Nadigar Thilagam Sivaji Ganesan Part 12

Veerapandiya Kattabomman. A film that fetched NT an International Award at Cairo. The first time any Indian actor was lauded at an international arena. This is a snap scene by NT standards. He has a screen presence of roughly 1 minute. But just observe him. A. Karunanidhi comes in and warns Sivaji about the impending danger w.r.t Ettappan's betrayal and Bannerman coming with an army.

AK: Ettappan uLavu koorinAn...

NT is having his eyes closed. But he opens it and glances sideways from his right eyes with just a lift of the eyebrow to convey it to us exactly as "Ettappan" is uttered. Shot zooms in. He is praying to the Lord when this unexpected news reaches him. He is coming out of his worship with a "Muruga" and goes on contemplatively philosophizing about the yins and the yangs of life. He contemplates till he speaks about Ettappan after which a disappointed "pch" escapes him at Ettappan's betrayal (the way he "pch"s is immensely likable). The man is naturally disappointed. But he prepares himself for what is to happen and braving the betrayal, he screams instructions to A. Karunanidhi and inspires everyone around. The camera zooms out as though afraid of his wrath. Such is the screen presence. The screams of "VetrivEl VeeravEl" even rouses me in my chair as he inspires his Maravar koottam (Kallar, Maravar and Agamudaiyaar of the Mukkulam, precisely coming in Thevar Magan as he, as Periya Thevar, talks a couple of hundred years on about what happened a century and a half later from Kattabomman's time as this "KaattumiraaNdi paya koottam took the vElkambs and aruvaas and went VetrivEl VeeravEl as Subas Chandra Bose called". Essentially the same actor. But what a range from Kattabomman to Thevar!) What is more is, he is able to convey a meditative calm which transforms itself to a calm disappointment which leads to disappointed anger which morphs itself to the necessary righteous rage. All inside 1 minute noteworthy Kattabomman was of Andhra descent and might have spoken a TirunelvEli Tamil smattered with Telugu for all we know. But this is an actor's interpretation of a braveheart. And what an interpretation it is!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGo6fJM3WgY

It is the famed 'Thiruvilayadal' scene with Nakeerar.

A little bit of background. The film showcases it the way we know. Sivan comes as a poet, challenges Nakeerar's assumption of mistake in the poem, argues, tips over, rages, burns Nakeerar, retrieves him from the பொற்றாமரை குளம், blesses him for being true to his passion to Tamil, takes leave and Dharumi enjoys the spoils. However, there is another interpretation of this from Paranjothi's Thiruvilayadar PurANam, often discussed by Cho in his Hindu Maha Samudram. Nakeerar objected to the poem. The topic is dicey (women's hair's fragrance being natural or artificial at the end of the day is subjective and unless one undertakes a ludicrous study of women across the globe before and after wearing fragrant stuff, one can't be sure even today). So here, going by the வீரியம் of the poetry, it was fair of the King to reward Dharumi, assuming he wrote it. What mattered was it was a wonderful poem with some beautiful உவமை and the thought behind that, answering the King's question from the point of the view of the poet, should have sufficed. Again this is subjective and people can disagree. But Nakeerar objecting to the பொருள் was more out of ego (pride in being the best and the head of the தமிழ் திருச்சபை) is an import from Paranjothi and an interesting point of view. Arguable but entirely possible. The Lord willed to play with the pride of the poet to also tip him to the extreme. I shall come to this later. So in this backdrop, the film does not happen to underline the ego of the poet prominently (would be silly to show him scheming in his mind out of pride and I'm glad they left it open ended). It is more a true debate that ends with the Lord testing him and seeing and blessing his passion to the language on the surface. The deeper import could be that the poet's pride was burnt. A poet whose pride did not submit even upon knowing that the Supreme one was before him ought to be burnt is the logic. That this was disguised as passion toward the language was the greatest trick Paranjothi ever played. Like the poem in this story, this also ends up subjectively open ended.

So how does our acting genius portray this?

A blistering entry throwing Dharumi to the court and asking with brute irreverence about the guy who said the poem was wrong. Takes the stage, goes to the center having got the King's point that he needs to respect the person and asks if that guy is a notch above the King (because the King bats for Nakeerar when the other poet, Sivaji, questions Nakeerar's judgement. Important to note that the King is on Nakeerar's side and not exactly neutral). Nakeerar takes stage and says it was he who rejected the poem because it was wrong (he only says பழுதுள்ள பாட்டு and not he thought it was a பழுதுள்ள பாட்டு. To Nakeerar, this aint subjective. He claims the poem is objectively wrong). Our man, summa eLLi nagayAdarar Nakeerara. King is shocked even in his response and shows great deference while stating Nakeerar's name. But Sivan, in my eyes, is pricking at Nakeerar's pride. The next statement is a direct attack at Nakeerar's ஆணவம். This is the only spot where the scene comes close to directly mentioning the pride of the head poet. That it could be swept under the carpet of another poet's hurt is the masterstroke. But it is worth noting that the other poet is the Lord himself and NT is outstanding with his indignation.

Nakeerar is composed. He questions about the source of the poem, the very obvious question for the எதிர் கட்சி, for what ought to be Dharumi's poem is seeing blistering indignation from elsewhere. Our poet states the truth. Nakeerar harps on questioning the reason for sending Dharumi. For a moment, Nagesh's wit about "பரிசு குடுத்தா வாங்கிட்டு வரேன், வேற எதாவது குடுத்தா?" seems to be the surmise in Nakeerar's eyes, for our poet, a human in their eyes, would only look like a coward. Our poet dismisses it. Nakeerar harps on it again stating that a poet doesn't need to lie instead of touching the subject that lead this argument, the poem. The super ego is flared Smile "எல்லாம் எமக்குத் தெரியும்!" roars our poet. Indeed, the only person allowed such a super ego can be the Lord himself. This sequence in my view is an extremely intricate study of an ego clash. As Nakeerar follows it up with questioning our poet's ஆளுமை, watch NT. He is shaking. Shaking with rage. Boy what presence there! So Nakeerar asks his right to question the poem even if our man may know everything. Our man sneers in sarcasm that Keeran (no respect there either Smile ) is challenging him. Even as the King is trying to calm them down (the same guy who till now was nearly revering Nakeerar tries to calm both down, when the anger is from our side only Laughing the King is evidently taken aback at the level of சீற்றம் and the poor guy tries to be the diplomat). NT is still shaking, more prominently in fact from a longer shot! Our man asks the King to take a back seat. From now on, it's Nakeerar vs Our poet. Yay!

As our man asks where the mistake was, watch Nakeerar say "சொல்லில் குற்றம் இல்லை, இருந்தாலும் அது மன்னிக்க படலாம்." Really buddy?lol! (for a poet to make a mistake in the spelling/grammar is unthinkable and he says that can be pardoned) and as if everything depended on that, he says gravely, "பொருளில் தான் குற்றம் இருக்கிறது." Asked to render the poem, our poet does it so with bombast. Asked the meaning, our poet follows up with equal bombast and a sense of righteous indignation in his tone. Nakeerar asks its import. The shot zooms close to NT. NT for a moment seems to forget the verbal war and seems to indulge and enjoy the poetry and its import and we can see his face relax for a wee bit! He goes back to his older indignant tone as he says "...எழுதி இருக்கிறேன்", as though coming back to reality again. Micro moments of excellence.

What follows ups the ante. Our poet concludes by stating his interpretation with "இது தான் எமது தீர்ப்பு." He does doesn't say "இது தான் தீர்ப்பு" Smile Nakeerar disagrees. Our man turns the other way in fury. Watch the heave from NT in a 'take' just as Nakeerar refutes our man's theory. The argument continues, albeit in a generic manner with our poet asking if high class women suffer the fate Nakeerar ascribes to. Nakeerar responds in the affirmative. The argument is generic and as our man asks if Saraswati who speaks through Nakeerar's tongue also suffers the fate he ascribes to, Nakeerar says why Saraswati, "... அன்னை மலைமகள், உமையவள்! அவளுக்கும் இதே கதி தான்!" Watch the incredible nuance which Mohan Ram and P_R point to. NT just moves his right foot a little backward in an extremely subtle 'take' exactly at மலைமகள் as though taken aback at "his wife" being brought into the act. There, the supposedly overacting Sivaji stands back and laughs at the world that calls him thus. That is the tipping point. Our man rages and as Nakeerar swears on his Tamil poetry, our poet bursts into Sivan. First tipping point: his wife was brought in. Next tipping point: Tamil itself was brought in and sworn upon. We see that being followed by Nakeerar still holding his ground despite knowing who was on the other side. Popular version: he was fighting by what he thought was right. Underdog and more fascinating possibility: the great poet was clinging on to his pride even after knowing it was the Lord on the other end. What chance did Dharumi stand? (possible that Nakeerar was miffed that Dharumi was willing to sell his poetry. But even there, is it not the pride of a poet at display? Also possibly, could it not have been the misplaced pride of a poet which sees a poem more superior (coming from the Lord that is) than what he could possibly compose? Just a possibility. And that pride stands even as it realizes it is Lord on the other hand).

