Sujatha was an Indian actress who performed and starred in a variety of unique characters in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films- in addition to few in Kannada and Hindi languages as well. The actress was best known for restraint and subtlety in portrayal of varied emotions. After starring in numerous Malayalam films in her mother-tongue, Sujatha later got introduced to the Tamil film industry by veteran director K. Balachander and producer P.R. Govindarajan as a protagonist in her first Tamil film, Aval Oru Thodar Kathai (1974). It was a critically acclaimed film and launched the actress's first commecrical breakthrough in her acting career. Whereas, her first Telugu picture happened to be a Telugu/Tamil bilingual titled as Guppedu Manasu (1979) in Telugu and was simultaneously shot as Nool Veli in Tamil of the same year. She died of a cardiac arrest on 6 April 2011 in Chennai.

Kailasam Balachandar was an Indian filmmaker and playwright who worked mainly in the Tamil cinema. He was well known for his distinct film-making style, and the Indian film industry knew him as a master of unconventional themes and hard-hitting contemporary subject matter. Balachander's films are well known for their portrayal of women as bold personalities and central characters. Popularly referred to as Iyakkunar Sigaram, his films are usually centred on unusual or complicated interpersonal relationships and social themes. He started his film career in 1964 as a screenwriter and graduated to a director with Neerkumizhi (1965).