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Dinesh Baboo
Born	Trivandrum, Kerala, India
Occupation(s)	Film director, cinematographer, producer, actor, script-writer
Years active	1984–present
Spouse	Sobhana K K
Awards	1988, 1997 - Karnataka State Film Award

Dinesh Baboo (also known as Dinesh Babu) is an Indian film director, cinematographer, actor and screenwriter who works predominantly in Kannada cinema. In a career spanning five decades he has directed more than 40 films, filmed more than 20 films and been the scriptwriter for 6 films. He is the recipient of several accolades including two Karnataka State Film Awards, two Filmfare Awards South and two Cinema Express Awards.

Baboo has created many critical and commercially successful films, like Suprabhatha, Idu Saadhya, Hendthighelbedi, Amrutha Varshini, Laali, Nishyabda, Abhi, Chitra, Hollywood, Magic Ajji, Neenello Naanalle and Ballari Naga. His 1989 comedy-thriller film Inspector Vikram was an average grosser at the time of release but as over the years attained a "cult" status. He has also been the cinematographer for many commercially successful films, like Paadu Nilave, Ninaive Oru Sangeetham, Dhruvam, Ammayane Sathyam, Commissioner, Pidakkozhi Koovunna Noottandu and The King.

Career

Cinematographer

His career in cinema started as a cinematographer. He stood behind the camera for noted Malayalam film blockbusters like Dhruvam, Ullasa Poonkattu and the 1994 blockbuster Commissioner which was instrumental in raising Suresh Gopi, to stardom. His most successful film as a cinematographer was the Shaji Kailas' 1995 blockbuster The King, which was the highest grossing Malayalam film at the time.

Great talent in cinematography was the springboard that launched him to great success in the world of cinema. This also helped him to have first hand knowledge of every technical aspect of cinema, which a director need not be necessarily familiar with. He also directed a Malayalam film named Mazhavillu starring Kunchacko Boban and Preeti Jhangiani. Although his camera skills were widely appreciated in Mollywood, his ambition took him to the world of Kannada films where he chose to direct rather than handle the camera.

Director

His directorial career in the Kannada film world took off with Suprabhatha, a film with Vishnuvardhan and Suhasini which became a box office hit creating many records and gave a major boost to Baboo's career. His next movie was the hugely successful thriller Idu Saadhya in 1989. The movie, featuring eight stars, was made on a shoestring budget of just 1.5 million INR and shot at a single location within 36 hours, setting a record for the fastest completion of an Indian film. He followed it up with the comedy cop thriller - Inspector Vikram - which was a first of its kind in Kannada cinema at that time. Though an average success at the time of its release, the movie has gained cult following among the viewers over the years. As a director, his craftsmanship has been lauded by columnists and reviewers - especially for his screenplay which revolves around very few locations and for successfully blending the comedy and thriller genre.

Actor

He appeared in front of the camera for the first time as a police officer in the film Accident, directed by Ramesh Aravind.

Filmography

Films

Cinematographer only

Director

Actor only

Television

• Mane Mane Kathe
• Akansha
• Swati Muttu

References

1. "Latest News, India News, UP assembly Election News, Breaking News, Today's News Headlines Online". Archived from the original on 9 March 2016.
2. "Fresh approach to sensitive themes - the Hindu". Archived from the original on 14 February 2008.
3. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: ""ಅಮೃತವರ್ಷಿಣಿ" ಹೆಚ್ಚೆಂದರೆ ಒಂದು ವಾರ ಓಡಬಹುದು ಅಷ್ಟೇ ಅಂದಿದ್ದರು.. | Dinesh Babu Interview Part 02". YouTube. 4 May 2021.
4. "Movie Review".
5. "Eradane Maduve Movie Review". The Times of India. 10 July 2010. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
6. "Naanalla Review". IndiaGlitz. 22 October 2011. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
7. "Ondu Kshanadalli Movie Review". The Times of India. TNN. 6 October 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
8. B S Srivani (12 April 2014). "An Indian love story revisited". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
9. Lokesh, Vinay (1 November 2018). "Preethi Keli Sneha Kaledukollabedi". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
10. "Nanagista Movie Review {2.5/5}: Critic Review of Nanagista by Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018.
11. "ಈಗ ರಜನೀಕಾಂತ್‌ರನ್ನು ಹಾಕ್ಕೊಂಡು ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಮಾಡಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲ | Director Dinesh Babu Interview Part 05". YouTube. 10 May 2021. Archived from the original on 14 December 2021.
12. Shyam Prasad S (12 October 2015). "Dinesh Baboo on his experience with Priyanka". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 October 2015.

External links

• IMDB page mainly referring to his film career at IMDb
• Accident (as an actor) at IMDb

• Living people
• Kannada film directors
• Malayalam film directors
• Kannada film cinematographers
• Malayalam film cinematographers
• Filmfare Awards South winners
• Film directors from Thiruvananthapuram
• Film producers from Thiruvananthapuram
• 20th-century Indian male actors
• 21st-century Indian screenwriters
• 20th-century Indian photographers
• 21st-century Indian photographers
• Indian television directors
• Cinematographers from Kerala
• Screenwriters from Thiruvananthapuram
• Kannada screenwriters