''Uyarndha Manithan'' () is a 1968 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, nativ ...
-language
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
written by
Javar Seetharaman
Javar ( fa, جور, also Romanized as Jūr) is a village in Baraan-e Shomali Rural District, in the Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan Province, Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persi ...
and directed by
Krishnan–Panju
R. Krishnan (1909–1997) and S. Panju (1915–1984), collectively referred to as Krishnan–Panju, were Indian film directors. The duo directed more than 50 films in South Indian languages and in Hindi.
Early life
R. Krishnan was born on 18 ...
. The film was produced by
A. V. Meiyappan,
M. Saravanan, M. Kumaran and M. Murugan under
AVM Productions
AVM Productions is an Indian film production studio founded by A. V. Meiyappan. It is the final oldest survived studio in India. The filming studios are located in Vadapalani, Chennai. It has produced over 300 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, ...
. It stars
Sivaji Ganesan
Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001) was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. Sivaji Ga ...
and
Sowcar Janaki
Sankaramanchi Janaki (born T. Janaki; 12 December 1931), popularly known as Sowcar Janaki (Tamil) or Shavukaru Janaki (Telugu) or Sahukar Janaki (Kannada), is an Indian actress who has appeared in over 300, films, predominantly in Tamil, Telug ...
, while
S. A. Ashokan,
Major Sundarrajan
Srinivasan Sundarrajan (17 March 1925 – 28 February 2003), popularly known as Major Sundarrajan, was an Indian actor and director who performed predominantly in Tamil language films and plays. He was well known for his sophisticated and ...
,
Vanisri
Vanisri (born Rathna Kumari) is an Indian actress known for her works predominantly in Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada films. In a film career spanning 40 years, she has received three Filmfare Awards South, the Nandi Awards and the Tamil Nadu St ...
and
Sivakumar
Palaniswamy, better known by his stage name Sivakumar (born 27 October 1941), is an Indian visual artist and former actor who has portrayed a wide range of leading and supporting roles onscreen in Tamil cinema and television. He made his actin ...
play pivotal roles. The film's soundtrack and background score were composed by
M. S. Viswanathan
Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. He was popularly known as ''Mellisai Mannar''. He compose ...
, while the lyrics for the songs were written by
Vaali.
The film was Sivaji Ganesan's 125th as an actor. It was a remake of the 1966
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
film ''
Uttar Purush
''Uttar Purush'' is a 1966 Bengali-language film directed by Chitrakar. The film was remade as ''Uyarndha Manithan'' (1968) in Tamil, and '' Anubandham'' (1984) in Telugu.
Cast
* Vasant Choudhury
* Rabi Ghosh
* Anup Kumar
* Amar Mullick
Ama ...
''. The plot revolves around a wealthy industrialist's son who secretly marries the daughter of his family estate's accountant, only for his father to discover it and burn down the estate along with his son's pregnant wife, who is inside. The remainder of the film reveals the truth behind how she and her progeny survive.
Released on 29 November 1968, ''Uyarndha Manithan'' went on to become a commercial success, with a theatrical run of over 125 days. The film won the
National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer
The National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to a female playback singer for the best renditions of songs from soundtracks within the Indian film industry ...
at the
16th National Film Awards for
P. Susheela
Pulapaka Susheela (born 13 November 1935), popularly known as P. Susheela, is an Indian playback singer associated with the South Indian cinema primarily from Andhra Pradesh for over six decades. She is one of the greatest and best-known playba ...
for the song "Paal Polave", making her the inaugural recipient of that category. It also won four
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards were given for excellence in Tamil cinema in India. They were given annually to honour the best talents and provide encouragement and incentive to the South Indian film industry by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The aw ...
, including
Best Film
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
(First prize) and
Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to:
Film awards
* AACTA Award for Best Direction
* Academy Award for Best Director
* BA ...
for Krishnan–Panju.
Plot
Rajalingam "Raju" is the son of a wealthy
Madurai
Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...
-based industrialist, Sankaralingam. Living with Raju is his driver and friend, Sundaram. While vacationing in his family estate at
Kodaikanal
Kodaikanal () is a hill station which is located in Dindigul district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Its name in the Tamil language means "The Gift of the Forest". Kodaikanal is referred to as the "Princess of Hill stations" and has a long ...
with Sundaram and his family doctor, Gopal, Raju falls in love with a woman named Parvathi. Gopal too becomes smitten with Parvathi when he meets her whilst conducting her father's medical treatment. Parvathi, who knows Raju through her father, as he is also an accountant of Raju's family estate, reciprocates Raju's feelings. Gopal decides not to reveal his love for Parvathi to Raju for Raju's sake. Raju and Parvathi marry in secret with the help of Gopal and the consent of Parvathi's father. The couple lives together in Kodaikanal without disclosing the knowledge of their marriage to Raju's father, Sankaralingam.
