sivaji ganesan from the film veerapaandiya kattabomman.

Kollywood is a name often applied to Tamil Cinema, based in Chennai (formerly Madras) in the state of Tamil Nadu in south India. The name is a conflation of Kodambakkam and Hollywood, and mirrors the adaptation of Bollywood by the Mumbai-based film industry. Kodambakkam is an area in Chennai, in and around which there is a high concentration of film studios, and where many people involved with Tamil cinema live. ("Kollywood" is also occasionally used to mean the much smaller film industry of Nepal - after the capital city, Kathmandu [1]). Tamil (தமிழ் ) is a classical language and one of the major languages of the Dravidian language family. ... Chennai (Tamil: சென்னை, formerly known as Madras , is the capital of the state of Tamil Nadu and is Indias fourth largest metropolitan city. ... Tamil Nadu (தமிழ் நாடு, Land of the Tamils) is a state at the southern tip of India. ... Kodambakkam is a highly developed area of Chennai, South India, and the term Kollywood is derived from the name of this area. ... Greetings from Hollywood Hollywood is a district of the city of Los Angeles, California, U.S.A., that extends from Vermont Avenue on the east to just beyond Laurel Canyon Boulevard above Sunset and Crescent Heights Boulevards on the west; the north to south boundary east of La Brea Avenue... Movie poster of one of the most popular films—Sholay (1975) Bollywood (Hindi: बॉलीवुड, Urdu: بالیوُڈ) is the informal name given to the popular Mumbai-based Hindi language film industry in India, but has largely become synonymous with Indian cinema in general. ... A movie studio is a location, room, building, or group of buildings and/or sound stages, offices and storage facilities, which may include a backlot, where movies are made. ... Kathmandu (Nepali: काठमाडौं, Nepal Bhasa:यें) is the capital city of Nepal and it is also the largest city in Nepal. ...

In 2003, according to the Central Board of Film Certification, Tamil film industry stood third in terms of number of films produced (222 Hindi movies, 155 Telugu movies and 151 Tamil movies were certified in 2003.[2].) Kollywood witnessed three new releases on average every week in 2005 and annual turnover of over Rs.23,205 million ($526 million) on ticket sales of 700 million. Silent movies were produced in Kollywood since 1916 and the era of talkies dawned in 1931. By the end of the Thirties, the industry was booming so much that the Madras legislature passed the pioneering 'Entertainment Tax Act 1939' with little opposition.

Some believe Tamil cinema to have the widest distribution after Hindi cinema. It has enjoyed consistent popularity among Tamil speakers in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore and other South East Asian countries. Tamil-language films have recently become popular in Japan, South Africa, UK and Canada. Many successful Tamil films have been re-made by other film industries like Hindi film industry and Telugu film industry.

It is estimated by Manorama Yearbook 2000 that over 5,000 Tamil films have been produced in the 20th century. For a complete list of Tamil films see Tamil films database. Tamil films have also been dubbed into other languages, thus reaching a much wider audience. Examples of those dubbed into Hindi include such hits as Minsaara Kanavu, Roja and Bombay. Anniyan, a recent Tamil film became the first Indian film to be dubbed into French. See popular Tamil films. // 2007 Sivaji:The Boss dasavatharam 2006 16 Naatkal Aacharya Aadatha Aattamellam Anbu Thozhi Aran Movie Azhagay Irrukirai Bayamai Irukiradhu Boys & Girls By2 Chithiram Pesuthadi En Uyirinum Melaana Ganapathy Vanthachi Gnabagam Varuthey God Father Idhu Kadhal Varum Paruvam Ilavattam Imsai Arasan 23m Pulikesi Jambhavan Jerry Sillunu Oru Kaadhal Kaalaiyil Dinamum Kaivantha... Minsaara Kanavu is a Tamil film released in 1997. ... Roja (1992) is a Tamil film directed by Mani Ratnam, one of the leading filmmakers in India. ... See Bombay (disambiguation) for other uses. ... Anniyan (Aparichithudu in Telugu) is a 2005 high-budget Tamil movie. ... Popular Tamil films (in reverse chronological order) No claim is made that these are the best Tamil films , though many of fans all-time favorites will be found on this list. ...

