Paradesi (transl. Vagabond) is a 2013 Indian Tamil-language period drama film written, produced and directed by Bala. The film features Atharvaa and Vedhika in the lead roles, with Sai Dhanshika, Uday Karthik, Riythvika and Jerry in supporting roles. The soundtrack and score were composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar. The cinematography was handled by Chezhiyan, while Kishore Te and L. V. K. Das were in charge of the editing. Based on Paul Harris Daniel's 1969 novel Red Tea, the film's story revolves around Raasa (Atharvaa), an unemployed villager who is misled into bonded labour at a tea plantation after being promised generous accommodation and wages by its supervisor (Jerry).
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Paradesi was made on a budget of ₹400 million and was released on 15 March 2013 to critical acclaim, but failed at the box office. The film won 37 awards from 59 nominations; its direction, performances of the cast members, music, cinematography, and costumes have received the most attention from award groups.
At the 60th National Film Awards, Poornima Ramasamy won for Best Costume Design. Paradesi led the 61st Filmfare Awards South with nine nominations including Best Film (Bala) and Best Actress (Vedhika). It went on to win for Best Director (Bala), Best Actor (Atharvaa) and Best Supporting Actress (Dhanshika). At the 8th Vijay Awards, the film received eleven nominations including those for Best Film and Best Actor, and won four, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress, Best Make Up Artistes and Best Costume Designer. Paradesi was nominated for eight awards at the BFI London Film Festival and won for Best Cinematography and Best Costume Designer. It garnered five nominations at the 3rd South Indian International Movie Awards ceremony and won two awards, Best Director and a Special Appreciation. Among other wins, the film received six Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards and Edison Awards each, five Techofes Awards, four Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards, three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and a Chennai International Film Festival award.
Awards and nominations
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) and Nominee(s) | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards | 8 January 2014 | Best Film | Bala | Won | |
| Best Director | Bala | Won | |||
| Best Actor | Atharvaa | Won | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Sai Dhanshika | Won | |||
| Best Cinematographer | Chezhiyan | Won | |||
| Best Costume Designer | Poornima Ramasamy and Perumal Selvam | Won | |||
| BFI London Film Festival | 13–18 October 2013 | Best Film | Bala | Nominated | |
| Best Foreign Language Feature Film | Bala | Nominated | |||
| Best Director of a Foreign Film | Bala | Nominated | |||
| Best Director of a Foreign Feature Film | Bala | Nominated | |||
| Best Lead Actor | Atharvaa | Nominated | |||
| Best Cinematography | Chezhiyan | Won | |||
| Best Costume Designer | Poornima Ramaswamy | Won | |||
| Best Music | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Nominated | |||
| Chennai International Film Festival | 19 December 2013 | Special Jury Award | Atharvaa | Won | |
| Edison Awards | 16 February 2014 | Best Director | Bala | Won | |
| Extreme Performance – Male | Atharvaa | Won | |||
| Extreme Performance – Female | Vedhika | Won | |||
| Best Character Award – Female | Sai Dhanshika | Won | |||
| Best Cinematographer | Chezhiyan | Won | |||
| Best Costume Designer | Poornima Ramasamy | Won | |||
| Filmfare Awards South | 12 July 2014 | Best Film – Tamil | Bala | Nominated | |
| Best Director – Tamil | Bala | Won | |||
| Best Actor – Tamil | Atharvaa | Won | |||
| Best Actress – Tamil | Vedhika | Nominated | |||
| Best Supporting Actor – Tamil | Jerry | Nominated | |||
| Best Supporting Actress – Tamil | Sai Dhanshika | Won | |||
| Best Music Director – Tamil | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Nominated | |||
| Best Lyricist – Tamil | Vairamuthu for "Sengaade" | Nominated | |||
| Best Female Playback Singer – Tamil | Vandana Srinivasan for "Avatha Paiyaa" | Nominated | |||
| National Film Awards | 3 May 2013 | Best Costume Design | Poornima Ramaswamy | Won | |
| Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards | 27 April 2014 | Best Film | Bala | Won | |
| Best Director | Bala | Won | |||
| Best Actor | Atharvaa | Won | |||
| Best Cinematographer | Chezhiyan | Won | |||
| South Indian International Movie Awards | 12–13 September 2014 | Best Film – Tamil | Bala | Nominated | |
| Best Director – Tamil | Bala | Won | |||
| Best Cinematographer – Tamil | Chezhiyan | Nominated | |||
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Tamil | Sai Dhanshika | Nominated | |||
| Best Film – Special Appreciation | Bala | Won | |||
| Tamil Nadu State Film Awards | 13 July 2017 | Best Editor | L. V. K. Das | Won | |
| Best Art Director | C. S. Balachandar | Won | |||
| Best Female Dubbing Artist | Divya | Won | |||
| Techofes Awards | 13 February 2014 | Best Director | Bala | Won | |
| Best Actor | Atharvaa | Won | |||
| Best Actress | Vedhika | Won | |||
| Best Music Director | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Won | |||
| Best Editor | Kishore Te | Won | |||
| Vijay Awards | 5 July 2014 | Best Film | Bala | Nominated | |
| Best Director | Bala | Won | |||
| Best Actor | Atharvaa | Nominated | |||
| Best Actress | Vedhika | Nominated | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Sai Dhanshika | Won | |||
| Best Cinematographer | Chezhiyan | Nominated | |||
| Best Art Director | C. S. Balachandar | Nominated | |||
| Best Female Playback Singer | Vandana Srinivasan for "Avatha Paiyaa" | Nominated | |||
| Best Make Up Artistes | Dasarathan | Won | |||
| Best Costume Designer | Poornima Ramasamy and Perumal Selvam | Won | |||
| Favourite Director | Bala | Nominated |