Padalgal Palavidham - பாடல்கள் பலவிதம்

[Murali Srinivas]

SIVAJI SEASON - SONG 6

தெய்வமே தெய்வமே

Deiva Magan

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

1. Mr.A.C.Tirulokachander – Director of this movie who was kind enough to share his experiences about this film.

2. Mellisai Mannar M.S.Viswanathan – who talked about the background of this song.

3. Mr.Aroordas – His interviews in TV & Magazines.

4. Mr.Mohanram

5. Various Magazines of yesteryears.

6. The NT thread in our own forum, which had given rise to so many thoughts about this movie.

DEDICATION

To our Hub Moderator NOV (a) Velan. [In fact he wanted another song from this movie but still this is for him].

INTRODUCTION

A song that showcased the uncontrolled emotions of a son. A song that touched the viewers’ hearts. A song that is remembered and celebrated till date. A song that stood out for picturisation in the sense, it seamlessly jelled with the emotional quotient of the song. Let us talk about it.

NT & RELATED PRODUCTION HOUSES

We know about Sivaji films and Sivaji Productions.Relatives and friends of the family later started production houses and they were named after the family members of NT. There was Mohan Arts Company and Mohan of the company along with M.R.Santhanam started Rajamani Pictures, named after NT’s mother. They produced Paasa Malar and Kungumam. Mr.Santhanam came out of the company and started on his own. Named Kamala Pictures (after NT’s wife), he produced Annai Illam and Paaladai. There was Ramkumar Films [though this belonged to the auditors of Sivaji Productions and the son of the audiitor was also Ramkumar thus justifying the name], which produced Galatta Kalyanam and Sumathi En Sundari. Another film was also produced under the same banner but without NT. That was Thikku Theriyaatha Kaatil starring Muthuraman and JJ. They had launched one more movie with NT and JJ and two days shooting was carried out. It was Minnal Mazhai Mohini, a novel written by Javer Seetharaman. But the movie did not proceed further. Prabhu movies was started under which Ele My friend was done (It was directed by Mr. Murali Shanmugam aka Dharan Mandrayar. He directed another movie called White Rainbow, a story dealing with the young widows of Varanasi that went on to win critical acclaim). In the same way Periannan, a close relative of NT started Shanthi Films. They did Bandha Paasam, a Bheemsingh movie and later did Anbu Karangal, which was directed by K.Sankar. Bandha Paasam was released in 1962 and Anbu Karangal was in 1965. After this there was a lull. Both the films were good in content but both ended up as average success movies, with Bandha Paasam reaching 75 days. So they wanted a big hit for their next film. They decided to wait for a good story.

It must be noted here that NT though he started his own company did not go for production continuously After Puthiya Paravai (1964), it took them almost 6 years to come out with Vietnam Veedu (1970). There was a 4-year gap between Vietnam Veedu and Thangapathakkam (1974), which in turn led to a three year gap till Annan Oru Kovil came out in 1977. Same manner, the other production houses belonging to his family and friends also had a long gap in between their productions. Basically NT wanted to help so many producers and that was precisely the reason he gave a long gap between the films produced under his own banner.

NT & FRIENDSHIP

Time just flew. If NT the actor by his sheer talent made lakhs and lakhs of people as his fans, NT the man made many his friends by his behaviour. His Fans transcended the barriers of caste, creed, language and state. He had many friends in all languages and this helped him to know about many vital things. Especially when it came to good movies released in other languages, there were people to tell him about that and that helped him to bring good stories to Tamil. Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Sanjeev Kumar were his good friends in Hindi, not to forget Lata Mangeshkar. ANR was very close to him in Telugu and NTR was also a great family friend. Later stages, Krishna was very close to NT. Rama Naidu and VB Rajendra Prasad were the two producers who had a very good relationship with NT. In Kannada, Rajkumar was a very close friend and it should be remembered that after the abduction drama by Veerappan got over, he came to Chennai and went to Annai Illam. He did not even go to the CM’s home. When NT passed away, Rajkumar came in person to pay homage. Reciprocating the gesture, Prabhu went to Bangalore to pay the last respect when Rajkumar passed away. Vishnu Vardhan was and still close to the NT family. Recently when there was a problem during the shooting of his Kannada film at Ooty, it was Prabhu who helped him out by personally taking up the issue with the Tamilnadu CM and getting it solved. In Malayalam, Thikkurisi Sukumaran Nair and Prem Nazir were very close, not to forget so many producer/directors and the present Super Stars Mammootty and Mohan Lal. This helped NT to identify the good films getting released in other languages. The persons from other language industry were very keen to see NT do such roles.

STORY SEARCH

Now coming back to the search for good stories, there was make up man called Haribabu. He had a son named Nannu Chandra. He was a Bengali by birth. We know that it is Bengali and Malayalam movies that depict life on a realistic background. Though this trend is waning, still the quality of their films is much better. Nannu aware of what is happening at his backyard used to look out for stories/plays/movies that could challenge the actor in NT. It was he who identified the Bengali movie for Puthiya Paravai. Some years later he fumbled upon a movie, which he found interesting. Though it was not a success, the story and its emotional quotient attracted him. He thought that if it is made in Tamil with NT in the lead, it would come out well. He informed the message to VCS. NT, VCS and other friends saw the movie. They liked it.

