Veteran documentary film-maker S. Krishnaswamy was recently awarded the Dr. V. Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award for his lifelong invaluable contribution to non-fiction filmmaking. The award carries a cash prize of ₹10 lakh, a trophy and a citation.
Union Minister of State for Environment Babul Supriyo and Minister for Cultural Affairs, Government of Maharashtra, Amit Vilasrao Deshmukh, presented the award to Mr. Krishnaswamy at the 16th edition of the Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Shorts and Animation Films — MIFF 2020. Noted film-maker Kiran Shantaram was present on the occasion.
Receiving the award, Mr. Krishnaswamy, the son of legendary film-maker K. Subramaniam, said: “I made a four-hour film on Indian history, after working on it for almost fifteen years, with no financial backing. It traces the history of India from over 5,000 years ago to 1976; I titled the film From Indus Valley to Indira Gandhi. I could not find anyone to distribute the film, until Warner Brothers came to my rescue, transforming it from a complete failure to a complete success.”
He has over 200 non-fiction films and a dozen television serials to his credit.
