Vidhu Vincent is an Indian film director, writer, journalist and theatre activist from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. She made her feature film debut with the

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

film ''

Manhole A manhole (utility hole, maintenance hole, or sewer hole) is an opening to a confined space such as a shaft, utility vault, or large vessel. Manholes are often used as an access point for an underground public utility, allowing inspection, m ...

'', which won her that year's

Kerala State Film Award for Best Director The Kerala State Film Award for Best Director is an honour presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India since 1969. It is given to a film director who has exhibited outstanding direction while working in the Malayalam film industry. ...

. At the 21st

International Film Festival of Kerala The International Film Festival of Kerala (abbreviated as IFFK) is a film festival held annually in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala, India. This film festival started in 1996 and is hosted by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy ...

, the film won two awards including the Best Debutant Director Award for Vincent.

Biography

Born in

Kollam Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...

, After studying in

Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram, also known as H.H. The Maharaja's College for Women, is one of the oldest women's college located in Trivandrum, Kerala. It was established in the year 1864 under the University of Madras. Acade ...

Vincent started her career as a television journalist with

Asianet Asianet may refer to: Disney Star channels *Asianet Communications, an Indian media company wholly owned by Disney Star **Asianet (TV channel), a Malayalam language general entertainment channel **Asianet Plus, a Malayalam language general entertai ...

. During her stint with the channel, she was attracted towards documentaries and filmmaking which led to her eventually joining the

Centre for Development of Imaging Technology The Centre for Development of Imaging Technology (C-DIT) was established by the government of Kerala in 1988 for the advancement of research, development and training in imaging technology. C-DIT has four groups, each specialising in a core area ...

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

. Her reporting about Sand mining in Kerala, Endosulfan victims in Kasaragod and attack on women had generated widespread discussion in the Kerala Legislative Assembly and among general public in the State. She was a reporter with

Asianet News Asianet News (formerly Asianet Global) is an Indian free-to-air Malayalam-language news channel owned by Asianet News Network. Asianet News Network operates as a subsidiary of Jupiter Entertainment Ventures (Jupiter Capital Ventures). The chan ...

when Muthanga incident took place in 2003, and she left her job and joined the movement. She was later arrested by the police for participating in Muthanga agitations. She took a break from her career to pursue degrees in

Master of Social Work The Master of Social Work (MSW) is a master's degree in the field of social work. It is a professional degree with specializations compared to Bachelor of Social Work (BSW). MSW promotes macro-, mezzo- and micro-aspects of professional social wor ...

and

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

(philosophy) before joining to daily journalism with a long reporting essay on "Society and Insurgency in Manipur, India" in 2014. In 2010, Vincent became the first President of Penkoottu, an organization which highlights the plight of women employees in the unorganized sector. In 2017, she took a leadership role in the formation of

Women in Cinema Collective Women in Cinema Collective (abbreviated as WCC) is an organisation for women working in the Malayalam cinema industry. Formation The organisation was formed following harassment of a Mollywood actress. The organisation aims at the welfare of wome ...

as a response to the violence against female artist and workers in the Malayalam film industry. Vidhu vincent

Vincent has made a telefilm, Nadakaanthyam, in 2015 for

MediaOne TV MediaOne TV is an Indian Malayalam-language television channel operated by Madhyamam Broadcasting Limited. The channel was licensed in September 2011 and was officially launched on 10 February 2013. The main studio is located at Velliparamba, ...

. The story was based on the life of a theatre actor and his struggle to meet the end in everyday life. The short film won four major awards in the Kerala State Television Awards including Best Direction, Screenplay and the Best short film for the year 2015. Vincent published a travelogue based on her travel to Germany in a graphic series on

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

in a Malayalam weekly. The critically acclaimed series published in book form by Chintha Publishers titled ''Daivam Olivil Poya Naalukal'' . In 2014, she made a documentary, ''Vrithiyude Jathi'' (2014) () for

Media One MediaOne Group, Inc. (Comcast MO Group, Inc.) was created by US WEST Inc, one of the original Baby Bells Regional Bell Operating Companies, acquisition of Boston-based Continental Cable and combined with its previously acquired Atlanta-based Wom ...

. It highlights the plight of manual scavengers in

. Inspired by true incidents, the film is based on the lives of scavengers who live in a neighbourhood of Kollam. Vincent adapted her award-winning documentary into a feature film by making her directorial debut with ''

''. The film entered the "International competition" section of the 21st

. Vincent became the first woman from Kerala to have a film screened in the history of the festival. At the festival, the film won two awards the

FIPRESCI The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for Fédération Internationale de la PRESse CInématographique) is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world fo ...

Award for Best Malayalam Film and the "Silver Crow Pheasant Award" (Best Debutant Director) for Vincent. The film received the John Abraham award (special mention), which is instituted by the Kerala chapter of the

Federation of Film Societies of India Federation of Film Societies of India (FFSI) is the umbrella body of film-screening societies in India. FFSI is currently a member of the International Federation of Film Society that has its Central Office in Paris. The international organisatio ...

. In 2017, Vincent was bestowed upon with the Best Director Award at the

47th Kerala State Film Awards The awards were announced by minister A.K Balan in Thiruvananthapuram on 7 March 2017. The winners in the fiction category were selected by a jury headed by Odisha director A.K. Bir. The other jury members were Priyanandanan, Sundar Das, Sudevan, ...

, and became the first woman to win a State Award in the category. She received the 2020 Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Travelogue for her work ''Daivam Olivil Poya Naalukal.''

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vincent, Vidhu Malayalam film directors Indian women film directors Film directors from Kerala Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Indian women journalists Kerala State Film Award winners Indian documentary filmmakers Indian television journalists Journalists from Kerala Artists from Kollam Social workers Activists from Kerala 21st-century Indian film directors 21st-century Indian women artists 21st-century Indian journalists 21st-century Indian women writers 21st-century Indian writers Writers from Kollam Women writers from Kerala Social workers from Kerala Women educators from Kerala Educators from Kerala Women documentary filmmakers Women television journalists

Biography

Filmography

See also

References

External links