Gemini_Studio

Gemini Studios

Gemini Studios

Indian film studio (1940-1975)


Gemini Studios was an Indian film studio based in Madras, Tamil Nadu. It was launched when S. S. Vasan, a businessman of many ventures (including the ownership of Ananda Vikatan) bought Motion Picture Producers' Combines from Krishnaswamy Subrahmanyam and renamed it.[1] The studio re-opened under the name Gemini. Despite the common beliefs about a lucky racehorse or the astrological sign of his wife, it was the logo Vasan chose that led to the name. Subrahmanyam had shown him a picture of his very young boys, blowing on toy trumpets in the nude. Vasan chose the pose to craft the logo and hence the name Gemini—The Twins.[2] The new facade also had statues of ‘The Gemini Twins’, blowing the bugle. Gemini Studios served as a breeding ground for innumerable artists and technicians for the south Indian Film Industry. The Gemini twins became a household symbol and the Gemini flyover was named after the original studio at that junction. Gemini Studios is one of the few producers in Tamil cinema to survive beyond 100 productions along with AVM, Modern Theatres, Thenandal Films, etc.

Quick Facts Company type, Industry ...
Subramaniam Srinivasan, Proprietor of Gemini Pictures

A chapter called "Poets and Pancakes" is based upon Gemini studios which is an excerpt from a novel My years with the Boss by Asokamitran is in the English curriculum of Class 12th Flamingo textbook by NCERT.

Early history

S.S.Vasan bought from his friend K. Subramanyam a Film distribution business Motion Picture Producers' Combines studio on Mount Road for Rs.86,427-11-9,the odd figure arrived at through including the interest on unpaid wages of the employees and it was renamed as Gemini Studios in the year 1940.[3] G. Kamble, a painter from Kolhapur worked at the studios in his early life.[4]

Timeline

More information Year, Film ...

Aftermath

After the studio was abandoned for two decades, the headquarters was demolished and replaced by a luxury hotel called The Park in 2002.[6][7]


References

  1. A Madras Miscellany, S. Muthiah, Published by EastWest Books, pg 644 Categories
  2. A Madras Miscellany, S. Muthiah, Published by EastWest Books, pg 260
  3. "The Hindu : Recalling what Gemini did". Hindujobs.com. 8 July 2002. Archived from the original on 8 July 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  4. "B News Kolhapur Segment". B News. 19 June 2011. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  5. Jeevanmukthi (1942), blast from the past, M.L.Narasimham, The Hindu, 13 November 2011.
  6. "Gemini Studio a dream hotel now". The Times of India. 16 May 2002. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 9 October 2018.

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Gemini_Studio, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.