''Ellam Unakkaga'' () is a 1961 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, nati ...

-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

Adurthi Subba Rao Adurthi Subba Rao (16 December 1912 – 1 October 1975) was an Indian film director, cinematographer, screenwriter, editor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. Rao is widely regarded as the intellectual fountain ...

from a story by Aatreya. The film stars

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 Gan ...

and

Savitri Savitri or Savithrri may refer to: In Hinduism * Savitri, with all vowels short, a Roman-phonetic spelling of the Rigvedic solar deity Savitr *Sāvitrī, a name of the ''Gayatri Mantra'' dedicated to Savitr *Savitri (goddess), the consort of Brah ...

. It was released on 1 July 1961, and failed commercially.

Plot

Anandan and Venkatachalam are friends. Venkatachalam's daughter Sarala, following an accident, loses her ability to walk. A doctor informs Venkatachalam that he treated a similarly handicapped woman, who in the process of giving birth to a child, was cured and could walk again. Inspired, Venkatachalam marries off Sarala to Anandan, deciding that if Sarala is not cured within two years, the marriage will be dissolved and Anandan can marry any other woman he wants. Anandan and Sarala live a happily married life. Sarala gives birth to a child, but is not cured of her handicap. However, Anandan refuses to abandon hope. The rest of the film revolves around what happens to the many problems of the characters.

Cast

Production

''Ellam Unakkaga'' was directed by

from a story by Aatreya. The film was produced by Saravanabhava Unity Pictures, filmed by P. Ramasamy and edited by K. Govindasamy. Shooting took place at the Adyar-based Neptune Studios, later known as

Sathya Studios Sathya Studios (formerly Neptune Studios) was an Indian film studio based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was one of the oldest film studios and was formerly known as "Neptune Studio". The studio was bought by former Indian actor and former Chief Min ...

Soundtrack

The music was composed by

K. V. Mahadevan Krishnankoil Venkadachalam Mahadevan (14 March 1918 – 21 June 2001) was an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, and musician known for his works in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada films. He is best known for his contributio ...

, assisted by Pugazhendi.

Release and reception

''Ellam Unakkaga'' was released on 1 July 1961. Kanthan of ''

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 exis ...

'' said the film could be seen once for Savitri. According to historian

Randor Guy Madabhushi Rangadorai (born 8 November 1937), better known by his pen name Randor Guy, is an Indian lawyer, columnist and film and legal historian associated with the English language newspaper '' The Hindu''. He is also the official editor of ...

, the film was not a commercial success as viewers could not accept seeing Ganesan and Savitri as lovers onscreen, the duo having acted as siblings in ''

Pasamalar ''Pasamalar'' () is a 1961 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by A. Bhimsingh. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan and Savitri Ganesan, with K. A. Thangavelu M. N. Nambiar and M. N. Rajam in supporting roles. It revolves aroun ...

'' earlier that year.

References

External links

* 1960s Indian films 1960s Tamil-language films 1961 drama films 1961 films Films directed by Adurthi Subba Rao Films scored by K. V. Mahadevan Films with screenplays by K. S. Gopalakrishnan Indian drama films Tamil-language Indian films {{Improve categories, date=March 2024