Once the story caught the attention, they decided to rework it to suit Tamil audience taste and they decided to produce it under Shanthi Films banner. Then the question of selecting he person who would wield the megaphone came up. At that point of time young guns or shall we say the second generation directors had started doing NT movies. P.Madhavan, A.C.Tirulokachander and C.V.Rajendran were the main directors. Out of these persons, the dice fell for ACT. They fixed up ACT for directing the movie.

ACT – THE STARTING POINT

If one goes through the profile of persons associated with cinema, let them be artists or technicians, we can find that majority of them have not had the opportunity to study in colleges either by default or choice. Such was the passion they developed in their hearts for stage/cinema, they had dropped out of their school. This trend continued till 80’s when most of the cine people were academic dropouts. Contrary to this general trend, ACT is a person who came to the cine field with a post graduation degree in his hand. The irony was he was in no way associated with the cine field and his entry was just accidental.

ACT had wanted to do IAS and this ambition was growing in him day by day. He was a voracious reader and he was very brainy during his school/college days. The fact that he got double promotions during his school days and as the rules were not very strict regarding age during that period helped him to complete his education at an early age. He had finished his MA, when he had just completed 19. Up to College it was ok but for IAS, there was a minimum age factor that needs to be fulfilled and so he was forced to wait. He was preparing for his exams and the two places he used to frequent were Connemara Library and his friend’s house. His friend’s father was a producer.

ACT who read a lot, always had the knack of telling stories in an interesting manner. The stories were quite popular among his friends circle. In fact AVM Saravanan recalls that even during the shooting, ACT used to sit and read one book or the other. At first, it was a shock for the producers/actors and AVM was no exception to that. Later when they found out that reading books during shooting didn’t affect the shooting, they allowed it. AVM Saravanan adds that during the shooting of Enga Mama (where AVM was a co-producer), they could see ACT and the heroine JJ always engaged in reading books.

Now coming back to where we left, his friend once introduced ACT to his father, saying that he has good stories with him. His father asked ACT to narrate some story and the way ACT did impressed the friend’s father very much. ACT was asked to attend story discussions. Since he was waiting for his IAS admission and the fact that he had enough spare time made him to accept the offer. He actively participated in the discussions and soon he was noticed. He even took up the learning of direction from the directors employed by the company. The more he got involved with these things, his mind started drifting away from IAS. At this juncture, one incident occurred that changed his life forever. ACT being the inquisitive person always wanted to learn things and he regularly used to interact with cameramen and editors for learning the job. But cinema field unlike today was not open and it was working in a closed mode. So any new comer was not immediately taught about the tricks of the trade and the rest, primarily due to the complex in their minds, looked down at people who had studied in College and the general belief that highly qualified people would not be fit for cinema were also responsible for this mindset. ACT found out this the hard way. He always used to inquire about the camera, lens used, film role being loaded etc. At times he used to get correct replies but most of the time there will be no response. During this particular incident, the cameraman not only refused to answer his question but also made fun of him saying that he (ACT) can never understand.

This made ACT more determined and he straightaway went to Connemara Library. He started listing out all the books related to cinema that were available there and he started reading with utmost interest. His aim was to learn about camera and editing but once he started reading various books on cinema, he read them all and this made ACT to decide to stick on to cinema as he had built up a huge passion for films and dropped his IAS dream. With the plethora of books to support, he had become more knowledgeable and planned his stories along with screenplay.

ACT – STORY WRITER & DIRECTOR

While working in his friend’s company, he picked up a friendship with actor Asokan. Asokan had a keen eye and he found that ACT is a director material. He asked ACT to get two or three stories ready and he took ACT to his dearest friend, AVM Saravanan. The meeting took place at AVM Saravanan’s room and after the initial introductions, Saravanan asked ACT to narrate the story and he started sharpening a pencil. ACT had started his story and at one point of time it seemed that nobody was listening to him. He stopped the story there. Realising that he had stopped telling story, Saravanan looked up and asked him to proceed. With ACT being a bit hesitant, Saravanan recalled the story in full to make him realize that he in fact had been listening to the story. Asokan who was deeply engrossed in some thoughts suddenly asked ACT “ andha sword fight kadhai sollunga“. Because ACT had narrated a historical story to Asokan and he was very much impressed. But only after half way through the story, he realized ACT was telling some other story. This had social background. When Asokan talked about the historical one, Saravanan was interested to hear that also. He realized that the stories narrated have a good potential to become successful cinemas. He asked ACT to put both the stories as separate files and took it to his father. AVM Chettiar was impressed and decided to film both the stories. At this juncture AVM had committed to a joint production and Chettiar decided to film the social story. But Saravanan who had very much wanted to take the film on their banner, argued with his father and it was decided that it would come under AVM banner. But while acceding to this request, Chettiar had ruled that Bheemsingh would direct the movie, as it was planned to be a multi star cast movie and he didn’t want to risk it with a new director. So ACT’s story got filmed as Paarthaal Pasi Theerum. But honestly speaking, ACT never had any idea or inclination to direct the movie and so when it was informed that the movie would be directed by Bheemsingh, he was happy that his story is getting filmed with NT in the lead and Bheemsingh in director’s chair. The beauty is during the entire shooting, ACT never visited the set even once. He did not meet any actors.