Three months later, Parvathi becomes pregnant. Sankaralingam, fearing for his son's safety, arrives at Kodaikanal and becomes furious upon finding out Raju's marriage to Parvathi. He orders his henchmen to set the estate on fire with Parvathi and her father inside. Raju and Gopal rush to save Parvathi, but they are stopped by Sankaralingam's henchmen and are forcefully returned to Madurai, leaving Parvathi and her father for dead. A few months after returning to Madurai, Raju is forced to marry his cousin Vimala. After the marriage, Sankaralingam hands over his business affairs to Raju and dies. Nineteen years pass. Despite having mutual affection for each other, Raju and Vimala remain childless and Raju is unable to forget Parvathi.
Sathyamurthy, a nineteen-year-old who lives with his uncle Murugan, is unable to retain any job due to his honest nature. He becomes acquainted with Gopal, with whose recommendation he becomes Raju's personal house servant. When Sathyamurthy displays his mother's photograph at his house to pray for her, it is revealed that Sathyamurthy is the son of Raju and Parvathi. Parvathi had survived the accident, was cared for by Murugan and died a few years after giving birth to Sathyamurthy without divulging the identity of Raju to Sathyamurthy and Murugan. Sathyamurthy improves his reading and writing skills with the help of Sundaram's daughter, Gowri and the two fall in love. When Raju learns of their love, he approves of their marriage. Gopal learns that Sathyamurthy is Raju's son, but dies of a heart attack before revealing it.
Jealous of Sathyamurthy's influence on Raju, another servant Rathnam and his wife hide Vimala's diamond necklace in Sathyamurthy's suitcase in an effort to get rid of him. Vimala, upset at losing her necklace, searches the house for it. When Raju, Sundaram, Gowri, and Sathyamurthy return after attending a conference in Kodaikanal, Vimala, acting on Rathnam's provocation, orders that Sathyamurthy's suitcase is searched. When the necklace is found in it, Raju throws Sathyamurthy out of his house, despite Sathyamurthy proclaiming his innocence. Gowri then shows Parvathi's photograph to Raju, who is shocked to learn that Sathyamurthy is his own son. Raju reveals the truth about Parvathi to Vimala, who also accepts Sathyamurthy as her son. Before Raju and Vimala rush to bring Sathyamurthy back, Raju learns of a fire breaking out in one of his mills. Sathyamurthy, unhappy of being wrongly accused by Raju, attempts suicide by entering the burning mill. Raju saves Sathyamurthy in time and reveals the truth about his birth to him. The family is united and Sathyamurthy marries Gowri.
Cast
Adapted from the opening credits:
*
Sivaji Ganesan
Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001) was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. Sivaji Ga ...
as Rajalingam "Raju"
*
Sowcar Janaki
Sankaramanchi Janaki (born T. Janaki; 12 December 1931), popularly known as Sowcar Janaki (Tamil) or Shavukaru Janaki (Telugu) or Sahukar Janaki (Kannada), is an Indian actress who has appeared in over 300, films, predominantly in Tamil, Telug ...
as Vimala
*
S. A. Ashokan as Gopal
*
Major Sundarrajan
Srinivasan Sundarrajan (17 March 1925 – 28 February 2003), popularly known as Major Sundarrajan, was an Indian actor and director who performed predominantly in Tamil language films and plays. He was well known for his sophisticated and ...
as Sundaram
*
Vanisri
Vanisri (born Rathna Kumari) is an Indian actress known for her works predominantly in Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada films. In a film career spanning 40 years, she has received three Filmfare Awards South, the Nandi Awards and the Tamil Nadu St ...
as Parvathi
*
Bharathi as Gowri
*
Manorama as Rani
*
G. Sakunthala as Pankajam Raman
* Seethalakshmi as Swarnam
*
Sivakumar
Palaniswamy, better known by his stage name Sivakumar (born 27 October 1941), is an Indian visual artist and former actor who has portrayed a wide range of leading and supporting roles onscreen in Tamil cinema and television. He made his actin ...
as Sathyamoorthy
*
V. K. Ramasamy as Rathnam
*
V. Nagayya
V. Nagayya (born Vuppaladadiyam Nagayya Sarma; 28 March 1904 – 30 December 1978) also known as Chittoor Nagayya was an Indian actor, singer, music composer, and director known for his works in Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, and Telugu theatre. ...
as Manickam
*
S. V. Ramadas
S. V. Ramadas (1921-2004) was an Indian actor who appeared in Tamil-language films, most often as a villain. He acted in more than 700 films in a career spanning over four decades.
