MAKKAL THILAGAM MGR !!!

[Shakthiprabha.]

MGR's movies are good entertainers. I never knew he could act at all. His expressions were really bad.

His movies are good to watch for a nice theme, great songs and good morals.

period.

He had capability / charisma to attract the mass which he NEVER failed to capitalise in any movie. Movies were done more for the propaganda of political issues.

There are lot of his movies I enjoyed more for the entertainment, than for his performance.

Yes End of the day, I do agree, he had SOMETHING in him, which made ppl watch his movie time and again.

My favs are....

1. AnbE vaa
2. AAiyirathil Oruvan
3. Adimaip peN
4. alibabavum 40 thirudargaLum


I also remember one more movie, casted along with BHANUMATHI, where he plays the role of a thief! Can
anyone tell me which movie it is?

Last but not least, Songs in MGR movies.... is TOO GOOD TO LET GO.

[saradhaa_sn]

Can sumone tell me which movie is this song "kann pOna pOkile kaal pogalaamaa" i like this song very much

that song is from 'Panam Padaithavan' , compossed by Viswa-Ramu.

[saradhaa_sn]

From the very begining of 50s, MGR planned very well to use his cinema fame to his lift in politics. He decided Cinema is the correct way to approach people to get success in politics. Thatswhy he acted only POSITIVE rolls which will give more effect among the people. So, he carefully choosed his rolls, and made some changes wherever necessary to keep up his image.

He was very careful in maitained his image by acting in movies with:
non-drinking
non-smoking
not in villain charectors
not acting as bad man
always helping poors
mother sentiments
praising diologues by others (like "neengathaan thalaivar')
praising dialogues by old ladies (like' mavaraasaa nee nalla irukkanum')
Thus he planned well to use his cine fame as a ladder for his success in his political carreer, and kept the same formula until his last movie, without taking care about the criticisms by educated people, because his main aim is to cover the illeterates in remote areas throughout Tamil Nadu, who started to beleive cinema is a real one.

When he found himself that he is lack of acting skill, he put his full concentration in other aspects, mainly in songs, camera views, dream scenes with richness, stunt scenes etc. Particularly he gave more importance for the songs in his movies, with the farmola of one 'thaththuva paadal', one song praising about him (like 'naan aanaiyittal' and 'naan alavodu rasipavan..edhaiyum alavindri koduppavan' etc), duet songs with vareities of tunes (thatswhy still we can hear his songs as fresh ones).

The main difference between MGR and Shivaji is:

Shivaji always think that people should see him as charectors as Kattabomman, V.O.C, Prestige Padmanabhan, Barristor Rajinikanth, S.P.Choudhry like that, and they should not see him as Ganesan in the screen.

But regarding MGR always think, whether he plays King roll or Begger role, but people should see him as MGR only and not as charectors.

In politics Shivaji did not take it as serious, just used it as pickle, whereas it was the main food for MGR.

Shivaji always took wrong decitions in wrong times in politics, and he did not aimed any big posts and he never planned for that. Thatswhy he faded in politics, when MGR became a successful leader.

[S.Balaji]

The main difference between MGR and Shivaji is:

Shivaji always think that people should see him as charectors as Kattabomman, V.O.C, Prestige Padmanabhan, Barristor Rajinikanth, S.P.Choudhry like that, and they should not see him as Ganesan in the screen.

But regarding MGR always think, whether he plays King roll or Begger role, but people should see him as MGR only and not as charectors.

In politics Shivaji did not take it as serious, just used it as pickle, whereas it was the main food for MGR.

Shivaji always took wrong decitions in wrong times in politics, and he did not aimed any big posts and he never planned for that. Thatswhy he faded in politics, when MGR became a successful leader.

Saradhaji....

Superb.... Through a single posting, you have summarised the basic reason for why MGR could succeed in politics and why Shivaji could not ,
How MGR successfully positioned himself to capture the hearts of Tamilnadu people,
basic difference in the acting approach of Shivaji and MGR.....

Probably this posting of yours will be one of the best postings in TFM I have come across....

True word by word what you had mentioned....

Hats off.....

[tfmlover]

Wonderful post TFM Lover!! I feel the same way!

i am glad you liked surya..onemore thing i always heard..i must mention this too..the 'secureness' film co stars felt when known to MGR or
his companionship and his respect for co stars alltime awe
thanks

[joe]

Nice Thread on Makkal Thilagam.

Guys ,this is film section ,so i request you talk only about MGR -the Actor ,not MGR the politicians.

