Biography: Avichi Meiyappa Chettiar (Tamil: அவிச்சி மெய்யப்ப செட்டியார்; 28 July 1907 – 12 August 1979), also known as A. V. Meiyappan or AVM, was an Indian film producer, director and philanthropist who established AVM Productions in Vadapalani, Chennai. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of Tamil cinema,[2] and one of three movie moguls of the South Indian film industry along with S. S. Vasan and L. V. Prasad.[3] His production company AVM Productions is the only production company in Kollywood (Tamil film industry) to run successfully for five decades and three generations.