# Tulsi Ghimire

Tulsi Ghimire (born 15 July 1951) is a Nepalese film director, screenwriter, film editor, cameraman, actor and lyricist known for his works in Nepali films. Regarded as one of the greatest filmmakers of Nepali cinema, he is known for his romantic and masala films that deal with social issues of Nepali society and portrayal of deep human emotions. He has directed some iconic Nepali films like Kusume Rumal (1985), Lahure (1989), Deuta (1991), Chino, (1991) Dakshina (1994), Balidaan (1997) and Darpan Chaya (2001). The Majority of his films in the 1990s were blockbusters and Kusume Rumal and Darpan Chaya went on to become the highest grossing Nepalese films of all time.

## Personal life

Tulsi Ghimire was born in Sindeybong, Kalimpong, Darjeeling district, India to Nepali parents Dhojman Ghimire and Narbada Ghimire. He has two younger brothers and a sister.
Ghimire studied at the Mani Memorial Primary School in Sindeybong up to second grade, and then from grade 3 to 11 at the Scottish University Mission Institute (SUMI), Kalimpong. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kalimpong College.
He is married to Bharati Ghimire (Gazmer), who has sung in many of his films. His brother Shrawan Ghimire is a film producer. Tulsi's children, Bhawana Ghimire and Panchami Ghimire, appeared in his Nepali children's film, Swarg Ko Pari.

## Films

In addition to being a film director, Tulsi Ghimire has also been a screenwriter, editor, cameraman, actor and lyricist.
Ghimire initially moved to Mumbai from Kalimpong in 1974 to work in the Indian film industry, Bollywood. His mentor and Bollywood editor Kamlakar Karkhanis advised him to make Nepali movies at that time. Ghimire debuted in the Nepali film industry with the Nepali movie Bansuri in 1981 as a director. He made his second movie Kusume Rumal in 1985, based on his own story, which became very successful.
Among his movies, Kusume Rumal, Lahure, Deuta, Chino, Balidaan, Dakshina and Darpan Chhaya are considered superhits. Darpan Chaya is considered to be one of the biggest blockbusters of Nepali cinema.
Although he found lot of success in 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, he was unable to comeback with another hit. He was unable to find success with films he directed later on in his life, those films include Drishtikon, Mrigatrishna, and Darpan Chhaya 2 which were all considered flop in box office.

## Filmography

| Year | Film | Title translation | Starring cast | Ghimire's role |
| 1981 | Basuri | Flute | Rakesh Pandey, Banni Pradhan, Rajani Sharma | Director |
| 1985 | Kusume Rumal | Silk handkerchief | Bhuwan K.C., Tripti Nadakar, Udit Narayan, Neer Shah | Director, editor, story writer |
| 1988 | Anyay | Injustice | Meera Madhuri, Biswa Basnet, Prakash Adhikari | Director |
| 1989 | Lahure | Soldier | Shrawan Ghimire, Tripti Nadakar | Director, actor, editor, story |
| 1989 | Chino | Emblem | Shiva Shrestha, Bhuwan K.C., Sunil Thapa, Kristi Mainali, Sharmila Malla, Sinaura Mistry, Subhadra Adhikari, Aaron Malla, Sushila Raymajhi | Director |
| 1991 | Deuta | God | Rajesh Hamal, Srijana Basnet, Shrawan Ghimire | Director, editor, story writer, screenwriter, lyricist |
| 1992 | Dui Thopa Aansoo | Two drops of tears | Bhuwan K.C., Shrawan Ghimire, Anuradha Sawant | Director |
| 1993 | Koseli | Gift | Tripti Nadakar, Krishna Malla, Bharati Ghimire, Shrawan Ghimire, Bijaya Lama | Director |
| 1994 | Dakshina | Honararium | Tulsi Ghimire, Bhuwan K.C., Bharati Ghimire | Director, actor |
| 1996 | Rahar | Wish | Tulsi Ghimire, Bharati Ghimire, Prashant, Niruta Singh | Director |
| 1997 | Balidaan | Sacrifice | Hari Bansha Acharya, Madan Krishna Shrestha, Anjana Shrestha, Neer Shah | Director, cameraman, editor |
| 2001 | Darpan Chaya | Reflection | Dilip Rayamajhi, Niruta Singh, Uttam Pradhan | Director, editor, story writer |
| 2002 | Lahana | Auspicious Moment | Dilip Rayamajhi, Niruta Singh, Uttam Pradhan | Director, editor, story writer |
| 2007 | Dui Kinara | Two banks of river | Niruta Singh, Suman Singh, Bhupen Chand | Director |
| 2009 | Maya Ta Maya Ho | Love is love | Nikhil Upreti, Sanchita Luitel, Suraj R.D., Tulsi Ghimire | Director, actor |
| 2010 | Desh | Nation | Rajesh Hamal, Nikhil Upreti, Niruta Singh | Director, lyricist |
| 2010 | Swarg Ki Pari | Angel from heaven | Neer Shah, Bharati Ghimire, Prithviraj Ghimire, Prakriti Bhattarai (child artist) | Director |
| 2011 | Mrigatrishna | Mirage | Karma Shakya, Biraj Bhatta, Nandita KC | Director, editor, lyricist |
| 2012 | Drishtikon | Point of view | Bharati Ghimire, Bhaskar Pradhan, Lalit Goley | Director |
| Unreleased as of 2016 | Gautama Buddha | | (animated film) | Director |
| 2017 | Darpan Chhaya 2 | Reflection | Pushplal Khadka, Sahara Karki, Shraddha Prasai | Director |

## Awards

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref(s) |
| 2020 | National Film Award | Lifetime Achievement Award | – | Won | |