God is in the Smile of a Child! God is in One's Intellect Developed by Reading! God is in the Philanthropic Efforts of Individuals!

God is in the Smile of a Child! God is in the Intellect Developed by Reading Good Books! God is in the Philanthropic Efforts of Individuals and in the True Joy One Gets by Playing a Role in the Development and Upliftment of the Underprivileged! This is a rough translation of a few words from this wonderful song!  Contrary to the popular belief that this song was written by Kannadasan this is a hit song written by Vaali. Vaali has written more than 15000 songs in a career spanning over 5 decades. He was able to adapt himself to the changing trends in the movie industry. He has written some of the most popular hits of MGR. This is a rare hit song written by Vaali for Sivaji. Music by MSV and sung by TMS. This song is from the movie Babu released in the year 1972 and had not done too well at the box office. This song features a young Sridevi with the legendary Sivaji Ganesan. The likes of Sridevi and Kamal Hassan had literally grown up amongst the greats and the legends of the Tamil Movie Industry. No wonder they are such good actors!

Super Hit And Most Successful On Screen Pair! Twenty Six Back to Back Hit Movies During the Golden Era of Tamil Cinema!

This is a hit song from the movie Thaai Sollai Thattaathey starring MGR, Saroja Devi and others. This song has been sung by the inimitable pair of TMS and P Susheela. The music has been composed by K V Mahadevan and the lyrics have been penned by Kannadhasan. Year of release 1962. After making a successful and super hit start together in the Mega Hit movie Nadodi Mannan, the pair of MGR-Saroja Devi gave 26 back to back hit films together during the Golden Era of Tamil cinema. The list of hit movies included Thirudathey, Thai Sollai Thattathey (Song Featured Here is from this movie), Paasam, Thaayaikaatha Thanayan, Asai Mugam, Periya Idathu Penn, Dharmam Thalaikkakkum, Neethikku Pin Pasam, Pannakkara Kudumbam, Padakoti, Nadodi, Thali Bhagyam, Naan Anayittaal, Petraalthaan Pillaiya, Arasa Kattalai and Kudumba Thalaivan. Some of Saroja Devi's best performances opposite MGR were the 'rich girl' roles in Anbe Vaa, Enga Veettu Pillai, En Kadamai, Deiva Thaai, Kalangarai Vilakkam, Pana Thottam, Parrakkum Paavai, Thayin Madiyil, etc., well the list is almost an endless one. Enjoy the song!

First Part of the Song is 400 Years Old! The Final Part is 300 Years Old! Masterfully Blended with Contemporary Lyrics! Divine Music! Magical Song!

This is a divinely magical song from the movie Aadhi Paraasakthi written masterfully by Kannadasan, composed by the legendary music director K V Mahadevan and sung by the inimitable TMS. PBS the famous singer paying his tributes to Kannadasan had referred to him as having been the most well read person he had ever met. He said Kannadasan is not someone who has merely read several books but he is someone who has acquired and assimilated the knowledge from several libraries. This song is a best example of this fact and showcases Kannadasan's genius. This song begins with a bit from Abhirami Anthathi (Maniye Maniyin..) from 400 years ago written by the ardent devotee of Goddess Shakthi Abhirami Pattar. The last bit of the song is from 300 years ago taken from Kutraala Kuravanji (Sengaiyil Vandu..) written by Thirikooda Rasappa Kavirayar an ardent devotee of Kutraala Naathar in Kuttraalam. The rest of the lyrics have been written to fit this particular scene in this movie and ingeniously blended with these two bits from classical literature by the legendary genius Kannadasan! K V Mahadevan for his part has injected energy into these divinely crafted lyrics and brought them to life in a scintillating fashion through his magical music.  M V Subbaiah has played the role of Abhirami Pattar originally known as Subramaniya Iyer. In this particular context, using the clichéd expression, M V Subbaiah has literraly lived in the character and not just acted out the role, is surely not an exaggeration and befits the occasion!  This song is a scene depicting a real life incident in the life of Subramaniya Iyer also known as Abhirami Pattar. M V Subbaiah's portrayal of this historical character is ample proof of his supreme talent for bringing to life some of the most powerful legends that history has ever witnessed! What an amazing amalgamation of wonderful talent! End result is a magical song that is a timeless classic!

