Chitthamoor Vijayaraghavalu Sridhar (22 July 1933 – 20 October 2008) was an Indian screenwriter and film director. He has directed nearly 60 films in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, na ...

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

and

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode ...

Languages.

Early life

Sridhar hailed from Chitthamur, a village near Maduranthakam, Tamil Nadu. He studied at St. Joseph's Higher Secondary School from

Chengalpattu Chengalpattu, previously known as Chingleput, is a city and the headquarters of Chengalpattu district of the state Tamil Nadu, India. The town is located near to the industrial and IT hub. It is the headquarters of the district and is away ...

where he began writing and staging plays while he was in the Seventh Standard.

Career

Entry

In 1951, 18-year-old Sridhar went to AVM Productions with his story ''Latchiyavathi'' but P. Neelakantan rejected his story. Avvai T. K. Shanmugam was very much impressed by the story and Sridhar wrote the screenplay and dialogues for the drama. It was staged as ''Raththa Paasam'' and was one of the most successful dramas staged by TKS brothers. Sridhar was proudly taken to the stage and introduced to the audience as the writer. It was later produced jointly by TKS and Jupiter pictures under Jupiter – Avvai Productions where Jupiter pictures recommended some other writer to write the dialogues for the film. It was T. K. Shanmugam who was staunch that Sridhar should write the screenplay and dialogues. Sridhar made his entry into films as a screenwriter in '' Ratha Paasam''. Later AVM Productions produced it in Hindi as ''Bhaai Bhaai'' in 1956 starring Ashok Kumar and

Kishore Kumar Kishore Kumar (born as Abhas Kumar Ganguly (); 4 August 1929 – 13 October 1987) was an Indian playback singer and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest, most influential and dynamic singers in the history of Indian music. He ...

but direction was by R. S. Mani. The film Bhai Bhai gave a big commercial break for the music director

Madan Mohan Madan Mohan is a form of the Hindu god, Krishna. Krishna is celebrated as ''Madan Mohan'', who mesmerizes everyone. His consort, Radha is glorified as Madan Mohan's ''Mohini'', who can even mesmerise Madan Mohan (her Kahn). Radha is known as the ...

and the writer Sridhar himself. Sridhar wrote story and dialogues for ''

Edhir Paradhathu ''Edhir Paradhathu'' () is a 1954 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Ch. Narayana Moorthy and written by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan and Padmini, with V. Nagayya, S. V. Sahasranamam, S. Varalakshmi and F ...

''. Sridhar wrote the dialogues in Tamil for the Telugu movie '' Parivartana'' and the movie was dubbed in 1955 as ''Latchadhipathi''. Sridhar continued on writing for films like ''Maaman Magal'', ''Maheswari'', '' Amara Deepam'', ''Maadharkula Manikkam'', '' Engal Veetu Mahalakshmi'', '' Yaar Paiyan'', '' Manjal Mahimai'', '' Uthama Puthiran'' and '' Punar Jenmam''. While working in Modern Theatres as writer for the film ''Maheswari'', Sridhar had an opportunity to improve his knowledge and skills about film production.

T. R. Sundaram Tiruchengodu Ramalingam Sundaram Mudaliar (16 July 1907 – 30 August 1963) was an Indian actor, director, and producer. He was the founder of the Salem-based film production company Modern Theatres. Early life Sundaram was born in 1907 fro ...

had a huge library of international books about great films and directors, about film production, critical and technical essays. Sridhar had a very high esteem on the legendary director V. Shantaram.

Venus Pictures

In 1956, Sridhar turned producer along with associates Krishnamoorthi, Govindarajan and Sundararajan in ''Venus Pictures'' where he scripted '' Amara Deepam'' and followed by '' Uthama Puthiran''. Both films had

Sivaji Ganesan Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001) was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. Sivaji G ...

and Padmini as the main roles. He made his debut as a director with '' Kalyana Parisu''. This movie ran for more than 25 weeks, and is revered to this day as a milestone in the history of Tamil cinema. After this, he had a huge fan following and his name was talked about among the middle class movie going audience.

