''Aathi Parasakthi'' () is a 1971 Indian Tamil-language Hindu mythological film written and directed by K. S. Gopalakrishnan. It stars S. Varalakshmi in the title role, Gemini Ganesan and Jayalalithaa. Sridevi acted as a child artist, while Padmini came in for a cameo. The film was released on 17 October 1971. It was dubbed in

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

as ''Jai Jagat Janani'' (1976).

Plot

The film tells the tales of the Primordial Goddess Adi Parashakti in anthological format. The tales include: * Abhirami Bhattar being rescued by Goddess Abhirami from his predicament by using her earring as a full moon on a new moon day. He goes on to narrate the rest of the tales to the king, Serfoji. *

Mariamman Mariamman, often abbreviated to Amman (), is a Hindu Dravidian folk religion List of rain deities, goddess of weather, predominantly venerated in the rural areas of South India. Her festivals are held during the late summer/early autumn season ...

first cursing Petersburg with leprosy when he mocks and goes on to violate the rules of temple only to give it back to him when he repents thereby turning him to a devotee. She also gives him darshans of her various avatars eg. Meenakshi,

Kamakshi Tripura Sundari (Sanskrit: त्रिपुरसुन्दरी, IAST: Tripura Sundarī), also known as Lalita, Shodashi, Kamakshi, and Rajarajeshvari, is a Hindu goddess, revered primarily within the Shaktism tradition and recognized as o ...

, Punnainallur Mariamman, and Vishalakshi. When his wife refuses to believe him, The Goddess rescues him in the form of a little girl when his house is about to demolished in a natural calamity. *

giving her darshan to a devout fisherman who, following the advice of a great ascetic, goes on to attempt to drown himself if he doesn't get to see her in person. The ascetic himself though fails to follow his advice of wanting to see her as one is desperate for oxygen and fails to see her. *

Mahishasura Mahishasura (, ) is a bovine asura in Hinduism. He is depicted in Hindu texts, Hindu literature as a deceitful demon who pursued his evil ways by shape-shifting. Mahishasura was the son of the asura Rambha (asura), Rambha and the brother of buf ...

illegally dominates and takes over not only the earth, but also the heavens. They all worship together and get Adi Parashakti to appear and save them, Parashakti responds by appearing as Durga and killing Mahishasura. *

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

and

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

fighting with their consorts, forcing them to leave their spouses. They lose their power, which is taken advantage of by Sumbha and Nisumbha, evil demons. They beg for Adi Parashakti's forgiveness, who in the form of spouses, were the source of their power. She takes the form of a dancer who makes the asuras kill each other, which was their boon as in they cannot be killed by anyone else, and rescues the universe. *

Parvati Parvati (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, pɑɾʋət̪iː/), also known as Uma (, , IPA: Sanskrit phonology, /ʊmɑː/) and Gauri (, , IPA: /Sanskrit phonology, gə͡ʊɾiː/), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the Devi, ...

, through her son

Kartikeya Kartikeya (/Sanskrit phonology, kɑɾt̪ɪkejə/; ), also known as Skanda (Sanskrit phonology, /skən̪d̪ə/), Subrahmanya (/Sanskrit phonology, sʊbɾəɦməɲjə/, /ɕʊ-/), Shanmukha (Sanskrit phonology, /ɕɑnmʊkʰə/) and Murugan ...

, gives the power of speech to an mute child turning him to a great poet to fulfil the desire of a desolate king who repents that there is no epoch defining poet in his kingdom which he sees as a personal failure. * The epic love saga of Sati and

, telling about her father

Daksha Daksha ( ,) is a Hindu god whose role underwent a significant transformation from Vedic mythology, ''Vedic'' to Itihasa-Purana, ''Itihasa-Puranic'' mythology. In the ''Rigveda'', Daksha is an ''Adityas, aditya'' and is associated with priestly ...

's hatred for Shiva and Sati's true love for him, which eventually culminates in Shiva and Sati's marriage, both thanking the Goddess Adi Parashakti.

Cast

Soundtrack

The music was composed by K. V. Mahadevan. The song "Naan Aatchi" is set in Anandabhairavi raga. "Solladi Abirami" is set in Mayamalavagowla raga.

Release

The film was successful at the box office and made more than other films that were released at the same time namely '' Babu'', '' Neerum Neruppum'', and ''Veettukku Oru Pillai''.

References

External links

* {{K. S. Gopalakrishnan 1970s dance films 1970s Indian films 1971 musical films 1970s Tamil-language films 1971 films Films about Hinduism Films about reincarnation Films about royalty Films about shapeshifting Films directed by K. S. Gopalakrishnan Films scored by K. V. Mahadevan Films with screenplays by K. S. Gopalakrishnan Hindu devotional films Hindu mythological films Indian anthology films Indian dance films Indian musical films Indian religious epic films Tamil-language Indian films