Avatar Krishna Kaul received two National Film Awards from his film ’27 Down ‘. But on the day the award was announced, the director also died. At the age of 35, these directors from the world became an example in film history.
Recently the 71st National Film Awards were presented at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. Many celebrities from Shahrukh Khan to Rani Mukherjee were honored during this period. Do you know about a National Award winner director whose only film has won two National Awards. But the day these awards were announced, the director passed away. The matter is not 50 years old today. We are talking about Avatar Krishna Kaul, who said goodbye to the world at the young age of 35 years.
Who was the avatar Krishna who?
Avatar Krishna Kaul was a film director who directed only one film. But immortalized his name. On 27 September 1939, Avatar, born in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, worked in the Ministry of External Affairs before coming to films and his first posting took place in Pakistan. In 1960, he served at the Indian Embassy in New York and the same year he quit his job and enrolled in the Institute of Film Technique in New York and learned the nuances of filmmaking. Between 1964 and 1968, he did a filmmaking course from New York University. He later worked as a copy editor in the Associate Press and an editor in the British Information Service.
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Avatar Krishna Kaul’s film career
Avatar acted in the film industry from 1970 to 1974. He worked for ‘Bombay Talkies’ directed by James Ivory. He used to work at the production house Merchant Ivory at that time. In 1974, he stepped into the direction world and directed the first and only film ’27 down ‘. The film was based on Ramesh Bakshi’s novel ‘Eighteen Suraj Ki Plant’, in which actors like Rakhi, MK Raina and Om Shivpuri played an important role. This film was produced for about 8 lakh rupees. It is said that 40 percent of the budget was spent by Avatar and the remaining amount was incurred by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC). The film received the National Award for Best Feature Film and Best Cinematographer (Apoorba Kishore).
How did Avatar Krishna Kaul pass away
It is said that on 20 July 1974, when his film ’27 Down ‘was announced by two National Awards, he died due to accidentally drowning. In fact, Kaul lost his life while trying to save his friend from drowning at the White House in Valkeshwar, Mumbai.