Pawan Kumar (born 29 October 1982) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor who primarily works in Kannada cinema.[1]
Pawan Kumar | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 October 1982 |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Spouse | Sowmya Jaganmurthy (m. 2010) |
| Children | 1 |
Pawan Kumar is well known for writing the films Manasaare and Pancharangi. His directorial debut Lifeu Ishtene (2011) and the 2013 psychological thriller Lucia became one of the biggest turning points of his career. Being from a theatre background, he wrote scripts for plays on stage before working as an associate director with Yograj Bhat.[2] In 2023 he wrote and directed the Malayalam film Dhoomam which is regarded by the critics as his worst film. The film was a big disaster at the box office.[3]
Filmography
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
As director
Films
| Year | Title | Credited as | Language | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | Producer | ||||
| 2009 | Manasaare | No | Yes | No | Kannada | |
| 2010 | Pancharangi | No | Yes | No | ||
| 2011 | Lifeu Ishtene | Yes | Yes | No | ||
| 2013 | Lucia | Yes | Yes | Yes | [4] | |
| 2016 | U Turn | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
| 2017 | Ondu Motteya Kathe | No | No | Yes | ||
| 2018 | U Turn | Yes | Yes | No | Tamil; Telugu | Bilingual Film |
| 2021 | Ikkat | No | No | Yes | Kannada | |
| 2023 | Dhoomam | Yes | Yes | No | Malayalam | [5] |
Web series
| Year | Title | Credited as | Network | Language | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Writer | Producer | ||||
| 2019 | Leila | Yes | No | No | Netflix | Hindi |
| 2021 | Kudi Yedamaithe | Yes | Yes | Co-producer | Aha | Telugu |
As actor
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Mr. Garagasa | ||
| 2008 | Inthi Ninna Preethiya | Vaasne Baabu | |
| 2009 | Manasaare | Dollar | |
| Circus | |||
| 2010 | Pancharangi | Lakshman "Lucky" Rao | |
| 2011 | Lifeu Ishtene | Suraj | |
| 2015 | Plus | ||
| 2018 | Gultoo | Phaneesh | |
| Chambal | |||
| 2019 | Alidu Ulidavaru | ||
| 2021 | Kudi Yedamaithe | Harsha | Telugu web series |
| 2022 | Honeymoon | New friend in a bar | web series |
| Gaalipata 2 | Bhushan | ||
| 2023 | Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare | senior | Cameo |
| 2024 | Bachelor Party | Lobo Griffin | Cameo |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Work | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lifeu Ishtene | 59th Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Nominated | [6] | |
| Bangalore Times Film Awards | Best Director | Won | [7] | ||
| Lucia | 61st Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Won | [8] | |
| London Indian Film Festival 2013 | Audience Choice Award | Won | [9][10] | ||
| 3rd SIIMA Awards | Best Director | Nominated | [11] | ||
| U Turn | 64th Filmfare Awards South | Best Film | Nominated | [12] | |
| Best Director | Nominated | ||||
| 6th SIIMA Awards | Best Film | Nominated | [14] | ||
| Best Director | Nominated | ||||
| 2nd IIFA Utsavam | Best Picture | Nominated | [15] | ||
| Best Direction | Won | ||||
| Best Story | Won | ||||
| Ondu Motteya Kathe | 65th Filmfare Awards South | Kannada Best Film | Won | [16][17] | |
| 7th SIIMA Awards | Best Film | Nominated | [18] |