| Kyaw Thu | |
|---|---|
| Native name | ကျော်သူ |
| Born | Kyaw Win 2 November 1959 Yangon, Myanmar |
| Occupation | Actor, director |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse | Myint Myint Khin Pe |
| Children | Pyi Thein Kyaw, Myint-Mo Oo |
| Awards | Da Byi-Thu Ma Shwe Hta (1994) Amay No-Bo (2003) |
Kyaw Thu (Burmese: ကျော်သူ, pronounced [tɕɔ̀ θù]; born 2 November 1959) is a two-time Myanmar Academy Award winning film actor and film director. One of the top leading men of Burmese cinema in the 1980s and 1990s, Kyaw Thu continues to star in films and has directed several successful films. Since the early 2000s, Kyaw Thu has devoted much time to do social work for the poor, and in the process has gradually emerged as a vocal critic of the Burmese military government.
Contents |
Kyaw Thu was born Kyaw Win (ကျော်ဝင်း, [tɕɔ̀ wɪ́ɴ]) to Daw Mya Than and U Sein Tin in Yangon. He attended Yangon University but dropped out of school in the final year to pursue a career in films. He met his future wife Myint Myint Khin Pe in 1978 when they were both attending university at Hlaing Campus.[1]
Kyaw Thu made his film debut in 1984, and has starred in over 200 films and directed six films in a career spanning over two decades.[2] In the 1980s and 1990s Kyaw Thu was one of the most successful leading men in Burmese cinema.
Kyaw Thu won the 1994 Myanmar Academy Award for Best Actor in Da-Byi-Thu Ma Shwe Hta (တပြည်သူမရွှေထား; lit. Miss Shwe Hta, the Foreigner). Many believe that Kyaw Thu would have won more awards had he been more pliant with the propaganda demands of Myanmar Motion Picture Organization (MMPO), which gives out the annual awards. Until 1994, he refused to do a propaganda film. In 1993, one of his films received popular and critical acclaim but failed to win a single award. In 1994, he finally agreed to do a pro-government film, and came his win with Da-Byi-Thu, which he feels is inferior to his previous work.[3] He won his second academy award for 2003's Amay No Bo (အမေ့နို့ဖိုး) for best director.[1]
His latest scuffle with the authorities—he was arrested in October 2007 for supporting the anti-government protests led by the monks—surely will not win him more awards. In October 2007, his latest HIV/AIDS awareness film, A-Kywin-Mè Longyon-Ya (အကြွင်းမဲ့ လုံခြုံရာ), has been blocked by the government censorship board.[4]
Kyaw Thu has used his prominence to help the country's poor. He is founder and vice president (now President) of the Free Funeral Services Society (FFSS), which provides free funeral services to the poor.[5] As of June 2008, the society had paid for over 50,000 funerals.[6] Since 2003, his society has also helped pay medical costs in poor neighborhoods of Yangon, and since 2007, started a free clinic for the poor.[6] Through his funeral services society, Kyaw Thu was active in rescue and support efforts in the aftermath of May 2008 Cyclone Nargis which completely devastated Burma's Irrawaddy delta and cost over 130,000 lives. As of June 2008, the society had helped to raise K500 million (~US$400,000) for the victims of the disaster.[6]
Kyaw Thu and his wife were arrested for publicly supporting the protesting monks in September 2007.[7] He was awarded by the Myanmar community in London with the prize of "the artist who stands for the fellow people" for the year 2009.
Kyaw Thu is married to Myint Myint Khin Pe. They have a son, Pyi Thein Kyaw, and a daughter, Myintmo Oo.