DhooL.com Song Of The Day

Song of the Day # 977

From: bb on: Sun Nov 30, 2008 9:17 pm

Song of the Day: paNNOdu from vidiveLLi.

http://www.dhool.com/sotd2/977.html

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- Saravanan writes:

paNNodu piRandhadhu thaaLam from vidiveLLi (1960/ Prabhuram Pictures)

Sung by P.B.Srinivas & Jikki
Lyrics by Kannadasan
Music by A.M.Raja

* * * *

Two brothers are separated in their childhood. The elder grows up to become an industrialist, while the younger turns out a vagabond and a petty thief. An unscrupulous employee of the elder brother lures him to fall prey to the charms of a courtesan, and embezzles funds from the office. The younger brother steals the wallet of his brother, and seeing therein a familiar picture of his brother and himself as children, he realizes that the owner of the wallet is none other than his brother. He then rescues his brother from the clutches of the evil courtesan and the swindling employee. The elder brother perceives the error of his ways, reunites with his sibling, and all is well.



Circa 1952. This is the story that a young, aspiring 20 year-old writer named C.V. Sridhar related to T.K. Shanmugam. Sridhar hailed from an agricultural family in Chitthamur, a village near Madurantakam. He studied in St. Josephs School in Chengalpattu, where he wrote and staged plays even when he was in Grade 7. His close friend and associate in his creative ventures was his classmate Sadagopan, and this association became a lifelong bond between Sridhar and Sadagopan, who is more familiar to us as Chitralaya Gopu. Reminiscing on his schooldays with Sridhar, Gopu said “He wrote very interesting stage plays when we were in school”. Practical considerations forced Sridhar to take up a mundane job in the Government Co-operatives Department. But he soon threw it up to concentrate on writing.

Interestingly, TKS was not the first person to whom Sridhar related his story of the two siblings. AVM Studios was the first door that Sridhar knocked on, but P. Neelakantan rejected the story outright. An unperturbed Sridhar then took his story to TKS, who was highly intrigued by the self-assurance of the youngster. The veteran dramatist was so impressed with the story and the youngster’s stylish narration that he adapted it for stage. Titled ‘raththapaasam’, the play was hugely popular. TKS then decided to make a movie of the story. He called Sridhar to draft the screenplay and write the dialogues. Here TKS had to convince the financiers who wanted some established writer to work on the script. TKS stood steadfast on his decision and ultimately had his way. TKS played the younger brother. And interestingly, Bagavathi, who was his younger brother, played the role of the elder brother in the movie. T.S. Balaiah was well cast as the wily villain. Anjalidevi, Vidyavathi and M.S. Draupadi were the others in the cast. Sridhar made a mark as a writer with refreshing ideas and his style of employing everyday conversational Tamil was a revolutionary departure from the prevailing trends. Released on 14 August 1954, raththapaasam (Avvai Productions) had a successful run. And as though to make amends for his office rejecting the story earlier, AV. Meiyappa Chettiar remade the movie in Hindi in 1956 as ‘bhaai bhaai’, again with real life brothers Ashok Kumar and Kishore Kumar playing the lead roles. In his memoirs, AVM thus takes credit for introducing the genius of Sridhar to Hindi cinema.

Even while ‘raththapaasam’ was in the making, Sridhar managed to get another story of his accepted by a production company called Saravanabhava & Unity Pictures. Here again, Sridhar had to face some hurdles. The producers were torn in indecision between Sridhar’s story and another story titled ‘thambi’ by an aspiring writer called K.S. Gopalakrishnan, who would in later years metamorphose as Tamil cinema’s ‘iyakkunar thilagam’. Eventually, they decided to go ahead with Sridhar’s story, titled ‘edhirpaaraathadhu’. Sridhar was engaged to script the screenplay and dialogues, and he took KSG on board as a lyricist and assistant writer. This time Sridhar came up with a love story with startling twists- a man who is given up for dead returns to find that his sweetheart has become his step-mother in the meantime. The story then moves to a, arresting climax. Sivaji Ganesan, Padmini and Nagiah played the lead roles with characteristic panache, and the movie had a successful run of more than 100 days. In his memoirs, Sivaji reveals that the movie had a special place in his heart.

A Telugu movie titled ‘parivartana’ (1954/ Janata Productions) starring N.T. Rama Rao, A. Nageswara Rao and Savitri was running to packed houses just then. Sridhar wrote the dialogues in Tamil and got the movie dubbed as in 1955 as ‘latchadhipathi’. Now well established as a script writer of repute, Sridhar was flooded with offers. 1955 saw Sridhar working in movies such as maaman magaL (Mani Productions) and mahEswari (The Modern Theaters). In 1956, Sridhar turned producer along with associates Krishnamoorthi, Govindarajan and Sundararajan. For the newly formed company ‘Venus Pictures’, Sridhar scripted ‘amaradeepam’ (1956). Sridhar moved from strength to strength, with his dialogues gaining appreciation in movies such as ‘maadharkula maaNickam’ (1956/Lalitha Films), ‘enga veettu mahalakshmi’ (1957/Annapurna Pictures) and ‘yaar paiyyan’ (1957/ Vijaya Films). In 1958, Venus Pictures remade P.U. Chiannappa’s 1940 classic ‘uththamapuththiran’, with Sridhar penning the dialogues. ‘manjaL mahimai’ (Annapurna Pictures), released for Pongal of 1959, had dialogues written by Sridhar.

