Nelson Dilipkumar

In this Indian name, the name Dilipkumar is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Nelson.

Nelson Dilipkumar (/nɛlsən ðɪliːpkumɑːr/ born 21 June 1984) is an Indian director and screenwriter who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. He started his career with a feature film in 2010 with Vettai Mannan, starring Silambarasan. However, it was shelved due to various reasons. He later directed Kolamaavu Kokila (2018), making his debut in the industry. He directed Doctor (2021) featuring Sivakarthikeyan, which emerged a commercial success during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was followed by Beast (2022), with Vijay in the lead role, which emerged as one of the highest-grossing Tamil film of 2022. He then worked on Jailer (2023), which became his most successful film; it became one of the highest-grossing Indian film, earning over ₹600 crore (US$72 million) worldwide, collaborating with Rajinikanth. He is one of the highest paid director in India.

Nelson Dilipkumar
Nelson at the Jailer (2023) Audio Launch
Born	(1984-06-21) June 21, 1984 (age 40) Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India
Nationality	Indian
Alma mater	The New College, Chennai
Occupation	Film director Screenwriter
Years active	2010–present

Film career

Nelson holds a degree in visual communication from New College, Chennai. He started his career as an assistant script-writer in Star Vijay.^[1] Nelson's father died in November 2018.^[2]

Nelson started his work on what was originally intended to have been his directorial debut, Vettai Mannan, in 2010. The film would have starred Silambarasan, Jai, Hansika Motwani and Deeksha Seth; would have been produced by NIC Arts's S. S. Chakravarthy; and would have featured music by Yuvan Shankar Raja. However, the film was shelved for unknown reasons halfway through production.^[3][4] There was an attempt to revive the project in 2017 with a new crew, such as Anirudh Ravichander replacing Yuvan Shankar Raja as the composer.^[5] However, the project failed to take off again.

Composer Anirudh Ravichander helped Nelson make his actual debut feature film as writer-director,^[6] the dark comedy Kolamaavu Kokila, starring Nayanthara in the lead role. The film, produced by Lyca Productions, released on 17 August 2018 and became a commercial success.^[7][8][9]

His next film was Doctor, starring Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role opposite Priyanka Arul Mohan. The film became one of the biggest Tamil-language blockbusters among films that released theatrically after the pandemic-induced lockdowns.^[10][11]

In November 2020, Anirudh introduced Nelson to actor Vijay,^[12][13] who was impressed with Nelson's script for Beast. The film, an action-comedy thriller and Vijay's 65th film,^[14][15] also starring Pooja Hegde,^[16] was released on 13 April 2022 as a pan-Indian film dubbed in the Telugu, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam languages.^[17][18] Despite getting mixed reviews from critics, Beast collected ₹300 crore at the worldwide box office.^[19][20][21] Beast was screened at the Rome International Film Festival, Veneto International Film Festival, Italy and Eastern Europe Film Festival.^[22][23][24]

Nelson's next film was the 169th film of Rajinikanth, which was tentatively titled as Thalaivar 169.^[25] On 17 June 2022, the title was announced to be Jailer.^[26] Rajinikanth played the role of a jailer in the film.^[27] It was released on 10 August 2023 to generally positive reviews from both the critics and audience, alike. The performances of the cast (especially Rajinikanth's), direction, music, cinematography, editing, and action sequences were highly praised.^[28][29] Nelson was also praised by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin for his direction.^[30] It was deemed as a huge commercial comeback for both Rajinikanth and Nelson, and had a huge opening weekend.

