''Nallathambi'' is a 1949 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 and produced by

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 ...

. The film's script was written by

C. N. Annadurai Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai (15 September 1909 – 3 February 1969), popularly known as Anna also known as Arignar Anna or Perarignar Anna (''Anna, the scholar'' or ''Elder Brother''), was an Indian Tamil politician who served as the fo ...

(later chief minister of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

). This film marked Annadurai's debut in Tamil films. The movie is an adaptation of 1936 American movie ''

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town ''Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' is a 1936 American comedy-drama romance film directed by Frank Capra and starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur in her first featured role. Based on the 1935 short story "Opera Hat" by Clarence Budington Kelland, which ...

''.

Plot

Nallathambi (NSK) a simple rural man inherits an estate from his deceased ''

Zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...

'' relative. The Zamindar's daughter Pushpa (Bhanumathi) falls in love with Nallathambi. However he loves another girl (T. A. Madhuram). Bhoopathy (Sahasranamam) the estate manager has his eye on the wealth and tries to cheat Nallathambi out of it. He goads Pushpa into filing a suit that Nallathambi is mentally insane. In the end Nallathambi defeats Bhoopathy's machinations.

Cast

Adapted from the film credits: ;Male Cast *

as Zamindar Thambidurai *

S. V. Sahasranamam Singanallur Venkataramana Iyer Sahasranamam (29 November 1913 – 19 February 1988), also known as S. V. S., was an Indian actor and director. Primarily a theatre actor, he also worked in over 200 films, mainly in Tamil cinema. Early lif ...

as Bhoopathi * D. V. Narayanasami * ''Pulimootai'' Ramasami as Thambidurai's friend * ''Kaka'' Radhakrishnan as Beggar * C. S. Pandian ;Female Cast *

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 Rani *

P. Bhanumathi P. Bhanumathi Ramakrishna (7 September 1925 – 24 December 2005) was an Indian actress, singer, film producer, director, music composer, and novelist. She is regarded as the first female super star of Telugu cinema. She is also considered the ...

as Pushpa *

M. N. Rajam ( ; ; pl. ; ; 1512, from Middle French , literally "my lord") is an honorific title that was used to refer to or address the eldest living brother of the king in the French royal court. It has now become the customary French title of resp ...

as Orphan * T. K. Kantha * S. R. Janaki

Production

Tamil film actor and Annadurai's friend M.Nallathambi saw the 1936 film ''

'' which was having a successful theatrical run in the late 1940s in

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

. He thought it would be a good story to remake for his friend N.S.Krishnan (NSK). He convinced Annadurai to watch the movie and adapt the film to a Tamil rural setting. The film was titled as ''Nallathambi'' (lit. The good younger brother). However, during filming, NSK heavily modified the script, reducing the role of the character played by

Bhanumathi Ramakrishna P. Bhanumathi Ramakrishna (7 September 1925 – 24 December 2005) was an Indian actress, singer, film producer, director, music composer, and novelist. She is regarded as the first female super star of Telugu cinema. She is also considered the ...

and introducing another character to be played by his wife and comedian T. A. Mathuram. The script was further changed to include a number of musical skits to bring out the social satire of NSK. "''Vinganatha Valarkka porendi''" (lit. I am going to the develop science) and ''Kindanar kathakalatchepam '' (a parody of the story of

Nandanar Nandanar (also spelt as Nantanar), also known as Tirunalaippovar (Thirunaallaippovaar (The one who will go tomorrow)) and Tiru Nalai Povar Nayanar,Other names include: Nandan (Nanda, Nantan), Tirunalaipovanar, Nalaippovar, Nalaippovan was a ...

and a telling of

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...

's life story) were two of the musical skits thus included. With the modifications, the plot was sidelined and importance was given to the socio-political messages and themes. The director duo of R. Krishnan and S. Panju were hired to direct the film. C. R. Subburaman composed the music, while

Udumalai Narayana Kavi [https://idhatri.com/udumalai-narayana-kavi/ Udumalai Narayana KavUdumalai Narayana Kavi Udumalai Narayana Kavi (25 September 1899 – 23 May 1981) was an Indian poet and lyricist known for his work in Tamil films. Early life Udumalai Narayana wa ...

wrote the lyrics for the songs. M. N. Rajam, Sahasranamam and V. K. Ramasamy were cast in supporting roles.

Reception

The film was a commercial failure and a critical success. Its songs became hits and were popular. The musical skit "Kindanar Kalatchepam" became popular. To offset the financial loss of his backers, NSK announced a new film project titled ''Thambithurai'' to be written by Annadurai. However furious with the changes made to his ''Nallathambi'' script, Annadurai refused to work with NSK again.

Soundtrack

The music was composed by C. R. Subbaraman. Lyrics by

and K. P. Kamatchi. Singers are

and

. Playback singers are Ghantasala (musician), Ghantasala, C. S. Jayaraman, M. M. Mariayappa and M. L. Vasanthakumari.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1949 films Films directed by Krishnan–Panju 1940s Tamil-language films Films scored by C. R. Subbaraman Indian black-and-white films