Saravanan had a feeling of guilt that he could not put ACT into the director’s slot for Paarthaal but nevertheless, he succeeded in getting ACT to direct the historical movie. Titled Veera Thirumagan, it had Anandan and Sachu in the lead. (Readers may recall that Mr.Manisegaran discussed about this film in this same thread). After the success of Veera Thirumagan, ACT never had to turn back. He became the Asthana director of AVM. Naanum Oru Pen was a big hit and when he directed Anbe Vaa, he became one of the most sought after director.

TEAMING UP OF NT & ACT

Actor Balajee by this time was slowly feeling slackness in his acting assignments as more and more new heroes were entering the field. So Balajee decided to take up production and he launched his own production company Sujatha Cine Arts and the first movie Annavin Aasai came out n 1966. It had Gemini Ganesan as the hero and it didn’t yield the desired result at the BO. Balajee went to NT and he agreed to do a film for him. He asked Balajee to find a suitable story and director. Balajee was searching for a good director and when he spoke about this with Saravanan, he asked Balajee to speak to ACT and fix him up. ACT agreed to do Balajee’s movie. Now Balajee who was in a bad shape financially wanted a sure shot success and the option that opened in front of him was remaking successful other language films. He saw a Telugu film and bought its rights. ACT till that time was not in favour of remakes but he had to finally give in as Balajee’s position was weak. Then cropped up another issue. The original movie was action oriented though the under current was brother – sister affection and sentiment. The Hero’s role was completely opposite to the type of characters NT was playing till that time. How to convince him and make him accept to do this movie? The job of convincing NT fell on ACT’s head and he and Balajee went and met NT at Annai Illam.

Having directed a MGR movie, Balajee had a doubt whether ACT would be acceptable to NT. But NT never even thought about this because NT had known him as the storywriter of Paarthaal Pasi Theerum and so he was ok with his choice. When ACT came to Annai Illam, he was well received and he narrated the story of the film. NT was puffing away a chain of cigarettes and listening to what ACT was narrating. After some time ACT took permission and went out. He came back after 10 minutes. When enquired, he replied he had gone out for a smoke. Balajee was shocked and NT on hearing this felt sorry. He told him that had he known this earlier, he would have offered him cigarette. Later Balajee told ACT that nobody had dared to talk about cigarette in front of NT, leave alone smoke in front of him. ACT feels probably the frankness exhibited by him might have clinched the issue for him. Balajee had assigned Aroordas to write the dialogues for the movie. But again NT and Aroordas were not even in talking terms. We have to go back in history for the same.

NT & AROORDAS – THE BREAK UP AND PATCH UP

Aroordas got associated with more NT films after he wrote dialogues for Bheemsingh movies and especially after Paasa Malar. He was also a good storywriter and so he continued to get opportunities to write, so much so that he was assigned to write for Puthiya Paravai, Sivaji films first movie. He often used to discuss plots with NT and whichever gets the nod used to be filmed later. One day and this was in 1966 when NT was bedridden due to typhoid attack. He was recouping and he used that period to listen to various stories. Aroordas told an outline about a tramp character, which gets hold of an abandoned child and brings him up only to be drawn to the court of Law later. NT was impressed but since he had to complete the already committed projects, no decision was taken on this. After a month or so, Aroordas happened to meet MGR and he asked him whether he has any stories on hand as he (MGR) had given dates for a producer, who had planned a quick picture. Aroordas told one or two stories suiting MGR’s image but he was not interested. He was asking for something different and when Aroordas narrated the story of the tramp (now fully developed), MGR immediately confirmed the project and when he asked Aroordas about the name of the story, pat came the reply “Petraalthaan Pillaiyaa”. MGR was very happy and instructed the producer to register the name and start production. Krishnan Panchu were in charge of direction and they quickly wrapped up the film and the movie hit the screen in December 1966. Of course this movie got into the annals of Tamilnadu history (though for different issues) for the simple reason that resultant action brought by this movie simply changed the political history of Tamilnadu. Since that is not in our purview, let us come back to the release time.

A week or so after the release of PP, Aroordas got a call from NT asking Aroor to come and meet him. NT was not his usual self when Aroordas met him. He straightaway asked Aroordas that is it not the same story Aroordas had told him some months earlier and Aroordas replied yes. NT was incensed and asked Aroordas then why did he sell the story to MGR. Aroordas replied that no decision was taken about the filming of the story and moreover he casually narrated the story to MGR and he never thought that MGR would want to do this subject as it was a emotional and sentimental stuff. So when MGR decided to go ahead, he was surprised and could not say No to it. NT was not satisfied and blamed Aroor that he believed in him and that was the reason he did not even give an advance and if he had known that he would sell the story to someone else, he would have paid the money. Aroordas tried to pacify him by saying that he has a very good story for NT. But NT was in no mood to listen and told him to sell that story also to MGR and get money and with that he got up and walked away. Though Aroordas could understand that his anger was more due to the fact that he had missed out an opportunity to play a character that had ample scope for acting. Aroordas came back with a feeling that he would not get any more chance to work for a NT film.

