Bio/Wiki
| Real Name | R. Balakrishnan |
|---|---|
| Nickname | Not Known |
| Zodiac sign/Sun sign | Aries |
| Hometown | Bengaluru, India |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Ethnicity | Tamil |
Physical Stats & More
| Height | 5’ 10” |
|---|---|
| Weight | 80 kg |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
| Hair Color | Salt & Pepper |
Educational Qualification(s)
| College | Not Known |
|---|---|
| Educational Qualification | Graduate (was expelled from a Masters in Computer Application (MCA) course owing to poor attendance) |
Personal Life
| Hobbies | Watching Cricket and Movies |
|---|
Relationships & More
| Marital Status | Married | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affairs/Girlfriends | Gauri Shinde | ||||
| Wife/Spouse | Gauri Shinde (Filmmaker) | ||||
| Marriage Date | Year- 2007 | ||||
| Children |
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Family
| Father | Name Not Known (Worked in the housing department of LIC; now practises Law) |
|---|---|
| Mother | Name Not Known |
| Spouse | Gauri Shinde |
| Children | None |
Career
| Debut | Direction: Cheeni Kum (2007) |
|---|---|
| Favourite Director | Ramesh Sippy, Manmohan Desai, SS Rajamouli, Balu Mahendra, Mani Ratnam |
| Favourite Music Composer | Ilaiyaraaja |
| Favourite Films | Bollywood: Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Neerja |
| Favourite Actors | Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan |
| Favourite Sport | Cricket |
Some Lesser Known Facts
| R. Balki smokes. | |
| R. Balki drinks alcohol. | |
| Balki's father was a film fanatic and often took him to cinema halls in their younger years. | |
| At the time, Balki lived in Bangalore and wanted to join a prestigious film institute. | |
| Due to his strong interests in Cricket and Movies, Balki struggled with meeting the class attendance requirements. | |
| He noticed an advertisement in the newspaper posted by Ramesh Sippy's ad agency, Mudra, asking applicants to describe themselves in 100 words. | |
| Balki created well-known TV ad taglines such as 'Daag Ache Hai' (Surf Excel) and Jaago Re (Tata Tea). | |
| He rose quickly in his career and became the former Group Chairman of the advertising agency, Lowe Lintas. | |
| Balki transitioned into directing feature films, starting with Cheeni Kum (2007) starring Amitabh Bachchan and Tabu. | |
| As of June 2017, Balki has directed 4 commercial movies, all featuring Amitabh Bachchan. | |
| His wife, Gauri Shinde, also transitioned from the ad-film industry. |
