Maruthur Gopalan Chakrapani (13 January 1911- 17 August 1986), commonly known as Ettan ("elder brother" in

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

), was an Indian actor and producer based in the

Tamil film industry Tamil cinema is the segment of cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to the production of Film, motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the nam ...

. He was the elder brother of actor-politician

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 ...

Early life

Chakrapani was born in Vadavannur,

Palakkad Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...

(

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...

now

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

), on 13 January 1911. His parents, Gopala Menon and Sathyabhama, named him Neelakantan, but this was soon changed to Chakrapani because of his father's religious beliefs. Soon after his birth, the family migrated to Ceylon (now

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

) where Chakrapani's two younger siblings (brother

and a sister) were born. Gopala Menon worked as a magistrate in

Kandy Kandy (, ; , ) is a major city located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka, Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of ...

, until he suffered an early death. Chakrapani's sister also died while they were in Ceylon. Sathyabhama took her sons to

Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum), or Kudanthai, is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the hea ...

to be close to her brother. Chakrapani studied at Yanaiadi School, but left after the seventh grade. His mother then enrolled him and Ramachandran in the Madurai Original Boys Company (MOBC), a professional Tamil theatre company.

Career

Chakrapani made his Tamil cinema debut in '' Iru Sahodarargal'' in 1936. '' Maya Machhindra'' and '' Tamizhariyum Perumal'' came next, where he began to be known as a character actor. His breakout role came in 1944 with '' Mahamaya''. His character, Neelan, is believed to have been modelled after the Indian philosopher

Chanakya Chanakya (ISO 15919, ISO: ', चाणक्य, ), according to legendary narratives preserved in various traditions dating from the 4th to 11th century CE, was a Brahmin who assisted the first Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya, Chandragup ...

. Though ''Mahamaya'' was a box office failure, Chakrapani's lines continue to be spoken. His acting in the role of police inspector in Malai kallan and as villain in En Thangai are notable. He had a very good role in Nadodi Mannan. His big success came some years later with '' Thaai Magalukku Kattiya Thaali'', where he again played a villain. Later in his career, Chakrapani transitioned from actor to director and producer, managing his brother's career. Chakrapani worked with his brother on several projects which failed to see the light of day. One such film, ''Bhavani'' had Ramachandran in the lead role. It was written by A. K. Velan, directed by Masthan, with Chakrapani producing. Years later, Chakrapani tried again, this time taking the director's seat in the renamed '' Arasa Kattalai''. It was a success.

Personal life and death

Chakrapani was married to Meenakshi. They had 10 children together including seven sons and three daughters. Chakrapani died on 17 August 1986 at the age of 75.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chakrapani, M. G. 1911 births 1986 deaths 20th-century Indian male actors Indian male film actors Male actors in Tamil cinema M. G. Ramachandran Actors from Thanjavur district People from Palakkad district