Readers may be wondering why these incidents are discussed here. The reason behind this was NT never objected to any artist or technician working in his film though he may have personal reasons against such persons. We can give so many examples for this and no wonder when Balajee wanted to fix up Aroordas, he said yes. Aroordas a little hesitant initially later agreed to write but he informed ACT that he would not come to the set. “Thangai” was progressing well and one day ACT called Aroordas to come to the set, as there was an important thing to be discussed. Aroordas went to the set and while NT was in the makeup room, he quickly went and met ACT. But while coming back he bumped on NT and it was an emotional reunion for them. The ice was broken and Aroordas continued to write for more NT movies. The irony was ACT and Aroordas, who were promised by MGR that he would like to associate with them in future also, ended up their careers of not having done any more MGR movie after Anbe Vaa and Petraalthaan Pillaiyaa respectively. On the other hand both ACT and Aroordas continued to do NT movies more. And this pair tasted success when Thangai and Iru Malargal went on to become hits. So it was decided that ACT- Aroordas team would take care of the new movie.

STORY – SCREENPLAY- MAKEUP

Though the Bengali movie had good story content, it was not a great commercial success. So the writer director duo had a tough task in their hands and started working on this. Nannu, as mentioned earlier actively associated himself with the project. It was decided that it would be a triple role where the father and the first son would have a scarred face and the second son would be cute and handsome. It was easier said than done. How to make them appear ugly? What would be required to make a scar in the face? It was decided that the left cheek of both the characters would have a scar and even here, this would be more prominent for the son. This was essentially required because the scar in his face would be responsible for people to stay away from him thus by causing hurt and agony which in turn manifests into an inferiority complex. This leads to a situation where he becomes rough and tough and also gets him into lot of trouble.

Having decided on the characterization, they sat down and began to write the screenplay for the movie. Since they had a basic skeleton, they were able to build up on the screenplay. It unfolded in the following manner. The film opens up with a rich man Shankar’s wife getting admitted for delivery. The father – to –be is very excited about the new arrival but when the boy is born, all his dreams are shattered. Reason- the new born also has a scar in his left cheek just like the father. He is unable to digest the fact and asks the Doctor to kill the baby. Doctor refuses but the rich man forces him to accept what he says. But doctor doesn’t do the heinous act and instead he hands over the child to an orphanage run by an octogenarian called Baaba. Shankar informs his wife that the baby was still born. After some time a second child is born to them and he is so cute.

Years roll by. The sons grew up. While the first son grows up as a tough nut to crack, second son Vijay is feminine in nature. He falls in love with a college girl who happens to be the daughter of Doctor Raju, his father’s old friend. One of his friends who is also a business partner in his hotel business exploit him by using the hotel as a cover for all his nefarious activities. Vijay innocent to the core is unaware of all these things. Shankar is worried about the boy but he is the favourite of his mother, who helps him to get all the favours from his father.

The elder son growing up in the orphanage grows up as a tough guy and he is very much short tempered. Nobody can control him except Baaba. Years roll by and Baaba, the orphanage caretaker has now become old and sick and is on a deathbed and he informs Kannan (elder son) that his parents are alive and he needs to get in touch with a Doctor by name Raju to find out the whereabouts of his parents. Kannan who till now was thinking himself to be a orphan, is excited to the core when he hears this and immediately leaves in search of Dr.Raju and finds him.

Dr.Raju is able to immediately identify him but pleads ignorance. Kannan the rough and tough guy even tries to physically assault him to get the information about his parents. Doctor on hearing that Baaba is dead, decides to accommodate Kannan and puts him in his own house but he is very careful not to reveal the truth to his own daughter.

Kannan on hearing about his parents couldn’t control himself and he tries to visit them. He goes to “his” house one night. He first goes to his mother’s room, where she is sleeping. He looks at her and offers flowers at her feet. He then goes to see his brother. But he mistakes him as a thief and raises an alarm. This brings the father and mother out and in fact the father also under the mistaken identity tries to shoot him but he escapes unhurt. He comes and outpours his emotions to Doctor. He understands and consoles him that one day his wishes would be fulfilled. Kannan when alone plays sitar and this arouses the curiosity of Nirmala, the daughter of Dr.Raju. She goes up and strikes a friendship with Kannan. He initially misunderstood it for love only to realize that she is indeed in love with his younger brother.

