''Velaikari'' () 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, 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 ...

directed by

A. S. A. Sami Arul Soosai Anthony Sami (1915–1998) also written as A. S. A. Samy, was an Indian director and screenwriter who worked in Tamil cinema, Tamil films. Early life Born in 1915, A. S. A. Samy was from a devout Catholic family. His father had ...

and produced by M. Somasundaram under

Jupiter Pictures Jupiter Pictures ( ta, ஜுபிடர் பிக்ச்சர்ஸ்) was an Indian feature film production company founded in Coimbatore in 1934 by M. Somasundaram (popularly known as "Jupiter Somu") and S.K. Mohideen. Jupiter Pictur ...

. It was based on the play of the same name 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 ...

, while incorporating plot details from the Alexandre Dumas novel '' The Count of Monte Cristo'' (1844). The film stars K. R. Ramasamy, V. N. Janaki and

M. V. Rajamma M. V. Rajamma (10 March 1918 – 23 April 1999) was an Indian actress, producer and playback singer of films mostly in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu languages from the 1930s through 1970s. She has the distinction of having acted as both heroine an ...

. It was released on 25 February 1949 and became a success. The film was remade in

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

as '' Santhosham'' (1955), 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 ...

as ''Naya Aadmi'' (1956), and in

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

as ''

Malli Maduve ''Malli Maduve'' is a 1963 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by G. R. Nathan. The film stars Rajkumar, Udaykumar, Rajashankar and K. S. Ashwath. The film has musical score by G. K. Venkatesh. The film was a remake of Tamil film ''Velaikaa ...

'' (1963).

Plot

Vedhachalam Mudaliyar is a rich moneylender. Sarasa and Moorthy are his children. Sarasa takes after her father and behaves arrogantly with the servants. However, Moorthy is good human being and has a soft corner for the maid, Amirtham. Vedhachalam Mudaliar lends money to Sundaram Pillai. Unable to repay the borrowed money and finding it difficult to take Vedhachalam Mudaliar's insults, Sundaram Pillai commits suicide. His son Anandan witnesses the suicide and decides to take revenge on Mudaliar. While he sharpens the knife to kill Mudaliar, his friend Mani, a reformist and intellectual, advises him to sharpen his mind to take revenge. Reformed Anandan, an ardent devotee of Goddess Kali, prays to the Goddess to help him take revenge on Mudaliar. However, Mudaliar becomes wealthier and becomes the owner of another estate, which infuriates Anandan. Frustrated with the Goddess for helping the rich, Anandan abuses the Goddess at her temple. The devotees get angry with this behaviour of spoiling the sanctity and chase him away. Mani offers shelter to Anandan in a hideout where they find a dead body in a bundle. On close scrutiny, they realise that the body resembles Anandan; they learn from his diary that he is Paramanandam, son of a rich but blind landlady of Mevaar Vilasam. Mani brings Anandan to the village in the guise of Paramanandam. They host a tea party and invite all the rich people, including Mudaliar. As Paramanadham, Anandan soon marries Mudaliar's daughter Sarasa. To take revenge on Mudaliar, Anandan harasses Sarasa and spends their money lavishly. Acting like a drunkard and womaniser, he spoils Mudaliar's reputation in the society. Discovering the love between Amirtham and Moorthy, Anandan creates a rift between his father-in-law and brother-in-law. Moorthi leaves the house, meets Amirtham and promises to marry her after getting the help of his friend at Madras. However, on realising that he is penniless, Moorthy's friends spurn him. Amirtham's father Murugesan, who is a loyal servant to Mudaliar's family, plans to get her married to an old man to avoid further embarrassment to his master. When Amirtham learns this, she leaves the home on her own. Balu Mudaliar, a rich man who becomes mentally disturbed after the death of his daughter, meets Amirtham. He thinks she is his daughter Sumirdham and provides her shelter at his place. At this doctor's request, Amirtham helps in Balu Mudaliar's recovery, who treats her like his own daughter and permits her to continue to live at his house even after his recovery. Murthy gets wrong information that Amirtham is dead through her neighbours in the village. Vexed with life and to get peace, he lands in an ashram run by Yogi Hariharadas. However, he soon discovers the yogi's frauds and during an altercation with Moorthi, Yogi dies; Moorthi is accused of the murder and lands in prison. Mudaliar gets disheartened with the mishaps to his children. Mani brings Anandan as a North Indian lawyer to Mudaliar, and Anandan fights Moorthy's case in court. Arguing beautifully in court, he establishes that, Yogi was a fraud and criminal wanted by the police; the death was not pre-planned or intentional; it happened during self-defence. That court acquits Moorthy and he is released. When Moorthy asks Anandan to name his fee for this great help. Anandan asks Moorthy to Marry Balu Mudaliar's daughter. Moorthy meets Amirtham, who is now known with a different name and is surprised that she looks similar to Amirtham. After the marriage takes place, Anandan reveals to Mudaliar that his son Moorthy has married Amirtham, a servant's daughter, and he (Anandan) is the son of the servant Sundaram Pillai. Berating Mudaliar about his arrogant attitude, money mindedness and treating people badly, he shows how it harmed poor people. Mudaliar regrets his behaviour and mistakes and apologises to Anandan and Amirtham. The family is united.