Film career
Among popular movies, he acted in Aayirathil Or ...
as Sankaralingam
*
V. S. Raghavan
V S Raghavan (18 February 1925 – 24 January 2015) was an Indian actor, who has acted both in Tamil films as well as television. He started his career as a dramatist and stage actor and went on to act as a character actor in films, starting ...
as Murugan
*
Poornam Viswanathan
Poornam Viswanathan (15 November 1921 – 1 October 2008) was an Indian actor who predominantly appeared in Tamil films. He started performing on stage at age 18. He worked as a reader for All India Radio and went on to act in films such as ''C ...
as Ranganathan
*
S. N. Parvathy
S. N. Parvathy is an Indian actress who appears in supporting roles in Tamil films and serials. She often plays roles of a mother in films. She has worked in popular movies like ''Anubavi Raja Anubavi'', ''Pasi'', '' Palaivana Solai'', ''Agaya ...
as Ranganathan's wife
*
Typist Gopu
Gopalarathnam, known by his stage name Typist Gopu, was an Indian actor known for comedy and supporting roles. He acted in over 600 stage plays and 400 films.
Career
A native of Manakkal, Lalgudi in Trichy district, Gopalarathnam was active ...
as Kittu
Production
Development
V. A. P. Iyer, a
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
-based friend of
AVM Productions
AVM Productions is an Indian film production studio founded by A. V. Meiyappan. It is the final oldest survived studio in India. The filming studios are located in Vadapalani, Chennai. It has produced over 300 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, ...
founder
A. V. Meiyappan, told Meiyappan that a
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
film named ''
Uttar Purush
''Uttar Purush'' is a 1966 Bengali-language film directed by Chitrakar. The film was remade as ''Uyarndha Manithan'' (1968) in Tamil, and '' Anubandham'' (1984) in Telugu.
Cast
* Vasant Choudhury
* Rabi Ghosh
* Anup Kumar
* Amar Mullick
Ama ...
'' (1966) was running well. After watching the film, Meiyappan was impressed and decided to remake it into what would become ''Uyarndha Manithan''.
Javar Seetharaman
Javar ( fa, جور, also Romanized as Jūr) is a village in Baraan-e Shomali Rural District, in the Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan Province, Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persi ...
was hired as screenwriter, and made a few alterations to the screenplay, while the duo
Krishnan–Panju
R. Krishnan (1909–1997) and S. Panju (1915–1984), collectively referred to as Krishnan–Panju, were Indian film directors. The duo directed more than 50 films in South Indian languages and in Hindi.
Early life
R. Krishnan was born on 18 ...
(R. Krishnan and S. Panju) were signed to direct.
P. N. Sundaram was hired as the cinematographer, and Panju edited the film under the pseudonym "Panjabi".
Casting
When the script was ready, Meiyappan's sons and the film's co-producers
M. Saravanan, M. Kumaran and M. Murugan narrated it to
Sivaji Ganesan
Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001) was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. Sivaji Ga ...
at his residence, Annai Illam. Ganesan initially refused to play the main character, Raju, as he felt the supporting character Gopal had more impact than Raju, and offered to act as Gopal. However, on Saravanan's insistence, Ganesan played the role of Raju. ''Uyarndha Manithan'' thus became the 125th film to star Ganesan, and his first with AVM since ''
Pachhai Vilakku'' (1964). The role of Gopal was played by
S. A. Ashokan, and Ganesan assisted him for acting in the scene where Gopal dies of a heart attack. This was the debut film for
Poornam Viswanathan
Poornam Viswanathan (15 November 1921 – 1 October 2008) was an Indian actor who predominantly appeared in Tamil films. He started performing on stage at age 18. He worked as a reader for All India Radio and went on to act in films such as ''C ...
, who portrayed Vimala's (
Sowcar Janaki
Sankaramanchi Janaki (born T. Janaki; 12 December 1931), popularly known as Sowcar Janaki (Tamil) or Shavukaru Janaki (Telugu) or Sahukar Janaki (Kannada), is an Indian actress who has appeared in over 300, films, predominantly in Tamil, Telug ...
) father.