Why I am requesting is some people giving false information..Example Crab stated that DMK ignores MGR initially because of Sivaji ..Let him know sivaji was with Anna and kalainjar ,even before DMK was formed .When DMK was started ,Sivaji was the big cine star in DMK and he worked a lot for DMK and acted many dramas for free to collect fund for the Party..MGR came into DMK later only ..Once sivaji went to Thuruppathi temple with Director beemsing ..It became a big problem in DMK and few people in DMK against sivaji took this opertunity to make sivaji quit DMK ..When sivaji quit DMK ,Anna felt very bad ,he wishes sivaji 'Thambi engirunthaalum Vaazhga'..later kannadasan used this wordings for a song ..

coming to makkal thilagam MGR ..though I am a sivaji veriyan ,I have seen atleast 90 MGR movies out of his 135 ..I love songs in MGR movies..I will write more about MGR movies later.

[Surya]

Example Surya stated that DMK ignores MGR initially because of Sivaji.

What???!?!!?! Read that post again. I didn't even say that. It was CRAB!!

Take a look!!!


http://www.forumhub.mayyam.com/hub/v...r=asc&start=30

[joe]

Example Surya stated that DMK ignores MGR initially because of Sivaji.

What???!?!!?! Read that post again. I didn't even say that. It was CRAB!!

Sorry surya! I have corrected it

[m_23_bayarea]

m.g. ramachandran

http://www.upperstall.com/people/mgr.html

The height of emotional response that 'MGR' could evoke was evident when in 1987 during a critical illness, 22 people committed suicide in the hope their deaths would save him! Stories of poor people selling their blood in order to get money to see his films on first release are legendary!

Born Marudur Gopalamenon Ramachandran in Kandy, Sri Lanka, his family moved to Tamil Nadu where they lived in poverty. When he was 6, he joined a theatre group - the Madurai Original Boys. Here he picked up acting, dancing and swordplay.

MGR made his screen debut in Ellis R. Duncan's Sati Leelavathi (1936) but his first major breakthrough came much, much later with Rajakumari (1947).

MGR's 1950s screen persona in adventure films constructed an image of political as well as physical invincibility. Often the themes of his films were derived from heroic ballads which are part of the oral tradition of rural Tamil Nadu. For example - Madurai Veeran (1956), one of his most popular films, is based on the legend of Madurai Veeran, a popular deity of Southern Tamil Nadu. His legend has been the subject of various ballads and plays and this was the second filmed version of the story.

In the 1960s MGR turned to more 'realistic' fantasies mostly in a contemporary setting often playing someone from the oppressed class - a peasant, taxi driver or fisherman. For millions of fans, his image as the knight in shining armour, saving damsels in distress and being totally dutiful towards his mother was in fact a reality. Mother tongue, motherland and motherhood were what he based his popularity on. To quote M.S.S. Pandian in The Image Trap: M.G. Ramachandran in Film and Politics...

"The social universe of the MGR is a universe of asymmetrical power.......The conflict between the upper caste/ class oppressors and MGR as a subaltern, and its resolution forms the core of the film. MGR, in the course of the conflict, appropriates several signs or symbols of authority or power from those who dominate."

MGR used food, colour patterns (black and red, symbols of the DMK) and masquerades (often through double roles of oppressor and oppressed) to construct this universe. In Engal Thangam (1970) for example, MGR playing a truck driver Thangam, fights, sings, cares for the poor and preaches against smoking and drinking. The DMK colours - black and red are frequently featured in the clothes he wears. He even appears as himself in the opening scene at a Small Savings Function. Thangam is in the audience and even refers to him as 'vathiyar' (teacher), the reverent title by which he was known to his fans!

MGR had joined the DMK party in 1953 and remained its member till 1972. This included a brief stint in the Madras Legislative Council from 1962 - 64, being a member of the Legislative Assembly (1967) when the party won the state elections and the DMK Treasurer (1970).

He fell out with the DMK chief Karunanidhi and used the DMK's propaganda idiom against the DMK itself in Nam Naadu (1969). In 1972 he set up the rival Anna - DMK party claiming allegiance to the DMK's founder, the late Annadurai.

In 1977, his party renamed the AIADMK won the state elections in alliance with Indira Gandhi's Congress party. MGR became Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and was re-elected for three consecutive terms. As Chief Minister, he organized a totalitarian crackdown on all political dissent while introducing populist schemes such as the Chief Minister's Nutritious Meal Programme.

Having survived a bullet wound when he was shot at by fellow actor M.R. Radha in 1967 (which affected his speech), he achieved demi-god status following a paralytic stroke in 1984 which he survived for three years thus acquiring the label 'thrice born'. When he died in 1987, his funeral procession was attended by over 2 million people!

A temple has been built in Madras with MGR as deity.

[Miss Chennai]

I especially liked the Makkal Thilagam movies of the 50's like "Marma Yogi", "Malai kallan", "Kulebagavali", "Madurai Veeran" etc.

All these movies proved that Makkal thilagam is the champion; invincible human on earth and numero uno in everything he entered!

One movie that I badly waiting to watch is "Alibabavum 40 thirudargalum"