Originally Posted by
shankarbharath
Dear All,
I wish to share my personal experience and opinions. This is very nostalgic for me. I am now 31, but my experiences start from the early 1980s, right from the time I was 3 years old.
Back then, we had the VHS players and I loved watching commercial entertainers like Sakalakala Vallavan and Murattu Kaalai. I came to know about Sivaji Ganesan around the same time as Kamal or Rajini but was clearly told that his films are mostly "Black and White", which as a child, I did not prefer watching. As a child, I was more attracted to color films and did not watch Sivaji films till I was 6.
My first Sivaji film that I watched on VHS was the eternal classic Thiruvilayadal. My mother was clear on bringing me up with happy comedies or entertainers and she shielded me for a long while from sorrowful melodramas in family setups. But Thiruvilayadal had a mythological theme, was colorful, had great songs and she was happy to play it for me. I watched it again and again and again. I could not get enough of it. I was told by my mother that "None of us have seen god. But if Sivan was born in this earth, he is definitely more likely to behave in the fashion that Sivaji has shown in his acting".I specifically remember a majestic, yet stylish walk that Sivaji would depict, when he plays the role of the fisherman. Nothing much - just a BGM and he walks on the sand. But what body language!
In 1985-86, I still remember one evening. My dad, mom and I had gone to mount road for evening tiffin. My dad got out of the car and sent us all home. He said he will watch a film and come back after 3 hours. I asked him which film he was going to watch - he told me it was a Sivaji film called "Sadhanai". I cried but I was not taken to the film. Yes, I watched it much later and enjoyed it, but I look back at that evening and laugh today.
And then it happened. By the time I was 10, I started asking for older films and watched entertaining/comedy films like Galatta Kalyanam, Uthamaputhiran, Ooty varai uravu, etc. I still remember getting scared and turning off the radio if "Engey nimmadhi" played on it. TMS' voice was so scary in that song for me as a child.
Today, I can say with utter respect and dignity that I grew up watching his later films, but watched all his classics as an adult. That helped me understand the cinematic techniques, technology, trends and socio-economic situations at the time of his older films. That helped me establish a clear context in which his classics were released. That logical thinking is what has helped me enjoy the acting dictionary (or course guide) called Sivaji Ganesan. I am happy to say I am not a fan or fanatic of any actor. I njoy good films when I see them.
I also grew up listening to Ilayaraja songs and would do anything for an evening of his songs on my home theatre. And it is in this context that I listened to "O Vaanampadi" from Sadhanai and fell in love with the situation of the song, Sivaji's dialogue with Ilyaraja just preceding the song and also the way he acts and shows Prabhu in the video. Utter class.
And I never saw rich or upper class people in the 1960s. By the time I was 3 or 4 years old, people who were rich in the 1960s were nearing 70-80 years old and were a shadow of their younger selves. But I saw one brilliant film called Uyarndha Manidhan when I was 15 (I was seeing it for the 20th time, but this time, I watched it with keen intent). Now I know that is how upper class people in the 1960s would have dressed, walked, behaved, smoked a pipe, talked with servants, etc etc.
I have zillions of learnings to take from his films, in terms of behavior, dressing sense, etc. Kings, lawyers, Doctors, freedom fighters, old people - you name it and Sivaji will have at least one brilliant portrayal of that character across his career.
I know I am digressing a bit in terms of what I wanted to say here - but without being a fan of any actor, I still say his films are enough to show who a true actor is. And my memories of Sivaji will always be how amazed I was at my father, uncles, family doctor, etc who were all such great fans of him.
May his soul rest in peace and may his fame never rest, but spread far and wide for as long as possible.
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