Kannan wants to see his mother again and one day he having seen her going to the temple follows her and watches her from a distance by hiding himself behind the pillars. But the mother by instinct is able to feel it and she tries to identify him. He had covered himself with a shawl but his eyes! That express a thousand emotions and that touches a chord deep in her heart. Something happens to her and she confides the same to her husband. Shankar who harbours a suspicion in his heart decides to find out the truth and goes and meets Dr.Raju after 25 years. The emotional meet brings out the truth and Shankar issues a blank cheque for his son. He also promises his wife that he is going to present her a very costly present soon, without disclosing what it is.

Now Kannan takes the cheque and goes and meets his father. Their meeting becomes an emotional conflict and Kannan returns the cheque. Vijay, who is in a financial mess because of the misdeeds of his friend cum partner, happens to walk in and picks up the cheque. But he runs into deeper trouble when he comes to know of the clandestine activities being carried out and he is kept as a prisoner and ransom is demanded from his father. Kannan comes to know of this and instead of his father, he goes to rescue his brother. The happenings there constitute a poignant climax.

As the script had shaped up in this manner, there were certain things that ACT wanted to highlight. The wife character should be shown as good looking. This was necessary because the story demands that the second son should look cute and handsome and since the father character has a scarred face (which is inherited by the first son), the mother should be good looking. So special care was taken regarding Pandaribai’s make up. Pandaribai after her heroine days got a special make up treatment for this film. The second son character (as mentioned earlier) should have a feminine touch in quite contrast to the tough guy image of the elder son.

Then they sat upon and discussed about the ways to make the heroes’ faces scarred and make it look ugly. They decided to apply a makeup that would comprise of contents of egg, minutely powdered glass pieces, maida and a paste that would bind all things. Today by the click of a mouse, you can find out about the latest make up techniques within no time and you can get both the items and makeup men here to carry out the same. But these things were not available during those days and so they had to use whatever that was available with the help of local make up men. The father character and son character were slightly differentiated as for as make up was concerned and for which hairstyle also played a part.

The casting was quite apt. Pandaribai was the wife and JJ was Nirmala, the jodi for Vijay. Nambiar was the friend cum villain with Vijayashree coming in as his girl. Major had a meaty role as Dr.Raju and Naagesh acted as the friend of Vijay. With Naagaiah filling the bill as Baaba, the casting was complete. The shooting was started but they ran into one problem.

The makeup to make NT look ugly was a painful exercise. It took time for applying and while it was removed after the day’s shooting, NT began to experience so many problems. It was not only painful but it was also making NT to suffer. At times, blood was oozing out from where it was getting peeled off. This had to be tackled, as the second son’s face should look gorgeous. Not only that, NT at that point of time was acting in so many movies and this should not spoil the story there. It was a tough task for the crew and the actor but the actor was determined and though he was doing 3 or 4 films that were at various stages on floors, he still took this risk and came out with flying colours.

Screenplay writing and character etching were done easily but when it came to picturisation, it was real difficult. The make up became very tough on NT. He would literally shout with ire due to the pain. Whoever goes into the makeup room other than the make up man would get a round of “compliment” from him. So even ACT used to avoid going to the make up room while NT was there. But though he would show his anger, when it came to executing the performances, he spelt magic. Of course knowing him and his ability it was child’s play for him.

ACT – HIS SPECIAL SCENES

There were certain scenes that were special. The hospital scene between the father and the Doctor and again the hospital scene between the elder son and the doctor. Both had its moments where the lead characters go through the gamut of emotions. While the father character that is full of hope and joy about the new arrival suddenly undergoes a sea change when his expectations are turned upside down, the son has a single point agenda. Father’s despair, his pleading to the doctor to do away the child, his hurt of being misunderstood by his dearest friend were all shown with a touch of grace and majesty as the character was from a high society background. Compared to this, the son’s character is raw and has lots of pent up anger against his parents, against the society and what not. So he comes out as brash in his behaviour. He even tries to use force to make things happen his way whereas his father had tried to use money as the force for getting things done. But both characters are angered easily. The right hand finger gesticulation and the pat pat sound of the legs with the shoe along with a loud let out shout of Doctor done by both characters still remain etched in viewers mind. ACT recalls both the time he enjoyed the scene as a fan rather than a director.

Connected with the song that we are discussing, there is a scene. Having seen a glimpse of the “thief”, father comes to his old friend’s house. He enters the house and is greeted by “Yaaru”. The friend stands at the balcony and looks down. It was planned that way. The father though out of desperation and feeling that his son should not encounter the difficulties he faced, had asked the Doctor to away with the child. So he is guilty and stands beneath. The Doctor on the other hand had not done the crime he was asked to do and so by the high moral ground stands at the top. There starts a tug of war and the doctor makes full use of the situation and tries to embarrass his one time friend. The friend who is at the receiving end bears all these because he is desperate to know about his son. Finally the good old friend relents and accepts the blank cheque for the son. After this the father turns and walks back only to stop, turn slightly and on hearing a musical note emanating from a sitar tries to identify the direction, wants to find out whether it is his son but hesitates with guilt and self pity blocking his mouth. When his friend fully knowing what he is looking for still asks innocently “Enna Shankar?” and Shankar fumbles for an answer and walks away. A class scene and again one must note that Major as Doctor had a meaty share of the scene. Major was very happy and he thanked ACT for giving him a scene of substance. ACT had told him that the screenplay required such a scene and there he had to take the lead. ACT had done it for betterment of the movie and he had also added that no hero other than NT would have allowed such a scene for his co-artist.