And finally, on 9 April 1959, Sridhar made magnificent entry as a trailblazing director with his ‘kalyaaNa parisu’ (Venus Pictures). The first of the many memorable love triangles that Sridhar crafted, ‘kalyaaNa parisu’ was a poignant tale of love and sacrifice. The movie ran for more than 25 weeks, and is revered to this day as a milestone in the history of Tamil cinema. Sridhar followed it up with another tragic love triangle, this time set against the backdrop of dance and music. However, ‘meeNda sorgam’ (1960/Mathuram Pictures), despite fetching critical acclaim, failed to repeat the success act of kalyaaNa parisu. The next, as most chronicles of Sridhar would have it, was a breezy entertainer shot almost entirely in Kashmir, ‘thEn nilavu’ (1961), the first movie that Sridhar produced under his Chitralaya banner.

* * * *

But, wait, for tucked away between ‘meeNda sorgam’ and ‘thEn nilavu’ is a movie that most accounts of Sridhar pass by with nonchalance. I cannot fathom why, for ‘vidiveLLi’ is certainly not a movie that one can afford to ignore. It is a passionate story of guilt and redemption, with the majestic presence of Sivaji Ganesan taking the rich and soul-searching sequences to exhilarating heights. Moreover, the movie was a commercial success as well, running for more than 100 days.

Sridhar had earned the respect and goodwill of Sivaji right from ‘edhirpaaraadhadhu’. ‘amaradeepam’ and ‘uththamapuththiran’ went on to reinforce the respect that the talented youngster elicited from the thespian. In fact, Sivaji himself remade ‘amaradeepam’ in Hindi as ‘amardeep’ starring Dev Anand. ‘punarjenmam’ scripted by Sridhar was in the making. Sridhar was the toast of the season just then as his first directorial venture ‘kalyaaNa parisu’ was a mammoth success. It was around the same time that Sivaji’s close friend Vettaikkaaranpudhoor Muthumanickam Gounder desired to produce a movie with Sivaji in the lead. Sivaji acquiesced readily, and they called Sridhar over to explore the possibilities of making a film with him. Sridhar came, and this was the story he narrated:

Chandru loves his sister Seetha and is overjoyed when her marriage is fixed with Ravi. A necklace is promised along with other valuables as part of Seetha’s dowry. Now where would an impoverished Chandru go for such a precious ornament? To the relief of his mother and Seetha, he produces a necklace just in time for the wedding and informs them that he had borrowed it from a friend. The marriage takes place and all is well.

Meanwhile, Chandru secures a good job in Chitra Medical Company. The owner’s daughter Chitra is attracted by Chandru, and in due course expresses her love to him. Chandru reciprocates her sentiments and they steal many a treasured moment of blissful romance. Getting an unexpected cash reward for saving his employer from a dubious business transaction, Chandru returns home to replace his sister’s necklace with a similar one. Fate, as its wont, intervenes just then. Before Chandru could replace Seetha’s necklace, the necklace slips and falls down one day and the pendant opens to reveal the picture of an unknown man. Ravi now suspects the very fidelity of his wife. Chandru rushes to plead for his sister, but is not able to produce his friend from whom he said he had borrowed the necklace from. An enraged Ravi drives out Seetha from his house.

Driven to a corner, Chandru confesses that he had stolen the necklace. Investigations reveal that the person from whom he had stolen the necklace was none other than Chitra! Chandru loses his job and the goodwill of his employer. A benumbed Chitra identifies the man in the photograph as her brother who was no more. However, Chitra’s father refuses to identify the man in the picture as his dead son. He goes ahead and arranges Chitra’s marriage with a man of his choice. Chitra protests and even threatens suicide, all in vain for she is locked inside her room. Chandru enters the house surreptitiously with an intention to lay his hands on some photographs of Chitra’s brother so that his sister’s innocence could be established. He confronts Chitra’s father with the photographs. In the ensuing melee, a lamp gets overturned, leading to the house catching fire. Chandru rescues Chitra from the inferno. He is forgiven, his sister’s innocence established, and he wins the hand of his beloved.

