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Rajesh Touchriver is an Indian Filmmaker, Production Designer and Scriptwriter. He has won national and international awards for his feature films, documentaries and short films.
Rajesh Touchriver was born in Arakulam, Idukki district, Kerala, India as the youngest son of Mr Siva Sankaran Nair and Mrs Rukmini Amma. He inherited his flair for Kathakali, the classical dance-drama of Kerala, from Siva Sankaran Nair, his father who was a veteran Kathakali artist. He also had some early training in Kalaripayattu, the martial art of Kerala. He took his bachelor’s degree in Design and Direction from the School of Drama in Trissur, Kerala.
He worked with the National School of Drama, New Delhi as a designer in 1995. By the year 1998, he had directed more than 30 plays in Malayalam, English and Telugu languages. Rajesh won the Charles Wallace Trust Award in 2001 and pursued his Masters in Visual Language/Scenography and Direction from the Wimbledon College of Art, London.
In 2002 he directed ‘In the Name of Buddha’ which was later screened in the Spotlight on India section at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. In 2013, he directed ‘Na Bangaaru Talli’ which has garnered the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu, Best Music Direction (Background Score), and five international awards.
Rajesh’s debut film ‘In the Name of Buddha’ (2002) was premiered at the Oslo International Film Festival and won critical acclaim. The movie was nominated for the Best Debut Director category at the Cannes Film Festival. Controversial in theme, the film is a treatment of the ethnic conflict then raging in Sri Lanka. The film was screened at international film festivals in 2003 and won the Best Foreign Film award at the Beverly Hills International Film Festival, the Newport Beach International Film Festival and at the Wine Country International Film Festival in the same year. Rajesh directed two Telugu films in the interim: 10 the Strangers and Alex, the Blue Fox. In 2013, he directed the Malayalam film ‘Ente’. Its Telugu version “Naa Bangaaru Talli” won the national film award for the Best Feature Film in Telugu in 2013, Best Feature Film Award at the 2013 Trinity International Film Festival and Film maker of the Year and Award of Excellence from IFFCRM, Indonesia in 2013.
Rajesh has made several short films and documentaries on human trafficking, HIV/AIDS and communal riots that support the media advocacy initiatives of the United Nations and NGOs, national and international. His film for the United Nations, One Life, No Price for social sensitisation against human trafficking was well received by civil society organisations internationally. Amitabh Bachchan, Preity Zinta and John Abraham appear in the film as spokespersons for the cause.
Anamika, the Nameless on a similar theme which was shot in the red light areas of India in Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune and Delhi, won the AC award under the “Best Foreign Award – Documentary Short Film” category and the Best Documentary Film Award at the Hyderabad International Film Festival. The film has been included in the curriculum of National Police Academy and National Judicial Academy.
The Sacred Face, a short film on child sexual abuse, sent the audience back home unsettled at its screening in Hyderabad.
Music videos
Following the success of in the Name of Buddha, Rajesh directed the music video for “Sunshowers” for Maya Arulpragasam (M.I.A.). He directed “Ente Malayalam”, for the Manorama Music channel to commemorate the 50th year of Kerala formation.
