Kothamangalam Subbu (born S. M. Subramanian, 10 November 1910 – 15 February 1974) was an Indian poet, lyricist, author, actor and film director based in

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 ...

. He wrote the cult classic Tamil novel ''

Thillana Mohanambal ''Thillana Mohanambal'' () is a 1968 Indian Tamil-language musical drama film written, directed and produced by A. P. Nagarajan. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Padmini and T. S. Balaiah, with A. V. M. Rajan, Nagesh and Manorama in supporting r ...

'' and was awarded the

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

. According to novelist Ashokamitran's memoirs, Subbu functioned as the No. 2 of the giant

Gemini Studios Gemini Studios was an Indian film studio based in Madras, Tamil Nadu. It was launched when S. S. Vasan, a businessman of many ventures (including the ownership of Ananda Vikatan) bought Motion Picture Producers' Combines from Krishnaswamy Sub ...

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 ...

(formerly Madras), South India for over three decades and was a close associate of movie mogul

S. S. Vasan Subramaniam Srinivasan (4 January 1904 – 26 August 1969), popularly known by his screen name S. S. Vasan, was an Indian journalist, writer, advertiser, film producer, director and business tycoon. He is the founder of the Tamil-language maga ...

, who established those studios and published the popular Tamil weekly ''

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 ...

''.

Early life

Subbu's natural name was Subramanian. He was born in the village of Kannariyenthal, near

Pattukkottai Pattukkottai () is a major town in Thanjavur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and also important town in Delta districts and Commercial town of Thanjavur, Thiruvarur and Pudukkottai district Coastal areas. The town came to promin ...

, Tamil Nadu. His parents were Subbiah Ganapadigal Mahalinga Iyer and Kangammal. After losing his mother when he was young, Subbu received patronage from his younger aunt. He could continue his studies only up to 8th grade. After marrying a kin, Subbu settled in Kothamangalam and worked as an accountant in a business concern. However, his interests shifted towards Tamil drama, acting, singing and composing songs. By the late 1930s, Subbu received opportunities for acting in the then blossoming Tamil movies in Madras.

Career

Subbu directed the epic film '' Avvaiyar'' in which the great artiste of those days Smt K. B. Sundarambal played the lead role. Ashokamitran had profiled humorously how this film took shape in the Gemini Studios. Subbu, with his wife Sundari Bai, played a minor role in the movie as the husband of an incorrigible lady who refuses to serve Avvaiyar food. Subbu also directed ''Kannamma En Kadhali'', that featured his wife Sundari Bai. Furthermore, Subbu acted as a hero in ''

Miss Malini ''Miss Malini'' is a 1947 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language satire (film and television), satirical film written and directed by Kothamangalam Subbu and produced by K. Ramnoth, based on a story by R. K. Narayan. Subbu also starred in the ...

'' that was remade 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 ...

as ''Mr. Sampath''. ''Miss Malini'' was an adaptation of RK Narayan novel ''Mr Sampath''. ''Dasi Aparanji'' was another movie in which Subbu and Sundari Bai played the leads. In addition, Subbu has acted in Tamil movies ''Thiruneelakantar'' and ''Pava Mannippu''. As a writer Subbu's most well-known work is ''Thillana Mohanambal'' that was transformed into a popularly and critically successful Tamil movie, starring

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 Padmini. Subbu was awarded the Padma Shri for authoring this novel, which originally appeared as a weekly serial in the ''Anantha Vikatan''. Respected for his encyclopedic knowledge of music and satirical writing style, Subbu's tongue-in-cheek writing won the appreciation of many. He authored ''Rao Bahadur Singaram'', ''Bandanallur Bama'', ''Ponnivanathu Poonguyil'', ''Miss Radha'', and ''Manju Virattu'' (a collection of short stories). Subbu has written several novels using the pen name of Kalaimani and penned ''Gandhi Mahan Kathai'' narrating the life of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

in folklore form. He wrote about 120 radio plays 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 ...

Filmography

;Screenwriter *'' Chandralekha'' (1948) *'' Apoorva Sagodharargal'' (1949) *'' Avvaiyar'' (1953) *''

Valliyin Selvan ''Valliyin Selvan'' () is a 1955 Indian Tamil-language children's film written and directed by Kothamangalam Subbu. The film stars Lalitha, Sahasranamam, M. S. Sundari Bai and S. V. Subbaiah. Plot A rich man is childless and wants to remar ...

'' (1955) *'' Vanjikottai Valiban'' (1958) *'' Irumbu Thirai'' (1960) *''

Motor Sundaram Pillai ''Motor Sundaram Pillai'' is a 1966 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by S. S. Balan and written by Veppathur Kittoo. A remake of the Hindi film '' Grahasti'' (1963), itself based on the American film '' The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker ...

'' (1966) *''

'' (1968) *'' Vilaiyaattu Pillai'' (1970) (story only) ;Director *''

Kannamma En Kadhali ''Kannamma En Kadhali'' () is a 1945 Indian Tamil-language film starring M. K. Radha and M. S. Sundari Bai in the lead roles. The film was directed by Kothamangalam Subbu, marking his directorial debut. No print of the film is known to survive, ...

'' (1945) *''

'' (1947) *'' Avvaiyar'' (1953) *''

'' (1955) ;Lyricist *'' Naam Iruvar'' (1947) *'' Chakradhari'' (1948) *''

'' (1955) *'' Aadi Perukku'' (1962) *'' Annai'' (1962) *''

Pazhani Palani ( or ''Palni'' as in British records, is a town and a taluk headquarters in Dindigul district of the western part of Tamil Nadu state in India. It is located about south-east of Coimbatore and north-west of Madurai, from Kodaikanal ...

'' (1965)

Legacy

''Ananda Vikatan'' magazine is currently republishing the works of this writer, lyricist, director and actor. As an exponent of the traditional folk form of narrating stories in Tamil Nadu, the Villu Pattu, Kothamangalam Subbu popularised the lives of many Indian luminaries using the Villu Paatu. Subbu's wife, Sundari Bai, was a popular actor, known for her versatility in playing character roles in movies such as ''Kannamma En Kadhali'', ''Sumathy En Sundari'', ''Chandralekha'', ''Bama Rukmani'' and ''Avvaiyar''.

References

External links

Official Website of Kothamangalam Subbu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Subbu, Kothamangalam Male actors from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian film directors 1910 births 1974 deaths Tamil writers Poets from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian male actors Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education 20th-century Indian poets Indian lyricists People from Sivaganga district Tamil screenwriters Screenwriters from Tamil Nadu Tamil-language lyricists 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Film directors from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian screenwriters