Owing to his films success, he confirmed Kolamaavu Kokila, Doctor, Beast and Jailer would have sequels.^[31]

Filmmaking style

Nelson's films contain dark humour.^[32][33] The supporting characters in his films are often singled out for their eccentricity, relying on body language and dialogue delivery to produce humour. Nelson also tends to use double act comedy extensively, such as Bobi and Tony in Kolamaavu Kokila; Mahaali and Kili in Doctor and Jack and Jill in Beast. Visually, Nelson's filmography can be identified through steady camera shots, blocked shots and headspace, rarely opting for zoom shots.^{[citation needed]} His films also feature slow table conversations between characters, with the camera focused on the conversing character and alternates to the next conversing character.^{[citation needed]} Nelson has cited C. V. Sridhar, Steven Spielberg, and Quentin Tarantino as his favorite directors.^{[citation needed]} Critics have also noted Breaking Bad references in his work.^[34] Nelson has stated in interviews that although his stories may not be original ideas, he has the intention of presenting them in a new format, thus breaking clichés.^{[citation needed]}

Filmography

As a director

Key

†	Denotes films that have not yet been released

Years	Film	Notes	Ref.
2018	Kolamaavu Kokila		[35]
2021	Doctor		[36]
2022	Beast	Guest appearance in the song "Jolly O Gymkhana"	[37]
2023	Jailer		[38]

As a producer

Years	Film	Notes	Ref.
2024	Bloody Beggar	Production debut (Producer Only); Diwali Release on 31 October

Recurring collaborations

Editor R. Nirmal and music composer Anirudh Ravichander have worked in four films of Nelson Dilipkumar. Actors Yogi Babu and Redin Kingsley have also worked on four films. Sivakarthikeyan has written lyrics for three movies and has acted in one movie. Only people with three or more collaborations are listed.

Films	R. Nirmal	Anirudh Ravichander	Yogi Babu	Sivakarthikeyan	Redin Kingsley [39]	D. R. K. Kiran	Sunil Reddy	Jani Master	VTV Ganesh
Kolamaavu Kokila (2018)	Y	Y	Y	Y as lyricist	Y
Doctor (2021)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Beast (2022)	Y	Y	Y	Y as lyricist	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Jailer (2023)	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Awards and nominations

Year	Film	Award	Category	Result
2019	Kolamaavu Kokila	8th South Indian International Movie Awards	Best Debut Director	Won
		Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards	Best Screenplay	Won
2023	Jailer	12th South Indian International Movie Awards	Best Director	Won

