Samikannu Vincent

SamiKannu Vincent, also known as the father Of Tamil Cinema, is a filmmaker born on April 18, 1883, in Kottaimedu. Coimbatore, India. From being a draftsman clerk to a film exhibitor to a film director, Vincent grew his career. he set up business In 1905, he set up a business as a film exhibitor and went around screening his stock of shorts. One of the films he exhibited was Life of Jesus, which became extremely popular in South India. Vincent screened the films in a tent which later became a popular way to project films. He launched the first-ever theatre in his hometown Coimbatore in 1914, named the Variety Hall Talkies. The theatre was the first theatre in South India in Madras Province. The theatre still exists but under a different title and ownership.

He imported films from abroad and exhibited them in his theatre. After that, he became a producer and assistant director. Although he was not successful as a producer, he decided to continue distributing films, dealing in movie equipment, and exhibiting. After the establishment of Central Studios in 1937 in Coimbatore, he entered the board as a director. Vincent co-produced the film Valli Thirumanam Valli Thirumanam Indian Romantic television series >> Read More... with Pioneer Film Company in 1933, starring T.P. Rajalakshmi. The film became a huge hit. After the success of Valli Thirumanam, Vincent produced another film with Pioneer Studios in Calcutta- Subhadra Parinayam(1935). SamiKannu Vincent died on April 22, 1942.