Saravanan Natarajan writes:
Tribute to the Thespian- Part I
Fifteen years may have passed on since the mortal remains of Vizhuppuram Chinnaiah Ganesan were consigned to flames; however he will continue to live on in the hearts and memories of generations of Tamils, for whom he will forever be the Nadigar Thilakam, the greatest actor ever.
Today, for a change, let us listen to some powerful dialogues in the voice of our Nadigar Thilagam- the famed ‘Samrat Asokan’ drama from Paragon Pictures’ Annaiyin Aanai- 1958.It was from his ‘Boys’ Company’ background and the innumerable parts that he got to play on stage that Sivaji honed his histrionic skills. His spellbinding performance in the play "Sivaji Kanda Hindu Samrajyam" led to Periyaar EVR conferring on him the sobriquet ‘Sivaji’.
Sivaji’s eloquent oratorical skills were marvelously put to use by intelligent filmmakers of the 50s, who inserted such stage plays in their films. Other instances of such memorable insertions were ‘Anarkali’ in Illara Jothi-1954 and ‘Socrates’ in Raja Rani- 1956. The Therukkoothu in Navaraathiri was another brilliant insertion. And years later, the magic was still evident in films like Raman Ethanai Ramanadi- 1970 and Rajapart Rangadurai-1973.
* * * *
When I got the songs of Annaiyin Aanai recorded many years back in Chennai, the old-timer in charge (from whom I learned lot about Tamil film music), told me with an enigmatic smile that he had inserted a rather unusual ‘filler’ as there was some space remaining in the cassette. I had chastised him earlier for using the same ‘Beat it’ filler in all the cassettes I had got recorded from him, and he was obviously trying to make amends. And when I got home and listened to it, imagine my pleasurable surprise when I heard this celebrated drama!
This play was written by Thanjaivaanan (real name Govindaramanujam), who wrote many such plays for Sivaji. He also wrote lyrics for a handful of film songs, the most popular one being ‘Mannulagil indru devan irangi varugiraan’ (Punitha Anthoniyar)
Listen on to the majestic roar of our SimmakkuralOn….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q929CuI7UZA
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1018417744856618/permalink/1278633715501685/
Tribute to the thespian Part II
* * * Veerapandia Kattabomman * * *
“I wish to tell you how happy I am at setting foot on the sacred soil of Kayathar. It finds an honored place in the history of Free India because of its association with the immortal memory of Veerapandya Kattabomman. He was one of the first martyrs of India’s freedom struggle who was hanged by the British in the 18th century. I am sad that the name of Kattabomman and the heroic exploits of him and his brother are not very well known to the people in north India” (A.B. Vajpayee, then PM of India, July 5, 2000).
“The tendency is to refer to the 1857 battle as the First War of Independence. But long before the North woke up to British imperialism and fought the foreign rulers, here in this land, you had Veer Pandya Kattabomman.” (L.K.Advani, then Home Minister, May 27, 1997).
I guess these statements by these leaders have had little effect, for at the time of the release of Amir Khan’s ‘The Rising’ in 2005, the promos, the ads and write-ups, the hoardings and the flyers all glorified the image of Mangal Pandey as the ‘India’s First Freedom Fighter’; the same tag-line has crept into reviews on the film in various websites.
None of my North Indian friends have heard of Veerapandiya Kattabomman who waged his war more than 50 year before 1857, while we have all read Mangal Pandey’s act as part of our history lessons.
True, I never had Kattabomman’s exploits as part of my school syllabus, yet I knew all about him. For Sivaji’s majestic portrayal of the hero made an indelible impact on me, as it would have surely made on anyone who has watched it. Even Advani, while speaking on Kattabomman had this to say: “I have not seen many Tamil films. But a long time back, I saw a Tamil film by the name Kattabomman. Sivaji Ganesan's portrayal of the local folk hero was superb!”
* * * *
Panchalankurichi is a hamlet 18 Kms from Thoothukkudi. It was here that Veerapandian, the 47th king of Panchalankurichi was born on January 3rd, 1760 to Jagaveera Kattabomman and Aarmugathammal. The Kattabommans traced their ancestry to Bommu, who was a minister in King Jagaveera Pandian’s durbar in Azhagiya Veerapandiapuram, as Ottapidaram of today was known as. Bommu, or Gettibommu was he was called, had migrated from the Vijayanagar region of what is Andhra Pradesh today and was a fearless warrior as well. After Jagaveera Pandiyan died issueless, Bommu ascended the throne.
Veerapandian became the king of Panchalankurichi on February 7, 1790, and ruled for 9 years. He opposed the East India Company’s tyranny openly, and waged a lone war, till he was hanged by the British on October 16th 1799.
It was the story of this brave chieftain that Sakthi Krishnaswami adapted for the stage for Sivaji Ganesan’s drama troupe in the late 50s, and Sivaji won accolades acting in the title role. B. R.Panthulu then expressed his desire to make a film on Kattabomman.
In 1957, the Central Government had celebrated with great fanfare, the centenary of the ‘First War of Independence’, and M.P.Sivagananam, the leader of thamizharasu kazhagam, lamented aloud history forgetting the bravery of Kattabomman.
