A. Veerappan (21 June 1933 30 August 2005) was an Indian comedian, screenwriter, and film director. While having worked in more than 100 films. He is notable for his comedian roles along with fellow actor
Nagesh
Nageshwaran Rao (born Cheyur Krishnarao Nageshwaran; (27 September 1933 – 31 January 2009) was an Indian actor and comedian mostly remembered for his comic roles in Tamil films during the 1960s. Nagesh was born in Dharapuram. He acted in ov ...
in the 1960s.
He wrote comedy tracks for Suruli Rajan in most of the films in the 1970s. He debuted as a comedian in the film
Tenali Raman
Tenali Ramakrishna (born Garlapati Ramakrishna; 22 September 1480 – 5 August 1528), also known as Tenali Ramalinga and Tenali Rama, was a telugu poet, scholar, and advisor in the court of Krishnadevaraya, Sri Krishnadevaraya of the Vijayanag ...
(1956). He wrote comedy tracks for
Goundamani
Subramaniyan Karuppaiya (born 25 May 1939), known by his stage name Goundamani, is an Indian actor and comedian who works in Tamil cinema. He is known for his comic duo partnership in Tamil language, Tamil films with fellow actor Senthil. The p ...
and
Senthil
Senthil (born 23 March 1951) is an Indian comedy actor who works in Tamil cinema. He is famous for his comedian roles along with fellow actor Goundamani. The pair dominated the Tamil industry as comedians in the 1980s and 90s.[Vaidehi Kathirunthal
''Vaidehi Kathirunthal'' () is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written and directed by R. Sundarrajan. The film stars Vijayakanth and Revathi as two villagers, Vellaisamy and Vaidehi, whose lives undergo a drastic turn when t ...]
,
Udaya Geetham
''Udhaya Geetham'' ( ) is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language thriller film directed by K. Rangaraj and produced by Kovaithambi. The film stars Mohan, Lakshmi and Revathi, with Goundamani, Senthil, Anand Babu, and Prathapachandran in supporting role ...
,
Idaya Kovil
''Idaya Kovil'' () is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language film directed by Mani Ratnam, starring Mohan, Ambika, Radha and Goundamani. The score and soundtrack were composed by Ilaiyaraaja which went on to become huge hits. The film, released on 14 ...
,
Karakattakaran,
Chinna Thambi
''Chinna Thambi'' () is a 1991 Indian Tamil-language romantic musical drama film written and directed by P. Vasu. The film stars Prabhu as the titular character, an uneducated village simpleton and Khushbu as Nandini, a homeschooled wealthy gi ...
. The banana comedy in Karakattakkaran brought him to the peak of his fame and fetched him high accolades among movie buffs. The comedy brought Goundamani and Senthil to the peak of their fame.
Early life
Veerappan was born in
Avanam,
Thanjavur
Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of southern Indian religion, art ...
district, Tamil Nadu. At the young age, he acted plays in Sakthi Drama troupe in
Pudukkottai
Pudukkottai Municipal Corporation is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the oldest Heritage city located on the banks of the Vellar River. It has been ruled, at different t ...
district.
The three great actors who motivated him that day were
S. V. Subbaiah,
Nambiar
Nambiar may refer to:
*Nambiar (caste surname), a surname used by multiple caste groups
*Nambiar (Ambalavasi caste), a surname of Pushpaka Brahmin from Kerala, India
*Nambiar (Nair subcaste), a surname of Nair from North Malabar, India
People
* ...
, S.A. Natarajan. Actor S. A Kannan. then,
Sivaji Ganesan
Villupuram. Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001), better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, was an Indian actor and film producer. He was mainly active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th centur ...
has joined in sakthi drama troupe and acted along with Veerappan. They were close friends in drama days. In 1950, when Sivaji Ganesan was playing the hero in the drama "En Thangai", he got a chance to play
Parasakthi film. Since he acted in cinema, Veerappan was given the role and for more than 25 weeks, the play took place in many parts of Tamil Nadu. ''Panathottam'' was the first film which Veerappan wrote comedy track however ''Madras to Pondicherry'' became a turning point in his career.
Film career
Veerappan had written the comedy sequences for several films including Karakattakaran, Vaidehi Kathirunthal, Idhaya Kovil, Udhaya Geetham etc which featured Goundamani and Senthil. and directed only one movie
Deiveega raagangal (1980). His comedy sequences in Karakattakaran fetched him high accolades among movie buffs.
Family
He has a wife, Porkodi, two daughters Shanti and Uma, and one son Anand.
Death
Veerappan suffered cardiac arrest and died at his residence in Saligramam on 30 August 2005.
Filmography
''This is a partial filmography. You can expand it.''
As actor
As Comedy Writer
As director
As story writer
*''
Rojavin Raja'' (1976)
*''
Rudra Thandavam'' (1978)
*''
Raja Enga Raja'' (1995)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Veerappan, A.
Indian male film actors
Tamil comedians
Male actors in Tamil cinema
20th-century Indian comedians
Actors from Thanjavur district
Writers from Thanjavur district
1933 births
2005 deaths
Tamil film directors