''Kannika'' is a 1947 Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

-language film starring M. S. Sarojini, T. E. Varadan and

M. R. Santhanalakshmi M. R. Santhanalakshmi ( ta, எம். ஆர். சந்தானலட்சுமி; 1905–1957) was a Tamil film actress who played lead roles in movies of the 1930s and 1940s. Filmography References * {{DEFAULTSORT:Santhanal ...

. The film was directed and produced by

S. M. Sriramulu Naidu Subbarayalu Munuswami Sriramulu Naidu (1910-1976), also known as Sreeramulu Naidu, was an Indian businessman and movie producer from Coimbatore who founded the Pakshiraja Studios in 1945. Life He was responsible for the early development of th ...

Plot

King Paligna is a demon king whose life is imprisoned inside a dove. He constantly sacrifices young women, with a belief that by doing this, his soul will be made immortal. Shiva creates a man, Kumaran, to kill the king and end the sacrifices. After many twists and turns, Kumaran destroys Paligna by killing the dove and marries the king's daughter, Malini.

Cast

;Male cast * T. E. Varadan as Kumaran *

D. Balasubramaniam D. Balasubramaniam was an Indian actor whose career spanned from the late 1930s through the late 1950s. He was well known for his roles in mythological films and later switched to character roles. Filmography References Male actors in Tam ...

as Palignan *

N. S. Krishnan Nagercoil Sudalaimuthu Krishnan, popularly known as Kalaivanar () and also as NSK, was an Indian actor-comedian, theatre artist, playback singer and writer in the early stages of the Tamil film industry – in the 1940s and 1950s. He is conside ...

as Veeran * Kali. N. Rathnam as Pujari * B. Rajagopala Iyer as

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

n * K. Ramu as Vishnu * A. V. Natarajan as

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

* Narsimhan as

Narada Narada ( sa, नारद, ), or Narada Muni, is a sage divinity, famous in Hindu traditions as a travelling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He is one of mind-created children of Brahma, the creator god. He ...

r * N. S. Narayana Pillai as Commander *

Ezhumalai ''Ezhumalai'' is a 2002 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by Arjun, who also played the titular character. It also features Simran, Gajala and Mumtaj as the female leads, while Vijayakumar and Ashish Vidhyarthi play supporting r ...

as Pujari's disciple ;Female cast * M. S. Sarojini as Malini * Hemamalini as young Malini *

as Kannika *

Harini Harini may refer to: * Harini (singer), South Indian film playback singer * Harini (Kannada actress) Harini is a former actress in the Kannada cinema. She was active during the 1950s and 1960s, retiring at the peak of her career. As of 2006 sh ...

as young Kannika *

T. A. Mathuram T. A. Mathuram (14 October 1918 – 23 May 1974) was an Indian stage and film actress and singer. Biography and career Mathuram was born in Srirangam on 14 October 1918 in a family of artists. Her first Tamil film was Rathnaavali released in ...

as Prabhavathi * Lalitha- Padmini as Shiva-Mohini ;Choreography *

Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillai (1910–1991) was an Indian Bharatanatyam dance teacher and choreographer. Early life Vazhuvoor Bagyathammal Ramaiah Pillai was born in 1910 to Parthiban and Bagyathammal in Vazhuvoor. He learned the arts of Nattuv ...

Soundtrack

The music was composed by A. V. Natarajan and the lyrics were penned by

Papanasam Sivan Paapanaasam Raamayya Sivan (26 September 1890 – 1 October 1973) was an Indian composer of Carnatic music and a singer. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1971. He was also a film score composer in Kannada cinema ...

except "Nadanam Aadinaar", which was penned by Gopala Krishna Bharathiyaar. Singers are M. S. Sarojini, T. E. Varadan and

Playback singer A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not app ...

is S. S. Mani.

Release and reception

''Kannika'' was released on 11 November 1947, and distributed by Narayanan Company. It emerged a box-office bomb. Film historian

Randor Guy Madabhushi Rangadorai (born 8 November 1937), better known by his pen name Randor Guy, is an Indian lawyer, columnist and film and legal historian associated with the English language newspaper ''The Hindu''. He is also the official editor of the ...

wrote in 2011 that the film will be "Remembered for the melodious music, impressive cinematography and the interesting onscreen narration."

References

External links

*{{youTube, 7Q0OIjTBFcw, Film titles 1940s Tamil-language films 1947 films Indian black-and-white films Films directed by S. M. Sriramulu Naidu