''Dikkatra Parvathi'' is a 1974

Tamil language Tamil (; ' , ) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. Tamil is an official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sovereign nations of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and the Indian territory of Pud ...

film directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao based on a novel by the same name written by C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji). The film stars

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 acto ...

and

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...

. 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.

Plot

The story espouses the evils of drink, Parvathi (

) is a happy girl who recently married a loving husband, Karuppan(

). With kind parents-in-law and a doting husband, her life is blissful. Soon, she is blessed with 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 *

as Karuppan *

Y. Gee. Mahendra Y G Mahendran (born 9 January 1950) is an Indian Actor, dramatist, actor, singer, playwright and comedian from the state of Tamil Nadu. He has acted in a number of plays and films. He is the son of Y. G. Parthasarathy, one of the pioneers of mo ...

* Poornam Viswanathan * Typist Gopu

Production

The film was shot in Thorapalli, the birthplace of Rajaji, in a single 28-day schedule. The court scenes were shot in the actual court at Hosur 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 and set a precedent. When the producers and the director could not repay the loan, then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. G. Ramachandran, 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. It was the only film with a story based upon Rajaji's work. The signature of Rajaji in the letter of permission given to Singeetam Srinivasa Rao 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 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 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 ...

; both were sung by

Vani Jairam Vani Jairam (born as Kalaivani on 30 November 1945), also credited as Vani Jayaram, is an Indian singer. She is best known as a playback singer in South Indian cinema. Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. She has do ...

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

References

External links

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