Mani Ratnam made his directorial debut, without formal training or education in filmmaking, with the Kannada film "Pallavi Anu Pallavi" (1983). The critically acclaimed film, which he also wrote, won him the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Screenplay. His first Tamil film "Pagal Nilavu" (1985) was a commercial failure, but immediately followed "Idaya Kovil" (1985) found theatrical success. The following year, he made the romantic drama "Mouna Ragam", which narrated the story of a young woman who is forced into an arranged marriage by her family. The critical and commercial success of the film established him as a leading filmmaker in Tamil cinema. His next release "Nayakan", starring Kamal Haasan, was inspired by the life of the Bombay-based gangster Varadarajan Mudaliar. The film was submitted by India as its official entry for the 60th Academy Awards. Later in 2005, "Nayakan" was included in "Time"'s "All-Time 100 Movies" list. Mani Ratnam followed this with the tragic romance "Geethanjali" (1989), which marked his Telugu cinema debut; the tragedy "Anjali" (1990), which narrated the story of an autistic child; and the crime drama "Thalapathi" (1991), loosely adapted from the Indian epic "Mahabharata". In 1992, he made the romantic thriller "Roja" for Kavithalayaa Productions. The film was dubbed into many Indian languages, including Hindi, and its widespread success brought national recognition to Mani Ratnam. Three years later, he made "Bombay" (1995), which was based on the 1992–93 Bombay riots. Although controversial for its depiction of religious riots, the film met with wide critical acclaim and became commercially successful in India.