So as the Lord pours scorn and asks if he, the poet that makes ends meet by cutting into other's intelligence, is worthy of poking into the Lord's poem. What follows is the ultimate tipping point. "...சங்கரனார்க்கேது குலம்? ...சங்கை அறிந்துண்டு வாழ்வோம், அரனே உன் போல் இரந்துண்டு வாழ்வதில்லை." The poet after bringing in the wife and swearing on Tamil, pricks back at the super ego Smile and gets back for his ego being pricked. KABOOM! He is burnt and as things turn on their heads and the King is petrified, the Lord disappears, reappears, cools everyone down and goes back ending this stupendous sequence. Dharumi is given his prize. Bottomline was Lord burnt the excessive pride in Nakeerar. Yes, pride in a creator, poet, artiste is justified, but not in front of a superior ஆளுமை where humility is required. That gets under the garb of what we see on screen and is given an outstanding color by NT with screen presence, only he fossible bombast and the many nuances. Woah!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjZ9ZCOXxPo

PS: This did appear nearly a decade earlier in 'Naan Petra Selvam', written by APN, as a stage drama where Nakeerar and Sivan are both done by Sivaji (film la single role dhaan but the makers winking their eyes here on the audience in an intelligent manner). Coming in 1956, Sivaji was more interested in Nakeerar and that showed. Nearly a decade later, both APN and Sivaji raised the stakes and what awesomeness we get on screen!

CRITICISM & REALIZATION LATER

Post plum on Sat Dec 15, 2012 12:46 am
Talking about yatramozhi, I observed this yesterday:

Wow! What an endorsement! And saying this, the grand old man of Malayalam cinema actually falls at NT's feet. I bet Prathap Pothen didnt write that moment.

I actually have seen Mallu brothers making fun of NT as theatric while Thilagan and Lal are the natural actors.

This is as grand a statement as any that these two could make to make it clear who was the real emperor of acting.


So today I got first-hand proof of the impact this movie had on a mallu sister with the attitude I pointed above :

Some Random Mallu Sister with NT-mocking attitude once upon a time wrote:
I have always been wary of watching Sivaji Ganesan on screen. My introduction to the thespian came through watching him on Oliyum Oliyum, the Tamil version of Chitrahaar. A corpulent man, jowls quivering with emotion and eyes red with anger, whose dialogue delivery was more a declamation than speech was not very enthralling. When Sivaji Ganesan thundered, yenna da? even the heavens trembled. And of course, there was the slight Malayali snobbishness – our actors were better than their actors

And then she saw Oru Yatramozhi...

And then, some time in 1997, I got to watch a Malayalam film called Oru Yaathramozhi. I was blown away by the pathos the Nadigar Thilakam brought to his role as a man who meets his only son as an adult, develops a close relationship with him; not knowing that the son is on the lookout to kill the father who abandoned his mother and him.

It was a revelation. I began to understand just why the veteran actor commanded the respect that he did.

Post Joe on Fri Jan 04, 2013 12:30 am A FLASHBACK !


During our christmas trip to india this time , few casually asked my 7 years old son "who is your favourite actor?" ..expecting Vijay , Ajith , Surya ..But my son was firm "Shivaji Ganesan" LOL ..They stunned and looked at me and say "புள்ளையையும் கெடுத்துட்டியா? " Laughing ..But i had to tell the truth ..I didn't impose anything .. That is just one movie made the trick ..when Karnan was released in Singapore last year .. He wanted to come with me ,but I told him that It is old movie ..3 hours and full of old songs which you don't know ..sure you will be bored .. He asked me what is the story .. One thing he is very much interested in Rama , krishna cartoons and He likes Krishna more than Jesus ..lol ..I told him it is Mahabaratha ..oh..then he was adamant to join me ..then i brought him .. first 30 mins i was restless afraid that he might asked "Appa ..veetukku polama?" anytime ,but he was keen watching ,, every 10 mins I used ask "How is it? are you ok? " He said "I am OK appa" .. after intervel ..i myself mingled with movie ..during the climax ..when Karnan fell down and dying ..I just look at him .. Thaarai thaaraiya kaneer vadiyuthu Laughing

When movie ends he said "I didn't know that Krishna is such a bad guy" lol ..while returning home he truely said "Now I know why you always telling sivaji ganesan ..sivaji ganesan" Smile ..After that , he watched karnan atleast 5 times in youtube ,even once 2 days before ..

LET US KNOW OUR THALAIVAR MORE CLOSER :

http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...psc32da758.jpg

http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...ps33218e69.jpg

The Stylist Forever
The Tamil chevalier leaves behind him a kaleidoscope of characters and emotions
Kamal Haasan on Sivaji Ganesan


Sivaji saab is the genetic code embedded in every Tamil actor. Even if we try to be independent, the dna imprint remains. For 48 years, Tamils have been under the spell of Sivaji. He had a large heart—that was his medical problem too. We had almost given up on him in 1993 when the doctors gave him just two years. We took him to France, did everything we could. He survived his heart ailment for 15 years. But for his ill-health, he would have been active even in the last four years.

Sivaji was style personified—he would not take it off like a shirt. He slept in style; woke up in style; came to work in style. He was style. He was the trendsetter. And I'm proud to be his descendant.

My association with him dates back to my childhood. I was about four years old when we met in the studios. Once, he even said how I might have sat on his lap more than his children. He would always be in the studios then. I was the vidushak who would be made to recite Sivaji sir's dialogues on the sets.

Contd....

Sivakumar, a fellow-actor, and I used to have sessions where we competed over narrating his dialogues. We would compete over who remembered more. That's the kind of effect he has. Even for the present generation, Sivaji is the man. Upcoming artists are told, "Become an actor like Sivaji." Even for my children, he is the ultimate.

As for criticism that Sivaji overacted or was loud, why don't these westernised critics look at Akira Kurosawa's films? We have a certain style that is rooted here. We have either actors or non-actors. The Japanese never compromised to suit European tastes and I respect them. So much so that Hollywood went on to adapt/remake Japanese films. This is part of an Asian aesthetic. Sivaji too has to be translated for a western audience.

For that matter, even the early Chaplin was "loud". And so were Hollywood stars of the early black-and-white era. We are more willing to learn and try hard to appreciate an Elvis Presley but not our own icons. If Elvis spawned a thousand clones in the West, so did Sivaji here. He is our Elvis. He is the King.

Contd....

Now, an Indian funeral is itself so different—there's so much emotion, so many tears, such drama. A European funeral is such a contrast. There's great restraint. Even the sorrow is muted. Sivaji's acting is as much a part of our culture. But see how Sivaji in Thevar Magan turns a new leaf. Here, the actor steps out of his era. And Thevar Magan was my kind of salute to a doyen.

Personally, I can't be critical of Sivaji sir. I have been so close to him and such an admirer, I cannot be alive to his faults, if any. I lose my critical faculties. He's been a goading force, other than a guiding force. I am utterly biased about him and there's no scholar left in me. Sivaji has been such a challenge that it makes an actor ask himself, "What's the use of being born after him?" With Sivaji, you touch base.

The only thing Sivaji perhaps regretted was that he was not well-read like me. He lacked the vocabulary, he felt. That was his modesty. "I'm just a school dropout," he once said at a function. On the other hand, I have the dubious distinction of having uttered dialogues, even reciting poetry, in Telugu, Malayalam and other tongues. But I cannot read any of these languages. Whereas Sivaji was the master when it came to Tamil. Nobody could match up to him. Once, when I was a child actor, I could not pronounce arisi (Tamil for rice) correctly and he would intone it like me and make fun. He was the master of Tamil diction.

Contd...

As a politician, Sivaji failed. He was too straightforward. He never asked for favours, and was not clever or even wise in politics. Sivaji behaved like a king even in politics. I differed with Sivaji's political beliefs, but that would not in any way lessen my regard for him. And whatever their political differences, Karunanidhi and Sivaji made for a great artistic duo. (Karunanidhi scripted Sivaji's debut film Parasakthi and many more.) If one was the mind, the other was the voice.

The irony is Sivaji gave me an opportunity to rehearse the death scene in real life. After Thevar Magan, where we did a death scene, I received news from Singapore that he had passed away during a function there. I was so shaken and went through such emotions, and I was only a happy fool the next morning to realise that the news was wrong. But this time it was for real.