There has been a growing presence of English in dialogues and songs as well. It is not uncommon to see movies which feature dialogues studded with English words and phrases, or even whole sentences. Some movies are also simultaneously made in two or three languages (either using subtitles, or several soundtracks). Quite often, Tamil movies feature Madras Bashai which is the version of Tamil spoken in Madras. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Madras bashai (Tamil: மெட்ராஸ் பாஷை), is a type of mixed language spoken in the city of Chennai, India (previously known as Madras). ... Madras refers to: the Indian city of Chennai, formerly known as Madras, the former Indian state, now known as Tamil Nadu (Plural of Madra): Ancient people of Iranian affinites, who lived in northwest Panjab in the Uttarapatha division of ancient India. ...

Tamil films and politicians

The Tamil film industry has a long intertwining link with creating future politicians. The first non-Congress Chief Minister C. N. Annadurai and the current Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi wrote cine scripts. Long-time Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. G. Ramachandran (MGR) was a well known actor in Kollywood. Former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa was also a popular actress. Moreover, many in the field are currently in houses of Parliament or Assembly, while future aspirants are ready to take wing. C.N.Annadurai (1909 to 1969), popularly called Anna (which means elder brother in Tamil language) was the first non Congress Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, India. ... Categories: Indian people stubs | Tamil people | Indian politicians ... A Chief Minister is the elected Head of Government of a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British overseas territory that has attained self-government. ... Dr M. G. Ramachandran Dr Marudur Gopala Ramachandran (January 17, 1917–December 24, 1987), popularly known as Dr MGR, Puracthi Nadigar, Ponmana Chemmal and Puratchi Thalaivar (tamil: Revolutionary Leader), was a long time Tamil film actor and Chief Minister of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu from 1977 until his... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Industrial trends

Average annual film output in Tamil film industry has risen steadily in the 20th century:

• Thirties - 22.5 releases per year on average
• Fourties - 22.1 releases per year on average
• Fifties - 32.6 releases per year on average
• Sixties - 43.0 releases per year on average
• Seventies - 62.5 releases per year on average
• Eighties - 104.6 releases per year on average
• Nineties - 101.2 releases per year on average

For the purpose of entertainment tax, returns have to be filed by the exhibitors weekly (usually each Tuesday). http://www.tnsalestax.com/briefent.htm This is a chart of trend of box office collections of Kollywood with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.

Tamil film industry accounts for 1% of the gross state domestic product of Tamil Nadu. Costs of production have grown exponentially from just over Rs.3 million in 1980 to nearly Rs.200 million by 2005 for a typical star-studded big-budget film. Similarly, cost of processing per print have expanded from just under Rs.2,000 in 1980 to nearly Rs.67,000 by 2005. Tamil Nadu government has given entertainment tax exemption for Tamil movies having chaste tamil word(s) title name. This is vide the Governement Order 72 passed on 22/07/06. and the first movie to release after the new G.O was " Unnakkum Ennakum ". Previously the movie had a title "Something something Unakkum Ennakkum", a half english and a half Tamil title.

Superstar Club

There are currently seven ^{[citation needed]} acknowledged superstars in Kollywood viz Rajini, Kamal, Ajith, Vijay, Surya, Madhavan and Vikram. They receive a salary of more than Rs.45 million. Their films regularly fetch minimum guarantees of at least Rs.250 million for their distributors (from exhibitors). Their films open in at least 200 screens throughout Tamil Nadu. This elite club has the privilege of choosing the cast and technicians of their films. Shivaji Rao Gaekwad, more popularly known as Rajinikanth, is a popular Indian film actor working mainly in the Tamil film industry. ... Universal Hero Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan (b. ... Ajith Kumar (born May 1, 1971 in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India) is a popular Tamil actor and a race car driver. ... Joseph Vijay is a Tamil actor, born June 22, 1974. ... Surya Saravanan Sivakumar, born in 23 July 1975, is an Indian actor in the Tamil film industry. ... Madhavan is an Indian actor. ... John Kennedy (born on April 17, 1966, Paramakkudi, Ramnad district, TN), is an Indian born actor who has starred in a number of top-grossing Tamil films and is currently one of the reigning heroes of Tamil Film Industry (aka Kollywood). ...