The next scene is the most famous one of the movie. All the three characters coming in a single frame. Here the entire unit was geared up for the picturisation. NT came to the studio and was doing the make up. As usual ACT avoided him and Aroordas had gone in to brief about the scene and the dialogue. Normally the dialogue writer used to read the dialogues and NT would listen with his eyes closed. Once it is completed he would ask the dialogue writer to do it again. He would then get ready and the dialogues would simply flow in the sets. He normally doesn’t interfere in dialogues and would always suggest something if only it is required. Here there was one dialogue which the son character speaks accusing the father. Initially NT was hesitant to speak this and asked Aroordas to change it. But Aroordas told him that it is the character of Shankar, which speaks, and gets this revert and not Sivaji Ganesan. NT agreed and went ahead.

ACT’S OWN ASTONISHMENT

The father and son argue about an incident happened 25 years ago with the father in defensive mood. At that time the younger son walks in and walks away with the blank cheque. Not expecting a bounty like this he happily blows a kiss towards his father for which the elder son reacts by banging the almirah silently. These were filmed using masking (i.e.) divide the film into 3 parts and shoot them separately. So the film was divided, one part open and two parts closed, younger son blew the kiss, cut. Second part opened and the other two shut, NT changes his make up and comes as father and looks helplessly, cut. Now the last part is open, NT changes to elder son and bangs the almirah. ACT recalls they were confident that NT had done it with a fine timing and synchronization. But only when they washed and developed, they saw how well it has synced. It had come so naturally without resorting to any editing. ACT took just a day and a half for shooting this scene. People who are aware of how difficult it was to shoot a triple act in the masking method were awe struck when they learnt it was done in 11/2 days. But the assistant directors of ACT felt that it had become a bit lengthy and the scene may not be appreciated in the theatre. Though ACT was sure about the scene, he told the assistants to keep the edited portion ready and he would come and see. ACT saw the scene at 4.30 am in the morning. He timed the scene. It was coming to 7 minutes. He asked them to play the scene second time and he was deeply engrossed. After viewing it he remarked “ஏம்பா, மூணு பேரும் நல்லாதானே பண்ணியிருக்காங்க! இதிலே யாரை கட் பண்ணறது?” After telling this he realized with shock that he had uttered a blunder. Where is the question of three artists when all the three are one and the same. ACT decided that if he the director, who had filmed the scene for 1 1/2 days, can react like this by just watching the raw edited portion, then the public would feel they are all three different people and the scene is going to be the “The Scene “ of the movie. How well he was proved right.

Now coming to the songs, they decided upon 6 sequences and gave it to MSV- Kannadasan duo. There would be 4 songs involving the younger son and 2 for the elder son. The two songs for the elder son were sandwiched between the first and second half of the movie. The composition took place.

SONGS COMPOSITION

The younger son who has gone on a vacation meets a girl and tries to woo her by all means. He chances upon the girl who along with her friends had come for a picnic. He slowly woos every girl by enacting as if he is in love with her. Kannadasan came up with காதல் மலர் கூட்டமொன்று and the same was picturised in Sathhanur dam. NT’s walk with the roll of his hips and Kannadasan’s word play (வக்கிலாத்து வசந்தா , ஜப்பான் ரிடர்ன் ஜெயந்தி ) made this song a great hit.

A song that is initially sung by the orphanage head and later repeated by the elder son. A song till this day is a super hit. After Naanum Oru Penn that featured Kanna Karumai Nira Kanna, ACT, as a sentiment used to have a Krishnan song wherever it is possible or at least show Krishna’s deity. Here he got a great opportunity and when the lyrist happens to be Kannadasan, the song simply flowed. MSV came up with a tune and Kannadasan simply filled it up with Krishnas. Yes, கேட்டதும் கொடுப்பவனே கிருஷ்ணா கிருஷ்ணா reverberated in the auditorium. One must add that when the movie released, the fans viewing the Opening show were shocked when they saw Nagaiah starting to sing the song and immediately என் கேள்விக்கென்ன பதில் came to their minds. But within minutes it transpired that it was used for showing that the boy had grown up as a man. In fact there were so many discussions on the song that some fans even came up with the statistics that the word Krishna is being uttered 33 times in the song. (I have not counted).

Then there was the inauguration of Hotel by the younger son and he sings welcoming the guests. அன்புள்ள நண்பரே! அழகு பெண்களே was recorded and NT by his sheer style made the sequence enjoyable.

Again a hotel song when the heroine in order to get his man or to bring out the possessiveness in him does a dappankuthhu song. கூட்டத்திலே யார்தான் கொடுத்து வைத்தவரோ served the purpose and it was a pleasant surprise to hear Susheela doing it and coming out with flying colours (it is a LR Eswari domain)

Then the only love duet of the movie. Of course it was included for the sole purpose of having a duet and since the emotional quotient was more in the second half, this duet காதலிக்க கற்று கொள்ளுங்கள் was more for relaxing.