(The writer is a renowned actor and filmmaker)

Sivaji ganesan
1) Original Name : V.C.GANESAN (Villupuram C.Ganesan)

2) Popular Name : SIVAJI GANESAN -- the title "Sivaji" was given to Ganesan by the great Rationlist,Thanthai Periyar E.V.R.Ramasamy for his best performance in the role of Sathrapathy Sivaji in the stage play "Sivaji kanda Indu Saamraajyam" in the year 1946.

3) How Became An Actor: When he was 9 years old he ran away from his house. Nobody knew his whereabouts. After many days his mother and elder brother happened to trace him at a place near Trichirapalli where "Kampalaththaan Kooththu" a popular folk drama was taking place. Kattabomman's story was being enacted on stage in that Kooththu. Ganesan was very much interested in that particular drama. Even at that small age he had vowed that one day he would become an actor and do Kattabomman's role on stage.
Ganesan's mother brought him back to their house. She arranged through her elder son to get a placement for Ganesan in one of the popular drama troupes. Thus Ganesan first became a stage actor.

4) First film : His first film is "Paraasakthi". It was released in the year 1952.

5) Great Turning Point: "Parasakthi" was a great turning point not only in Sivaji Ganesan's acting Career but also for the entire Tamil Cinema Field. Before that there were mainly either Raja Rani Stories or religious and mythological stories with a number of songs which had great sway among Tamil Cinema audience. But "Paraasakthi" was a social film with revolutionery themes and lesser number of songs. More over the heart - catching, fiery dialogue by Kalaingar Karunanidhi made the film a super revolutionery one in terms of it's trend- setting nature and it's overall reformative impact on society.

6) Milestones : The Greatest Merit of Sivaji Ganesan is that no other actor either in Tamil Cinema or Indian Film Industry or in the whole
World has done such a great number of roles and acted in such a great varieties of roles depicting real life- like characters on screen and no other actor's acting carreer is so much saturated with such a great number of milestones in terms of unimaginable achievements as in that of sivaji Ganesan.

7)Meritorious Awards:
1) The Best Actor Award won in Afro- Asian Film Festival held in Gairo, Egypt in 1960.
2) Padmasri Title - 1966.
5) Padmabhushan Title - 1984
4) Chevalier Award of France 1995.
5) Dadha Saahib Paalkhe Award 1997.

8)Meritorious Qualities :
1) Modesty.
2) Punctuality.
3) Make-up Aptness and Physical Fitness that suit with 100% exactness any sort of role from Prince to Beggar and the Rugged Character to the Cultured Elite!
4) Infinite Veriety In Acting And Dialogue -Delivery - An Unreachable Feat by any other World Level Actor.


9)Unique Achievment: The No 1 ranked Actor the World has ever seen.

10) Ambition: Wants to act until the last breath of life and he would be even more happy, he once said, should his physical existence comes to an end while acting.

12) Mother Tongue: Tamil

13) Native Place: Villupuram, a small town in South Arcot district, in Tamilnadu, India.

14) Academic Education: III std, at the preliminary level of school education.

15) Father's Name: P.Chinniah Mandraayer. Though poor was very rich in his sprit of patriotism! Was imprisoned many number of times for his continued support and participation in the then Indian Freedom Stuggle under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. Jail become his second home.

16) Mother's Name: Rajamani Ammal. While her husband was in prison she had to undergo all sorts of hardships to feed her children and maintain the family.Lack of food made them at times to forgo food.

17) Marriage: Married Kamala, already a relative of him, who was a resident of Nagappattinam near Trichirappalli, Tamilnadu. This couple begot two male children later named Ramkumar and Prabhu, and two female ones Shanthi and Thenmozhi. Today all the four are married. Ramkumar looks after and manages Sivaji Films. Prabhu has become one of the busiest, leading heroes of Tamil Cinema.

18) Political Affiliations: From his first film onwards he was considered to be a staunch D.M.K. party sympathiser. After 1955 some dramatic changes took place. He was a neutralist for some years.
But at the end of 1961 he become a strong supporter of Congress Party. In that year he took part and delivered an address in the state Congress party Conference in which the then Prime Minister Pandid Jawaharlal Nehru and Kamarajar were the main participants. In 1982 Mrs.Indira Gandhi made him the Rajya sabha M.P. After 1687 came out of Congress and floated his own Political Party. 2 years latter became President of Tamilnadu faction of Janata Dal. After a few years he quit politics.

19) Honours Bestowed Upon Sivaji Ganesan: In 1962 Sivaji Ganesan toured America as its Special Guest. There, he was given one of the highest houours of being the Mayor of Niagara City for one day. After Prime Minister Nehru, Sivaji was the only Indian to get this honour.

In Hollywood he met world famous actors like Marlon Brando and some leading Cinema technicians.
Egyptian President Naasar, Singapore former Prime Minister, Ceylon President Chandrika, Indian former Prime Ministers Nehru, Indra Gandhi, V.P. Singh, former President Dr. Radhakirishnan, former Governer -General Rajaji, former Chief Ministers Kamarajar and Annadurai, Present Chief Minister Kalaignar Karunanidhi, Ex-Chief Ministers M.G.R., RamaRao and Jayalalitha were not only his associates but his very great admirers too!

What "Pillaiyaar Chuzhi" is for Letters (Yezhuththu), Sivaji Ganesan is for acting. Without touching him or starting with him the dictionary of acting won't get completed. Actor Raj Kapoor has earned for himself respect and recognition in world countries. Like that among our South Indian actors Sivaji Ganesan has done us proud by his world level popularity. Wherever Tamils live there the name of Sivaji Ganesan has become the household word for them.

It is an 100% established fact that Sivaji has accomplished the rare feat or achievement of committing his entire life for the sake of the art of acting!

Among the world famous actors, each of them has an individuating, unique style and method of his own in acting. But we can see in the one single actor Sivaji, all these different styles and talents are put together that he is able to portray in his acting any such particular style in the most perfect manner possible. If we try to scan his acting abilities with the help of a computer, we would be greatly startled and astonished. Even Steven Spielberg who created the Dino through computer would remain helpless had he been entrusted with the assignment of scanning Sivaji's acting abilities in a computer. To explain and criticise Sivaji's acting ability one is expected to be endowed with special talents.

May be the number of films acted by Sivaji are more than 300. But the number of character roles and kinds of 'abhinayas' portrayed in those films by Sivaji are really countless and innumerable! It would make anyone wonder whether his physical features were especially created for the express purpose of acting! He has got such an unbelievable and beautiful type of cinematic facial shape and get-up that one could film his facial features in all the 360 degree angles with equal beauty, charm and captivating enchantment. His eyes - if we look at them at close range,would seem as if prominently standing out and flashing forth brightness. His voice - would be roaring like lion! At the same time it (his voice) is also capable of bringing out the breezy softness of feminine nicety, whenever it is required.

From his boyhood to his youth he has put on different feminine get-ups and attires and has acted in the vastly different roles of national and world famous women characters! He has acted in the character role of Noor Jahaan as well as that of Mumtaj. The filmi characters of the popular film "Manohara" like the hero Manoharan, his mother Pathmavathi, father Purushoththaman, Vasantha Senai, her son 'asadan' Vasanthan---all these different character roles have been acted in perfect manner on different occasions by the single actor Sivaji in "Manohara" stage drama!

The quality of acting that Sivaji had shown in his performance in the feminine role of Padmavathi in "Manaohara" drama has not been matched even by such a great and fine actress like Kannamba who did that role in the film "Manohara", some critics say!. That's the unique feat of Sivaji. That feminine nicety that marked it's stamp in his acting in dramas didn't part ways with Sivaji later during his cinematic career too. Whenever he acted in such soft character roles in cinema, those past, stage experiences of having acted in feminine roles helped him a lot. In the film "Theiva Mahan", the second son Vijayan's style of walking, his mannerisms, abhinayas etc. are an example for this. Those characters of Puranas and epics as were depicted in books in the form of writing, that of photos and paintings were all shown before our very eyes when Sivaji acted in such roles in films which remains one of his great achievements. Apart from these he has accomplished yet another great feat by way of registering in the minds of the audiences with the never-dying memories of such unforgettable, popular character roles like the following : Gunasekaran in "Parasakthi", Muththaiyan in "Kalvanin Kaathali", Sengoden in "Makkalai Petra Maharaasi", Parthiban and Vikraman (double roles) in "Uththama Puththiran", Rengan in "Padikkaatha Methai" Kannaiyan in " "Bhagappirivinai", Raja Sekar in "Paasa Malar", Sikkal Shanmuga Sundaram in "Thillana Mohanambal", Shankar, Kannan, Vijayan (triple roles) in "Theiva Mahan", Bharath in "Sivantha Mann", Prestige Padnaba Iyer in "Vietnam Veedu", Mookkaiya Servai in "Pattikkaadaa Pattinamaa", Barrister Rajni Kaanth in "Gouravam" etc., etc.

