''Dikkatra Parvathi'' () is a 1974 Indian

Tamil language Tamil (, , , also written as ''Tamizhil'' according to linguistic pronunciation) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. It is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world,. "Tamil is one of ...

film directed by

Singeetam Srinivasa Rao Singeetam Srinivasa Rao (born 21 September 1931) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, composer, and actor. He is widely regarded as one of India's most versatile and innovative filmmakers. He has directed around sixty films across ...

based on the novel of the same name by

C. Rajagopalachari Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (10 December 1878 – 25 December 1972), popularly known as Rajaji or C.R., also known as Mootharignar Rajaji (Rajaji'', the Scholar Emeritus''), was an Indian statesman, writer, lawyer, and Indian independence ...

. The film stars

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...

and Srikanth. It won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil, while Lakshmi won many accolades for her performance and was reported to have narrowly missed the

National Film Award for Best Actress The National Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to an actress for the best performance in a leading role within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry. ...

Plot

The story espouses the evils of drink. Parvathi (

) is a happy girl who recently married a loving husband, Karuppan ( Srikanth). With kind parents-in-law and a doting husband, her life is blissful. Soon, she has a child. Karuppan wants to increase his earnings and decides to buy a cart, though Parvathi is unwilling, asserting it is happier to be content with what they have. However Karuppan takes a loan from a money lender and buys a cart. Initially, everything looks rosy. But Karuppan happens to cross the toddy shops on his way home. Slowly, he is initiated into the habit of drink and soon becomes an addict. Parvathi's life changes into one of hardship and woe. The neglect of Karuppan results in the death of the child. Parvathi's life becomes tragic. Karuppan is unable to repay the loan. The money lender's son takes advantage of the increasingly abominable attitude of her husband. Parvathi helplessly gives in to the approaches of the moneylender's son. Upon discovering this, Karuppan throws a scythe at the moneylender's son, nearly killing him. Karuppan is arrested. Parvathi is rejected by her kith and kin. Alone she struggles to get her husband released. On the advice of a lawyer, she makes a statement in the court that she is guilty, thinking it will facilitate the release of her husband. Karuppan is released, but angered by her statement, rejects her. Dismayed, Parvathi climbs up the hill and kills herself.

Cast

as Parvathi * Srikanth as Karuppan * Y. G. Mahendran *

Poornam Viswanathan Poornam Viswanathan (14 November 1921 – 1 October 2008) was an Indian actor who predominantly appeared in Tamil films. He started performing on stage at age 18. He worked as a reader for All India Radio, He was the first person in India to a ...

Typist Gopu Gopalarathnam, known by his stage name Typist Gopu, was an Indian actor known for comedy and supporting roles. He acted in over 600 stage plays and 400 films. Career A native of Manakkal, Lalgudi in Trichy district, Gopalarathnam was active ...

Production

The film was shot in

Thorapalli Thorapalli or Thorapalli Agraharam is a village in Hosur taluk, Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Ponnaiyar river about 6 km south-east of Hosur close to the Hosur- Krishnagiri road ( National Highway 44) ...

, the birthplace of Rajaji, in a single 28-day schedule. The court scenes were shot in the actual court at

Hosur Hosur is an industrial city located in the Tamil Nadu state of India. Hosur is one of the 21 municipal corporations in Tamil Nadu. It is located on the bank of the river River Ponnaiyar, southeast of Bengaluru and west of Chennai, the state ...

and Chennai and the local lawyers participated, for the first time in Tamil cinema. The film's ₹2.5 lakh (worth ₹3.3 crore in 2021 prices) budget was 80 per cent funded by the Film Finance Corporation of India which was subsequently renamed

National Film Development Corporation of India The National Film Development Corporation of India (NFDC) based in Mumbai is the central agency established in 1975, to encourage high quality Indian cinema. It functions in areas of film financing, production and distribution and under the Min ...

and set a precedent. When the producers and the director could not repay the loan, then

Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu The chief minister of Tamil Nadu is the head of government, chief executive of the Indian Federated state, state of Tamil Nadu. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the Governor (India), governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de ...

M. G. Ramachandran Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 – 24 December 1987), popularly known by his initialism M.G.R. and as Makkal Thilagam/Puratchi Thalaivar, was an Indian actor, politician, and philanthropist who served as the chief minister of ...

, repaid the dues and purchased the film for the Tamil Nadu state. It was the first time in film history that a State Government had purchased a film after its release. The dialogues for the film were written by Karaikudi Narayanan. It was the only film with a story based upon Rajaji's work. The signature of Rajaji in the letter of permission given to

is the last signature of his life.

Awards

* National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil in 1975 *

Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Tamil The Filmfare Best Actress Award is given by the ''Filmfare'' magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards South for Tamil language, Tamil (Tamil cinema, Kollywood) films. The awards were extended to "Best Actress" in 1972. The year indicates ...

for Lakshmi in 1975 * Filmfare Award for Best Film – Tamil in 1975

Music

Chitti Babu composed two songs for the film, the lyrics of which were written by Rajaji and

Kannadasan Muthiah Sathappan Chettiar better known as Kannadasan (; 24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was a poet, film song lyricist, producer, actor, script-writer, editor, philanthropist, and is heralded as one of the greatest and most important l ...

; both were sung by

Vani Jairam Vani Jairam (born Kalaivani; 30 November 1945 – 4 February 2023) was an Indian playback singer in Indian cinema. She is fondly referred to as the "'' Meera of modern India''" Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. ...

. #"Aagaayam Mazhai Pozhindaal" – Vani Jairam #"Enna Kutram Seidheno" – Vani Jairam

Reception

Kanthan of ''

Kalki Kalki (), also called Kalkin, is the prophesied tenth and final incarnation of the Hinduism, Hindu god Vishnu. According to Vaishnavism, Vaishnava cosmology, Kalki is destined to appear at the end of the Kali Yuga, the last of the four ages i ...

'' praised the film for retaining the soul of original material while also praising the performances of cast, dialogues, music and cinematography.

References

External links

* {{NationalFilmAwardBestFeatureFilmTamil 1970s Indian films 1970s Tamil-language films 1974 films Best Tamil Feature Film National Film Award winners Films about alcoholism Films based on Tamil novels Films directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao Films scored by Chitti Babu Indian black-and-white films Tamil-language Indian films