Don't be Lazy! Inspirational Song! Sensational Super Hit Movie Starring, Produced and Directed by MGR!

Naadodi Mannan is a Sensational Super Hit Movie starring M. G. R in the lead role supported by P Bhanumathi, Saroja Devi and others. MGR himself had produced and directed this movie. Commenting on the title Nadodi Mannan, MGR is said to have confessed that if the movie profited, he would be a King (Mannan); if it flopped, he would be a homeless nomad (Nadodi). The movie was in the making for a few years. All dedicated members of MGR’s entourage were put to work night and day on the project. K. Ramnoth was appointed to direct this movie, but upon his sudden demise on 4 October 1956, MGR had taken up the direction responsibilities. The latter portions depicting the happenings in the island were shot in colour. In turn, MGR received help from unexpected parties. B. Nagi Reddy had supported by allowing MGR for grand sets in Vijaya Studios, which was then Asia's biggest film studio. Until then only studio owners could make movies with magnificent sets. Likewise, S. S. Vasan of Gemini Studios had lent his expensive equipment voluntarily so that the miniature shots scenes would come out well. It is believed that it was the only time that any equipment of Gemini Studious was ever permitted to be taken out of the premises. Another person to support the venture was Senior Director K. Subramanyam who had been requested by MGR to oversee his work. K. Subramanyam had attended just one shooting schedule and was so impressed with MGR’s diligent approach that felt that there was no need for anyone to supervise MGR. K. Subramanyam in turn had made all arrangements for many of the outdoor shoots, especially at Munnar and he even flew to Bombay to ensure a fresh supply of color film so that the shooting could continue uninterrupted. (Source: Wikipedia). This particular song is an inspirational song written by the famous lyricist Pattukottai Kalyanasundaram, motivating lazy people. Music for this particular song was composed by S M Subbaiah Naidu and sung by TMS. The film was released in the year 1958. It was a super duper hit and ran for more than 100 days in all major centres. The Film was re-released in 2005 and ran successfully for 100 days yet again 50 years later!

Quit Films after her Debut Movie and Became an Air Hostess! Re-Entred Films after 7 Years and Ruled the South Indian Film Industry for more than Two Decades!

This is a hit song from the movie "Sivantha Mann", starring Sivaji, Kanchana, Nagesh, Nambiar, Ranga Rao and others. Contrary to the popular belief that Kanchana was introduced by Sridhar in the earlier block buster of his "Kaadhalikka Naeramillai" in the year 1964, Kanchana's debut movie was the 1957 super hit movie Mannaalane Mangaiyin Bhaghiyam, in which she had played a small but important role of 'Naaga Kanni'. Originally from a well to do family in Chennai, due to some financial difficulties faced by her family during that period, she took up a job of an Air-Hostess to support her family. She was reintroduced to the film industry by C V Sridhar in the year 1963 and then went on to do extremely well, having starred successfully in several movies in all four South Indian Languages. Being an ardent devotee of Lord Balaji she donated her property valued at more than Rupees 15 Crores to the Tirumala Thirupathi Devasasthanam in the year 2010.