When acting in extreme type of emotive scenes the eyes of Sivaji would seem reddish in colour. In colour films this would be seen in a crystal clear manner. That's not because of the application of any ointment. Whenever Sivaji acts emotionally or delivers dialogue ferociously or shows vigorous facial expressions, instantly his eyes would turn reddish automatically. When he comes back to normalcy his eyes would also turn to normal colour.

When we talk about 'eyes', the different character roles Sivaji has done in Purana films come to our memory. There is a saying that our Gods always keep their eyes open. Neither they would wink their eyes nor sleep, it is said so. In the film "Thiruvilaiyaadal" Sivaji who has acted as Siva Peruman has in none of the scenes winked his eyes! For us even to take note of that point while seeing the film becomes a strenuous job.

If we join our friends in the playful game of trying to keep our eyes wide open for a long time, without doing any winking, then tears would naturally fill in our eyes with some irritating sensation. But putting on heavy costumes and ornaments on the body, speaking long dialogues in the midst of eye-blinding bright lights during film-shooting and at the same time keeping the eyes wide open without closing them even for a fraction of a second is not an easy job indeed! But Sivaji has managed it very easily. Not only that. While he was dancing in the 'Ruthra Thaandavaa' scene in the film he didn't at all wink his eyes. Now one could understand how great a trouble and pain Sivaji might have taken for doing that role with that much perfection and grammar!

As said above, in cinema, Sivaji has accomplished so many number of great feats. One of them is that he has, more than any other actor, acted in countless number of close-up shots in multi-different scenes. He has given infinite variety of expressions during such close-up shots. To shoot such remarkable close-ups of Sivaji it is a pre-requsite that the cameraman also has special abilities and creative tastes!

To-day there has been so many novel, technical advancements that the modern negative film has got special qualities that bright lighting during shooting won't hurt either the artists' eyes or body, nowadays. 25 years back such advancements were not there. There was only one type of film then. That needed too much lighting for shooting. Without make-up one can not withstand the effects of such lighting.

If such was the condition inside the studio sets in those days, the situation at out-door shooting locations would be much more horrible. In the broad day-light and at the peak hours of the burning sun one had to face the most unbearable heat-waves! The reflectors used for shooting on such hot days made the worse things worst! It was under such grim and hard conditions that Sivaji had to do most of his films during his peak days in cinema!

The 'Pillaiyar Chuzhi' for Sivaji's acting was drawn by a 'theru kooththu' drama (folk drama) titled "Veera Pandia Kattabomman". Only on seeing that he developed a craze for acting and joined 'Boys Company', a popular drama troupe! Even after his entry into cinema and even while his popularity was going on growing day by day, he didn't forget 'Kattabomman'. Through his 'Sivaji Nadaka Mandram' he enacted that drama on stage for 100 times! Even many more times it could have been enacted had not his throat got hurt and started bleeding because of his ferocious dialogue delivery. While he was acting in the climax scene he delivered emotional dialogue against Banerman, he bleeded and fell unconscious! All were shocked. It was that film enacted by him taking that much serious risks that fetched him the "Best Actor Award" at the Afro-Asian Cinema Festival at Cairo, Egypt in the year 1960! He was the first Indian actor to get such a Foreign Award.

In "Neethi" film excepting a single song scene he was wearing pant and shirt in the same colour throughout the film. He didn't bother about his image and all. Like that in the matter of continuity in costumes also his memory power is remarkable! Having acted wearing a particular dress in a scene and during when the shooting resumes after a gap of a number of days, even when the costumer forgets the continuity in costume matter Sivaji won't forget that and he would ask for the right dress to wear.

By the help of the mere photographs (stills) one could clearly find out and name the different films of Sivaji. He is that much careful to change his make-up and overall get-up from film to film!

To-day many leading artists are reluctant to wear wigs. Even those with slight baldness near forehead, try to manage without wig by pulling up the hair from the back portion of their head towards the front-side!

But Sivaji inspite of his having beautiful, curled, original hair in most of his films he has used wigs. He himself applies finishing touches to his moustache and eyebrows!

For the role of Appar in "Thiruvarutchelvar" he has spent three hours daily for his exclusive make-up. To wipe it out an hour. To act in that role he has considerably reduced the quantity of in-taking food in order to make his body a little more lean.

In "Theiva Mahan" Sivaji has acted in the Triple role of father and two sons with a face that looks as if charred by fire. Whenever removing that make-up after the day's shooting his face's original skin also got stripped out here and there. After the regrowth of skin again the same make-up and same pain-taking!

In the beginning Sivaji exhibited his exceptional ability in dialogue delivery while he was acting in films penned by such towering personalities like Kalaignar Mu. Karunanidhi, Sakthi T.K.Krishnasamy, A.P.Nagarajan and so on. Afterwards Sivaji acted in films which gave importance to facial expressions. Those were films with sound story value.

REMINISCENCES

I have come across many unforgettable incidents through which I have learnt the practicality of life and which have also added pride to my life’s achievements. One of it involves eminent actor Sivaji Ganesan. I was once offered a program in Mangalore, Karnataka, for which I planned to perform a dance drama called Dharmamoorthy (on Jesus Christ). Sivaji Ganesan was to preside over the function. Unfortunately due to very bad climatic conditions, all the flights were cancelled. Despite the difficult and risky journey by road, Sivaji Ganesan opted to drive all the way from Chennai to Mangalore because of the respect and love he had for me since I had worked with him in many films as a choreographer.

- Udupi Laxminarayan

Conversations Over Chai

Come in, sit down, converse... Let's talk movies, music, books


I have always been wary of watching Sivaji Ganesan on screen. My introduction to the thespian came through watching him on Oliyum Oliyum, the Tamil version of Chitrahaar. And on the occasional regional language film that DD showed on Sunday afternoons. And, frankly? Weaned on Amitabh and Dharmendra, Rajesh and Vinod, a corpulent man, jowls quivering with emotion and eyes red with anger, whose dialogue delivery was more a declamation than speech was not very enthralling. When Sivaji Ganesan thundered, yenna da? even the heavens trembled.

And of course, there was the slight Malayali snobbishness – our actors were better than their actors. I conveniently forgot that MG Ramachandran and his arch nemesis MN Nambiar were both Malayalis. And that neither believed in restraint. And if I thought about it at all, then I would have shrugged it off as all the Tamil film industry’s fault – they demanded over-the-top theatrics.

And then, some time in 1997, I got to watch a Malayalam film called Oru Yaathramozhi. I was blown away by the pathos the Nadigar Thilakam brought to his role as a man who meets his only son as an adult, develops a close relationship with him; not knowing that the son is on the lookout to kill the father who abandoned his mother and him.

It was a revelation. I began to understand just why the veteran actor commanded the respect that he did. And so when I got a chance to watch Muthal Mariyathai, a movie that had released more than a decade earlier, I grabbed it.

In a dilapidated hut on the banks of a river, an old man, Malaichami (Sivaji Ganesan) lies ailing; it is the talk of the village; he had been their headman. The villagers have all massed at his wife Ponnatha’s (Vadivukkarasi) place begging her to stiffen her upper lip and go get him. He will not step into the house of his own volition, of that they are sure. The wife’s voice rises in indignation – why are they all blaming her? She had hoped that some of the village elders would have gone to bring her husband back. The villagers move to the hut; they are indignant on the ailing man’s behalf. The wife has not only not come to visit, she hasn’t allowed her daughter to come to her father.

The patient overhears the discussion; there’s a resigned smile on his face. Suddenly, as he draws a painful breath, far away, its pang is felt by a young woman who is in jail. He is waiting, waiting, and no one has any idea why, or for whom. She is suffering too – each mile that she travels cannot be too soon, and she does not know what she will find at journey’s end.

One of the village elders comes in to the hut – the man’s wife, daughter, son-in-law and grandchild have all come to see him. Could he open his eyes and see them? He doesn’t. His wife is infuriated. Who else but she would have put up with this man for over thirty years? And now, he is languishing in love? As her voice rises and falls in condemnation, the scene segues effortlessly into a flashback.
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If it is not her husband, then it is her husband’s orphaned nephew who is at the receiving end of her sharp tongue. At least her husband had a stick and four goats, she tells him; you don’t even have a piece of cloth to call your own and yet you sit there begging for food. As she desultorily serves her husband lunch with the same hand she used to wipe her nose, he quietly leaves in disgust. She is unperturbed.
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But the skies are clear; the sun is high up and there’s a pleasant breeze; Malaichami cannot be unhappy. He proceeds to the fields. As he sees his workers toiling in the fields, he bursts into song while they join in the chorus. It is clear that he is regarded with affection and respect.

A lone voice, clear and pure takes up the refrain from across the fields. Malaichami is upset when he sees someone step across the fence. They are immigrant workers who have left their village due to the famine, hoping to see if they can earn a living somewhere else. While the father is humble and subservient, the daughter (Radha) doesn’t take kindly to Malaichami’s teasing comments.

