Anjali Menon


Anjali Menon is an Indian film director and screenwriter who predominantly works in the Malayalam film industry. She made her directorial debut with the film Manjadikuru. She won the National Film Award for Best Screenplay for Ustad Hotel at the 60th National Film Awards. She was one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective, an organization that focuses on gender equality in the Malayalam film industry.

Personal life

Anjali was born to T. Madhavan Nair and Sarada Nair. She grew up in The United Arab Emirates and was educated at Our Own English High School, Fujairah, and then at Presentation High School, Calicut. She graduated from Providence Women's College, Calicut, and then studied Communication Studies at Pune University, during when she made documentaries. She studied filmmaking at London Film School, graduating in 2003. film. She lives in Mumbai with her husband and son.

Career

Anjali's graduation film Black Nor White, produced by Asif Kapadia and featuring Rez Kempton and Archie Panjabi, was premiered at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and won the BFI award for Best Short film. She made her feature debut with Manjadikuru, a coming of age drama set in 1979. It won the FIPRESCI award for the Best Malayalam film and Best Indian Debut. She also received Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay for the movie. However, her first release was Kerala Cafe, an anthology film for which she contributed the segment 'Happy Journey', centered around gender politics. She then wrote the story, screenplay and dialogues of the critically and commercially acclaimed Ustad Hotel, directed by Anwar Rasheed. She received the National Film Award for Best Screenplay - Dialogues for the film, which also won the National Awards for Most Popular Film. The film also won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay and Filmfare Award for Best Director – Malayalam. She then directed Bangalore Days, revolving around the life of three Malayali cousins in Bengaluru, which became a huge commercial success. Her next film was the commercially and critically acclaimed Koode, which showcased issues of caste, migration and child sexual harassment as it dealt with themes of loss and solace.
Anjali's movies have depicted themes of the migrant experience and cross cultural interactions. Her film company Little Films India is based in Mumbai and Kochi.
Anjali was one of the founders of the Women in Cinema Collective, an organization of women in Malayalam cinema, formed at the wake of the sexual assault of a prominent actress. Dileep, a prominent Malayalam actor who was among the accused in the case, was supported by AMMA, the organization of Malayalam film actors, prompting the formating of WCC. WCC focuses on gender violence and discrimination within the Malayalam film industry.
Anjali has also written short stories, including 'Tea and Toast' which was published in the Malayala Manorama Onam Special, and as part of the collection Monsoon Feast. She blogs about her filmmaking experiences at

Filmography

Awards

AwardYearFilm
Hassankutty Award for Best Debut Director2008Manjadikuru
FIPRESCI Prize for Best Malayalam Film2008Manjadikuru
60th National Film Awards for Best Dialogues2012Ustad Hotel
Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay2012Ustad Hotel
Asianet Film Awards - Best Screenplay2013Ustad Hotel
Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay 2014Bangalore Days
Filmfare Awards South - Best Director2015Bangalore Days
Asianet Film Awards - Best Director and Best Popular Film2015Bangalore Days
Vanitha Film Awards - Best Director and Best Popular Film2015Bangalore Days
SIIMA Film Awards - Best Director and Best Film2015Bangalore Days