G. N. Rangarajan (17 December 1930 – 3 June 2021) was an Indian writer, producer and director who worked in

Tamil cinema Tamil cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the names Kodambakkam, a Ch ...

Film career

Rangarajan was influenced by the works of director A. Bhimsingh, and joined editor Dorai Singam as an assistant in the late 1950s. The first film Rangarajan began work on as an assistant director was ''Gnayirum Thingalum'', which was shelved. He became associated with director S. P. Muthuraman and writer

Panchu Arunachalam Panchanathan Arunachalam (22 March 1941 – 9 August 2016) was an Indian writer, director, producer and lyricist who worked in the Tamil cinema. He was mentored by poet Kannadasan who was his uncle. He also worked as a lyricist in the Tami ...

for many films, early in his career. He worked as an associate director on films including '' Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri'' (1977), ''

Aarilirunthu Arubathu Varai ''Aarilirunthu Arubathu Varai'' () is a 1979 Indian Tamil-language drama film, directed by S. P. Muthuraman and written by Panchu Arunachalam, starring Rajinikanth. The cast also included Jayalaxmi, Cho, Sangeeta, Thengai Seenivasan, Jay ...

'' (1979) and '' Priya'' (1978). As a director, Rangarajan subsequently collaborated with

Kamal Haasan Parthasarathy Srinivasan (born 7 November 1954), known professionally as Kamal Haasan, is an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Considered as one of the most accomplished actors of Indian Cinema, Haas ...

on a number of successful films including '' Kalyanaraman'' (1979), ''

Meendum Kokila ''Meendum Kokila'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film directed by G. N. Rangarajan from a screenplay written by Ananthu and story by Haasan Brothers. The film stars Kamal Haasan and Sridevi. Deepa, M. Krishnamoorthy, Then ...

'' (1981), ''

Kadal Meengal ''Kadal Meengal'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil-language masala film directed by G. N. Rangarajan, starring Kamal Haasan, Sujatha, Nagesh and Swapna. It is a remake of the 1980 Malayalam film ''Meen'', and also draws inspiration from the Hindi fi ...

'' (1981) and ''

Ellam Inba Mayyam ''Ellam Inba Mayyam'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil-language film directed by G. N. Rangarajan and written by Panchu Arunachalam. The film stars Kamal Haasan, Jaishankar, Suman, Madhavi and Surekha. It was released on 5 December 1981. Plot ...

'' (1981) in a two-year period. Notably, he took over directorial duties from Mahendran during the making of ''Meendum Kokila'' on the insistence of Kamal Haasan. He later also wrote and produced films, notably making ''

Aduthathu Albert ''Aduthathu Albert'' () is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language film produced and directed by G. N. Rangarajan. The film stars Prabhu and Urvashi. It was released on 12 July 1985, and failed at the box office. Plot Albert, a Christian boy, hates R ...

'' (1985) and '' Sir... I Love You'' (1991). His final directorial ''

Maharasan ''Maharasan'' is a 1993 Indian Tamil-language comedy film produced, directed and co-written by G. N. Rangarajan. The film stars Kamal Haasan and Bhanupriya, while Ramesh Aravind, Chandrasekhar, Goundamani, Senthil, Vadivelu, V. K. Ramasamy, R ...

'' (1993), had Kamal Haasan in the lead role, who refused to take any salary for the film, in ode to his friendship with Rangarajan. Following his film career, Rangarajan worked on the television series ''Raghuvamsam'' and also made a telefilm for Singaporean producers. Owing to his association with Kamal Haasan, Rangarajan renamed his house as "Kamal Illam". His son, G. N. R. Kumaravelan, apprenticed with Kamal Haasan for films such as '' Sathi Leelavathi'' (1995) and ''

Marudhanayagam ''Marudhanayagam'' () is an unfinished Indian historical drama film directed and produced by Kamal Haasan under his Raaj Kamal Films International banner. The script was co-written by Haasan, along with novelist Sujatha, and the pair started w ...

'', and then debuted as a director in the late 2000s.

Death

Rangarajan died on 3 June 2021, aged 90, due to age-related ailments.

Partial filmography

;Films ;Television *''Raghuvamsam''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rangarajan, G. N. 1930 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Film directors from Chennai Film producers from Chennai Place of birth missing Screenwriters from Chennai Tamil film producers Tamil screenwriters