This movie was directed by Sridhar and had not done very well at the box office. The songs were a hit, in particular this one. The songs are bound to be hits when you have a combination of the likes of MSV, TMS, P Susheela, Kannadasan and Sivaji. This particular song was sung by L R Eashwari whose performance in this song had been praised by MSV in several interviews during his life time, for her having performed the song live with out the help of any special effects! According to C. V. Sridhar's autobiography, Sivantha Mann had evolved from Andru Sinthiya Rattam, a script originally written for MGR. It was the first Tamil film to have been shot extensively in foreign locations – a "great novelty in those days". Filming took place largely in Europe in countries like Switzerland, France, Italy, Germany and in the Alps region. The rest of the film was shot back in India. A set that included an entire river had been created at Vauhini Studios for shooting some of the main sequences in the movie. Before filming had begun it gave way, leading to the entire studio being flooded. An unfazed Sridhar decided to have the entire riverbed set rebuilt with concrete. After the film's release, thee directors of many subsequent Tamil and Telugu films were inspired to choose locations in France and other parts of Europe. The story was an off-beat one and had not been not received very well by the audience. This particular song showcases the acting skills of Sivaji and Nambiyar who impress with their expressions and reactions and the dancing and acting skills of Kanchana who had been at the receiving end of the whip in Sivaji's hands which had occasionally stung Kanchana, since Sivaji's only concern had always been to make any scene look as real as possible as said by Sacchu her co-artist in a recent TV interview! Enjoy the song!

Three Great Legends of Tamil Cinema with a Flair for Comedy! Blessed with Great Comic Timing! End Result One Hilarious Song!

MGR, Nagesh and Manorama have acted in several movies together and have been part of several comic sequences during their individually illustrious and outstanding movie careers. These great legends of Tamil cinema have an amazing flair for comedy and are truly blessed with an intuitive sense of comic timing which is an absolute necessity for any successful actor. There has been enough and more said and written about Nagesh and Manorama's comical talent and their ability to do comic roles. MGR's flair for comedy and his innate ability to do comic roles with effortless ease is something that hasn't been written about much. MGR has written extensively about his journey filled with struggles and milestones and guided by the positive influence and inspiration of great many legends and doyens in the Tamil movie industry. That MGR had been influenced greatly by N S Krishnan both in his personal life and professional life is a known fact. MGR has also mentioned that actors such as Kali N Ratnam of 'Sabapathy' fame, were great influence in his stage and movie careers. If N S Krishnan had influenced MGR to do comic sequences with a social message such as this song, it was actors such as Kali N Ratnam who had influenced him to do comic sequences that were simple yet compelling and acceptable to and enjoyed by all sections of the audience. This hilarious hit song is from the move Chandrodhayam released in the year 1966 starring MGR, Jayalalitha, Bharathi, S A Asokan, R S Manohar, M.R.Radha, Nagesh, Manorama, M.N.Nambiar and others. Though the title of this post says Three Legends - One Hilarious song, there are four other Legends in the background who have contributed to the success of this song! TMS and Seerrghazhi who have sung this song in their own inimitable styles, Vaali who has written this song with such an important social message which is all the more relevant in these modern times, to couples in married life, and MSV who has composed the music for this song!

The Greatest Legend of Tamil Cinema! A Life Characterized by Phenomenal Success and an Endless List of Episodes of his Compassion and Kindness!

MGR is undoubtedly the greatest Legend of Tamil Cinema! On the occasion of his 100th birthday this song serves as a true tribute to him and his legendary kindness, compassion and amazing philanthropy. His life and career in the Tamil Movie industry is filled with phenomenal successes and in equal measure if not more, of episodes of his kindness in which he has helped innumerable individuals both from with in and outside the Tamil Film Industry. Every single person who has talked about him during various interviews has narrated at least one unique incident of  his kindness and big hearted nature with out fail. From legends such as Nagesh to Ranga Rao to the lyricist Muthulingam who has written just a few songs in comparison to the other great lyricists, there is no end to the list of people all of whom MGR has helped financially. His act of kindness in which he had helped Ranga Rao is similar to Lord Krishna having helped Kusela! Apparently Ranga Rao who had been facing financial difficulties during the later part of his career was finding it difficult to conduct his daughter's wedding. Though Ranga Rao had not been in good terms with MGR during that period, based on the advice of his friends he had visited MGR's residence, with an intent to ask MGR for his help. But due to his hesitancy because of his strained relation ship with MGR and fearing that MGR might turn down his request for help, Ranga Rao had returned home with out asking for help. But MGR being the great human being he was (is) had sent the required jewels and money for the proper conduct of the wedding to Ranga Rao's house, having come to know the actual reason for Ranga Rao's visit to his residence from his associates!  MGR had helped so may individuals in need with out their having even asked for help just by sensing and understanding their needs and difficulties! Truly amazing! This song from the movie Engal Thangam was written by Vaali. In Vaali's own words, after having written the first line of this song Vaali had been toying with several words and phrases to express this great quality of MGR in the second line of the song. As a coincidence Karunanidhi who was MGR's greatest political adversary during the later stages of his career, had visited the sets of the movie and Vaali had mentioned his inability to come up with the words of a second line, which would correctly express the great philanthropic quality of MGR. It was Karunanidhi who came up instantly with the second line, 'Ethaiyum Alavindri Koduppavan', which when translated literally means, "There is no limit to the quantum of his philanthropy"! Words are not sufficient to pay tribute to this great Legend! Music by MSV and sung by TMS and P Susheela.

