E. Ramdoss (died 23 January 2023) was an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor who worked on Tamil films.
Life and career
Ramdoss was born in Villupuram to freedom fighter Ethirajalu Pillai and Poongavanam. As a youngster, he regularly watched films and during his time in college, he developed an interest in screenwriting. He later moved to
Mylapore
Mylapore, also spelt Mayilapur, is a neighbourhood in the central part of the city of Chennai, India. It is one of the oldest residential parts of the city. It is also called Tirumayilai. The locality is claimed to be the birthplace of the cel ...
,
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 ...
in late 1979, attempting to make a career in the Tamil film industry where he became acquainted with then budding film maker
Manobala
Manobala (born 8 December 1953) is an Indian film director, producer, actor and comedian who predominantly plays supporting roles in Tamil-language films.
He started his career in Tamil cinema in the early 1970s and with Kamal Haasan's refere ...
, who was his neighbour. Ramdoss then worked with director
P. S. Nivas on his first screenplay, and was given the writing credits for ''
Enakkaga Kaathiru
Enakkaga Kaathiru () is a 1981 Tamil-language film directed by P. S. Nivas, starring Suman, Sumalatha and Bhanuchander.
Soundtrack
The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musi ...
'' (1981) which starred
Suman and
Sumalatha
Sumalatha (born 27 August 1963) is an Indian actress, politician who is the current Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Mandya, Karnataka. She has acted in more than 220 films in Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil and Hindi. She gaine ...
. After working with Nivas, Ramdoss moved on to collaborate as an assistant director to
Manivannan
S. Manivannan Rajagopal (31 July 1953 – 15 June 2013), better known by his mononym Manivannan, was an Indian film director, actor and activist who worked mainly in Tamil cinema and also worked in a few Telugu & Malayalam films. In a care ...
for six films, before moving on to work for producer
Kovai Thambi for Motherland Pictures. The success of several of Thambi's films meant that he offered Ramdoss an opportunity to make his directorial debut through ''
Aayiram Pookkal Malarattum
''Aayiram Pookkal Malarattum'' () is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language romance film directed by E. Ramdoss and produced by K. Mohan Durai. It stars Mohan, Seetha and Ranjini. The film was released on 8 August 1986.
Plot
Cast
* Mohan
* S ...
'' (1986) which starred
Mohan and
Seetha. Despite a publicised fallout between the producer and the original music composer
Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one o ...
, the film became a success commercially. His next film ''
Raaja Raajathan
''Raaja Raajathan'' is a 1989 Indian Tamil-language film directed by E. Ramdoss, starring Ramarajan and Gautami. It was released on 11 August 1989.
Plot
Cast
* Ramarajan
* Gautami
* Goundamani
*Senthil
* Kitty
* Manorama
* Srividya
* ...
'' (1989) featured
Ramarajan
Ramarajan (born 18 October, 1960) is an Indian actor, writer, director and politician who specialised in acting and directing films on village-based subjects. He is also known as ''Makkal Nayagan'' in Tamil cinema.
Career
Ramarajan started his c ...
and
Gautami
Gautami Tadimalla (born 2 July 1969), known mononymously as Gautami, is an Indian actress and politician who has worked mainly in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films in addition to Hindi, and Kannada films. She was one of the leading South Ind ...
, and also did well at the box office.
Failing to get opportunities to work with bigger stars, Ramdoss next made two films with actor
Mansoor Ali Khan, by helming the action drama ''
Ravanan'' (1994) and the political satire, ''
Vaazhga Jananayagam'' (1996). He also later got the opportunity to direct a portion in the multi-starrer ''
Suyamvaram
''Suyamvaram'' () is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language comedy drama film starring an ensemble cast from actors in the Tamil film industry and shot by a large technical team from the industry. The film was planned by Giridharilal Nagpal who produced a ...
'' (1999), which was shot within 24 hours, and was made in charge of filming the track between
Pandiarajan
Pandiarajan is an Indian actor, Film director, director who has played leading roles in many humorous Tamil films and currently plays supporting and comedy roles.
Personal life
Pandiarajan was born to Sulochana in Saidapet, Chennai in a lower ...
and
Kasthuri.Apart from his credits as director, Ramdoss often collaborated with other film makers as a writer and contributed to films including ''
Makkal Aatchi'' (1995), "
Sangamam" and ''
Kanda Naal Mudhal
''Kanda Naal Mudhal'' ( there) is a 2005 Indian Tamil language romantic comedy film written and directed by newcomer V. Priya, who had earlier assisted Mani Ratnam. Produced by Prakash Raj under the Duet Movies banner, the film stars Prasan ...
'' (2005). He later began to get opportunities as an actor following his role as a ward boy in ''
Vasool Raja MBBS'' (2004). He has since appeared as a police officer in ''
Yuddham Sei
''Yuddham Sei'' () is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir mystery thriller film written and directed by Mysskin. It stars Cheran and debutant Dipa Shah alongside an ensemble cast including Y. G. Mahendra, Lakshmi Ramakrishnan, Jayaprakash ...
'' (2011), ''
Kakki Sattai'' (2015), ''
Visaranai'' (2016), ''
Dharma Durai'' (2016) and ''
Vikram Vedha
''Vikram Vedha'' is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Pushkar–Gayathri and produced by S. Sashikanth under his banner YNOT Studios. The film stars R. Madhavan, Vijay Sethupathi, Shradd ...