Earlier we were talking about the temple scene where the son goes to meet the mother. People would remember a background song by Seerkazhi. Actually when the shooting took place there was no song. They never thought of a song and if you check, it would consist of 7 to 8 shots with a mix of close ups and mid long shots. ACT used the powerful eyes of NT to the hilt. He had come to the temple covering his head and face (mainly to hide his cheek) with a shawl and only his eyes are visible. It shows a myriad of emotions. தாய் பாசம் என்னவென்றால் என்னவென்றே தெரியாத ஆனால் அந்த பாசத்திற்காக அன்பிற்காக ஏங்கும், அம்மாவென்று தெரிந்தும் அம்மா என்று அழைக்க முடியாமல் தவிக்கும், என்னை தெரிந்து கொள்ளம்மா, என் மேல் அன்பு காட்டம்மா என்று கெஞ்சும் அந்த விழிகள், அது அந்த தாயின் மனதை தாண்டி அவள் அடிவயிற்றில் சென்று என்னோவோ செய்ய அதை தாங்க முடியாமல் அந்த தாய் தவிக்க, என்ன கவிதையான காட்சி! [It is pertinent to add here that Mani Rathinam who had this scene etched in mind used the same format with slight differences in his Dalapathi with Rajini and Srividya]. Following this the scene shifts to the house where the mother expresses her feelings to her husband. Here the dialogue writer and director brought out the mother in her by a simple dialogue. Normally such persons invoke a fear in your hearts. Therefore when the husband asks ஏதாவது பயந்திட்டியா for which she shoots back நான் ஏன் அவனை பாத்து பயப்படப்போறேன்? Here the mother who had him in his womb for 10 months speaks out. Will any mother be afraid of her son?

Watching both the scenes together at the time of final editing, ACT felt that a short song would be very much appropriate for the scene. So Kannadasan and MSV were shown the filmed sequence and told that a song is needed for the same. Thus was written, tuned, recorded and included. Since it was done at the last minute, the name of Seerkazhi could not be included in the title cards (you can check this).

SONG & RECORDING

Now let us come to our song. ACT very clearly told Kannadasan and MSV that this song should convey the mood of the character. He who thought that he is an orphan had found out that he has mother, father and brother. He goes and meets them all. His joy is boundless and he doesn’t know how to express his feelings. He simply pours his heart out. When MSV heard about this, he decided it should be lyrics first and then tune next because, trying to bring up the emotions within the frame of the tune would take away the life of the song. He told Kannadasan to write. Kannadasan did not bother to think and started telling the Pallavi. Son wanted to see his mother first and so

தெய்வமே தெய்வமே நன்றி சொல்வேன் தெய்வமே

தேடினேன் தேடினேன் கண்டு கொண்டேன் அன்னையை .

Since lyrics were written first which was tuned later, the song was set in the pattern of vasana nadai and song. This skillfully adjusted any line that did not fit into the tune as vasana outburst and an example for this is

மஞ்சள் குங்குமம் மகாலக்ஷ்மி என் தாய் and அட ராஜா என் தம்பி வாடா.

Then Kannadasan wrote charanams for the brother and then the father. MSV tuned it to perfection and all were happy. It was decided to go for recording and TMS was fixed. Unlike earlier films, there was no debate on who should speak the vasana nadai because now it was clear that TMS would be the best choice and TMS spoke the dialogue type lines.

Here special mention should be made regarding TMS. Take this song. You can feel the joy and unbridled happiness of the character. Think about the scenario. There was no one who could be substituted for TMS, if the hero was NT. (This was in 1969). So by default, TMS was singing all the songs for NT. But that did not make him complacent and he after understanding the protagonist’s emotion in each and every film sang according to the needs. Even here the lines சந்தித்தேன் நேரிலே! சந்தித்தேன் நேரிலே!, see how much difference he brings in between the two uttering. Though both are same, the tone completely changes conveying the right mood to the audience. By all accounts, TMS simply breathed life into the song.

PICTURISATION

Now came the picturisation part. This was planned in the set erected as Doctor’s home. But NT was acting in many films and his call sheet had more than 2, 3 schedules per day. He had given some days in between other shooting. So to honour the commitment given earlier, this shooting took a break and so the set was dismantled. After 6 months, the same set was re erected. By this time most of the shooting was completed. Only the song and some patchwork were required to be completed. It was decided to go for the shooting.

NT came to the set and discussed with the director. ACT was of the view that the sequence should exhibit the roller coaster drive the character undergoes. It was decided to use the chandeliers that would show NT swinging in them by holding on to the handles and his somersault from a height attracted many audience. Though such things were used in stunt scenes, using the same in song sequence was a novel one and this song provided the basis for it.