There are also rising stars like Bharath, Dhanush, Vishal, Silambarasan, Jayam Ravi and Jeeva. They receive a salary of between Rs. 10 million and Rs. 35 million. Their films have opening and total grosses similar to that of the aforementioned superstars. Other than the heroes there are also heroines who are considered as Superstars. Jyothika became the undisputed No.1 in Tamil cinema by her performance in Chandramukhi. She receives a salary of Rs. 40 million per film, the highest by a South Indian actress. She is followed by Trisha Krishnan, Asin Thottumkal, Nayantara, Shriya and Pooja, who all receive salaries of between Rs. 7 million and Rs. 25 million. Unlike Hollywood or Bollywood, Kollywood superstars are also politically powerful. Their votes and press releases have effected dramatic swings in several polls in Tamil Nadu. ... Dhanush (Bow) is a variant of the surface-to-surface Prithvi II missile, which is being developed for the Indian Navy. ... We dont have an article called Vishal Start this article Search for Vishal in. ... Simbhu Silambarasan is one of the young and happening heroes in Kollywood. ... Jayam Ravi is the upcoming star of Tamil Movies. ... Jeeva is an Urdu film directed by Syed Noor. ... Skier Alain Baxter competing in the gym tests Superstars is an all-around sports competition that pits elite athletes from different sports against one another in a series of athletic challenges resembling a decathlon. ... Jyothika Sadanah or simply Jyothika (born on 18 October 1978 in Bombay, India) is an Indian actress. ... Chandramukhi is Super Star Rajnikanths 2005 Tamil language Indian movie. ... South India is a geographic and linguistic-cultural region of India. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... Trisha (born 4th May 1983 as Trisha Krishnamurthy) is an actress in the Tamil and Telugu film industry. ... Asin Mary Thottumkal known as Asin (born 26th October, 1985 in Kochi, India) is a popular film actress. ... Nayantara is a famous south Indian actress and has acted in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam movies. ... Shriya Saran (b. ... Pooja is an upcoming Indian actress in Kollywood. ...

Exhibitors

There are about 1,800 permanent exhibitors in Kollywood of which around 125 exhibitors are located in Chennai district. This is a list of the most prominent exhibitors in the box office.

• Sathyam - 1,266 seats (Chennai district)
• Albert - 1,225 seats (Chennai district)
• Devi - 1,212 seats (Chennai district)
• Melody - 998 seats (Chennai district)
• Abirami - 927 seats (Chennai district)
• Kasi - 917 seats (Chennai district)
• Sangam - 877 seats (Chennai district)
• Maharani - 733 seats (Chennai district)
• Udhayam - 700 seats (Chennai district)
• Santham - 567 seats (Chennai district)
• Padmam - 540 seats (Chennai district)
• Suriyan - 480 seats (Chennai district)
• Devi Bala - 369 seats (Chennai district)
• Subham - 306 seats (Chennai district)

Show rentals range from Rs1,750 in C-centres to as much as Rs7,000 in A-centres for an average 700-seat screen. Unlike Hollywood, super stardom is deeply ingrained into Kollywood economics. So distributors are prepared to not only finance the films of super stars with proven track record but are also in turn able to secure minimum guarantees for those films from exhibitors! Rise of multiplexes in the Nineties has stunted the growth of large screens.

See also

• Tamil films database
• Popular Tamil films
• Cinema of India

// 2007 Sivaji:The Boss dasavatharam 2006 16 Naatkal Aacharya Aadatha Aattamellam Anbu Thozhi Aran Movie Azhagay Irrukirai Bayamai Irukiradhu Boys & Girls By2 Chithiram Pesuthadi En Uyirinum Melaana Ganapathy Vanthachi Gnabagam Varuthey God Father Idhu Kadhal Varum Paruvam Ilavattam Imsai Arasan 23m Pulikesi Jambhavan Jerry Sillunu Oru Kaadhal Kaalaiyil Dinamum Kaivantha... Popular Tamil films (in reverse chronological order) No claim is made that these are the best Tamil films , though many of fans all-time favorites will be found on this list. ... The Indian film industry is the largest in the world (877 feature films and 1177 short films made in India were released in the year 2003 alone)(Central Board of Film Certification of India) [1]. Correspondingly, only 473 movies were released in the US in 2003 (MPAA U.S. Theatrical...

External links

• Tamil Cinema Wikicities
• Tamil Movies
• Kollywoodtalk.com
• Tamilpakkam.com
• Behindwoods.com
• Cinesouth.com
• Information about Tamil Movies in MoviesBuzz.com
• Tamilpapers.com