When Panthulu and Sivaji set about making Kattbomman the movie, Sivagnanam was appointed the head of the committee set up for discussion and research on Kattabomman and his times. ‘varalaaRu, thirai amaippu aaraaichi kuzhu’ , as this committee was called had Sakthi Krishnaswami, Sivaji Ganesan, B.R.Panthulu, K.Singamuthu and P.A.Kumar as its members. They came up with an engrossing story and worked on it to create a superb screenplay. Sakthi Krishnaswami penned the immortal dialogues. Panthulu picked the best artistes that Tamil cinema had to offer at that time, and spared no expense in making the movie.
* * * * *
Padmini Pictures’ Veerapaandiya Kattabomman
Actors:
Sivaji Ganesan- Kattabomman
S. Varalakshmi- Jakkamma
Gemini Ganesh- Vellaiyathevan
Padmini- Vellaiyamma
OAK. Thevar- Oomaithurai
Ragini- Sundaravadivu
M.R.Santhanam- Thaanathipathi Pillai
A.Karunanidhi- Sundaralingam
T.P.Muthulakshmi- Kamakshi
V.K.Ramaswami- Ettappan
‘Kuladeivaam’ Rajagopal- Kariappan
Tambaram Lalitha- Valli
‘Jaavar’ Seetharaman- Bannerman
Parthiban- W.C.Jackson
Baby Kanchana- Meena
Lyrics: Ku.Ma.Balasubramaniam
Music: G.Ramanathan
Costumes: M.G.Naidu
Choreography: Hiralal, Gopalakrishnan & Madhavan
Art: Ganga
Editing: R.Devanarayanan
Cinematography: W.R.Subbarao & Karnan
Produced & Directed by B.R.Panthulu
* * * * *
Veerapandiya Kattabomman, the movie, was a runaway hit and was screened to full houses even after 25 weeks. Every re-release of the film proved to be a crowd-puller as well.
However, the film was not without its share of controversies. Denouncing the glorification of Kattabomman, Thamizhvaanan wrote “kattabomman telungan! koLLaikkaran! avanukku munbE pulithEvan engiRa veera maRavan pOraadinaan!” Kannadasan claimed that the Maruthu brothers were the true sons of the soil who raised their voice against the British. And to bolster his claim, he set about making the movie ‘Sivagangai Seemai’. Veerapandiya Kattabomman was released on May 6, 1959, and Sivagangai Seemai was released on May 19, 1959.
Though the stories surrounding Kattabomman are many, the movie, for most part, ran true to the life and times of Kattabomman as documented in well-researched books. ‘National Movement in Tamil Nadu- Agitational Politics and State Coercion’by N.Rajendran, ‘South Indian Rebellion’ & ‘History of Madurai (1736-1801), both by Professor K.Rajayaan, and ‘Book on Military Reminiscences’ by Colonel James Welsh all narrate the story of Kattabomman. In fact Rajayyan even quotes a letter written by Major Bannerman “it may not be amiss here to observe that the manner and behaviour of the Poligar during the whole time of his being before those who were assembled yesterday at the examination which took place were undaunted and supercilious. He frequently eyed the Etiapore Poligar (Poligar of Ettayapuram), who had been so active in attempting to secure his person, and the poligar of Shevighergy with an appearance of indignant contempt and when he went out to be executed, he walked with a firm and daring air and cast looks of sullen contempt on the poligars to his right and left as he passed” (Major John Bannerman, missive to the Madras Government dated October 17th 1799)
The rich folk music repertoire of the South has many songs that narrate the valour of Kattabomman.
Panthulu went to London to get the Techni-Colour prints made. The editing and camerawork were outstanding. Grand sets and riveting war sequences made the film a visual treat. G.Ramanathan’s songs, especially S.Varalakshmi’s lilting ‘singara kaNNE’ became chart-busters. Sakthi Krishnaswami’s dialogues were learned by-heart and recited in every household. Panthulu’s choice of actors was brilliant- Gemini Ganesh ( a last minute replacement for SSR), Padmini, Varalakshmi and OAK Thevar sizzled on screen in their well-etched roles.
And as for Sivaji, suffice to say that he immortalized the glory of Kattabomman by his powerful performance. To many of us, the very mention of Kattabomman would bring to mind the image of Sivaji spewing valiant words of defiance. The movie was filled with unforgettable moments of his fantastic performance…
The film won critical acclaim at the Afro-Asian Film Festival held at Cairo. Sivaji Ganesan and G.Ramanathan won individual awards for their work in the film.
In an interview in his last days, when asked about the award he cherished most, Sivaji had this to say: “I would say that the award I got for my role in Veerapandiya Kattabomman at the Afro-Asian Festival is very dear to my heart. Maybe it is because the award was the first in my career. I treasure it very much to this day.”
The movie must have meant a lot to Sivaji, for it was after watching Kattabomman’s story being enacted in a Therukoothu as a child, that Sivaji vowed that he would become an actor and play Kattbomman’s role one day! In later years, Sivaji even erected a statue of Kattabomman at Kayatharu as a mark of respect to the great chieftain.
Presenting here two video clips from the movie. To attempt to describe them would be sheer impertinence.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTCfb71TT1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rR3CCJRjA2U
Discussion at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1018417744856618/permalink/1278781972153526/
No comments:
Post a Comment