Poornam Viswanathan (15 November 1921 – 1 October 2008) was an Indian actor who predominantly appeared in

Tamil films Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...

. He started performing on stage at age 18. He worked as a reader for

All India Radio All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All a ...

and went on to act in films such as ''

Chithram ''Chithram'' () is a 1988 Indian Malayalam-language screwball comedy film written and directed by Priyadarshan. The film was produced by P. K. R. Pillai under his production house Shirdi Sai Creations, and stars Mohanlal, Ranjini, Nedumudi V ...

'', '' Varusham 16'', ''

Thillu Mullu ''Thillu Mullu'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language comedy film directed by K. Balachander and written by Visu. A remake of the 1979 Hindi film ''Gol Maal'', it stars Rajinikanth, with Thengai Srinivasan, Nagesh, Poornam Viswana ...

'', ''

Keladi Kanmani ''Keladi Kannmanii'' (; also spelt ''Keladi Kanmani'') is a 1990 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film that marked the directorial debut of Vasanth. The film stars S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Raadhika, Ramesh Aravind and Anju. It revolves aro ...

'', ''

Moondram Pirai ''Moondram Pirai'' () is a 1982 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written, directed and filmed by Balu Mahendra. The film stars Kamal Haasan and Sridevi, while Y. G. Mahendran, Silk Smitha and Poornam Viswanathan play supporting ro ...

'', ''

Aasai ''Aasai'' () () is a 1995 Indian Tamil-language romantic thriller film, written and directed by Vasanth and produced by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Ajith Kumar and debutant Suvaluxmi, with Prakash Raj, Rohini, Poornam Viswanathan, Nizhalgal Ra ...

'', ''

Mahanadi The Mahanadi is a major river in East Central India. It drains an area of around and has a total length of . Mahanadi is also known for the Hirakud Dam. The river flows through the states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha and finally merged with Bay o ...

'' and '' Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu''. He had a son and two daughters. Viswanathan died on 1 October 2008.Rediff Interview
Rediff.com (1947-08-15). Retrieved on 2011-08-09.

Career

Viswanathan was known for his remarkable performances in Tamil theatre and films. In every role he played, he paid great attention to dialogue delivery and body language. He started performing on stage when he was 18. He later moved to New Delhi for a few years, where he was part of the South Indian Troupe with dance and music critic Subbudu. Viswanathan worked as a news reader at

, and deemed it a matter of great pride to have announced the news of India obtaining independence in the first news bulletin broadcast on 15 August 1947. He was transferred to Chennai in 1964. His portrayal of roles in plays scripted by Marina, such as ''Thanikuduthanam'', ''Oor Vambu'' and ''Kaal Kattu'', won him great acclaim. His performances in plays such as ''Kadavul Vandirundar'', ''Adimaigal'' and ''Oonjal'' were similarly hailed by audiences. His passion for theatre inspired him to start a troupe of his own, called Poornam New Theatres. He served the Press Information Bureau in Chennai as an assistant information officer and later served as editor of ''Thittam'' and senior correspondent for ''Yojana'', magazines brought out by the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry. He penned several plays and short stories. He was very interested in the fine arts and was often spotted at Sabhas during the December music festival. He is known in

Kollywood Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywood' ...

for his peculiar voice modulation. He also starred in the Bollywood blockbuster ''Ek Duje Ke Liye'' (1981), in which he played the role of Kamal Hassan's strict father. He is also known to Malayalam audiences for his role in the blockbuster ''

'' with Mohanlal.

Filmography

''This is a partial filmography. You can expand it.''

Tamil

Malayalam

Hindi

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Viswanathan, Poornam 1921 births 2008 deaths Indian male stage actors Male actors in Malayalam cinema Indian male film actors Tamil male actors Male actors from Chennai Male actors in Tamil cinema 20th-century Indian male actors