'' (2017) amongst other projects.
Death
Ramdoss died of a heart attack on 23 January 2023.
Filmography
Director
Writer
*''Karadi'' (1980) (lyrics)
*''
Enakkaga Kaathiru
Enakkaga Kaathiru () is a 1981 Tamil-language film directed by P. S. Nivas, starring Suman, Sumalatha and Bhanuchander.
Soundtrack
The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musi ...
'' (1981)
*''
Ellaichami'' (1992)
*''
Pon Vilangu'' (1993)
*''
Raja Muthirai'' (1995)
*''
Makkal Aatchi'' (1995)
*''
Rajali
''Rajali'' is a 1996 Tamil language action-adventure film directed by Velu Prabhakaran and written by R. K. Selvamani. The film stars Ramki and Napoleon whilst Roja and Mansoor Ali Khan play supporting roles.
Cast
* Ramki as Jeeva
*Napole ...
'' (1996)
*''
Adimai Changili'' (1997)
*''
Dhinamum Ennai Gavani'' (1997)
*''
Ini Ellam Sugame'' (1998)
*''
Kannathal'' (1998)
*''
Harikrishnans'' (1998) (Dialogues for Tamil version)
*''
FIR'' (1998) (Dialogues for Tamil version)
*''
Anthahpuram'' (1999)
*''
Ethirum Pudhirum
''Ethirum Puthirum'' () is a 1999 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language action-drama film directed by Dharani (director), Dharani under his real name V. C. Ramani. Produced by G. S. Madhu, the film stars Mammootty, Napoleon (actor), Napoleon, S ...
'' (1999)
*''
Sangamam'' (1999)
*''
Independence Day
An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...
'' (2000) (Dialogues for Tamil version)
*''
Nee Indri Naan Illai'' (2000) (dialogues for tamil version)
*''
Kanda Naal Mudhal
''Kanda Naal Mudhal'' ( there) is a 2005 Indian Tamil language romantic comedy film written and directed by newcomer V. Priya, who had earlier assisted Mani Ratnam. Produced by Prakash Raj under the Duet Movies banner, the film stars Prasan ...
'' (2005)
*''
Yuga
A ''yuga'', in Hinduism, is generally used to indicate an age of time.
In the ''Rigveda'', a ''yuga'' refers to generations, a long period, a very brief period, or a yoke (joining of two things). In the ''Mahabharata'', the words ''yuga'' and ...
'' (2006)
Actor
*''
Nooravathu Naal
''Nooravathu Naal'' () is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language mystery thriller film written and directed by Manivannan. The film stars Vijayakanth, Mohan and Nalini, with Thengai Srinivasan, Janagaraj and Sathyaraj in supporting roles. It is an ...
'' (1984) (Museum Attender)
*''
Vasool Raja MBBS'' (2004)
*''
Yuddham Sei
''Yuddham Sei'' () is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir mystery thriller film written and directed by Mysskin. It stars Cheran and debutant Dipa Shah alongside an ensemble cast including Y. G. Mahendra, Lakshmi Ramakrishnan, Jayaprakash ...
'' (2011)
*''
Cuckoo
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separat ...
'' (2014)
*''
Oru Oorla Rendu Raja'' (2014)
*''
Kaaki Sattai'' (2015)
*''
Thiranthidu Seese'' (2015)
*''
Visaranai'' (2016)
*''
Metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban ...
'' (2016)
*''
Oru Naal Koothu'' (2016)
*''
Vellikizhamai 13am Thethi'' (2016)
*''
Dharma Durai'' (2016)
*''
12-12-1950'' (2017)
*''
Vikram Vedha
''Vikram Vedha'' is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Pushkar–Gayathri and produced by S. Sashikanth under his banner YNOT Studios. The film stars R. Madhavan, Vijay Sethupathi, Shradd ...
'' (2017)
*''
Thappu Thanda'' (2017)
*''
Aramm
''Aramm'' () is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language political drama film written and directed by Gopi Nainar. It features Nayanthara as a district collector, with Ramachandran Durairaj and Sunu Lakshmi in supporting roles. Featuring music composed b ...
'' (2017)
*''
Aan Devathai'' (2018)
*''
Goli Soda 2'' (2018)
*''
Maari 2
''Maari 2'' is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film written and directed by Balaji Mohan. It is a sequel to his 2015 film '' Maari''. Dhanush, besides producing the film under his company Wunderbar Films, also stars as the title char ...
'' (2018)
*''
Boomerang
A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...
'' (2019)
*''
Mei'' (2019)
*''
Miga Miga Avasaram'' (2019)
*''
Naadodigal 2'' (2020)
*''
Vellai Yaanai'' (2021)
*''Vidiyadha Iravondru Vendum'' (2022)
*''
Agent Kannayiram'' (2022)
* ''
Varalaru Mukkiyam'' (2022)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramdoss, E.
20th-century births
Year of birth missing
2023 deaths
Film directors from Tamil Nadu
Tamil film directors
Tamil screenwriters
Male actors in Tamil cinema
21st-century Indian male actors
20th-century Indian film directors
Screenwriters from Tamil Nadu