When he asks who she is, the girl informs him that she has a name – one that has been bestowed upon her in a temple, in the presence of the deity and many thousand relatives and friends. She is Kuyil (Cuckoo); spirited, independent and very much no-nonsense.
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Malaichami is amused, and sends them on their way. He is not as amused when he sees them building a hut on the riverbank the next day. The old man explains that they had not been able to find work either in the village or the fields; his daughter had had the bright idea of ferrying the villagers over the river so they could earn their living. Malaichami is not unkind; he agrees, warning them that they should ask permission first. He even inaugurates the boat service.
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Days later, he and his nephew are alone at home, when he spots a sparrow pecking at grains on the window sill. Amused, he breaks into a song begging the sparrow to find a mate and build a nest in their home. As he addresses the sparrow, he is surprised to hear it answer. Or so it seems.
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Kuyil, who was passing by selling fish, couldn’t help but respond. But when she hears him shout, Kuyil hides. Malaichami is intrigued. Who is there in the village who can answer him so well in song?
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The arrival of his wife soon puts a stop to any thought of music or song. At the fields, the workers are happy at the increased yield. Malaichami gently points out that it’s their hard work that has cause the earth to yield so much. And despite their protestations, he asks the overseer to share a sack of paddy amongst the workers.
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As Malaichami wanders around, he cannot keep from singing; once again, a disembodied voice answers him in song. Who is it?

In a bid to find out, Malaichami continues to ask questions in verse; and gets answers in return. Yet, he cannot find the singer. Once again, the song dies on his lips with the arrival of his wife. She is aghast at the idea of a responsible mature man singing in the fields. And furious when she finds out that he has allowed the workers to share a sack of paddy.
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If it were his money, then he would be bothered, perhaps. The workers are disgusted with her attitude, and quietly put back the paddy they had been given. Kuyil is witness to Malaichami’s humiliation.
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Malaichami remembers how his father-in-law had fallen at his feet to save their honour. As always, Malaichami turns to song to express feelings that dare not say out aloud. Kuyil’s sympathy finds her responding to his queries, and when he asks (sings) who she is, she cannot hide anymore.
He is surprised and amused, perhaps even attracted (a bit); it is clear that she thinks of him as she would her father.
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It does hurt his pride a bit, and when she challenges him to lift a heavy boulder, he asks her what the reward would be – it will prove he is young (and not only at heart), she says.
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He teases her – that’s not enough. Would she marry him? Shocked, she stares at him; then, not one to give up a challenge, promises to marry him if he succeeds. He has no intention of following up on his teasing, but when she leaves him, cannot resist trying to lift up the boulder, if only to prove to himself that he is young and strong.
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Needless to say, he doesn’t succeed.

From then on, every time he passes their hut, he cannot resist trying – much to Kuyil’s amusement. It angers her father when he hears about it, but Sengodan, the village cobbler, tells her Malaichami’s backstory. It shakes her to the core, and only makes her more sympathetic to a man who has become a friend.

Their friendship develops slowly with Malaichami helping her sell her goat for three times its worth; and Kuyil cooking the fish he helped her catch and forcing him to eat a meal at her house – she is aware of the hurt and sadness that he hides behind his bonhomie, and from that deep well of pity arises a love she does not care to hide.
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He’s touched by the care with which she serves him, and an affection that he hasn’t experienced for he cannot remember how long. It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Finally, one day, Malaichami succeeds in lifting the stone. Kuyil, who has watched him is astonished, but Malaichami is embarrassed.
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There is a side plot about the romance between Malaichami’s nephew and Sengodan's daughter, Sevuli (Ranjini). When her father fixes her marriage, the two elope. As they belong to a lower caste, Sengodan is afraid that she will be dishonoured. He comes to Malaichami for help. The latter is aghast – a relationship between castes? That’s against tradition, and the family’s honour. As he begins to search for the lovers, Kuyil, who has been helping them is furious – he is more bothered about tradition? Where was this tradition when he became friends with her?
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Better sense prevails and he gets the two of them married. Kuyil finds her affection deepening into love.
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Meanwhile, the two young lovers are deliriously happy. Until one day, Sevuli is drowned. The Panchayat brings in a verdict of accidental death, but her father is not satisfied. He has proof she’s been murdered.
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Malaichami is perturbed – who in the village would commit such a heinous crime? That senseless tragedy is compounded by another. And Malaichami is a broken man. The music is finally stilled.

His only solace is Kuyil, but even that’s not destined to last.
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It brings matters to a head, however, and despite his hurt at the way their relationship is tarnished in public, he stands by her. Kuyil is curious – why did he say what he did?
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When he confesses that he said it in the heat of the moment, she is devastated. Her reaction shocks him. But Kuyil is unrepentant. Her heart beats for him. And can he say he doesn’t care for her?

How can Malaichami respond? And his wife? It’s not in her nature to stand aside. How will the village panchayat respond to the headman’s indiscretions? What is the dark secret that Malaichami is hiding? And Kuyil? Will her self-respect allow her to keep silent in the face of his rejection?

As I mentioned earlier, Sivaji Ganesan was Malaichami; benevolent, playful, paternal – who, bound in a claustrophobic marriage, becomes friendly with the boatman’s daughter; a relationship that matures into love. His sorrow when faced with his wife’s shrewishness, his almost-constant humiliation at her hands, his affection and benevolence toward the villagers, and his wonder at being loved unconditionally by a girl young enough to be his daughter – it was amazing to see all that expressed with very little dialogue. Even when Kuyil asks him to be true and ask himself if he didn't love her, he is adamant he doesn't - because he cannot imagine himself doing so; she's young enough to be his daughter. However, once he admits it to himself (and it's a hard thing to do), he has no reservations about admitting it to her.

Vadivukkarasi as Ponnatha was no less effective – she makes you itch to slap her. She constantly rubs her husband’s face in the fact that it’s her father’s money that allows him to swagger around as the headman of the village. And makes no bones about publicly insulting him, or even calling the Panchayat and her relatives to punish him for daring to consort with a lower-caste woman. Everyone knows her for what she is, her daughter, the villagers, but she is not cowed down – she is dominating, domineering, and absolutely unlikeable, and the actress ensured that we hated her. Yet, in the end, when she is faced with the bitter truth, and she deflates into nothingness, one feels a sneaking sympathy for a woman; you get the feeling that, in that one moment, she has lost something irrevocable. And there’s a fleeting sadness because her pride was all that she had.

Radha. What can I say about her? This was an actress who was known for her glamorous roles. Who sashayed on the screen in false eyelashes, mini skirts and enough make-up to make taking it off an hour-long endeavour, and who was happy to remain arm-candy to the various heroes who happened to be around. She was also the ruling heroine of the time.

Kuyil was a challenge; one that she handled with such ease that one wishes that she had been given so many more opportunities than she received. Her sprightliness and independence is established right in the beginning. Her courage in standing up for what she feels is right comes to the fore when she excoriates Malaichami for giving in blindly to tradition. Her sympathy for the latter, and its slow development into a lasting love, where no sacrifice is too great to ensure his happiness – the actress used her beautiful eyes and mobile face to great effect. It was a role that most heroines would give their eye teeth for. And it’s to Radha’s credit that, nearly twenty-five years later, I cannot imagine another contemporary actress doing it as well.

This was another national award winning performance that got shafted at the National Awards – Radha lost out to Suhasini in Sindhu Bhairavi, and across the border in Kerala at least, shock rippled through cinema-lovers. The reactions to Sridevi’s shocking loss three years before this was being replicated across the state - How could they?

Muthal Mariyathai is a realistic depiction of different relationships between man and woman on one side, and a sensitive exploration of a May-December romance on the other. With Bharatiraja masterfully helming his own script, and Ilaiyaraja’s melodious score (and background), Muthal Mariyathai merged story, music and acting into one harmonious whole. For the first time (that’s what I read somewhere; if it’s not, please let me know), the maestro used Esa paatu – the musical trope where one verse asks questions and the following verse (by another singer) provides the answers.

At the end, I became a diehard fan of Sivaji Ganesan and will now sit through even his most theatrical of films (in small doses). That's the Power of Nadigar Thilagam !!! Puriyaadhavargalukku avar endrum Pudhir...! Purindhavargalukku Endrum Avar Punidham !

