| Kerala State Film Award for Best Director | |
|---|---|
| State award for contributions to Malayalam cinema | |
 Recent winner : Mahesh Narayan for the Movie, Ariyippu | |
| Awarded for | Award for excellence in direction |
| Sponsored by | Kerala State Chalachitra Academy |
| First awarded | 1969 |
| Last awarded | 2022 |
| Most recent winner | Mahesh Narayan ( Ariyippu ) |
| Highlights | |
| Total awarded | 53 |
| First winner | A. Vincent ( Nadhi ) |
The Kerala State Film Award for Best Director is an honour presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India since 1969. It is given to a film director who has exhibited outstanding direction while working in the Malayalam film industry. Until 1997, the awards were managed directly by the Department of Cultural Affairs of the Government of Kerala. Since 1998, the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy, an autonomous non-profit organisation functioning under the Department of Cultural Affairs, has been exercising control over the awards.[1] The recipients are decided by an independent jury formed by the academy.[2] They are declared by the Minister for Cultural Affairs and are presented by the Chief Minister.[3]
The first Kerala State Film Awards ceremony was held in 1970 with cinematographer-director A. Vincent receiving the Best Director award for his work in Nadhi (1969).[4] Throughout the years, accounting for ties and repeat winners, the Government of Kerala has presented a total of 50 best director awards to 25 different filmmakers. The recipients receive a figurine, a certificate, and a cash prize of ₹2 lakh (US$2,400).[5][a]
G. Aravindan is the most frequent winner in this category with seven awards. He is followed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan (six awards), Shyamaprasad (five awards) and K. S. Sethumadhavan (four awards). As of 2020, six directors—Shaji N. Karun, M. T. Vasudevan Nair, T. V. Chandran, Hariharan, Blessy and Lijo Jose Pellissery— have won the award twice in their careers. The academy did not present the award at the 2002 ceremony.[7] Vidhu Vincent was the first female director to win the award in 2016, for her debut film Manhole.[8] The most recent recipient was Sidhartha Siva, who received the award for his film Ennivar in 2020.
- ^ Festival Book. Kerala State Chalachitra Academy. 2004. p. 8.
- ^ India Today International. Living Media India Limited. 1999. p. 52.
- ^ "Sweta Menon's daughter hogs limelight at State Film Awards". Sify. Archived from the original on 2 November 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
- ^ Menon, A. Sreedhara (2008). Cultural Heritage of Kerala. DC Books. p. 54. ISBN 978-81-264-1903-6. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "Cabinet amends norms governing State film awards". The Hindu. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
- ^ "Rupee Rises Against Dollar, Set To Finish Week Higher: 10 Things To Know". NDTV. 22 March 2019. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ "Bhavam adjudged best Malayalam film of 2002". The Times of India. 9 April 2003. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
- ^ "Kerala State Awards 2016: Vinayakan bags Best Actor, Vidhu Vincent wins Best Director". India Today. 7 March 2017. Archived from the original on 9 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).