Unnikrishnan Bhaskaran Pillai (born 14 August 1970), known mononymously as B Unnikrishnan, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, distributor and exhibitor who works in the Malayalam film industry.
Early life
Unnikrishnan. B. was born on 14 August 1970 in Kollam, Kerala (present-day Pathanamthitta district in Kerala) to Bhaskaran Pillai and Ponnamma Bhaskaran Pillai.[1] He married Rajeswari Menon, a professor.[2]
Career
He began his film career in 1999 by writing the screenplay of Jalamarmaram directed by T. K. Rajeev Kumar, which won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Screenplay that year. The film dealt with the politics of water and environmentalism. In 2000, his screenplay Cover Story directed by G. S. Vijayan was released. It was a box office failure.[3] He was the screenwriter of the thriller Black and White, a television serial telecast in Asianet in 2004, which won two Kerala State Television Awards.[4][5] The serial was directed by Viji Thampi.[6] in 2004, he wrote and directed a telefilm titled Antharangal, which won the Kerala state television award for the best telefilm. In 2005, he wrote, produced and directed a telefilm, Annum Mazhayayirunnu which was aired by Amrita TV. The Hindu wrote "The suspense that is maintained throughout the short movie, despite it being set in a domestic, sylvan setting, goes to the credit of the carefully crafted script".[4] The telefilm won six Kerala State Television Awards, including Best Telefilm and Best screenplay for Unnikrishnan.[7]
He scripted Shaji Kailas-directorial action film Shivam in 2002 and the thriller film The Tiger in 2005,[8] the latter starring Suresh Gopi was successful.[9] He made his feature film directorial debut in 2006 with the action film Smart City. His second directorial Madampi starring Mohanlal was a blockbuster . Unlike his previous films, Madampi was a family drama that told the story of a money lender in a village.[10] In 2009, he scripted and directed the action police story I. G. – Inspector General starring Suresh Gopi. The film talked issues like terrorism and communal politics.[11] In the same year, he wrote and directed the segment Aviramam in the anthology film Kerala Cafe.[12] In 2010, he scripted and directed the political satire Pramani starring Mammootty as a corrupt panchayat president,[13] which was a box office failure.[14] It was followed by the action film The Thriller, an investigative story starring Prithviraj Sukumaran as a cop.
His directorial crime thriller Grandmaster released in 2012 was written by himself starring Mohanlal as a loner cop who is challenged to investigate a crime. Not only that it was a financial success, but it showed Mohanlal in a totally different look and style.[15] Grandmaster was the first Malayalam film produced by UTV and it is also the first Malayalam film to be released in Netflix, apart from its theatrical release.[16] It was followed by I Love Me, a romantic thriller written by Sethu, that revolves around a group of youngsters.[17] In 2015, he wrote and directed the heist film Mr. Fraud, starring Mohanlal, which was a commercial failure.[18]
Unnikrishnan forayed into production and distribution with his company, RD Illuminations, which acquired and released the Malayalam dubbed versions of Sarrainodu (2016), Fidaa (2017), DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham (2017), and Bhaagamathie (2018).[19] He collaborated with Mohanlal, in 2017, for the crime thriller, Villain. With the film, he introduced Vishal into Malayalam cinema. It was also the first Indian film to be completely shot in 8K resolution.[20] After that, he co-produced and distributed the action thriller, Swathandriam Ardharathriyil (2018). It was produced by B. C. Joshy, Lijo Jose Pellissery, and Chemban Vinod Jose. It was a huge success at the box-office.[21] In 2019, he wrote and directed the first Malayalam film produced by Viacom18 Motion Pictures, Kodathi Samaksham Balan Vakeel.It was a commercial success. In 2022, he collaborated with Mohanlal, for the fifth time, with Neyyattinkara Gopante Aaraattu written by Udaykrishna. However, it was critically panned by both the critics and audience, alike and box-office failure. In 2023, he collaborated with Mammootty, for a second time with Christopher written by Udaykrishna, it received mixed to positive reviews from critics and audiences.[22]
Other work
Unnikrishnan was elected general secretary of Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) in 2008, and was re-elected to the position three timesTemplate:Mdash2010, 2013 and 2017.[23][24][25] In 2014, he was elected as the general secretary of All India Film Employees Confederation (AIFEC).[26]
He is a member in the advisory committee of Cine Workers' Welfare Board and director of Saamskaarika Kshemanidhi in Kerala.Template:Citation needed In 2016, he opened the multi-cuisine restaurant named Grandmaster's Kitchen in Palayam, Thiruvananthapuram, the restaurant was named after his film Grandmaster.[27]
He owns the film distribution company RD Illuminations, that debuted in 2016 by releasing Yodhavu in Kerala. He was the managing director of the film post-production studio Vismayas Max and also the multiplex Aries Plex SL Cinemas, a Double 4K 64-channel Dolby Atmos theatre in Thiruvananthapuram.[28] It is the first theatre with Double 4K facility in South India.[29]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Credited as | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | |||