When M. Saravanan asked about Ganesan's salary to Ganesan's younger brother V. C. Shanmugham, who spoke on Ganesan's behalf, Shanmugham said that Ganesan was willing to accept any amount that AVM could afford to offer. Taking this to be a vague statement as Shanmugham did not state Ganesan's salary properly, Saravanan discovered that Ganesan accepted (US$26,667 in 1968) for one of
A. P. Nagarajan's latest films. Since ''
Thiruvilaiyadal
''Thiruvilaiyadal'' () is a 1965 Indian Tamil-language Hindu devotional film written, directed and co-produced by A. P. Nagarajan. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Savitri, and K. B. Sundarambal, with T. S. Balaiah, R. Muthuraman, Nagesh, T. R. ...
'' (1965), Nagarajan's films were made in
Eastmancolor
Eastmancolor is a trade name used by Eastman Kodak for a number of related film and processing technologies associated with color motion picture production and referring to George Eastman, founder of Kodak.
Eastmancolor, introduced in 1950, was on ...
, and because ''Uyarndha Manidhan'' was made in black-and-white and costume designing for the film was less as compared to those of Nagarajan's films, M. Saravanan decided to pay (US$20,000 in 1968) to Ganesan.
Filming
Principal photography began in
Kodaikanal
Kodaikanal () is a hill station which is located in Dindigul district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Its name in the Tamil language means "The Gift of the Forest". Kodaikanal is referred to as the "Princess of Hill stations" and has a long ...
.
The song "En Kelvikkenna Badhil", depicting Sathyamoorthy (
Sivakumar
Palaniswamy, better known by his stage name Sivakumar (born 27 October 1941), is an Indian visual artist and former actor who has portrayed a wide range of leading and supporting roles onscreen in Tamil cinema and television. He made his actin ...
) and Gowri (
Bharathi), was shot at Kodaikanal and My Lady Garden, Madras (now
Chennai
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 ...
).
Meiyappan was not pleased with the original song sequence shown to him by the production unit as he felt it was incongruous to have two poor characters dressed well in modern attire, so it was reshot.
The song "Paal Polave" was initially meant to be shot at Kodaikanal, but due to unfavourable weather conditions, the shoot had to be called off. The film's art director, A. K. Sekhar, therefore constructed a specially erected set at
AVM Studios in Madras that resembled Kodaikanal's misty ambience.
It was speculated that a production company bought the remake rights of ''
The Parent Trap'' (1961) in
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
and titled it as ''Vapas''. AVM had already acquired the rights to the film, which they were making under the title ''
Do Kaliyaan
''Do Kaliyaan'' () is a 1968 Indian Hindi-language film directed by R. Krishnan and S. Panju. The film stars Mala Sinha, Biswajeet, Mehmood, Om Prakash and Neetu Singh. It is a remake of the 1965 Tamil film ''Kuzhandaiyum Deivamum'' which itself ...
'' (1968). To avoid a clash with that film, AVM stalled production on ''Uyarndha Manithan'' for eight months to focus on ''Do Kaliyaan''. Ganesan, who thought that the project had been shelved, went to inform AVM that he would commence filming with another technical crew. However, AVM convinced him that the shooting was only delayed, and paid him (US$6,667 in 1968) in advance. After the release of ''Do Kaliyaan'', filming was resumed and completed.
For the scene where Raju beats and throws Sathyamurthy out of his house, multiple canes were kept as backup in case the cane with which Ganesan beats Sivakumar broke. Sivakumar was eventually left with his right arm dislocated after being kicked by Ganesan and falling over the sofa, and was hospitalised.
The climax, where Ganesan's character rushes to the burning mill to save Sivakumar's character, took four to six days to film.
The final length of the film's prints were long.
Themes
In his 2015 book ''Madras Studios: Narrative, Genre, and Ideology in Tamil Cinema'', Swarnavel Eswaran Pillai notes that the title ''Uyarndha Manithan'', meaning "A Honourable Man", epitomises the contradiction within the character of Raju, and in the trajectory of the rebel in ''
Parasakthi'' (1952), as he finally ends up a "meek/reactionary family man" who had forsaken his own offspring/lineage at a critical juncture.
Music
The soundtrack and musical score for ''Uyarndha Manithan'' were composed by
M. S. Viswanathan
Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. He was popularly known as ''Mellisai Mannar''. He compose ...
