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From: bb on: Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:16 pm
Song of the Day: sondhamumillE from Hello Mr. Zamindar.
http://www.dhool.com/sotd2/981.html
Listen
- Saravanan writes:
2008 seems to be year of centenary celebrations of some of the finest artistes associated with Tamil cinema such as Kalaivaanar N.S. Krishanan, Isai Arasu M.M. Dhandapani Desikar and Nadigavel M.R. Radha. Let us in dhool join the celebrations by featuring these artistes in our SOTD parade.
Let us begin with the inimitable Madras Rajagopala Radhakrishnan. There have been year-long celebrations all over Tamil Nadu to mark the birth centenary of this remarkable actor. As early as December 2007, Radha Ravi revived his father’s unforgettable ‘raththa kaNNeer’ as part of the Nataka Academy’s 16th Nalli Drama Utsav where Nalli Kuppuswami, A. Natarajan and ‘Film News’ Anandan recalled the singular contributions of MRR to the stage and cinema. The Naaivaal Film Movement organized a grand function on 12th April at Coimbatore with Satyaraj and Poet Pamaran paying glowing tributes to MRR. A book on the Nadigavel titled ‘kaalathin kalaignan’ written by Manaa was released on the occasion. A Centenary Memorial Seminar presided by CPI General Secretary Nallakannu was held in Trichy on 15th April. The Dravida Kazhagam celebrated the centenary, first at Coimbatore on 17th May with Radha Ravi as the chief guest, and at the Periyaar Thidal in Chennai on 13th November. Actor Mohan Raman presented ‘A Talk on MRR with film clips’ in Tamil on 20th August at the Avvai Kalai Kazhagam and in English on 25th August at the Park Sheraton as part of the Madras Musings Lecture Series.
* * * *
The life and times of M.R. Radha had been chronicled in dhool in 2005 when a song sung by him was presented as SOTD:
http://www.dhool.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3342
Enjoy listening to MRR’s speech in Malaysia here:
http://www.keetru.com/audio/M_R_Radha/mrradha.php
* * * *
Looking for a suitable song for today’s SOTD, I was tempted by a variety of MRR memorabilia- songs featuring the Nadigavel’s voice such as the singular ‘kutRam purindhavan’ from raththakkaNNeer, the uproarious ‘paanchali sabatham’ drama from ‘edhaiyum thaangum idhayam’ and ‘jaalam seivadhum nyaayamaa’ from ‘nalla idaththu sambandham’ where MRR’s sarcastic repartees to a tremulous Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi are a joy to listen to, or other songs filmed on MRR such as the unusual ‘budhdhi sigaamaNi petRa piLLai’ from ‘iruvar uLLam’ and the immortal ‘neeyE unakku endRum nigaraanavan’ from ‘balE paaNdiyaa’ where MRR’s onscreen antics are in perfect sync with M.S. Raju’s fantastic singing. But even as I was debating over these, a droll little ditty filmed on MRR and sung by an uncommon singer came to mind, and here it is:
sondhamumillE from Hello Mr. Zamindar
Sung by G.K. Venkatesh & Chorus
Lyrics by Kannadasan
Music by Viswanathan- Ramamoorthi
Listen
Hello Mr. Zamindar (1965/ Sudarsanam Pictures) starred Gemini Ganesh, M.R. Radha, T.S. Baliah, V. Gopalakrishnan, Muthiah, Savitri, Indira Devi, Seethalakshmi, Angamuthu and others. The story was written by K.J. Mahadevan, and dialogues by Vidwan V. Lakshmanan. The movie was produced and directed by K.J. Mahadevan. MRR played the role of a good-natured barber who is actually a Zamindar, and he swaggers all through the movie bringing the scenes alive with his wit and wisdom.