Cast

;Male cast * K. R. Ramasamy as Anandan *

T. S. Balaiah Thirunelveli Subramaniyan Balaiah (23 August 1914 – 22 July 1972) was an Indian actor. He is best known for playing supporting roles in Tamil films. Born in Sundankottai, near Udankudi in Thoothukudi, Balaiah was introduced to the cine fiel ...

as Mani * M. N. Nambiar as Moorthi and Yogi Hariharadas *

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 Vedhachalam Mudaliar * Pulimootai Ramasami as Balu Mudaliar * T. P. Ponnusami Pillai as Murugan * S. A. Natarajan as Public Prosecutor * P. S. Sivanandham as Chokkan * M. K. Mustafa as Sundaram Pillai * M. N. Krishnan as Balu Mudaliar's servant * P. S. Dhakshinamoorthi * Nat Annaji Rao * M. K. Gopala Iyengar * M. A. Ganapathi ;Female cast *

as Amritham * V. N. Janaki as Sarasa * P. K. Saraswathi as Sundara Ghosh * K. S. Angamuthu as Muthayi * M. S. S. Bhagyam as Bhagyam * M. M. Radha Bai as Anandhan's mother ;Dance * Lalitha * Padmini

Production

''Velaikari'' was a play written by

. It was originally written for K. R. Ramasamy's drama company by Annadurai. After the play's success, M. Somasundaram of

decided to make a film version and chose Annadurai as the screenwriter.

was chosen by Annadurai to be the director after a few meetings. Per Annadurai's recommendation, Ramasamy was hired to play the protagonist. The original play was based on class conflicts and was partly inspired by the

Bhawal case Bhawal Estate was the second largest zamindari in Bengal (in modern-day Bangladesh) until it was abolished according to ''East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950''. History In the late 17th century, Daulat Ghazi was the zamind ...

for the twists in the plot. Some plot elements based on the Alexandre Dumas novel '' The Count of Monte Cristo'' (1844) were suggested by Sami for the film version and accepted by Annadurai, who wrote the screenplay, which was over 1000 pages, in three days. Cinematography was handled by M. Masthan. The film was made to look like a photographed play, eschewing outdoor shots and the majority of the story being narrated through verbal narration and mid-shots, and characters turning towards the camera to speak their lines rather than the camera turning towards them. The completed film was 16,774 feet in length.

Themes and influences

In the film, Mani advises Anandan of four methods to take revenge: ''Aduthu Kedukkum Padalam'' (spoiling someone's reputation by being with them), ''Panam Pazhakkum Padalam'' (spoiling their money), ''Manam Parikkum Padalam'' (spoiling their reputation) and ''Kan Kuththum Padalam'' (hurting his eyes through his own hands). A few scenes from the 1934 film version of ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' were re-enacted in ''Velaikari'', such as the protagonist deciding to take revenge on the people responsible for his jail term after escaping from there. The climax scene of Anandan entering the court as a lawyer was inspired from the 1937 film ''

The Life of Emile Zola ''The Life of Emile Zola'' is a 1937 American biographical film about the 19th-century French author Émile Zola starring Paul Muni and directed by William Dieterle. It premiered at the Los Angeles Carthay Circle Theatre to great critical and ...