Sivaji liked the story, for in Sridhar’s narration he could visualize the creator’s gift for irony and picturesque absolutes. Muthumanickam Gounder floated a company called ‘Prabhuram Pictures’ and the shooting commenced forthwith. Sarojadevi played Chitra, while S.V. Ranga Rao enacted the role of her father. Balaji (Ravi), M.N. Rajam (Seetha) and Shantakumari (Chandru’s mother) offered understanding support. T.R. Ramachandran and Padmini Priyadarshini provided the lighter moments. The movie opens with a suspense-filled sequence in the dark, where shades of light reveal a burglar entering the room of a woman who is fast asleep. Just as he grabs her necklace, she wakes up and shrieks in fear. He escapes with the necklace, but not before she has notices a scar on his hand. With a compelling opening such as this, Sridhar never lets the interest slack. With the enthusiastic support of Aloysius Vincent, Sridhar’s black and white shots are innovative, angles breath-taking, his frames filled with tantalizing drama of light and shade. And the undeniable highlight of the movie is of course Sivaji’s captivating performance… Delightfully underplayed and histrionics reigned in, Sivaji explores fully the infinite possibilities that the role, with all its complexities offers… Released on 31 December 1960, the movie celebrated a 100 day run and elicited favorable reviews.

* * * *

Sometime in the mid 50s, two young men found themselves traveling together to Salem. As the train chugged away in the night, the men, one an upcoming film writer and the other a playback singer, befriended each other, and shared their dreams and aspirations- the writer’s ambition was to make it big as a director, and the singer expressed his desire to compose music. The writer was Sridhar and the singer A.M. Raja, and they were traveling to The Modern Theaters, where Sridhar was writing the script for mahEswari and A.M. Raja singing for the same movie. Moved by the singer’s intensity, Sridhar promised that Raja would compose music for his first directorial venture.

Sridhar did keep his word, and A.M. Raja’s music for ‘kalyaaNa parisu’ was one of the highpoints of the movie. Feet-tapping duets such as ‘vaadikkai maRandhadhum yEno’ and ‘aasaiyinaalE manam’, the Deepavali ditty ‘unnai kaNdu naan aada’, the salubrious ‘thuLLaadha manamum thuLLum’, the heart-rending ‘kaadhalilE thOlviyutRaaL’ were all chart-busters and marked a magnificent debut for the new composer. Despite this success, Sridhar assigned Chalapathi Rao to work on his next assignment, the haunting ‘meeNda sorgam’- perhaps he chose Chalapathi Rao for his mastery over classical music as music was the mainstay of the story. However, for ‘vidiveLLi’, Sridhar returned to A.M. Raja, and Raja came up with a winsome album once again.

Can anyone forget the dainty duet ‘idai kaiyiraNdil aadum’ that Raja sang with Suseela? Or even that jaunty ‘koduththu paar paar paar’ by the quartet Raja, Suseela, Trichy Loganathan and Jikki? These are songs that have withstood the ravages of time, and find place even today in most mp3 compilations of old songs. Suseela got to sing the 2 versions of ‘ennaaLum vaazhvilE’, and Raja ensured that each version is intricately nuanced to bring out the contrasting moods- one a harbinger of all the joys of love, and the other a whimper of stark despair. In his choice of singers, Raja was inexplicably not inclined to be generous to his talented wife- in fact, it is said that Sridhar had to coax Raja to give Jikki at least one song in ‘kalyaaNa parisu’, and that is how the immortal ‘thuLLaadha manamum thuLLum’ came Jikki’s way. However, in the case of vidiveLLi, Raja seems to have been unusually kind to Jikki. True, he reserved all Sarojadevi’s songs for Suseela. Yet, he sent for Jikki to render all the other songs. Besides ‘koduththu paar paar paar’, Jikki got to sing a rollicking duet ‘ caaru savaari jOru’ with Trichy Loganathan and 2 solos of diverse allure, the fast-paced ‘ninaithaal inikkum subadhinam’ and the poignant ‘naan vaazhndhadhum unnaalE’.

Then of course, there is the forgotten SOTD.

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Moonlight. Seetha (Rajam) and Ravi (Balaji) in a moment of blissful intimacy. Little do they perceive the storm of suspicion that is soon to wreck their happiness… This then is the lull before the gale. Sridhar ushers in the mood of ecstasy … the moon throwing slivers of silver on the couple as they caress and carouse in the garden abloom with flowers, the curtains in the verandah swaying gently in the breeze…. Vincent plays with camera; with delicate shades and shadows, he lets the night spell magic…



Raja crafts a treatise in tranquility to capture this fleeting moment… Jikki heralds in the enchantment with her humming… the Sitar responds in serenity…. PBS is in his euphonious elements, his timbre the perfect foil to Jikki’s dreamy lilt… the singers glide through the tune, as music, being the food of love, plays on… a mellow magic such this is a reminder of music as it ought to be, music that might assure one a moment’s happiness, or spare one a moment’s sorrow…

Tags: P.B.Srinivas , Jikki

Discussion Page in DhooL on this Song

http://www.dhool.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7873