Santosh Sivan

Santosh Sivan (born 8 February 1964) is an Indian cinematographer, film director, producer and actor known for his works in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi cinema. Santosh graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and has, to date, completed 55 feature films and 50 documentaries. He is regarded as one of India's finest and best cinematographers. He is the recipient of the Pierre Angénieux Excellens in Cinematography, twelve National Film Awards, six Filmfare Awards, four Kerala State Film Awards, and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards.

Career
Santosh, a founding member of the Indian Society of Cinematographers and the most awarded Director of Photography in India, graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and completed 45 feature films and 41 documentaries.

As a director, Santosh won his first National Award 1988 for the Story of Tiblu (1988). His film Halo was honoured at the 43rd National Film Awards as the Best Children's Film and Best Sound.

Santosh became the first cinematographer in the Asia-Pacific region to join the American Society of Cinematographers. As a cinematographer, he has won five National Film Awards – including four for Best Feature Film Cinematography. As of 2014, he has received eleven National Film Awards, and 21 international awards for his works. He was awarded the Padma Shri for his contributions to Indian cinema 2014.

Late 1999s and present
In an interview, he said that some films he chose, not mostly because of the story but due to the very fact that he was comfortable with the director, a bigger pay check and out of friendship.

Documentary
His 2007 release Prarambha won the National Film Award for Best Educational/Motivational/Instructional Film at the 55th National Film Awards.

Kerala State Film Awards

 * 1992 – Aham – Best Cinematography (Colour)
 * 1996 – Kalapani – Best Cinematography
 * 2005 – Anandabhadram – Best Cinematography

Tamil Nadu State Film Awards

 * 1992 – Roja – Best Cinematography
 * 1996 – Indira – Best Cinematography
 * 2010 – Raavanan – Best Cinematography

Filmfare Awards

 * 1995 – Barsaat – Best Cinematography
 * 1998 – Dil Se.. – Best Cinematography
 * 2000 – Halo – Best Film (Critics)
 * 2001 – Asoka – Best Cinematography

Filmfare Awards South

 * 1997 – Iruvar – Best Cinematographer – South
 * 1999 – Vanaprastham – Best Cinematographer – South

IIFA Awards

 * 2002 – Asoka – IFFA Best Cinematographer Award

Star Screen Awards

 * 2005 – Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities – Best Cinematography

Zee Cine Awards

 * 2005 – Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities – Best Cinematography

International
Won:

Nominated:
 * 1998 – The Terrorist – Best Director at Cairo International Film Festival
 * 1998 – The Terrorist – Golden Pyramid at Cairo International Film Festival
 * 1999 – Malli – Adult's Jury Award for Feature Film and Video (second place) at Chicago International Film Festival
 * 1999 – The Terrorist – Grand Jury Prize at Cinemanila International Film Festival
 * 1999 – The Terrorist – Lino Brocka Award for Best Film at Cinemanila International Film Festival
 * 2000 – Malli– Poznan Goat for Best Director at 18th Ale Kino! International Young Audience Film Festival
 * 2000 – The Terrorist – Panorama Jury Prize for Honorable Mention at Sarajevo Film Festival
 * 2000 – Malli – Emerging Masters Showcase Award at Seattle International Film Festival Awards
 * 2004 – Malli – Audience Award for Best Feature Film at Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles
 * 2005 – Navarasa – Monaco International Film Festival (Monaco)
 * Won – Best Supporting Actor – Bobby Darling
 * Won – Angel Independent Spirit Award – Navarasa – Santosh Sivan
 * 2008 – Before the Rains – Grand Award for Best Theatrical Feature at WorldFest Houston International Film Festival
 * 2008 – Before the Rains – Crystal Kodak award for best cinematography.
 * 2009 – Tahaan won a High Commendation in Children's Feature Film section at the 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards


 * 2001 – The Terrorist – Independent Spirit Award for Best Foreign Film
 * 2001 – The Terrorist – Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Foreign Language Film