Freedom Fighter, Journalist, Thespian, Composer, Playback Singer, Writer, Director - Successful in Every Pursuit! One of the Legendary Doyens of South Indian Film Industry!

Nagaiah was an active participant in the Freedom struggle and movement during the 1930's. He was a legend in the history of the evolution of Telegu Stage, Drama and Theatre having written, produced and directed several successful Telugu plays during the late 30's. He also acted in these plays apart from composing music and singing in these plays! He was the first Superstar of the Telugu Movie Industry due to his phenomenal success with his first few movies produced by Nagi Reddy under the Rohini Pictures Banner. He was later instrumental in the setting up of the famous Vauhini Studios. He acted in more than 350 movies in all the major South Indian languages. He acted in several super hit Tamil Movies as a character artist. Sivaji had great respect for him and he featured in several super hit movies of Sivaji Ganesan such as Motor Sundaram Pillai, Shanthi, Deiva Magan, Iru Malargal, Thillaanaa Mohanaambal to name a few. This song is from the movie Ramu a 1966 release, directed by A. C. Tirulokchandar. The film features Gemini Ganesan, K. R. Vijaya and Master Rajkumar in lead roles. The film was produced by AVM Productions and music was composed by M. S. Viswanathan. All the songs were written by Kannadasan. The film was a super hit. The film was a remake of Hindi film Door Gagan Ki Chhaon Main. During the filming of the climax scene apparently the child artiste Master Rajkumar got caught in the fire and it was the director A C Tirulokchandar who jumped into the fire and rescued the child! One can see the involvement with which Nagaiah has performed this song. Two great voices, Seergazhi and TMS, complete this fantastic team of legends who have come together to create this song. No wonder the song is such a classic, never failing to strike a chord every single time we listen to it even after 50 years since its creation!

Three Distinctly Different Roles in a Single Movie! Only One Actor Could Have Carried it Off with Such Class and Conviction!

This is a hit song from the movie Deiva Magan starring Sivaji, Jayalalitha, Nagesh, Major and others. This song features Sivaji and Jayalalitha and other supporting actresses. In fact many of these supporting actresses made it big in the silver screen and in the small screen in their own little separate ways. The 'Mala' in this song is the actress Bhanumathi (not to be confused with Bhanumathi Ramakrishna) who acted in several movies in supporting roles and in many TV serials as well. The combination of MSV and TMS has produced yet another hit song. Sivaji's performance as the father and two sons (Triple Role) is one of the most unforgettable performances in the history of Tamil film industry! This song begins with a small clip in which there is a humorous interaction between Sivaji and Nagesh as a prelude to the actual song. Sivaji is supposed to have drawn inspiration from the mannerisms and behavior of the famous direct C V Sridhar for his role in this movie as the youngest son!

The Greatest Playback Singing Pair of All Time! Complete Dominance Over a Period of Two Decades!