‘Nadigar thilakam’! He was popular as ‘Simmakuralon’ – having the voice of a lion! He was the model for acting for all his successors. Acting meant everything to him. He acquired his acting skills by working on the stage from his younger days and his debut movie was Parasakthi (1952). He was greatly attached to K. B. Sundarambal. He used to ask the great singer render old songs whenever he was free in between his schedules. During the shooting of the film Thiruvilaiyadal, A. P. Nagarajan, the director of the film was preparing a shot for a song sequence with Sundarambal. At that time, Sivaji Ganesan entered the spot and asked the director whether he was going to shoot the ‘sharbat song’! Nobody present there could understand what Sivaji meant. Then Sivaji came out in a lighter vein that he meant “gnana pazhathai pizhindhu …’ song! To this, KBS ridiculed Sivaji as ‘Netrikanna’ in a lighter vein! Then Sivaji pretended as though pacifying KBS and said that he wanted to see the shooting of that particular song because he was very much impressed when he heard its audio version. KBS was teary with joy at Sivaji’s words.


'Kaka' Radhakrishnan continued, "Sivaji Ganesan's father Chinnayya Mandrayar was a great patriot. He took part in the freedom struggle. He plotted with some other men to blow up the train with dynamite that was carrying the British army. But the team was caught by the police and Sivaji's father was also put in jail. Sivaji was born on that particular day, on 1 October 1928. His father, who was released after seven years of imprisonment, took Sivaji, a seven-year old to watch Kattabomman drama. In those days, small boys required for one or two scenes in the drama would be picked up from among the audience, they would not be regular artistes. On that day, Sivaji, who was sitting in the front row, was picked up for stage appearance. He was to stand as part of the British army. Sivaji’s first stage experience was an accident, not planned. But, on returning home, Sivaji’s father beat him severely censuring him for having joined the British army (on stage only, of course)! Sivaji’s mother Rajamani Ammal gave her son fomentation as Sivaji had red patches all over his body due to the beatings."

Radhakrishnan recalled some anecdotes that happened when Sivaji worked with M. R. Radha. “M. R. Radha left our troupe and returned after sometime on his own. Both Radha and Sivaji had a lot of affection for each other. Radha used to comb our hair, clean the rooms and even the bathroom as he was always particular about cleanliness. And he knew to repair electrical goods and automobiles.

Sivaji donned the role of a woman in a drama ‘Pathibhakthi’. Sivaji was required to push down Radha and hit him with his leg in a particular scene. But Sivaji hesitated because he had great respect for Radha and looked upon him as his own father. Radha tackled the situation cleverly by falling down on the floor and shouting ‘iyayyo …iyayo …’, signaling to Sivaji to hit him with leg. After the scene was over, he censured Sivaji with harsh words for having failed to act. Radha was always for competitive performance. During the next staging of the play, Sivaji excelled Radha in that particular scene. Radha inculcated in Sivaji the feeling of identifying oneself with the character he acted.

Majordasan – "I should thank Major Sundararajan only for my close contact with Sivaji Ganesan. When I interviewed Sivaji for the first time I asked him how it happened that Sivaji acted in the role that was marked for MGR in the ‘Sivaji kanda Indu rajyam’ drama, written by Arignar Anna. 'Madi Oli' Shanmugam tried to defuse the situation by telling Sivaji that I, being very young, didn’t know that I shouldn’t have put that question. But, Shivaji didn’t mind my question. He said, "In the year 1946, Dravidar Kazhagam was making arrangements to hold its 7th Self-respect conference in Madras. The drama was meant for that occasion only. Even the costumes were ready for MGR. But subsequently MGR backed out, I didn’t know the reason. Anna asked me to do the role and gave me the script which contained 72 pages of dialogues. The time left for the staging was only one week. And, Anna came again in the evening. I performed before him delivering the dialogues with suitable modifications in voice. Anna was so impressed and surprised at my performance. The dresses stitched for MGR were altered to suit my measurements. Anna brought Periyaar who used to say that fine arts and artistes were responsible for the degeneration of the society to watch the drama. Periyaar was so pleased and wondered that Anna had conveyed in a single drama what all he had planned to tell at the conference. When Anna introduced me as Ganesan to Periyaar, he told me that I would be Sivaji Ganesan thereafter. I got this title even before I entered cinema."

Preface

I have nothing to write a preface about Late Sivaji Ganesan as I could only recall a Radio Interview of Ilayaraja during the year 1978 when he was asked to comment on this legend. I quote his comments as under:
"A Rose has its own fragrance. Just because Ilayaraja has told that Rose has a special odour it will never get supplemented. If I talk anything about him, it would be exaggeration, else even if I don't say anything about him, his ledendry is not going to fall.
Shri. SIVAJI GANESAN IS A CLASS OF HIS OWN"
I want to maintain the same status quo except for telling the fact though I never watch movies, I can proudly say that Sivaji Ganesan is the only actor who was born to stay permanently in the hearts of millions of fans all over the world.
Sivaji Ganesan

Viluppuram Chinnaiahpillai "Sivaji" Ganesan (October 1, 1928 - July 21, 2001) was an Indian film actor and one of the first method actors in India , active during the latter half of the 20th century. His fame came from his versatility and expressive prowess in Tamil cinema . He was the first South Indian film actor who won a best actor award in an international film festival, the Afro-Asian Film Festival held in Cairo , Egypt during 1959. Sivaji's legacy of acting is still admired today, also being an influence to many other Indian film actors. Many contemporary actors in South India have confirmed that their acting styles were influenced by Ganesan.
Acting career
Debut as a lead artist

Apart from his immense success and reception in Tamil cinema , he has also acted in Hindi , Telugu , Malayalam , Bengali , and Kannada-language films. Ganesan's first film was the Tamil film Parasakthi in 1952, co-starring actress Pandari Bai . The script for the film was written and directed by the now- Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu , M. Karunanidhi . He took his stage name from Emperor Shivaji , one of the roles he had once enacted.
Donning versatile roles

In most of Ganesan's films, he played multiple roles, commercial roles, and roles of a Hindu deity specially the Lord Shiva role. The portrayal of Lord shiva in the movie Thiruvilayaadal won him lot of accolades in and around the film industry. In the film Navarathiri (1964), Ganesan donned nine different roles that represented the nine emotional states of a person. Hindi actor, Sanjeev Kumar , was inspired by this film and reprised the nine roles in Naya Din Nayi Raat in 1974. Ganesan could strike a balance between commercial cinema,Mythological cinema and experimental cinema. Sivaji was always unique when compared to other actors in India during his generation. Expert analyst from cinema admitted the three best versatile actors from India at that time were Shivaji, Dr.Rajkumar and N. T. Rama Rao . He experimented in films like Thiruvilayaadal , Thiruvarutselvar , Thirumal Perumai , Karnan , Veerapandiya Kattabomman , Thillana Mohanaambal and Raja Rishi . His role in the film Veerapaandiya Kattabomman made him the first South Indian actor recognized outside India in the Afro-Asian film Festival at Egypt. He was also applauded for his acting in the film Aalyamani which was remade later by N. T. Rama Rao .
Appealing to the masses

Sheer variety of Ganesan's roles gave him much acclaim and honour. He co-starred with his counterpart, M. G. Ramachandran in one film, which was Koondukkili . He has worked with many of the leading actresses of his time, including Savithri , Padmini , B. Sarojadevi , K. R. Vijaya and J. Jayalalitha . He also co-starred with other lead actors such as Gemini Ganesan , Muthuraman , M. R. Radha , and many more.


Though he accumulated awards throughout the '50s and '60s, it was in 1972 that Ganesan delivered his first all-time blockbuster Vasantha Maaligai . In 1979, he delivered his second and final all-time blockbuster Thirisoolam , adapted from the Kannada film Shankar Guru in which Dr Rajkumar had played the lead role. After this, Sivaji Ganesan began acting in supporting roles. Due to his popularity and his rival MGR's success in politics Shivaji entered politics and had to face big setback as he lost consecutive elections. But due to his proximity with the then prime minister Indira Gandhi he was made the member of Rajya Sabha in 1983. Indira Gandhi's death in 1984 also brought Sivaji's political career to an end.
Nearing retirement

In the 1990s, as Ganesan was aging, he co-starred with several other actors. His notable films supporting roles were Veerapaandiyan , Jalli Kattu , Pudhiya Vaanam , Thevar Magan , Pasumpon and En Aasai Raasaave . His last film before his death was Padayappa in 1999 which was also a blockbuster.


