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The Dada Saheb Phalke Award for the year 2004 has been awarded to the well-known Malayalam Film Director Shri Adoor Gopalakrishnan. The Award is given by the Government of India for outstanding contribution in the field of Indian Cinema. Earlier he has been honoured with Padmashree, in recognition of his contribution to the Indian cinema.
Born in 1941 Shri Gopalakrishnan debuted as actor on stage at the age of 8. He graduated from Film and Television Institute of India, Pune and founded the Chitralekha Film Co-operative in Thiruvananthapurm in 1965 as a Production Distribution Centre for personal films outside the commercial sector. His first film, Swayamvaram won the National Film Award for best director and Kathapurushan for the best feature film. His portrayal of Nair community of former rent collectors in Elippathayam and the Communist movement in Mukha Mukham and Mathilukal were extremely well received. His documentaries have also been widely acclaimed.
Having won the National Award not only for direction but also for script writing Shri Adoor Gopalakrishnan is equally well known abroad. His films have been shown in Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Rotterdam and Toronto and other important festivals around the world. His feature film Elippathayam won him the coveted British Film Institute Award for the most original and imaginative film of 1982. The International Film Critics Prize (FIPRESCI) has gone to him five times for his film Mukhamukham, Anantaram, Mathilukal, Vidheyan and Kathapurushan. Retrospectives, homages and tributes have been held at La Rochelle, Pesaro, Helsinki, New York, Denver, Munich, Nantes, Fribourg, Alexandira, Fuiguera da Foz, Brussels, Madrid etc.
RS/AS
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