The Greatest Playback Singing Pair of All Time, TMS and P Susheela dominated the Tamil Movie Industry for more than two decades, having sung hundreds of super hit songs together. This is a hit song from the 1970s movie Vasantha Maaligai starring Sivaji Ganesan, Vanishree, Balaji, Nagesh and others. This song features Sivaji and Vanishree. Sivaji and Vanishree had paired up for several movies during that period. This is one of K V Mahadevan's hit songs featuring the most successful playback singing pair of TMS and P Susheela, supremely dominant, starting from the late 1950s to the 1960s and well into the 1970s, as is the case with this song.. While everyone in India is a fan of Latha Mangeshkar she herself is a fan of P Susheela. P Susheela and TMS are two of the greatest ever original voices (never will they resort to a falsetto) to have graced this planet no doubt!

Birds of Several Kinds! A Movie Gone Missing Earlier! Miraculously Available to Every One Now!

This is the 'Title Song' of the movie Iruvar Ullam starring Sivaji, Saroja Devi, MR Radha, TR Ramachandran, SV Ranga Rao and others. The movie was directed by L V Prasad and was written by M Karunanidhi. Music by the Great K V Mahadevan, Sung by the Great TMS and Lyrics by the Great Kannadasan. The best clip for this song on Youtube happened to be from the beginning of the first part of the full movie upload and hence used here instead of a clip of just the song. There was a time some time back when this movie was not available anywhere and now it is miraculously available for everyone to enjoy as multiple versions on Youtube! Several actresses appear in this song along with Sivaji and the final one to appear is the famous actress Jayanthi whose debut film was in the same year Jeenu Goodu (Kannada).

Comical Song from an All-Time Great Tamil Comedy Movie featuring the Sivaji-Nagesh Team! Year - 1968

This is a comical song from the super hit comedy movie Galaattaa Kalyaanam (1968) starring Sivaji Ganesan, Jayalalitha, Nagesh, K. A. Thangavelu, Cho Ramaswamy, A. V. M. Rajan, V. Gopalakrishnan, VS Raghavan, Senthamarai, Sachu, Manorama, Jothi Lakshmi and others. The movie brought Sivaji and Jayalalitha together for the first time. This movie showcased Jayalalitha's flair for comedy. The Sivaji-Nagesh Team having produced some of the most popular and remembered sequences in Tamil Cinema, has excelled in comedy, producing one of the most enjoyable comical movies of all time.  Gopu had once said in an interview that it was Jayalalitha who had introduced him to the works of the great comical genius P G Wodehouse whose works were the inspiration for some of of Gopu's directorial successes such as his debut movie as director Kaasedhaan Kadavuladaa (Leave it to PSmith). This movie Galaattaa Kalyaanam was written by Gopu, working for the first time on his own, away from his long-term successful partnership with Sridhar. Incidentally this movie was directed by C V Sridhar's brother and the very successful director C V Rajendran. Music for this peppy number was composed by MSV, Lyrics Vaali, Singers, TMS, PBS, P Susheela and L R Eashwari.

Singer Super Star of the 1940s and 50s! The One Supreme Voice of Tamil Cinema that Worried Even the Greatest of His Contemporaries!

T R Mahalingam was an extremely popular stage and drama artist with a unique and stunning countertenor voice in the 1930s. He was a contemporary of singing legends such as MKTB, SG Kittappa and at a later stage TMS. In those days due to the absence of public address systems, stage actors and singers had the need to train their voices for reach and clarity. T R Mahalingam apart from his training, was truly gifted in this area since he was blessed with a voice that had a tremendous range (from countertenor to bass) in addition to reach and clarity. His movie debut was in the year 1937 with AVM's Nandakumar. His first major hit was Sri Valli in the year 1945. Following his meteoric rise during the late 40s and the early 50s he had a downfall in his career during the mid 50s when some movies of his own production house failed to take-off. It was Kannadasan who gave him a break again in 1958 with Kannadasan's own movie Maalai Itta Mangai. T R Mahalingam has to his credit some of the most popular and evergreen songs of Tamil Cinema. During the later stages of his career he acted in several character roles and supporting roles. He immortalized the character of Bana Pathirar in the movie Thiruvilayadal. His rendition of the song Isai Tamil Nee Seitha in this movie is a Hallmark of the Calibre of Songs and Music produced by Tamil Cinema. His voice was so powerful it had even the Great TMS worried during the filming of the movie Sri Valli in which TMS had to sing his bit after a six minute high-pitched and powerful rendition by TRM! Read about this interesting bit and more here! The song presented here in honour of TRM is from the movie Amuthavalli. Lyrics by Pattukottai Kalyanasundaram and composed by Viswanathan - Ramamoorthy. Singers T R Mahalingam and P Susheela.