References

1. "Kolamaavu Kokila director Nelson on signing Nayanthara: 'I knew she could pull off the titular role with ease'". Firstpost. 18 August 2018. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
2. "POPULAR DIRECTOR'S FATHER PASSES AWAY - STR PAYS HIS FINAL RESPECTS!". Behindwoods. 27 November 2018. Archived from the original on 24 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
3. "Sivakarthikeyan was part of Simbu's shelved 'Vettai Mannan'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
4. "Simbu in Nelson's Vettai Mannan – Indian Express". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
5. "Anirudh to compose for Simbu?". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
6. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Mirchi Shiva And Nelson Teasing Vignesh Shivan And Anirudh" – via YouTube.
7. "Geetha Govindam enters Rs 100 cr club; Kolamaavu Kokila becomes highest-grossing heroine-led film in Tamil". 28 August 2018. Archived from the original on 19 October 2019. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
8. "Nayanthara instantly agreed to be part of 'Kolamaavu Kokila': Director Nelson to TNM". The News Minute. 14 August 2018. Archived from the original on 8 February 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
9. "Saranya speaks about Yogi Babu-Nayanthara Romance". Behindwoods. 16 August 2018. Archived from the original on 9 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
10. "Shooting wrapped for Sivakarthikeyan's Doctor". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
11. "Doctor: The Sivakarthikeyan-Nelson Dilip Kumar Project Wrapped Up!". 3 January 2021. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
12. "THIS star is the reason for Nelson Dhilipkumar's union with Vijay". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
13. Banerjee, Urmimala; Banerjee, ByUrmimala (21 June 2021). "Eclipse Superstar Thalapathy Vijay will be new title card of Vijay from film Beast". Bollywood Life. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
14. "'Thalapathy 65': Vijay teams up with Sun Pictures and director Nelson". The Hindu. 10 December 2020. Archived from the original on 2 February 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
15. The Hindu Net Desk (21 June 2021). "Vijay's 'Thalapathy 65' titled 'Beast'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 21 June 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
16. "'Thalapathy 65': Pooja Hegde to star opposite Vijay in Nelson Dhilipkumar's directorial". The Times of India. 25 March 2021. Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
17. "'Thalapathy 65' will be a pan-Indian project: Cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa". The News Minute. 25 February 2021. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
18. "Will the first single from Vijay's 'Beast' arrive on Pongal?". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
19. "Nelson Dilipkumar reveals why he enjoyed shooting for 'Beast' the most". The Times of India. 4 September 2023. Archived from the original on 8 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023. The film was a commercial success and made more than Rs 300 crore at the box office.
20. "'Beast' box office collection: Vijay scores fifth consecutive Rs 250 crores". The Times of India. 7 May 2022. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
21. "Thalapathy Vijay's Beast Crosses Rs 250 Crore at Worldwide Box Office". India.Com. 6 May 2022. Archived from the original on 29 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
22. "Beast was screened at Veneto International Film Festival". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 28 April 2024.
23. "Beast was screened at the Eastern Europe Film Festival". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 28 April 2024.
24. "Beast screened at the Rome International Film Festival". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 28 April 2024.
25. "Rajinikanth teams up with Nelson for 'Thalaivar 169'". The Hindu. 10 February 2022. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
26. "Nelson-Rajinikanth's Thalaivar 169 titled Jailer". Cinema Express. 17 June 2022. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
27. "Rajinikanth's 'Jailer' shooting with Nelson Dilipkumar to begin in August". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
28. "Rajinikanth-Nelson's 'Jailer' gets release date". The Hindu. 4 May 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
29. "Rajinikanth's 'Thalaivar 169' to release in Summer 2023". The Times of India. 21 May 2022. Archived from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
30. Desk, 24 Web (12 August 2023). "'നെൽസാ എന്നടാ സെഞ്ച് വച്ചിരിക്കേ..'; ജയിലറിന് അഭിനന്ദനവുമായി എം കെ സ്റ്റാലിൻ; പ്രോത്സാഹനത്തിന് നന്ദിയെന്ന് നെൽസൺ". Twentyfournews.com. Archived from the original on 12 August 2023. Retrieved 12 August 2023. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
31. "Jailer 2 Confirmed; Rajinikanth, Thalapathy Vijay To Collaborate In Nelson's 'Dream' Film". News18. 14 August 2023. Archived from the original on 14 August 2023. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
32. V, Harshini S. (10 August 2023). "Jailer First Day First Impression: Despite The Flaws, Rajinikanth and Nelson Are Back and How!". Film Companion. Archived from the original on 22 August 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
33. Srikar, Ram Venkat (4 August 2023). "Why Nelson Is Cooler Than You Think". Film Companion. Archived from the original on 22 August 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
34. "Nelson Dilipkumar: Comparison with Breaking Bad is the highest compliment". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
35. Kolamaavu Kokila [CoCo] – Official Tamil Trailer | Nayanthara | Anirudh | Nelson | Lyca Productions. Lyca Productions. 5 July 2018. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021 – via YouTube.
36. DOCTOR | Sivakarthikeyan | Nelson Dilipkumar | Anirudh | Sivakarthikeyan Productions | KJR Studios. Tejas Productions. 2 December 2019. Archived from the original on 20 December 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2021 – via YouTube.
37. "Vijay's Thalapathy 65 planned for Pongal 2022?". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
38. "Thalaivar 169 by Sun Pictures - Twitter". Twitter. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
39. News18 (19 March 2024). "Do You Recognise The Comedian In This Song? Hint: He's Acted In All Films Of Nelson Dilipkumar". Archived from the original on 9 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

External links

• Nelson Dilipkumar at IMDb
• Nelson Dilipkumar on Twitter