| 1999 | Jalamarmaram | Template:Yes | Director: T. K. Rajeev Kumar | |
| 2000 | Cover Story | Template:Yes | Director: G. S. Vijayan | |
| 2002 | Shivam | Template:Yes | Director: Shaji Kailas | |
| 2004 | Jana | Template:Yes | Director: Shaji Kailas; Tamil film debut | |
| 2005 | The Tiger | Template:Yes | Director: Shaji Kailas | |
| 2006 | Smart City | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| 2008 | Madampi | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| 2009 | I. G. – Inspector General | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| Aviramam | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | Segment from Kerala Cafe | |
| 2010 | Pramani | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| The Thriller | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | ||
| 2012 | Grandmaster | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| I Love Me | Template:Yes | Writer: Sethu | ||
| 2014 | Mr. Fraud | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| 2017 | Villain | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| 2019 | Kodathi Samaksham Balan Vakeel | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | |
| 2022 | Aaraattu | Template:Yes | Writer: Udaykrishna | |
| 2023 | Christopher | Template:Yes | Writer: Udaykrishna | |
| 2026 | Prathichaya | Template:Yes | Template:Yes | [30] |
| Year | Title | Credit | Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Black and White | Writer | Asianet | Serial; director: Viji Thampi |
| 2005 | Annu Mazhayayirunnu | Director Writer Producer |
Amrita TV | Telefilm |
Accolades
- 1999: Best Screenplay – Jalamarmaram[31]
Kerala State Television Awards
- 2003: Best telefilm – Antharangal[7]
- 2005: Best Telefilm – Annum Mazhayayirunnu[7]
- 2005: Best Screenplay – Annum Mazhayayirunnu[7]
References
- ↑ ബി. ഉണ്ണികൃഷ്ണന്റെ ജന്മദിനം. DC Books. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ I love cinema. The Hindu(2012-12-21). Retrieved 2024-08-29.
- ↑ I love cinema. The Hindu(21 December 2012). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Pangs of love. The Hindu(29 April 2005). Retrieved 24 October 2017.Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore
- ↑ 'Avicharitham' wins five State television awards. The Hindu(4 November 2005). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ Viji Thampy. Sify. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Siddique, Ambili Devi adjudged best TV actors. The Hindu(7 May 2006). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ It's all about mind games. The Hindu(16 December 2005). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ After 'The King and the Commissioner', actor Suresh Gopi to star in Shaji Kailas' next action flick. News18(29 December 2014). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ മാടമ്പിയെക്കുറിച്ച് ബി. ഉണ്ണികൃഷ്ണൻ. Mathrubhumi(19 May 2008). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ No fears of being typecast: Suresh Gopi. The Hindu(8 April 2009). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ Review:Kerala Cafe. Sify(30 October 2009). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ Follow the leader. The Hindu(25 March 2010). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ Kerala Box-Office- March 1 to April 13. Sify(15 April 2010). Retrieved 24 October 2017.
- ↑ Grandmaster in Hindi. The Hindu(5 July 2012). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ How about paying for viewing films online?. The Times of India(10 September 2010). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Selfless acts. The Hindu(1 November 2012). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Mr. Fraud comes to town. The Hindu(15 May 2014). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ After Allu Arjun's Yodhavu and Dhruvaraja Jagannadh, B Unnikrishnan to score hat-trick of hits with Fidaa. Catch News(5 September 2017). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Director Unnikrishnan returns with Mohanlal's 'Villain'. Gulf News(25 October 2017). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Angamaly's Vincent Peppe to play Kottayam banker in next. Malayala Manorama(18 August 2017). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Christopher Movie: ക്രിസ്റ്റഫർ കളക്ഷൻ റിപ്പോർട്ട് പുറത്ത്; കേരളത്തിൽ നേടിയത് ഇത്രയും. Zee Malayalam News(10 February 2023). Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- ↑ B Unnikrishnan is FEFKA general secretary again. The Times of India(9 May 2013). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Fefka office-bearers. The Hindu(26 November 2010). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ FEFKA office-bearers elected. The Hindu(4 January 2017). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ I have no political ambitions: says B Unnikrishnan. Sify. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Five-star dining experience. The Hindu(30 June 2016). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Menu card of Unnikrishnanan. Deccan Chronicle(2 June 2016). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Baahubali director to watch his film in city. The Hindu(15 July 2015). Retrieved 25 October 2017.
- ↑ Nivin Pauly's Prathichaya gets release date. Cinema Express(2026-03-17). Retrieved 2026-03-24.
- ↑ State Film Awards – 1999. Department of Information and Public Relations(1999). Retrieved 24 October 2017.