''.

Soundtrack

The music composed by S. M. Subbaiah Naidu and C. R. Subbaraman, with lyrics by

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 w ...

. The song "Innamum Paaraa Mugam Enammaa" was remixed in 2012 by Manachanallur Giridharan in his devotional album titled ''Om Nava Sakthi Jaya Jaya Sakthi'', which was also sung by Giridharan himself.

Release and reception

''Velaikari'' was released on 25 February 1949. The scene where Anandan throws sacred objects and abuses the presiding deity at a Kali temple created controversy. Some religious groups even clamoured for a ban on the film. However, the film turned out to be a major box office success of historical importance. The 100th day function of the film was chaired by writer Va. Ramasamy at a theatre in Coimbatore. Annadurai said the film "made it clear that greed and avarice of the rich did not pay in the long run... Some of the elementary principles of the socialism and stressed that we should depend upon our own labor for our progress and well-being and not some unknown factor". After the film's success, the producers presented a Morris Car to Annadurai.

Kalki Krishnamurthy , birth_name = Ramasamy Aiyer Krishnamurthy , birth_date = , birth_place = Puthamangalam, near Manalmedu , death_date = , death_place = Chennai, India , occupation = journalist, critic and writer , nationality = Indian , education = H ...

in his magazine ''

Kalki Kalki ( sa, कल्कि), also called Kalkin or Karki, is the prophesied tenth and final incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. He is described to appear in order to end the Kali Yuga, one of the four periods in the endless cycle of exist ...

'' issue date 19 June 1949 wrote, " 'Velaikari''is not a film to be commented on, but a great film which came to reform society". The film's final message ''Ondre Kulam, Oruvane Devan'' (One community and one god), became a popular rhetoric of the political party Annadurai founded. Even when the play was staged, Krishnamurthy was amazed with the dialogues and scenes and appreciated Annadurai as ''Arignar'' (Meaning an Intellectual), which become a prefix for Annadurai since then. He also gave the title of "

Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

of South" to Annadurai after watching the film.

Legacy

The powerful link between Tamil cinema and

politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

was established through this film. Hence, it can be called as a watershed film which led to changes to Tamil cinema and politics. The film become a trendsetter for its powerful and beautiful dialogues and for its strong approach on social issues and beliefs. The same route was followed by M. Karunanidhi, heir to Annadurai in films and politics, in various films including '' Parasakthi'' (1952) and ''

Manohara Manohara is the kinnari (half woman, half bird) heroine of one of the Jataka tales. Typically referred to as Manohara and Prince Sudhana, the legend appears in the Divyavadana and is documented by stone reliefs at Borobodur. This story features i ...

'' (1954). Its dialogues became famous among the audience. Some of the rhetorical lines like "Sattam Oru Iruttarai. athiley vakkilin vaathamoru vilakku. anaal athu ezhaikku ettaatha vilakku" (The law is a dark room. In which the lawyer's arguments are like the lamp light, but the poor cannot get it) and "Kathiyai Theettathey, Un Puththiyai Theettu" (Don't sharpen your knife but your mind) become very famous and are used among the common public and politicians. The 1981 Tamil film ''

Sattam Oru Iruttarai ''Sattam Oru Iruttarai'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil-language vigilante action film written and directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar, from a story by his wife Shoba. The film stars Vijayakanth, Poornima Devi and Vasumathi, with Sangili Murugan, Nithi ...

'' was titled after one of the film's dialogues. The popular reception ''Velaikari'' received was the beginning of the long association between the Dravidian movement and Tamil cinema. The dialogues and scenes promoting atheism led to some controversy and demands for banning the film.

Remakes

''Velaikari'' was remade in

as '' Santhosham'' (1955), in

as ''Naya Aadmi'' (1956), and in

as ''

'' (1963).

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0270034 1940s Tamil-language films 1949 drama films 1949 films Films about poverty in India Films about siblings Films about social issues in India Films scored by S. M. Subbaiah Naidu Films scored by C. R. Subbaraman Films set in Chennai Indian black-and-white films Indian courtroom films Indian drama films Indian films based on plays Jupiter Pictures films Tamil films remade in other languages