Suhasini Maniratnam

Suhasini Maniratnam (born 15 August 1961) is an Indian actress, director, producer and writer in the Tamil film industry. She has worked as an actress in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films. She made her cinematic debut with the 1980, Tamil film Nenjathai Killathe. Suhasini then won National Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in Sindhu Bhairavi (1985).

Early life
Suhasini's paternal cousins Anu Hasan, Shruti Haasan and Akshara Haasan have also since become actresses.

Suhasini attended the Municipal Elementary School in Paramakudi, before moving to Madras aged 12 to live with her uncle Kamal Haasan and her grandmother.

As an actress
Suhasini made her film debut in 1980 with the Tamil movie Nenjathai Killathe. For her first movie, she won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actress. She was introduced to Malayalam cinema through Padmarajan's Koodevide (1983), which also featured Mammootty. She appeared in the AFI Fest nominated feature film Vanaprastham (1999), which starred Mohanlal.

She has acted with Vishnuvardhan in Bandhana (1984), Suprabhatha (1988), Muthina Haara (1990), Himapatha (1995), Hendithghelthini (1998), Maathaad Maathaadu Mallige (2007) and School Master (2010).

She won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her role in the 1985 Tamil film Sindhu Bhairavi, directed by K. Balachander.

As a director
In 1991, Suhasini directed the anthology mini-series Penn shown on Madras Doordarshan. The series featured eight standalone episodes examining the lives of South Indian women, and starred several of her contemporaries such as Shobana, Revathi, Radhika and Amala as protagonists.

In 1995, she stepped into direction, helming her first film Indira. In November 1997, Suhasini directed a short television film titled Swayamvaram featuring Suchitra Krishnamoorthi and Rajiv Menon. The script had been written by Sujatha and commissioned by Revathi and Suresh Menon.

Suhasini directed a segment titled "Coffee, Anyone?" in Amazon Prime's Putham Pudhu Kaalai (2020) and featured in the leading role alongside her cousins Shruti Haasan, Anu Hasan and her mother Komalam.

Other work
Suhasini and her husband Mani Ratnam have been involved in the running of their production company Madras Talkies since 1997.

Honorary Consul
Suhasini was appointed the Honorary Consul Of the Grand Duchy Of Luxembourg in 2015. She held the post until 2020.

Naam Foundation
Suhasini founded Naam Foundation in 2010 with the objective to empower single women.

Personal life
Suhasini married film director Mani Ratnam on 26 August 1988 and the couple has a son, Nandan, born in 1992.

Awards

 * National Film Awards
 * Best Actress – Sindhu Bhairavi (1985)


 * Filmfare Awards South
 * Best Actress – Kannada – Benkiyalli Aralida Hoovu (1983)
 * Best Actress – Telugu – Swati (1984)
 * Best Actress – Kannada – Suprabhatha (1988)
 * Best Actress – Kannada – Muthina Haara (1990)


 * Kerala State Film Awards
 * Best Actress – Ezhuthapurangal (1987)
 * Best Actress – Theerthadanam (2001)


 * Tamil Nadu State Film Awards
 * Best Actress – Nenjathai Killathe (1980)


 * Nandi Awards
 * Best Actress – Swati (1984)
 * Best Supporting Actress – Nuvvu Naaku Nachav (2001)

Filmography
Order based on number of films that she acted in.

Television

 * Hasini Pesum Padam (Jaya TV) as Host
 * Autograph (Jaya TV) as Host
 * Weekend with Stars (Zee Tamil TV) as Host
 * Ninaivu Kurippugal (DD Podhigai) as Host
 * Bigg Boss 4 (Star Vijay) as Herself and Guest