Kannan the character talks about the beauty of his mother and at the same time expresses his antipathy towards his own face. So for that line அந்த அழகு தெய்வத்தின் மகனா இவன்? ஆ, NT asked ACT to suggest a gesture, which would convey the exact impression. ACT suggested that NT spit on the mirror and this went down very well with the audience. The character would climb up and down the staircase in one moment in ecstasy and the next moment
his concern about the family would come out when the final line தர்மமே தந்தை தாயை காக்க வேண்டும் தெய்வமே is sung. You must see NT raising his both hands upwards and gesticulating, with the camera catching him from the low angle.

As said earlier, the song was recorded earlier but the shooting took place much later. This movie was released in Sep 1969 and by this time Annadurai had passed away and MuKa had become the CM. So when the song was picturised, NT who had a special affection for Anna (we had discussed the Nalamthaana song and Uyarndha Manidhan function) did a shot. He would kneel down on a round bed and with arms raised upwards would shout “Anna!” thrice. The camera would have captured him from the top angle. That this was done as an after thought would be evident when NT himself in his own voice say Anna thrice, which should make it clear that it was not recorded earlier. Even in the film Enga Mama released subsequently (1970) after this, he would name one of the children as Anna and would speak proudly of him. But in the records (songs) this Anna would not be there.

RELEASE

This movie was completed and hit the screens in 1969. That was the year when NT had almost one release every month totaling 9 for the year. So when Deiva Magan was readied for release on September 5th, even the fans were little bit worried about it. Because NT’s “Niraikudam” had hit the screen on 8th August and Sep 5 was just 4 weeks away. Not only that, NT’s “Thirudan” was scheduled for Oct 10th. Irony was ACT himself was the director of Thirudan, produced by Balajee. To top it all “Sivandha Man(n)” had been planned for a Deepavali release (Nov 9th, 1969). But all these things could unfaze neither ACT nor NT. Even otherwise ACT was never bothered about competition and in fact he had always done that even with other NT films releasing on the same day. He released his Iru Malargal, a family story against a rollicking entertainer Ooty Varai Uravu (both released on Deepavali day of 1967) and both films tasted success. Same way for 1970 Deepavali, ACT’s Engirundho Vandhal came along with Sorgam and again both ran for 100 days. He had even the courage to release his Bharatha Vilas, one week ahead of Raja Raja Chozhan and still cornered success.

So having decided to release it on Sep 5th, they went ahead and released. They placed belief on the audience and were rewarded. In spite of all tough competitions, Deiva Magan became a big hit and celebrated 100 days.

SIGN OFF

Before signing off, here is my take. My cousin and I went to see the movie on Sep 7th, Sunday at Madurai – New Cinema for the morning show. There was a sea of humanity in front of the theatre and we couldn’t get the tickets. We somehow managed to squeeze ourselves into the theatre and straight away went to the office room. We saw the manager of the theatre and used our grand father’s name (He was with Indian Express) and the manager probably amused by two school students seeking tickets was kind enough to issue tickets. We came out of the room as if we have conquered something and saw the movie. Even at that age the film simply bowled us over. When we came out after the movie, I thought to myself that I would revisit the movie again. I was right and the no of times I had revisited this classic in various places during all these years is countless.


Here is the lyric

தெய்வமே தெய்வமே நன்றி சொல்வேன் தெய்வமே

தேடினேன் தேடினேன் கண்டு கொண்டேன் அன்னையை

கண்டு கொண்டேன் அன்னையை

மஞ்சள் குங்குமம் மகாலக்ஷ்மி என் தாய்

சந்தித்தேன் நேரிலே! சந்தித்தேன் நேரிலே!

பாசத்தின் தேரிலே

(தெய்வமே --)

அந்த அழகு தெய்வத்தின் மகனா இவன்? ஆ

முத்து போல என் தம்பி வந்தவுடன் முத்தம் சிந்த ஓடினேன்

ஓடினேன்! ஓடினேன்!

அட ராஜா என் தம்பி வாடா

அண்ணா! அண்ணா1 அண்ணா!

அண்ணா என சொல்வான்னென

அண்ணா என சொல்வான்னென

பக்கம் பக்கம் சென்றேன்

அண்ணா என சொல்வான்னென

பக்கம் பக்கம் சென்றேன்

குழந்தை என கையை கடித்து விட்டது.

போடா போ

அன்னையை பார்த்த பின்

என்ன வேண்டும் தெய்வமே


இன்று பார்த்த முகம்

என்றும் பார்க்க வேண்டும் தெய்வமே

கண்ணிரினில் உண்டானதே பாசம் என்னும் தோட்டம்

கண்ணிரினில் உண்டானதே பாசம் என்னும் தோட்டம்

விதி என்னும் நதி ஒரு பக்கமாகவே ஓடுகிறது.

போடா போ

தந்தையை பார்த்த பின் என்ன வேண்டும் தெய்வமே

தர்மமே தந்தை தாயை காக்க வேண்டும் தெய்வமே

வேரில்லாமல் மரமா

மரமில்லாமல் கிளையா

கிளையில்லாமல் கனியா

எல்லாம் ஒன்று.

(தெய்வமே --)

அன்புடன்