Apart from his numerous roles as a single star on screen, Ganesan has acted in supporting roles with many leading actors from different eras. Ganesan has co-starred with M. G. Ramachandran , M. N. Nambiar , Gemini Ganesan , Kamal Haasan , Rajinikanth , Prabhu Ganesan , Sathyaraj , Vijayakanth , Mohanlal , Ramarajan , Y. G. Mahendran , Sivakumar , K. Bhagyaraj , Karthik Muthuraman , Arjun Sarja , Joseph Vijay and Abbas . He has also worked with a vast amount of directors and producers. His legacy continues to be remembered today and is looked upon by many leading film actors.
Death

Suffering from respiratory problems, Ganesan was admitted to the Apollo Hospital in Chennai on July 21, 2001. He also had been suffering from a prolonged heart ailment for about 10 years. He died at 7:45pm (IST) on July 21, 2001 at the age of 73. A documentary, Parasakthi Muthal Padayappa Varai was made to commemorate Sivaji Ganesan's legacy. His funeral was attended by thousands of viewers, politicians and personalities from the South Indian film fraternity.
Legacy
Statue

A statue was erected in Chennai , Tamil Nadu to honour the actor in 2006. It was unveiled by the Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi .
Actors' Day

The former South Indian Film Artistes' Association president Vijayakanth declared that October 1, the birth day of Ganesan, would be observed as Actors' Day in the Chennai film industry .
Domestic popularity

Sivaji Ganesan has remained as the most popular Tamil actor with the most of number of fans. This fact has been confirmed by many independent surveys conducted.


The popular Tamil magazine Kumudam conducted a survey in 1990. Sivaji Ganesan was voted as the most popular actor with (35%) votes followed by M. G. Ramachandran (30%), Rajinikanth (20%) and Kamal Haasan (15%). Though the survey was conducted in 1990, when Sivaji Ganesan had almost retired from acting and Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan were rising stars in Tamil cinema.
Popularity in the US

During a visit to the U.S. in June 1995, Sivaji Ganesan found himself in Columbus, Ohio . Mayor Greg Lashutka named him honorary citizen of Columbus at a special dinner.


In 1962, Ganesan toured the U.S. , where he was given the honour of being the mayor of Niagara City for one day. He along with the former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru were the only two Indians to be honoured this way.


When actor Marlon Brando visited India, he was shown film footage of Sivaji Ganesan. From then on Brando admired Sivaji Ganesan for his acting style. He also stated that "Sivaji Ganesan may act like me but I cannot act like Sivaji Ganesan."

Awards and honours

Sivaji Ganesan's most prestigious award was the 'Chevalier' in 1995, awarded by the National Order of the Legion of Honour in France . This is one of the main decorations of the French Republic which is conferred to honour the most original and talented personalities, for their remarkable contributions in the field of Arts and Literature in France and all over the world. On April 22, 1995, at a ceremony held at the MAC Stadium, Chennai , Sivaji Ganesan was presented the Chevalier title and medallion by the French Ambassador to India, Philip Petit. J. Jayalalitha , the entire Tamil film industry and representatives of all other Indian regional film industries were present at the ceremony.
Other awards

Afro-Asian Film Festival Best Actor Award, 1959
Padma Shri , 1966
Padma Bhushan , 1984
National Film Award - Special Jury Award for Thevar Magan , 1993
Chevalier (Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres , France ), 1995
Dadasaheb Phalke Award , 1996
Kalaimamani , 1997
NTR National Award , 1998
Honourary doctorate

Outstanding work surya sir,thank you very much for your efforts

dear RKS. Like a summer shower with thunder, like an oasis amidst a desert, like a Godzilla emerging from deep blues.....Like NTR's Krishna showing his viswaroopam high blues to NT's Karnan...amazing pages in succession. This thread feared to have had an irreversible plastic sagging, now gets stretched within its elastic range thanks to your மலைக்கவைக்கும் spurt of postings! Thank you Sir...for keeping us warm blooded.

Ravikiran, I am reminded of this Bond title song:

He always runs....while others walk!.....and he strikes....like THUNDERBALL! this song matches your traits too RKS!

ஆழிப்பேரலைகளாய் (Tsunami) சுழன்றடித்தீர் Ravikiran Surya!!! Congrats!!! எப்ப படிச்சு முடிக்கிறதோ, தெரியலையே!!! சொக்கா!!!

ஏம்பா , இங்கே வர கூடாதென்றாலும்,மனசு கேக்கலியே.(வாசு மாதிரி கல்மனம் இல்லை எனக்கு) இப்படி அனாதையாய் விட்டு விடுறீங்களே தொபீரென்று?நான் வந்து மாஞ்சு மாஞ்சு எழுதினால் மேலே மேலே போட்டு ஒரே நிமிடத்தில் பதிவை மூணு நாலு பக்கம் பின் தள்ளி சமாதி கட்டுவீர்கள். யாரும் போடாத போது சும்மா கை கட்டுவீர்கள்.என்னய்யா இது? அதுதான் முழுக்க காலி பண்ணி கொடுத்து ,விளயாடிக்கோங்க என்று ஒதுங்கியாச்சே? எங்கே ரவி,ராகுல் எல்லாம் கூட காணும்?

ரவி கிரண் சூர்யா -நெஞ்சார்ந்த நன்றிகளும் ,வாழ்த்துக்களும். அசுர உழைப்பு.தூள் நைனா.பட்டை கிளப்பிக்க.

http://i59.tinypic.com/v6hgxz.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by RavikiranSurya

LET US KNOW OUR THALAIVAR MORE CLOSER :
http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...psc32da758.jpg

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Dear RKS,

The Correct Date of Birth of Nadigarthilagam is - 01-10-1928, 4.30 pm

http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...ps321b21f8.jpg

http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...pse3a3bc03.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kalnayak

ஆழிப்பேரலைகளாய் (Tsunami) சுழன்றடித்தீர் Ravikiran Surya!!! Congrats!!! எப்ப படிச்சு முடிக்கிறதோ, தெரியலையே!!! சொக்கா!!!

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Good work RKS Sir

http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...ps1cd4b3b4.jpg

This is also from media only, I am used to seeing Nadigar Thilagam.com almost every week. There I got this link. I do not know if this is correct.

http://www.thalaivansivaji.com/sivaji-kural-9/


கல்லாத பேரையெல்லாம் கல்வி பயிலச் செய்து காண்பதில் தான் இன்பம் என் தோழா
a material fromm Thiru. Sailesh Basu of MGR thread
:idontgetit:

செலுலாய்ட் சோழன் – 17
சுதாங்கன்

சிவாஜியின் பரத நாட்டிய திறமை வெளிப்பட்டதற்கு உதாரணம் தூக்கி தூக்கி படத்தில் வரும் பாடல் `குரங்கிலிருந்து பிறந்தவன் மனிதன்’. இந்தக் காட்சியில் சிவாஜியுடன் நடனமாடிய இருவருமே நாட்யத்தில் நன்கு தேர்ச்சி பெற்றவர்கள். அப்போது சினிமாவில் ந்டனமென்றாலே இந்த சகோதரிகளைக் கூப்பிடுங்கள் என்று சொல்லுகிற அளவிற்கு புகழ் பெற்றவர்கள் அவர்கள் தான் லலிதா, பத்மினி ராகினி சகோதரிகள்.

இந்தக் காட்சியில் சிவாஜியுடம் நடனமாடியவர்கள் பத்மினியும், ராகினீயும். இருவருமே படத்தில் அரசகுமாரிகள். சிவாஜி ஒர் பைத்தியம் மாதிரி அந்தக் காட்சியில் நடிப்பார். அதாவது மற்றவர்கள் செய்வதை அப்படியே செய்து காட்டுவார்.

இப்போது அந்த இருவரும் பாடி நடனமாடுவதைப் போலவே சிவாஜியும் செய்து காட்ட வேண்டும். அந்தப் பாடல்தான் குரங்கிலிருந்து பிறந்தவன் மனிதன்’ இந்த பாடல் காட்சியை இன்று பார்த்தாலும் அசந்தே போவோம்
அந்த இரு நாட்டிய தாரகைகளுக்கு இணையாக நடனமாடியிருப்பார். அதற்குக் காரணம் சிவாஜி கணேசனுக்குள்ளிருந்த அந்த ஈர்க்கும் சக்தி. எத்தனையோ பேர் நடனமாடுவார்கள். ஆனால் சிலர் மட்டுமே நடனத்தில் புகழ் பெறுகிறார்கள்.
நடனத்தில் மிக முக்கியமானது தாளமும், பாவமும் தான். இது சொல்லிக்கொடுத்து வருவதில்லை. அது பிறப்பிலேயே, இருக்க வேண்டும். இதை ஆங்கிலத்தில் `GENETIC INFLUENCE’ என்பார்கள்.

சினிமாவிற்கு வருவதற்கு முன்பே தன்னிடமிருக்கும் தாளம் பாவ திறமைகளை தன் நாடகங்களில் வெளிப்படுத்தி இருக்கிறார் சிவாஜி.

உதாரணமாக நாடகத்தில் அவர் பெண் வேடம்போட்டு `நூர்ஜகான்’ ஆக வருவார் . அப்போது ஒரு நளினமான நடை நட்ந்து வருவார் ச. பெண் வேடத்திலிருந்து இந்த சிவாஜியின் நடையையும் நளினத்தையும் பார்க்கவே ரசிகர்கள் திரும்ப திரும்ப வருவார்களாம்

வெளியூர்களில் நாடகங்கள் நடக்கும்போது, பல ஊரில் அந்த ஊர் பணக்காரர்கள் சிவாஜியை பெண் என்றே நினைத்து ஆசை நாயகியாக வைத்துக் கொள்ள தூது அனுப்பிய சம்பவங்களும் அவரது வாழ்க்கையில் உண்டு.
இதை சிவாஜியே ஒரு முறை என்னிடம் சொல்லியிருக்கிறார்.

