# Rahul Riji Nair

Rahul Riji Nair is an Indian film director, scriptwriter, producer and actor active in the Malayalam film industry. His debut feature film Ottamuri Velicham won 4 awards at the 2017 Kerala State Film Awards, including Best Feature Film. Rahul won the 67th National Film Awards for Best Malayalam Film in 2019 for his third feature film Kalla Nottam.

## Personal life

Rahul was born in Kollam, Kerala on 21 March 1988 to Dr. Riji G. Nair and Rajasree Nair. He did his schooling from SN Trusts Central School, Kollam and graduated in Engineering from Amrita School of Engineering in 2009.
He worked as a Software Engineer and then as Marketing Manager with multiple companies in Technopark, Trivandrum before venturing into filmmaking. He is married to Nithya Vijay.

## Career

Rahul started his career in the Malayalam film industry in 2017 as the writer, producer and director of the Malayalam feature film Ottamuri Velicham. This film won 4 awards in Kerala State Film Awards 2017, including Best Feature Film of the year. His third feature film, Kalla Nottam won the 67th National Film Award for Best Malayalam Feature Film.
His films have premiered at prestigious film festivals in Mumbai, Kolkata, New York, Stuttgart, Chicago etc. He has also won multiple international wards including the prestigious Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for Best Feature Film at the 26th Kolkata International Film Festival and German Star of India Award for Best Feature film at the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart.
Rahul pioneered the production of mainstream Web Series in Malayalam by creating the first Originals for Major OTT platforms like Disney+ Hotstar and Sony LIV. He's noticed for his diverse body of work that has successfully traversed both Independent and Mainstream Cinema.
Rahul founded the production house First Print Studios in 2011 and is currently serving the company as its CEO. As a self taught filmmaker, he ventured into independent filmmaking through Documentaries, Short Films and Music Videos. Rahul's first independent directorial was the documentary The Human Boundaries in 2012 and it was widely screened across India, Europe and the United States. His Tamil Music Video titled Mounam Sollum Varthaigal gave his first major break through as it went viral with over 25 million views.

## Filmography

| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |

### Feature Films

| Year | Film | Credited As | Credited As | Credited As | Language | Notes |
| Year | Film | Director | Writer | Producer | Language | Notes |
| 2017 | Ottamuri Velicham | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | Kerala State Film Awards 2017 For Best Film |
| 2018 | Dakini | Yes | | Yes | Malayalam |
| 2019 | Kalla Nottam † | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | 67th National Film Awards - Best Malayalam FilmGolden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for Best Indian Film |
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | Kerala Film Critics Award 2020 - Special Jury Award |
| 2022 | Keedam | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | |
| 2025 | Flask | Yes | Yes | Yes | Malayalam | |

### Web series

| Year | Title | Network | Credited As | Credited As | Credited As | Credited As | Notes |
| Year | Title | Network | Creator | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
| 2023 | Kerala Crime Files | Disney+ Hotstar | | | | Yes | First Malayalam Originals on Disney+ Hotstar |
| 2024 | Jai Mahendran | Sony LIV | Yes | | Yes | Yes | First Malayalam Originals on Sony LIV |

### As actor

| Year | Film | Role | Language | Notes |
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Vinod | Malayalam | Debut as Actor |
| 2022 | Keedam | Vijay | Malayalam | |
| 2023 | Tholvi F.C. | CEO | Malayalam | |
| 2024 | Jai Mahendran | Balagopal / Balu | Malayalam | Digital Debut As Actor |

### As Lyricist

| Year | Film | Song Name | Music Director | Singers | Notes |
| 2020 | Kho-Kho | Theeram Thane Unarum | Sidhartha Pradeep | Nandagopan V | Debut As Lyricist |

### Music Video

| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
| 2017 | Mounam Sollum Varthaigal | Tamil | Screenplay & Direction |

### Short films

| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
| 2020 | Survival Stories | Malayalam | Anthology created during the COVID-19 Lockdown |
| 2016 | Troll Life | Malayalam | Platinum Film of the Year - India Film Project 2016 |
| 2016 | Netaji | Malayalam | Musical Short |
| 2015 | Rs. 2 | Malayalam | Audience Choice Winner - 48 Hour Film Project, Mumbai |
| 2015 | MJ | Malayalam | Best Film #9 - India Film Project 2015 |
| 2014 | Malai Kofta | Malayalam | |

### Documentary

| Year | Film | Language | Notes |
| 2012 | The Human Boundaries | English-Hindi | Widely screened across India, UK & USA |

## Awards
### National Film Awards

* 2019 - 67th National Film Awards - Best Malayalam Film : Kalla Nottam

### Kerala State Film Awards

* 2017 - Kerala State Film Award for Best Film : Ottamuri Velicham

### Kerala Film Critics Award

* 2020 - Special Jury Award : Kho Kho

### International Awards

* 2021 - Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for Best Feature Film, 26th Kolkata International Film Festival: Kalla Nottam
* 2021 - Best Screenplay, Yellowstone International Film Festival: Kalla Nottam
* 2020 - Best Film Innovation Award, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
* 2018 - German Star of India [Best Feature Film], 15th Indian Film Festival Stuttgart: Ottamuri Velicham
* 2018 - Second Best Feature Film, Chicago South Asian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham

### Nominations

* 2020 - Best Film, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
* 2020 - Best Screenplay, Indian Film Festival of Cincinnati: Kalla Nottam
* 2020 - Best Screenplay, New York Indian Film Festival: Kalla Nottam
* 2018 - Best Film, New York Indian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham
* 2018 - Best Director, New York Indian Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham
* 2018 - Director's Vision Award, 15th Indian Film Festival Stuttgart: Ottamuri Velicham
* 2018 - Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality, Mumbai Film Festival: Ottamuri Velicham