Hello Mr. Zamindar must have been among the very last movies that Viswanathan and Ramamoorthi worked in as a team, and as always their partnership yielded rich dividends in this album too. The two versions of ‘iLamai koluvirukkum’, one by PBS and the other by P. Suseela are of equal allure. ‘kaadhal nilavE kaNmaNi radha’ has PBS at his romantic best. ‘Hello Mr. Zamindar, how do you do?’ is a playful PBS- P.Suseela duet. The talented Jamunarani, who had been marginalized by then, gets a rare solo here, ‘pattinikku oru manasu’. Suseela gets to sing another solo as well, ‘thOttaththu poovE’
‘sondhamumillE oru bandhamumillE’ is the song where MRR is introduced. The setting is the hairdresser’s shop, and MRR, the owner of the saloon is seen along with 3 employees, all busy with their customers. MRR is seen sharpening the blades, as he commences giving his customer a shave. MRR’s facial expressions and gestures as he goes about his work singing this song are an absolute treat. S. Rama Rao, another gifted actor of the time, enacts the role of MRR’s customer and his comic contortions are no less hilarious. The other barbers join in the jaunty chorus.
sondhamumillE, oru bandhamumillE
sonna idaththil amarndhu koLgiRaar
naangaL mannarum illE, mandhiri illE
vaNakkam pOttu thalaiyai saaikkiRaar
Yesterday’s Dinathandhi carried a report that haircutting rates would increase from the new year. The new rates would be Rs. 50 (non-A/c) and Rs. 60 (A/c) for a haircut and Rs. 25 (Non A/c) and Rs. 30 (A/c) for a shave! My thoughts went to the saloon I frequent whenever I am in Chennai. The place has retained most of its staff over the years, and even now they remind me unfailingly how I used to yell at the first attack of the ‘’motor’ on my scalp when I was a child! The men there are extremely well-informed and express well-researched opinions on varied topics, be it politics, movies or sports. As actor and writer George Burns once remarked, ‘Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy driving taxicabs and cutting hair!’
Kannadasan does not take this song lightly as a mere frame-filling barber banter. He brings in his famed philosophical flourishes as he ponders on the dignity of labour, the inevitable necessity of the services of the hairdresser and loss in value when one loses one’s station in life. In his ‘Death the Leveller’, James Shirley held death high as a great leveler of mankind, and our own Maruthakasi seconded the thought in his ‘samarasam ulaavum idamE’. Here Kannadasan makes us realize that there is another great leveler in life, and that is the barber shop, where we all have to submit to the hairdresser. Sceptre and crown must necessarily tumble down, and along with the humble scythe and spade bow in unison to the barber’s scissors!
vaLara vittaal manitherlaam kurangugaL aavaar
naangaL vazhithu vittaal maRubadiyum manithargaL aavaar
minoraiyellaam vetti mudippOm
bhaktharukkellaam mottai adippOm
thaadaiyil mattum dhaadiyai vittu meedhaiyai theettuvOm
Kannadasan then goes on to emphasize what he would reiterate again in his ‘yaarum irukkum idaththil irundhuvittaal ellam sowkkiyame’, that anything has its value only as long as it retains its appointed place. The instrument he intelligently chooses to put across his message here is the humble hair...
irukkum pOthu thailam pOttu azhagu seigiRaar
adhu iRangi vittaal thirumbi paarkka veruppu koLgiRaar
uLLa idaththil uLLa varaikkum
indha ulagam unnai madhikkum
idaththai vittu vizhundhu vittaaL yERi midhukkumE!
If Kannadasan has earned the center-stage in this song, V-R jostle him for an equal share in the honours. In the West, there is a separate genre of music called Barbershop music, a kind of unaccompanied vocal harmony, which supposedly traces its origin to the Mills brothers who learned to harmonize in their father’s barbershop in Ohio. Our V-R, with their whistles, trumpets, guitars, bongos and chorus voices, bring in a scintillating swing to the barbershop here! Listen to the ingenious beat of busy pairs of scissors lending the song a perfect percussion. The masters call their old friend and trusted ally GKV to render the song; and bringing in an apposite air of casual impertinence, Gurjada Krishnadas Venkatesh, certainly does his friends proud….
http://www.dhool.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7926
