSORT:Baboo, Dinesh Living people Kannada film directors Malayalam film directors Kannada film cinematographers Malayalam film cinematographers Filmfare Awards South winners Film directors from Thiruvananthapuram Film producers from Thiruvananthapuram 20th-century Indian film directors 21st-century Indian film directors 20th-century Indian photographers 21st-century Indian photographers Indian television directors Cinematographers from Kerala Screenwriters from Thiruvananthapuram Kannada screenwriters Year of birth missing (living people)