Chithralaya

He started his own production company ''Chithralaya'' (the emblem was designed by Art director Ganga) in 1961 with his friends Gopu, Vincent, Sundaram and Tiruchi Arunachalam made '' Then Nilavu''. The latter which had

Gemini Ganesan Ramasamy Ganesan (17 November 1920 – 22 March 2005), better known by his stage name Gemini Ganesan, was an Indian actor who worked mainly in Tamil cinema. He was referred to as the ''Kaadhal Mannan'' (King of Romance) for his romantic roles ...

and

Vyjayanthimala Vyjayanthimala (born 13 August 1936) is a former Indian actress, dancer and parliamentarian. She is the recipient of several accolades, including two BFJA Awards and five Filmfare Awards. She made her screen debut at the age of thirteen wit ...

in the lead was the first Tamil film to be shot in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. He made a series of commercially successful films like ''

Nenjil Or Aalayam ''Nenjil Or Aalayam'' () is a 1962 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed, produced and written by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars Kalyan Kumar, Devika and R. Muthuraman while Nagesh, Manorama and Kutty Padmini play supporting role ...

'', ''

Kaadhalikka Neramillai ''Kadhalikka Neramillai'' () is a 1964 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film produced and directed by C. V. Sridhar, who also conceived and co-wrote its script with Chitralaya Gopu. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of Bala ...

'', ''

Vennira Adai ''Vennira Aadai'' () is a 1965 Indian Tamil-language romance film, co-written, produced and directed by Sridhar. The film stars Jayalalithaa, Nirmala, Shylashri, Srikanth and Moorthy, all in their Tamil cinema debut. It was released on 14 Ap ...

'' and many more.

Film-making style

Sridhar was known as Nava-rasa-director, as he made films in a variety of styles, from the comedy ''

'' to the serious Kalai-kovil and ''

''. The latter was remade in Hindi with

Rajendra Kumar Rajendra Kumar Tuli (20 July 1927 – 12 July 1999) was an Indian actor who starred in Bollywood films. Starting his career in 1949, he appeared in more than 80 films in a career spanning over four decades. He was popularly known as the 'Jubil ...

and Meena Kumari as ''

Dil Ek Mandir ''Dil Ek Mandir'' () is a 1963 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by C. V. Sridhar and written by Raj Baldev Raj. The film stars Rajendra Kumar, Meena Kumari, Raaj Kumar and Mehmood. The film's music is by Shankar Jaikishan. A ...

'' which earn him two nomination at

Filmfare Awards The Filmfare Awards are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Hindi-language film industry of India.Al The Filmfare ceremony is one of the most famous film events in India. The awards were first introduced by th ...

, Best Director and

Best Story Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation, ...

categories. He brought out the best in comedians

T. R. Ramachandran Thirukampuliyur Ranga Ramachandran (9 January 1917 – 30 November 1990) was an Indian actor and comedian who acted mainly in Tamil films. He was cast mostly in lead or supportive roles, especially in comical parts, from the 1940s to the 1960s. Kn ...

K. A. Thangavelu Karaikal Arunachalam Thangavelu (15 January 1917 – 28 September 1994) popularly known as "Danaal Thangavelu", was an Indian actor and comedian popular in the 1950s to 1970s. Not known for physical, acrobatic comedy like his contemporarie ...

, and

Nagesh Nagesh (born Cheyur Krishnarao Nageshwaran; (27 September 1933 – 31 January 2009) was an Indian actor, mostly remembered for his roles as a comedian in Tamil films during the 1960s. Nagesh was born in Dharapuram. He acted in over 1,000 fi ...

, and helped introduce Murthy and Nirmala to a wider audience in ''

Vennira Aadai ''Vennira Aadai'' () is a 1965 Indian Tamil-language romance film, co-written, produced and directed by Sridhar. The film stars Jayalalithaa, Nirmala, Shylashri, Srikanth and Moorthy, all in their Tamil cinema debut. It was released on 14 ...

''. Moorthy, Nirmala, now a TV and movie comedian, is still referred to as Vennira Aadai Moorthy after the fame he received from his performance in the movie. Even the actresses Jayalalitha and Nirmala used to be referred to as Vennira AadaiJayalalitha and Vennira Aadai Nirmala Sridhar's ''

'' was one of the greatest blockbusters of

Tamil film Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...

history. It was later remade in Hindi with actor

and

Shashi Kapoor Shashi Kapoor (pronounced �əʃi kəpuːɾ (born Balbir Raj Kapoor; 18 March 1938 – 4 December 2017) was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his work in Hindi films. A recipient of several accolades, including four Nation ...

by himself. Sridhar helped launch the career of many celebrities in Tamil cinema, namely, Saroja Devi in Kalyaana Parisu,

