K. Subramaniyam (20 April 1904 – 7 April 1971), born Krishnasamy Subramaniyam, was an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

film director of the 1930s and 1940s. Dancer

Padma Subrahmanyam Padma Subrahmanyam (born 4 February 1943, in Madras), is an Indian classical Bharata Natyam dancer. She is also a research scholar, choreographer, teacher, Indologist and author. She is famous in India as well as abroad; several films and docume ...

is his daughter.

Biography

Subramanyam was involved in the establishment of the

Tamil film industry 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 ...

. He was born in a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

family. He started his film career as a scenarist and producer, working on P. K. Raja Sandow's silent films such as '' Peyum Pennum''. He started Meenakshi Cineton with Alagappa Chettiar, directing his first film '' Pavalakkodi'', in which the Tamil film star M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar debuted. He made a shift with the politically emphatic ''

Balayogini ''Balayogini'' ( ''Girl Saint'') is a 1937 Indian film made in Tamil language, Tamil and Telugu language, Telugu languages. It was directed by K. Subramanyam. It is one of the earliest Tamil films to be set in a contemporary social setting and to ...

'', criticizing the

caste system Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...

prevalent then. In 1938, he made ''

Sevasadanam ''Sevasadanam'' () is a 1938 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by K. Subrahmanyam. It is one of the early Tamil films to be set in a contemporary social setting and to advocate reformist social policies. This was the first film for M. S ...

'', advocating a better deal for women, the saint film '' Bhaktha Chetha'', critiquing

untouchability Untouchability is a form of social institution that legitimises and enforces practices that are discriminatory, humiliating, exclusionary and exploitative against people belonging to certain social groups. Although comparable forms of discrimin ...

and the war effort film '' Maanasamrakshanam''. His best-known work is ''

Thyaga Bhoomi ''Thyaga Bhoomi'' () is a 1939 Indian Tamil-language film directed and produced by K. Subramanyam. Starring K. J. Mahadevan and S.D.Subbalakshmi, the film was produced at the height of India's freedom movement and glorified Mahatma Gandhi and ...

''. ''Thyaga Bhoomi'' was a novel by Kalki Krishnamurthy, which was banned by the British government. He also directed the

Malayalam film Malayalam cinema is an Indian cinema, Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ...

Prahlada Prahlada () is an asura king in Hindu mythology. He is known for his staunch devotion towards the preserver deity, Vishnu. He appears in the narrative of Narasimha, the man-lion avatar of Vishnu, who rescues Prahlada by slaying his wicked fa ...

'' (1941), which was scripted by noted playwright N. P. Chellappan Nair. He was one of the founders of Nadigar Sangam in 1952.

Filmography

* '' Pavalakkodi'' (1934) * '' Naveena Sadaram'' (1935) * ''

Naveena Sarangadhara ''Naveena Sarangadhara (நவீன சாரங்கதாரா)'' is a 1936 Tamil film directed by K. Subramanyam, K. Subramaniam under Murugan Talkies. Naveena in Tamil means modern. The film was titled thus in order to distinguish itself ...

'' (1936) * ''

Kuchela Sudama (), also known as Kuchela (), is a childhood friend of the Hindu deity Krishna. The story of his visit to Dvaraka to meet his friend is featured in the Bhagavata Purana. In their legend, Sudama and Krishna study together as children a ...

'' (1936) * '' Usha Kalyanam'' (1936) * ''

'' (1937) * ''Mr. Ammanchi'' (1937) * ''Kowsalya Parinayam'' (1937) * ''

'' (1938) * ''

'' (1939) * '' Bhaktha Chetha'' (1940) * ''

'' (1941) (Malayalam) * ''

Ananthasayanam ''Ananthasayanam'' is a 1972 Indian Malayalam film, directed and produced by K. Suku. The film stars Sheela, Jayabharathi, Adoor Bhasi and Prema in the lead roles. The film had musical score by K. Raghavan. Cast *Sheela *Jayabharathi *Adoor ...

'' (1942) * ''

Barthruhari ''Barthruhari'' is a 1944 Indian Tamil language historical drama film produced by K. Subrahmanyam, who co-directed it with C. S. V. Iyer. The film stars Serukalathur Sama and B. Jayamma, with G. Pattu Iyer, N. S. Krishnan, V. N. Janaki and T. ...

'' (1944) * '' Maanasamrakshanam'' (1945) * '' Vikatayogi'' (1946) * '' Vichitra Vanitha'' (1947) * ''Kapati Arakshakaya'' (1948) (Sinhalese) * ''

Gokuladasi ''Gokuladasi'' () is a 1948 Indian Tamil language film directed and produced by K. Subrahmanyam. The film stars C. Honnappa Bhagavathar and M. V. Rajamma, with T. R. Ramachandran, N. Krishnamurthi, Lalitha and Padmini playing supporting roles ...

'' (1948) * '' Geetha Gandhi'' (1949)

References

External links

* * - A rare song sung by Subrahmanyam from the film Ananthasayanam (1942) {{DEFAULTSORT:Subrahmanyam, K. Film directors from Tamil Nadu Tamil film directors Tamil-language film directors Malayalam film directors 1904 births 1971 deaths People from Thanjavur district 20th-century Indian film directors Odia film directors