Pradeep Ranganathan

Pradeep Ranganathan is an Indian film director and actor from Chennai, who works predominantly in Tamil cinema.^[1] He is known for directing Comali (2019) and Love Today (2022).^[2][3][4] He debuted as a lead actor through Love Today.^[5] He also runs a Youtube channel which has over 5 lakh subscribers.^[6]

Pradeep Ranganathan
Born	Pradeep Ranganathan
Other names	Pradeep Ranganathan
Occupation(s)	film director, actor
Years active	2019-present
Known for	Comali Love Today
Website	Pradeep Ranganathan

Career

He began his career by making several short films including Whatsapp Kadhal (2015) and he used to multi-task by doing acting, editing and directing.^[7] He received his first feature film directorial debut opportunity from Jayam Ravi and Vels International who were impressed after watching some of his short films.^[8]

He made his directorial debut with Comali in 2019 which starred Jayam Ravi and Kajal Aggarwal and the film became a commercial success at the box office. Pradeep Ranganathan also eventually made a cameo appearance during the climax portion of Comali.^[9] He was the subject of controversy before the theatrical release of Comali as Rajinikanth demanded the film to be boycotted due to the depiction of the flashback of Rajinikanth where he promised to enter the politics in 1996 being mentioned in a portion of the film trailer.^[10][11] It was also a major talking point and highlight in the trailer of the film. The scene was subsequently removed from the film following the backlash.^[12]

In an interview, he had revealed that he took inspiration from the 1985 American science fiction film, Back to the Future, which he first saw the film as a kid on television as a dubbed version.^[13] He usually refers to Back to the Future whenever he begin working on his films. He also revealed that he takes notes from the Hindi filmmaker, Rajkumar Hirani, especially crediting his two most popular films, Munna Bhai MBBS (2003) and 3 Idiots (2009).^[13]

His second directorial venture, Love Today (2022) was based on his short film App(a) Lock and was a modest small budgeted theatrical release in Tamil Nadu. However, upon release, it became an instant blockbuster and surpassed expectations.^[14][15][16] Ranganathan rose to prominence and became an overnight sensation with Love Today. He also made his full-fledged acting debut with the film, playing the main male lead.^[17][8] He later revealed that Love Today is a reflection of some of his past personal life memories indicating the film as a sweet dedication to his ex-girlfriend instead of being a revenge film.^[18][3]

Filmography

Key

†	Denotes films that have not yet been released

As director, writer, and actor

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Actor	Role	Notes	Ref.
2019	Comali	Yes	Yes	Yes	Auto Driver Joseph	Won—SIIMA Awards for Best Debutant Director	^[19]
2022	Love Today	Yes	Yes	Yes	Uthaman Pradeep	Won—SIIMA Award for Best Debut Actor	^[20]
TBA	Love Insurance Corporation †	No	Yes	Yes	TBA	Filming	^[21]^[22]

References

1. "Director Pradeep Ranganathan to Play Lead in His Next Directorial Love Today". News18. from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
2. "Pradeep Ranganathan's film gets Vijay's film title". Times of India. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
3. "Love Today is not a revengeful romance; it's a sweet dedication to my ex-girlfriend: Pradeep Ranganathan". Times of India. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
4. "Director Pradeep Ranganathan: Dedicating Next Film To The Girl Who Left Me". Outlook India. from the original on 2022-07-04. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
5. "Love Today is a very close-to-heart film: Pradeep Ranganathan". Cinema Express. from the original on 2022-11-19. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
6. "Pradeep Ranganathan - YouTube". www.youtube.com. from the original on 2023-05-18. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
7. "Tamil short film 'Whatsapp Kadhal' depicts a new trend in love". Times of India. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
8. "'Comali' director Pradeep Ranganathan to make his acting debut - The New Indian Express". www.newindianexpress.com. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
9. "I've narrated a story to Vijay, confirms Love Today director Pradeep Ranganathan". The Indian Express. 2022-11-08. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
10. "Joke on Rajini sir wasn't morally wrong to me: 'Comali' director Pradeep intv". The News Minute. 2019-08-14. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
11. "Rajinikanth fans outrage as Comali trailer mocks Tamil superstar". Hindustan Times. 2019-08-04. from the original on 2023-10-14. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
12. S, Srivatsan (2019-08-05). "Controversial Rajinikanth scene will be removed: 'Comali' director Pradeep Ranganathan". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
13. "Films that Made Me - Pradeep Ranganathan: I follow Raj Kumar Hirani's formula". CinemaExpress. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
14. "Pradeep Ranganathan on Love Today success: 'Are the things I am hearing and seeing real?'". The Indian Express. 2022-11-09. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
15. "'Comali' director Pradeep Ranganathan to play the protagonist in his next film". Times of India. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
16. "Pradeep Ranganathan :பிரதீப் ரங்கநாதன் ஹீரோவாக நடித்துள்ள லவ் டுடே பட முதல் பாடல் வெளியிடு…!". Samayam. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
17. Chandar, Bhuvanesh (2022-11-03). "Tamil director Pradeep Ranganathan on 'Love Today', turning actor, and the evolving nature of romance". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
18. "Pradeep Ranganthan reveals that 'Love Today' has moments from his own life". The Times of India. from the original on 2022-12-26. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
19. "'Soorari Pottru', 'Yajamana' Win Big At SIIMA Awards 2021". Outlook India. from the original on 2022-08-29. Retrieved 2022-08-29.
20. "SIIMA 2023: Pradeep Ranganathan wins the award for Best Debut Actor, Aditi Shankar takes home Best Debut Actress honor". September 17, 2023 – via The Economic Times - The Times of India.
21. "It's official! Vignesh Shivan to direct 'Love Today' star Pradeep Ranganathan". The Times of India. 2023-09-19. ISSN 0971-8257. from the original on 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
22. "சரியான நேரத்துல என்னை காப்பாத்திட்டீங்க: 'லவ் டுடே' பிரதீப்புடன் கை கோர்த்த விக்னேஷ் சிவன்.!". Samayam Tamil (in Tamil). from the original on 2023-10-06. Retrieved 2023-09-19.