Sudha Kongara pens note after winning National Award for Soorarai Pottru: ‘What I am without Mani Ratnam? Zero’

In an emotional thank you note, National Award-winning director Sudha Kongara thanked her father, Mani Ratnam, Suriya and many others for the success of Soorarai Pottru.

• Sudha Kongara pens emotional thank you note.
• Sudha Kongara’s Soorarai Pottru won five awards at the 68th National Film Awards. including the award for best director. In response to the significant win, Sudha has penned an emotional thank you note expressing her gratitude to her late father, mentor Mani Ratnam, Suriya and Captain Gopinath.
• Talking about her father, she wrote, “The journey of this film started with my dad passing away. The last image of my father that I carry is of him gesturing to me from his bed to come to him as I stood in the doorway. I went back and added this as a scene in Soorarai Pottru. As filmmakers I guess most of us are finally just greedy voyeurs looking for those moments in our lives to put into our films (sic).”
• Here’s the statement from director Sudha Kongara:

Kongara further thanked Soorarai Pottru actor, producer Suriya and Captain Gopinath (on whom Soorarai Pottru is based). She thanked the latter for entrusting her with his life story, and the former for living it on screen.

Sudha Kongara extended her gratitude to the cast and crew members of the film, and the audience for making it a success. On an ending note, she gave a shout-out to fellow filmmakers who struggle to make a film and tell the stories the way they want.

Kongara, who worked with Mani Ratnam for about seven years, made her directorial debut with the Telugu film Andhra Andagadu (2008). She then directed Drohi (2010) with Vishnu Vishal and Srikanth in the lead roles. Her third film Irudhi Suttru turned out to be a watershed moment in her career. The Madhavan-starrer, released as Saala Khadoos in Hindi, got both commercial and critical acclaim. She later remade the film in Telugu as Guru with Venkatesh in the lead role.

Sudha Kongara is next directing Suriya in a yet-untitled film.

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