, while the lyrics were written by
Vaali. Vaali worked on the film alongside ''
Adimai Penn
''Adimai Penn'' () is a 1969 Indian Tamil-language action adventure film directed by K. Shankar and produced by M. G. Ramachandran and R. M. Veerappan. The film stars Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa, with Ashokan, Pandari Bai, Rajasree, Manohar, ...
'' (1969) and felt that working on two films simultaneously was "torrid". Mangalamurthy worked as the
accordion
Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...
ist for the song "Paal Polave", also known as "Naalai Intha Velai Paarthu". In the composition and picturisation for the song "Andha Naal Gnaabagam", Viswanathan was inspired by a sequence in ''
My Fair Lady
''My Fair Lady'' is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion'', with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons f ...
'' (1964) in which
Rex Harrison
Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play ''French Without Tears'', in what ...
's character sings with a walking stick in hand on a golf course. M. Saravanan, in his book ''AVM 60 Cinema'', described the use of dialogues in "Andha Naal Gnaabagam" as something new to Tamil cinema. The song was parodied by
Vikram and
Vivek Vivek (or Bibek/Bivek in some regions) (विवेक in Devanagari script) is a masculine given name that is popular in South Asia, particularly in India and Nepal. It is of Sanskrit origin and means "wisdom" and/or "conscience".
Vivek may refe ...
in ''
Dhool
''Dhool'' () is a 2003 Indian Tamil-language masala film written and directed by Dharani. The film stars Vikram, Jyothika and Reema Sen. Vivek, Sayaji Shinde, Telangana Shakuntala, and Pasupathy, among others, play important roles. Produced by ...
'' (2003), and "Paal Polave" was parodied by
Santhanam Santhanam or Santanam ( te, సంతానం) is an Indian name that may refer to:
People
* K. Santhanam (1895–1980), Indian politician
* Madabusi Santanam Raghunathan (born 1941), Indian mathematician
* Maharajapuram Santhanam (1928–1992) ...
in ''
Yuvan Yuvathi
''Yuvan Yuvathi'' () is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language romance film, written and directed by G. N. R. Kumaravelan that stars Bharath and Rima Kallingal. The film released on 26 August 2011. It received generally mixed reviews and became an averag ...
'' (2011).
The soundtrack was received positively by critics, with "Andha Naal Gnaabagam" and "Paal Polave" attaining popularity.
Malathi Rangarajan of ''
The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...
'' praised the
bossa nova
Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...
portions in the song "Velli Kinnamthan". ''
News Today
''News Today'' is an English language evening daily newspaper in Chennai, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country ...
'' described "Andha Naal Gnaabagam" as "testament to the capabilities of two legends –
TM. Soundarajan and Sivaji Ganesan", adding that the "transition from Sivaji panting and TMS taking over is seamless".
Release and reception
''Uyarndha Manithan'' was released on 29 November 1968. An event was organised in Chennai to celebrate its release, and it was attended by
Yashwantrao Chavan
Yashwantrao Balwantrao Chavan (Marathi pronunciation: əʃʋənt̪ɾaːʋ t͡səʋʱaːɳ 12 March 1913 – 25 November 1984) was an Indian politician. He served as the last Chief Minister of Bombay State and the first of Maharashtra after l ...
, then the
Home Minister of India
The Minister of Home Affairs (or simply, the Home Minister, short-form HM) is the head of the Ministry of Home Affairs (India), Ministry of Home Affairs of the Government of India. One of the senior-most officers in the Cabinet of India, Union ...
. The film became a commercial success, completing a theatrical run of 125 days. The 125th day commemorative celebrations were held in the presence of
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 ...
, the then
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
The chief minister of Tamil Nadu is the chief executive of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with th ...
. This was also the last function which Annadurai attended before his death.
Critical reception
On 7 December 1968, the critic from ''
The Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...
'' lauded the performances of the cast members, particularly Ganesan, Janaki, Ashokan, Vanisri and Sundararajan along with Ramaswamy's comedy and Sundaram's cinematography, but criticised the "predictable" climax, editing and musical score, adding, "But directors Krishnan and Panju see to it that the picture does not fall apart. There lies their moderate success." On Ganesan's performance, the Tamil magazine ''
Ananda Vikatan
''Ananda Vikatan'' is a Tamil-language weekly magazine published from Chennai, India.
History and profile
''Ananda Vikatan'' was started by Late Pudhoor Vaidyanadhaiyar in February 1926 as a monthly publication. The issue for December 1927 wa ...
'', wrote in a review dated 15 December 1968 that Ganesan proved that he could show both love and hate at the same time, and no more than words of 'natural acting' were enough for him.