R. Muthuraman Muthuraman Radhakrishnan (4 July 1929 – 16 October 1981) was an Indian actor who predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. He was a leading actor during the 1960s and 1970s and was fondly called as ''Navarasa Thilagam''. He had paired w ...

and

Devika Devika Devadoss (born Prameela Devi) (25 April 1943 – 2 May 2002) was an Indian actress who worked in Tamil, Telugu with few Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi film industry. She was a popular lead actress in the 1960s. Devika is the grand daughter ...

in ''

'',

Srikanth Srikanth or Sreekanth is a common Indian first name. * Srikanth (Tamil actor, born 1940), Tamil film actor active in films from 1965 * Srikanth (Tamil actor, born 1980), Tamil actor active in films after 2002 * Srikanth (Telugu actor), Telugu act ...

J. Jayalalithaa Jayaram Jayalalithaa (24 February 1948 – 5 December 2016) was an Indian politician and actress who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for more than fourteen years over six terms between 1991 and 2016. From 9 February 1989 to 5 December 2 ...

, Vennira Aadai Nirmala and

Vennira Aadai Moorthy Vennira Aadai Moorthy (born 25 July 1936) is an Indian actor and comedian in Tamil cinema. He has starred in many Tamil films and television serials as a comedian and also played supporting roles. He is a lawyer by education, and holds a B.L. ...

in ''

'' (''White Dress''), Ravichandran, Kanchana and

Rajasree Rajasree (Rajasree Thota Panchajanyam, Kusuma Kumari, born 31 August 1945), also known as Rajasri or Rajashri, is an Indian actress active from 1956 to 1979. She is particularly famous for her portrayal as a princess in several folklore Telug ...

in ''

'', Kamal and Rajini in Ilamai Oonjal Aadigirathu, Karthik and Gigi in Ninaivellaam Nithya, Jayashree in ''Thendralae Ennai Thodu'' and

Vikram Vikram may refer to: * Vikram (name), a male name in the Hindu community * ''Vikram'' (1986 Tamil film) * ''Vikram'' (1986 Telugu film) * ''Vikram'' (2022 Tamil film) * Vikram (actor) (born 1966), Indian actor * Vikram (spacecraft), an Indian M ...

in ''

Thanthu Vitten Ennai ''Thanthu Vitten Ennai'' () is a 1991 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film starring Vikram and Rohini. This was the last film directed by C. V. Sridhar. It was released on 21 June 1991. Plot The story revolves around two graduates Raja ...

''. His

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...

films include '' Nazrana'' (1961), ''

'' (1963), '' Pyar Kiye Jaa'' (1966) and ''

Gehri Chaal ''Gehri Chaal'' () is a 1973 Indian Hindi-language action-thriller film, produced and directed by C. V. Sridhar under the Chithrakala Pictures banner. It stars Jeetendra, Hema Malini, Amitabh Bachchan and music composed by Laxmikant–Pyarelal ...

'' (1973). ''Nazrana'', starring by

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...

, Usha Kiran and

in guest appearance, earned him

Filmfare Award for Best Story The Filmfare Award for Best Story is given by ''Filmfare'' as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a writer who wrote a film's story. List of winners 1950s * 1955 Mukhram Sharma – '' Aulad'' * 1956 Rajinder Sing ...

.The landmark film Nai Roshni directed by him in Hindu had Ashok Kumar, P. Bhanumati, Mala Sinha, Biwajeet and Raajkumar in lead roles and became the 7th highest-grossing film of the year 1967 in Hindi. Subsequently, this film was remade in Tamil as Poovum Pottum directed by Dada Mirasi. Sridhar's films with

include ''

Ooty Varai Uravu ''Ooty Varai Uravu'' () is a 1967 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, K. R. Vijaya, R. Muthuraman and L. Vijayalakshmi. It was Vijaylakshmi's last film before her m ...

'', '' Nenjirukkum Varai'', '' Sivantha Mann''. ''Sivanthaman'' was the first color movie in Tamil shot at foreign locations. ''Dharti'', the Hindi version was released in 1970 with

Waheeda Rehman Waheeda Rehman (born 3 February 1938) is an Indian actress and dancer. Regarded as one of Hindi cinema's finest actresses, Rehman's accolades include a National Film Award and three Filmfare Awards. Rehman was honoured with the Padma Shri by G ...

and

in lead roles. When in 1973, he went through sudden financial problems, at the insistence of

he approached

M. G. Ramachandran Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 24 December 1987), also popularly known as M.G.R., was an Indian politician, actor, philanthropist, and filmmaker who served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 1977 until his death in 1987 ...