Sun's Thousand Arms! - Shivaji Hit 1964

This is a hit song from the Cult Classic Hit Movie Karnan starring Shivaji Ganesan, NTR, Asokan, Muthuraman, Savithri, Devika, Rajamma and others. This song written by Kannadasan as a prayer and tribute to the Sun is on par with the great classics from thousands of years ago. The music is by MSV and the song has been impeccably rendered by the three legends of Tamil Movie Industry TMS, Sirgazhi Govindarajan and PBS. Shivaji has not just portrayed but personified the great Karnan in this movie! Enjoy the song!

MGR Hit Song from the 1970s

This is a hit song from the movie Ninaithathai Mudippavan starring MGR, Manjula, Latha, Saradha, Nambiar and others. Directed by P Neelakantan the music was scored M S V. This song has been sung by TMS in his inimitable style. There were four lyricists who wrote the songs for this movie, Kannadasan, Vaali, Maruthakasi and Pulamaipithan. This song was written by Maruthakasi. Enjoy the song!

Indian Robin Hood - 1957

This is a super hit song from the hit movie Neelamalai Thirudan starring Ranjan, Anjali Devi, M K Radha, T S Balaiah and others. This script was originally written for MGR and Rnajan was brought in due to difference of opinion between MGR and Sando Chinnappa Thevar. This song featuring Ranjan was written by Maruthakasi, sung by TMS and composed by K V Mahadevan. For more about this movie and the song please go here. Enjoy the song!

Rare Song from 1968

This is a rare song from the 1968 movie Uyiraa Maanamaa starring Jaishankar, Vijaya Nirmala, Nagesh and others. This particular song features Jaishankar and Vijaya Nirmala and has been sung by the famous duo of TMS and P Susheela. MSV and Kannadasan round off the unbeatable combination which created innumerable, melodious, timeless classics from the 1960s. The movie was directed by KS Gopalakrishnan. Enjoy the song!
 

Evergreen Romantic Song from the 1960s

This is an evergreen romantic song from the 1960s. The movie is Selvamagal starring Jaishankar, Rajashree and others and the music has been composed by the one and only MSV. Recently the entire Tamil Movie Industry came together and honoured the octogenarian (Thank God!). Excellent rendition as usual by the two greats TMS and P Susheela has made the song a Timeless Classic! Contrary to the popular belief, this meaningful and well crafted song has been written by Vaali and not Kannadasan. But Kannadasn has written two other songs in this movie. Enjoy the song.

A Super Hit Song by the Maha Kavi!

This is yet another super hit song by the Maha Kavi from the movie Kai Kodutha Theivam starring Sivaji Ganesan, Savithri, SSR, KR Vijaya, SV Ranga Rao, Pushpalatha and others. This particular song shows what a legendary visionary the great poet Maha Kavi Bharathi had been. He writes about National Integration, Interlinking of Rivers and other futuristic concepts even before independence.

My Entire Consciousness is Lord Shiva! - Sivaji Hits

This is a super hit song from the movie Thiruvarutchelvar starring Sivaji, Gemini, Padmini and others. This song features Sivaji and has been rendered in his characteristic impeccable and inimitable style by TMS.