Kireet Khurana

Kireet Khurana (born 25 October 1967, Mumbai, India) is an Indian filmmaker, storyteller, and ad-film director. He graduated from Sheridan College in Canada with high-honors. After graduating, he founded the production house Climb Media, and later its animation wing, 2nz Animation Co., where he serves as creative head.[1]

Kireet Khurana
Born (1967-10-25) 25 October 1967 Mumbai, India
OccupationFilmmaker, animator, ad-film director

Kireet has won more than 30 awards, including 6 prestigious President's National Awards for his films, the first of which he won in 1995 for the animated film Mahagiri.[2][3] He has made over 12 short films, and over 500 ad films.[4] He is the director of India's first film combining live-action and 3D animation called Toonpur Ka Superrhero, starring Ajay Devgan and Kajol.[5] His 2018 feature film T for Taj Mahal, produced by Abis Rizvi, was launched at the Festival de Cannes in 2018, and premiered at the London Indian Film Festival.[6][7] It won the Best Feature Film Audience Award and Best Story Award at the DC South Asian Film Festival. His 2016 documentary on Indian film director Saeed Akhtar Mirza, entitled Saeed Mirza: The Leftist Sufi, released on Netflix in 2017. It was named among the top 10 documentaries of 2017 by Vogue India and The Hindu.[8][9]

He is also the creator of India's largest animation series, Vartmaan, with animation pioneer Bhimsain.

Personal

Born in 1967, Kireet grew up in a creative environment. His exposure to animation films started from age six as his father, Bhimsain, an animation pioneer in India, nurtured and encouraged his creative leanings. Kireet attended the Jamnabai Narsee School and later completed a BA with a major in economics from Mumbai University. Soon thereafter, he went on to graduate in 1994 from Sheridan College, Canada, with honors, in animation filmmaking.

Film awards

As a producer, Kireet Khurana has worked on many award-winning public service campaigns, including a series of four short films for Childline India Foundation on child labor, child marriage, corporal punishment and child sexual abuse. Komal, a film on child sexual abuse, won the FICCI Best Animated Frames (BAF) Award in 2014. Sisters, a film on child marriage, won the Best Public Service and Social Film awards at the INFOCOM-ASSOCHAM EME Awards in 2013. Education Counts won the "Viewer's Choice" award at ANIFEST 2013.

For its close association with NASSCOM, Climb Media was honoured with an award at the NASSCOM 25 years' celebration.

Trade

Trade is a film on child prostitution. It was the first Indo-Canadian animation co-production with the National Film Board of Canada and UNICEF[10] It also won the National Award for Best Animation Film Direction in 1998.[11]

Mahagiri

Mahagiri won two President's National Awards for Best Animation Film Direction and Animation in 1995,[3][12] as well as a Certificate of Merit at the Mumbai International Film Festival in 1996.

O

O won two National Awards (Best Animation Film; Direction and Animation) in 1996, as well as a Silver Ebensee Award at the Festival Der Nationen in Austria in 1995.

Chotta Birbal

Chotta Birbal won the Seagate Technical Award for Excellence in 2004 for Best Animated Series. Chhota Birbal is also the first Indian animation character to be licensed.[13]

Shaadi Ka Laddoo

The 2004 comedy film made history using an animation-live action technique for a song in a film for the first time in Bollywood. This song won the Seagate Technical Excellence Award for best visual effects in a feature in 2005.[14]

  • Nominated in the prestigious Screen Awards in 2005 in the Best VFX category.

Sand Castle

This short film about paedophilia was funded by international bodies like UNIFEM and Save the Children India. It won the Best Public Service Message film award at the Seagate Technical Excellence Awards in 2006.[15] It was also part of the official selection at the Bimini Festival.

Filmography

Director:

The Indian animation scene reached a turning point with the release of India's first 3D animation-live action combination feature film, Toonpur Ka Super Hero ("Toonpur's Super Hero") written by Raagi Bhatnagar and directed by Kireet Khurana. The film features Ajay Devgan, Kajol, Sanjai Mishra, Tanuja and Mukesh Tiwari in lead roles, along with a number of animated characters. The film was remade in English in early 2011; it was a box office hit, making high gross earnings within a two-week period. It was a moderate commercial success and received some positive reviews from critics.

  • T for Taj Mahal (2018)

T for Taj Mahal is an upcoming Bollywood feature film produced by Sony Pictures and Abis Rizvi. The film follows the journey of an illiterate villager who brings literacy to his village through a unique social enterprise.

  • Saeed Mirza: The Leftist Sufi (2015)

This documentary profiles the celebrated Hindi film director, Saeed Akhtar Mirza, known as much for his embrace of leftist politics and social concerns as lyrical cinema.

  • Adventures of Chhota Birbal (2002) TV series[16]
  • Trade (1997)
  • Mahagiri (1994)

Producer:

  • Karma Cafe (2018) - directed by Kabeer Khurana, starring Amole Gupte and Nakul Sahdev in the lead roles.
  • Religion for Dummies (2017) - directed by Kabeer Khurana. Winner of Best Film and Best Direction awards at Southern Shorts Awards, Georgia, apart from 25+ international selections world-over.
  • Adventures of Chhota Birbal (2002) – an animated TV series created by Kireet Khurana and produced by Climb Media, was one of its kind. It won the Seagate Technical Award for Excellence in 2004 for Best Animated Series, Chhota Birbal being the first Indian Animation character to be licensed. It was India's first television series to be licensed and merchandised.

Animation:

Writer:

  • Toonpur Ka Super Hero (2010) (screenplay)
  • Adventures of Chhota Birbal (2002) TV series (creator)
  • Trade (1997) (story)

Production manager:

  • Kathni Karni Ek Si (1989) (assistant production manager) – won two national awards
  • Chhoti Badi Baatein (1986) (assistant production manager) – a highly successful and popular sitcom based on superstitions

Actor:

  • Dooriyaan (1979) – directed by the founder, Bhimsain Khurana. This critically acclaimed successful film starring Sharmila Tagore and Uttam Kumar won seven awards, including a Filmfare Critics Award; showcasing the dilemmas and personal ambitions of a married couple, a paradigm shift in terms of story far ahead of its time.

Other accomplishments

References
  1. "Team Climb". Climb Media. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  2. "Awards". Climb Media. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  3. "National Film Awards, India 1995". IMDb. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  4. "Interview: Kireet Khurana". India Today. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  5. "Toonpur is a very hectic place to live in". Indian Express. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  6. Raman, Sruthi Ganapathy. "In Kireet Khurana's film 'T for Taj Mahal', butter chicken is served with a social message". Scroll.in. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  7. "Kireet Khurana's T For Taj Mahal Trailer Applauded At Cannes 2018 | Urban Asian". Urban Asian. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  8. Chakraborty, Sucheta (14 July 2017). "Passion for cinema". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  9. "7 Indian documentaries you can't miss on Netflix". VOGUE India. 9 May 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  10. "Trade". National Film Board Canada. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  11. "National Film Awards, India 1998". IMDb. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  12. "Mahagiri". Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  13. "Adventures of Chhota Birbal on Cartoon Network from October 4". AFAQs. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  14. "Awards and Recognitions". 2nz. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  15. "Metaphor Studios wins award for Sand Castle". AnimationXpress. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  16. "Adventures of Chhota Birbal on Cartoon Network from October 4". afaqs!. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  17. "Full cast and crew for Detective Naani". IMDb. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  18. "All set for some Toon fun". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
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