, who suggested that a film be made and using that his financial woes would get resolved. Sridhar then made ''

Urimai Kural ''Urimaikural'' () is a 1974 Indian Tamil-language action drama film, written and directed by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars M. G. Ramachandran, Latha, Anjali Devi and V. S. Raghavan. It was released on 7 November 1974, and became a silver jub ...

'' which was a commercial success in 1974 and went on to direct M.G.R again in ''

Meenava Nanban ''Meenava Nanban'' () is a 1977 Indian Tamil-language action drama film written and directed by Sridhar. The film stars M. G. Ramachandran and Latha, with M. N. Nambiar, Nagesh among others enacting supporting roles. It was released on 14 A ...

'' that was released in 1977. In 1978, he brought together Kamal Hasan, Rajnikanth, Sripriya for romantic film Illamai Oonjal Aadugirathu. Then he remade the same in 1982 in Hindi as Dil-E-Nadan starring

Rajesh Khanna Rajesh Khanna () (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. He is called as the "First Superstar of Hindi cinema", he consecutively starred in a record ...

Shatrughan Sinha Shatrughan Prasad Sinha (born 9 December 1945) is an Indian actor and politician. He is a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha from Asansol constituency as a member of All India Trinamool Congress (TMC). Earlier he was elected as Member of Parliam ...

and

Jaya Prada Jaya Prada Nahata (born Lalitha Rani; 3 April 1962) is an Indian actress and politician. She is hailed as one of the most iconic and influential actresses in both Telugu and Hindi film industries in late '70s, '80s and early '90s. Jayaprada ...

in lead roles. Both versions were successful. In all his films he used a combination of stars, melodrama and melodious songs. He has directed films in

and

. Sridhar was considered an expert in song picturisation as he could transform any song into sheer poetry. The formidable Sridhar –

Kannadasan Kannadasan (; 24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was an Indian philosopher, poet, film song lyricist, producer, actor, script-writer, editor, philanthropist, and is heralded as one of the greatest and most important lyricists in India. Freq ...

–

M. S. Viswanathan Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. He was popularly known as ''Mellisai Mannar''. He compose ...

combination held a magic spell on the audience and the songs contributed to the tremendous success of those films.Later on he switching to the Maestro Ilayaraaja for music and all his films with Ilayaraaja's music were known for one of the best songs.

Death

Sridhar died of Cardiac arrest in

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

on 20 October 2008, aged 75.

Filmography

Awards

;Won *

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

: Certificate of Merit for Best Feature Film in Tamil – '' Kalyana Parisu'' *

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Tamil – ''

'' *

Kalaimamani The Kalaimamani is the highest civilian award in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. These awards are given by the ''Tamil Nadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram'' (literature, music and theatre), a unit of the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government o ...

Award from State Sangeeth Natak Academy. *

for '' Nazrana'' (1961). *

Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary Award The Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Honorary Award given by the ''Tamil Nadu State Government'' as part of its annual Tamil Nadu State Film Awards for Tamil cinema personalities who contributed in developing the Tamil cinema in India. Arignar A ...

– Arignar Anna Award in 1997 ;Nominated *

Filmfare Award for Best Director The Filmfare Best Director Award is one of the main awards presented given by the annual Filmfare Awards to recognise directors working in Hindi cinema. It was first presented in 1954 in the inaugural year. Superlatives Bimal Roy has the r ...

for ''

'' (1963) *

for ''Dil Ek Mandir'' (1963) * Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for ''

'' (1975) * Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for ''

Ilamai Oonjal Aadukirathu ''Ilamai Oonjal Aadukirathu'' () is a 1978 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars Kamal Haasan, Rajinikanth, Sripriya and Jayachitra. It focuses on two friends falling in love with the same w ...

'' (1979) * Filmfare Award for Best Director - Tamil for '' Oru Odai Nadhiyagirathu'' (1984)

References

External links

*
C. V. Sridhar's Sterling Face of Romance
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sridhar, C. V. 2008 deaths Film directors from Tamil Nadu Tamil film directors 1933 births Filmfare Awards winners People from Kanchipuram district 20th-century Indian film directors Telugu film directors Telugu screenwriters Screenwriters from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Indian screenwriters