Accolades
The
National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer
The National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to a female playback singer for the best renditions of songs from soundtracks within the Indian film industry ...
was introduced in 1968, and Susheela won the award for her rendition of "Paal Polave".
It was also Ganesan's first film to win a
Tamil Nadu State Film Award
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards were given for excellence in Tamil cinema in India. They were given annually to honour the best talents and provide encouragement and incentive to the South Indian film industry by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The aw ...
.
Legacy
The song "Andha Naal Gnaabagam" was considered one of the most memorable songs written by Vaali that featured in a Sivaji Ganesan film.
Rediff
Rediff.com (stylized as ''rediff.com'') is an Indian news, information, entertainment and shopping web portal. It was founded in 1996. It is headquartered in Mumbai, with offices in Bangalore, New Delhi and New York City.
, it had more than 300 e ...
ranked it alongside "Madhavi Pon Mayilaal" from ''
Iru Malargal'' (1967) and "Potri Paadadi Penne" from ''
Thevar Magan
''Thevar Magan'' () is a 1992 Indian, Tamil-language drama film written by Kamal Haasan, who also produced the film, and directed by Bharathan. It stars Haasan, Sivaji Ganesan, Revathi, Gautami and Nassar; with Kallapart Natarajan, Kaka Rad ...
'' (1992).
Susheela chose "Paal Polave" along with "Unnai Ondru Ketpen" and "Paartha Gnaabagam Illaiyo" as her favourite songs that she had recorded.
Singer
Swarnalatha
Swarnalatha (29 April 1973 – 12 September 2010) was an Indian playback singer. She is considered to be as Humming Queen Of India and Nightingale Of Tamil Cinema. In a career spanning almost 22 years (from 1987 until her death), she recorded ...
, who made her debut with the song "Chinnanchiru Kiliye" from ''
Neethikku Thandanai
''Neethikku Thandanai'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language film, directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar and written by M. Karunanidhi. The film stars Raadhika, Nizhalgal Ravi, Charan Raj and Senthil. It was released on 1 May 1987. The film was re ...
'' (1987), was chosen to sing the song by M. S. Viswanathan after he was impressed with her rendition of "Paal Polave", which he had asked her to sing during the song's audition. The song was rendered twice by the contestants of the
fourth season of the
Star Vijay
Star Vijay is an Indian Tamil language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star (formerly Star India), a subsidiary of Asianet Star Communications. The channel's headquarters is in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Star Vijay change ...
reality show ''
Super Singer'', and once each by the contestants of the second and third season of its junior version, ''
Super Singer Junior
''Super Singer Junior'' – ''Ithu Thamizhagathin Chellakuralukkana Thedal (the search for the sweet voice of Tamil Nadu)'' – is a Reality television, reality TV show since 2007 hosted by Vijay TV, a popular Tamil channel of the Star Network, ...
''.
Ganesan's biographer T. S. Narayanswami included ''Uyarndha Manithan'' in his list of Ganesan's "all-time greats". In March 2009, Sharadha Narayanan of ''
The New Indian Express
''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naid ...
'' rated Sundarrajan's performance in the film among his other noted films in which he featured like ''
Vennira Aadai
''Vennira Aadai'' () is a 1965 Indian Tamil-language romance film, co-written, produced and directed by Sridhar. The film stars Jayalalithaa, Nirmala, Shylashri, Srikanth and Moorthy, all in their Tamil cinema debut. It was released on 14 ...
'' (1965), ''
Major Chandrakanth'' (1966) and ''Gnana Oli''. In her review of the 2011 film ''
Seedan
''Seedan'' ( ta, சீடன்) ( en, Disciple) is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language romantic fantasy drama film directed by Subramaniam Siva. The film stars Unni Mukundan and Ananya in the lead, and features Dhanush in an extended cameo appearan ...
'', Malathi Rangarajan of ''The Hindu'' said that the premise of the film was "on the lines of Sivaji Ganesan's poignant ''Uyarndha''
'Manithan''. ''Uyarndha Manithan'' was included with other Sivaji Ganesan-starrers in the compilation DVD ''8th Ulaga Adhisayam Sivaji'', featuring Ganesan's "iconic performances in the form of scenes, songs and stunts". It was released in May 2012.
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{{Good article
1960s Tamil-language films
1968 drama films
1968 films
AVM Productions films
Films directed by Krishnan–Panju
Films scored by M. S. Viswanathan
Films with screenplays by Javar Seetharaman
Indian drama films
Tamil remakes of Bengali films