Nagraj Manjule

Nagraj Popatrao Manjule (born 24 August 1978) is an Indian film director, actor, producer, scriptwriter, poet, screenwriter, and filmmaker. He works in Marathi cinema, and is best known for Sairat and Pistulya—the latter for which he received National Film Award in the National Film Award for Best First Non-Feature Film of a Director.

At the 61st National Film Awards, Fandry won the Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director. In 2018, Manjule published a book of poetry in Marathi titled Unhachya Katavirudhha which won the Bhairuratan Damani Sahitya Puraskar. He owns a wrestling team called 'Veer Marathwada' in Zee Maharashtra Kusti Dangal.

Early life and education
Manjule grew up in Jeur village in the Solapur district of Maharashtra. He belongs to the traditionally-nomadic Waddar community, a Dravidian tribe.

He earned his M.A. in Marathi literature from University of Pune, followed by a master's in communication studies from New Arts, Science and Commerce College, Ahmednagar.

Career
Manjule is strongly inspired by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, the emancipator of downtrodden and the drafting chairman of the Indian constitution. His films are deeply rooted in his own experience growing up as a dalit in rural Maharashtra. His films have focused on the plights faced by members of these communities, including social discrimination at the hands of high-caste communities as well as the resulting economic hardships.

His first National Award-winning short film Pistulya is a reflection of his 'felt experience'. The film focuses on the desire of a dalit boy to attend school, and his inability to do so because of his family's poverty and a deep-seated disdain for formal education within his community.

His debut feature film, Fandry, was released in February 2014; the word means "pig" in the Kaikadi language.

Manjule's second film, Sairat, premiered at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. Like Fandry and Pistulya, it deals with caste discrimination and honour killing, a practice still widespread in parts of India. Sairat also seeks to address the role of women in society, with the character of Archie (Archana Patil), the female protagonist of Sairat, garnering both popular and critical acclaim. Sairat is currently the highest grossing Marathi film of all time. Manjule made his directorial debut in Hindi films with Jhund starring Amitabh Bachchan.

In 2019, Manjule hosted Marathi Kaun Banega Crorepati.

Film

 * All films are in Marathi, unless mentioned.

Personal life
Nagraj Manjule married Gargi Kulkarni in 2014 and has two children Raya and Shahu. Earlier, Manjule was married to Sunita Manjule in 1997, but later divorced on November 10, 2014. He gave Sunita ₹7 lakh as permanent alimony. It was revealed that the allegations were false and Manjule found innocent. Manjule is being defamed for no reason.

During an interview at the Baaplyok event, Manjule discussed his personal life, revealing, "My uncle, Baburao Manjule, adopted me from my biological father. Originally, my name was Nagraj Baburao Manjule. However, I had already made a decision that if I achieved something significant, I would honor my father, Popatrao Manjule. Since entering the film industry, I've been known as 'Nagraj Popatrao Manjule' in all aspects."

Books

 * Unhachya Kataviruddha – poetry.