நடனத்தில் மிக முக்க்கியமானது தாளம் . அத அடவுக்கேற்ப ஆடவேண்டும். நவரச பாவங்களுக்கும் நாட்டியத்தில் தாளக்கட்டு உண்டு. இந்த நடன அடவுகளுக்கு பஞ்ச நடை என்று சொல்வதுண்டு. உதாரணமக திகிட,என்றால் 3 அடிக்குண்டானது திஸ்ரம் என்பார்கள். தகதிமி என்றால் 4 இதை சதுஸ்ரம் என்பார்கள். தக்கதகிட 5 இது கண்டம். தகிடதகதிமி 7 இது மிஸ்ரம்/ தகதினிதக்கதகிட 9 இது சங்கீர்ணம்

பெரும்பாலும் ரெளத்திரமான நடனங்களுக்கு, சிவதாண்டவமெல்லாம் இந்த சங்கீர்ண அடவுக்குள் வரும். அதே போல் இந்த தூக்குத் தூக்கி பாட்டு மிஸ்ரத்தில் அமைந்தது. அந்த அடவுக்குள் ஆடவேண்டும். அதற்கு அந்த தாளம் என்பது ஆடுபவரின் உடல் மூலமாக வெளிப்பட வேண்டும்.

கூடவே அதற்குண்டான பாவம் வெளிப்படவேண்டும், காதல் நடனத்தில் கோபம் வெளிப்படக்கூடாது. இதை அப்படியே உள் வாங்கியிருப்பார். தூக்குக் தூக்கி இந்த பாடல் காட்சியில் பத்மினி, ராகினி இருவரின் முக பாவங்களை விட சிவாஜியின் பாவம் தூக்கி சாப்பிட்டு விடும்

ஆரம்ப காலங்களில் சிவாஜி நாடகக்குழுவில் இருந்த போதே சாஸ்திரப்படி பரதம், பாடல்களைக் கற்றுக் கொண்டவர். ஆனால் பின்னர் வந்த கமல்ஹாசனை போல் முழு நேர பயிற்சி கிடையாது.

சிவாஜி பெரிய கர்நாடக சங்கீதப் பிரியர். எம்.ஜி.ஆருக்கு அதில் பைத்தியமே உண்டு. இருவருமே ஒரு பாடல் உருவானவுடன் அது எந்த ராகத்தில் உருவானது என்று சட்டென்று சொல்லிவிடுவார்கள்.

சிவாஜி மேடையில் பாடிக்கொண்டிருந்தவர்தான். அவர் குரல் அப்போதெல்லாம் மிக அருமையாக இருக்கும் பிறகு திரைக்கு வந்ததும், தன் கவனம் நடிப்பை விட்டு திசை திரும்பி விடக்கூடாது என்பதில் கவனமாக இருந்தார்.
அதற்கு அவர் சொன்ன உதாரணம். எம்/கே. தியாகராஜ பாகவதர், டி.ஆர் மகாலிங்கம். இந்த இருவருக்குமே அபாரமான குரல்கள். அவர்கள் குரலைக் கேட்கவே ரசிகர்கள் கூடுவார்கள். இருவருமே இயற்கையில் அழகானவர்கள்..
அந்த அழகு முகத்திலிருந்து வரும் சொந்தக் குரல் பாடல் ரசிகர்களை இழுத்தது. ஆனால் அவர்கள் நடிப்பு அத்தனை பிரமாதம் என்று சொல்லிவிடமுடியாது. இதை சிவாஜி நன்றாக உணர்ந்திருந்தார்.
`எனக்கு அவங்கள மாதிரி பாட்டு ஞானம் கிடையாது. நல்லா பாடுவேன். அவங்க பாடற சுருதியில் என்னால கிட்ட கூட முடியாது. இரண்டு பேருடைய அழகும் கேட்கவே வேண்டாம். எங்கிட்டயிருந்த ஒரே பலம் என் நடிப்பு, நாட்டியத்தில என் தாள ஞானம். பாட்டிலிருந்த அந்த ராக அறிவு. அதனால நான் என் நடிப்பிலதான் கவனம் செலுத்ததுனங்கிறதுல உறுதியாக இருந்தேன் என்றார் சிவாஜி.

ஒரு பாட்டுக்கு உதட்டசைப்பது என்பது வேறு. பாடுவது என்பது வேறு. அந்தக் காலத்தில் நாடகங்களில் மைக் வசதி பிரமாதமாக இருக்காது. நடிகர்கள் உரத்த குரலில் பாடவேண்டும். அப்படி பாடும்போது அடுத்த நாள் முகம் வீங்க, தொண்டை கட்டிக்கொண்டு விடும் இதனால் அடுத்த நாள் நாடகம பாதித்த சம்பவங்களும் உண்டு.

ஆனால் சினிமா என்பது பெரும் பணம் போட்டு எடுக்கிற தொழில்.. அப்படி பாடி விட்டு, அடுத்த நாள் தொண்டை கட்டினால் முகம் வீங்கினால் தயாரிப்பாளருக்குத்தான் நஷ்டம் .இதையுணர்ந்த சிவாஜி பாடுவதை விட்டு விட்டார்.
ஆரம்ப காலங்களில் சிவாஜிக்கு ஆஸ்தான பாடகர் சி.எஸ். ஜெயராமன் தான். சில பாடல்கள் மட்டும் சீர்காழி பாடியிருப்பார். சபாஷ் மீனா படத்தில் வரும் `கானா இன்பம் கனிந்ததேனோ பாட்டை மோதி என்பவர் பாடியிருப்பார்.
தூக்குத் தூக்கி படத்தில் அந்த அபூர்வ நிகழ்வு நடந்தது.

`கொண்டு வந்தால் தந்தை’
கொண்டு வந்தாலும், வராவிட்டாலும் தாய்’
சீர் கொண்டு வந்தால் சகோதரி’
கொலையும் செய்வாள் பத்தினி
உயிர் காப்பான் தோழன்’
இந்த அடிப்படைகளைக் கொண்டு அமைக்கப்பட்ட திரைக்கதை. இந்த படத்திற்கு இசை ஜி.ராமனாதன். அவர் வெளியே ஒரு குரலைக் கேட்டார்.

பாகவதர் பாணியிலே பாடிய அந்தக் குரல் ஜி. ராமநாதனை வெகுவாக கவர்ந்தது.
தூக்குத் தூக்கி படத்திற்கு அவரை பயன்படுத்த நினைத்தார் ஜி.ராமநாதன்.
சிவாஜி ஒப்புக்கொள்ளவில்லை. வேண்டாம் எதற்கு இந்த `ரிஸ்க்’? என்றார்.
உடனே ராமநாதன். நான் பதிவு பண்றேன். பாட்டை கேளுங்க. உங்களுக்கு பிடிக்கலேன்னா, வழக்கம் போல் நாம சி.எஸ். ஜெயராமனை வைத்தே பதிவு பண்ணுவோம்.

பாடல் பதிவானது. சிவாஜி வந்த பாட்டைக் கேட்டார். மறுபடியும் பாடலைப் போடச் சொன்னார். பல முறை கேட்டார். சிவாஜியின் முகத்தில் ஏகாந்த புன்னகை மலர்ந்தது.

(தொடரும்)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=WPi1I-X82uc

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sivajisenthil

This is also from media only, I am used to seeing Nadigar Thilagam.com almost every week. There I got this link. I do not know if this is correct.

http://www.thalaivansivaji.com/sivaji-kural-9/


கல்லாத பேரையெல்லாம் கல்வி பயிலச் செய்து காண்பதில் தான் இன்பம் என் தோழா
a material fromm Thiru. Sailesh Basu of MGR thread
:idontgetit:

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Posted to Thalaivan Sivaji. Com

MESSAGE TO Mr. INBA, THALAIVAN SIVAJI.COM

Dear Mr. Inba,

Your article in Thalaivan Sivaji.com featuring Late MGR is not in the best of the spirits. Any controversial discussions concerning those who are not living with us has to be avoided especially those referring write-up by third person. Such articles that were written those days due to difference of opinions between any two persons should not be speculated now as it is totally out of context and out of date. Further, this spoils the harmony between internet friends.

Trust you would remove the same and also avoid such write ups in future and help to create harmony between mankind !

Regards
RKS

COMING SOON !


http://i501.photobucket.com/albums/e...ps6f60079c.jpg