''Pookkari'' () is a 1973 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 film 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 ...

and produced by Anjugam Pictures. It stars M. K. Muthu,

Manjula Manjula (Sanskrit: मंजुला) is a Hindu and Sanskrit female given name, which means, "melodious". Notable people named Manjula * Manjula (Kannada actress) (1954–1986), Indian actress * Manjula Chellur (born 1955), Indian doctor and ...

Vennira Aadai Nirmala Vennira Aadai Nirmala (born as A. B. Shanthi in Kumbakonam) is an Indian actress who has appeared in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films. She was a prominent lead actress from 1960s and 70s. She is credited as Ushakumari in Malayalam film indust ...

Jayachitra Jayachitra is an Indian actress films who works mostly in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films. Early life Jayachitra was born in 1957. Her father Mahendra was a veterinary doctor, who had earlier worked as a lawyer. Her mother Ammaji (a.k.a. Ja ...

Jayakumari Jayakumari is an Indian actress in South Indian films. She was born in 1952 and was a prominent lead actress during the 1960s and 1970s in Tamil and Malayalam films. She was noted for her glamorous roles. She has acted around 50 Malayalam movies ...

and

Ambareesh Malavalli Huchchegowda Amarnath (29 May 1952 – 24 November 2018), known by his screen name Ambareesh, was an Indian actor, media personality, politician from the state of Karnataka. Alongside Rajkumar and Vishnuvardhan, he is counted in ...

(credited as Amarnath). The film was released on 25 October 1973, and failed commercially.

Plot

Valli is a flower seller and her brother Srinivasan is a real estate broker. One day, Valli meets a young man (Muthu) and they fall in love. Meanwhile, there is a wealthy man with a daughter, Shyamala. He has a nephew Ravi who is a womaniser. Although Ravi has a

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a ...

, he is also after Muthu's sister, who he eventually rapes. Traumatised by the incident, she loses her voice. Ravi and Muthu fight frequently, but during one such incident, Jayachitra pleads with Muthu to spare Ravi. During that incident, she also regains her voice and Ravi agrees to marry her. Upon realising this, a shocked Jayamala plans to go to the wedding hall in disguise, with a hidden gun, and shoot Ravi dead. Shyamala learns of Jayamala's plans and rushes to save Ravi, but Valli takes the bullet instead. Before dying, she manages to unite Shyamala and Muthu. Ravi and Jayachitra marry.

Cast

* M. K. Muthu *

as Valli *

as Shyamala *

as Ravi's

as Muthu's sister * Amarnath as Ravi

Production

''Pookkari'' was directed by the duo

, and produced under the banner Anjugam Pictures. Panju edited the film under the pseudonym "Panjabi". It was photographed by Amritham, a relative of politician and screenwriter M. Karunanidhi. The story and dialogue were written by T. N. Balu.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by M. S. Viswanathan. The song "Kaadhalin Pon Veedhiyil", written by

Panchu Arunachalam Panchanathan Arunachalam (22 March 1941 – 9 August 2016) was an Indian writer, director, producer and lyricist who worked in Tamil cinema. He was mentored by poet Kannadasan who was his uncle. He also worked as a lyricist in the Tamil cin ...

and sung by T. M. Soundararajan and

S. Janaki Sistla Janaki (born 23 April 1938) is an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer from Andhra Pradesh. She is referred to respectfully as "Janaki Amma" and Nightingale of South India. She is one of the best-known playback singers in ...

, attained popularity.

Release

''Pookkari'' was released on 25 October 1973, and failed commercially. ''

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 ...

'' criticised the film for being anti-progressive towards Tamil cinema.

References

External links

* {{Krishnan–Panju 1970s Tamil-language films 1973 films Films directed by Krishnan–Panju Films scored by M. S. Viswanathan