''Mannathi Mannan'' ( ) is a 1960 Indian
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
People, culture and language
* Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka
** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
-language
historical
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...
action film
The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
directed and produced by M. Natesan. The film stars
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 ...
,
Anjali Devi
Anjali Devi (; 24 August 1927 – 13 January 2014) was an Indian actress, model and producer in Telugu and Tamil films. She was well known for her role as the Devi Sita in '' Lava Kusa'' as well as for the title roles in movies like Chenchu ...
and
Padmini. It was released on 19 October 1960, during
Diwali
Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual v ...
.
Plot
Dancer Chitra and prince of Uraiyur Manivannan fall in love with each other after meeting in a dance competition. However, Chola King Kanikannan also desires Chitra. Meanwhile, Manivannan's father, the Cheran King sends his minister, seeking the hand of Karpagavalli, daughter of King Karigala, for his son. But the King thwarts this proposal, talking ill of the heredity of Manivannan's mother. Unable to bear his mother being insulted, Manivannan goes to the Chola kingdom and abducts Karpagavalli. In the meantime, a dacoit, played very cleverly by Kanikannan, forces Manivannan to marry Karpagavalli.
Cast
Cast according to the opening credits of the film
;Male Cast
*
M. G. R. as Manivannan
*
P. S. Veerappa as Kanikannan
*
M. G. Chakrapani as Karikala Chozhan
*
Kula Deivam V. R. Rajagopal as Balaraman
* N. S. Narayana Pillai
* Azhwar Kuppusami
* P. S. Venkatachalam
* R. M. Sethupathi
* Thirupathisami
* T. V. Sivanantham
;Female Cast
*
Anjali as Karpagavalli
*
Padmini as Chithra
*
Ragini
Ragini may refer to:
*Rāgini, the feminine counterpart of a raga, a melodic mode in Indian classical music
*Ragini, an Indian feminine given name from the above
People
*Ragini (actress) (1937–1976), Indian film actress, one of the Travancore si ...
*
G. Sakunthala as Mangayarkarasi
* Lakshmiprabha
;Dance
*
Lakshmi Rajyam, Rita, T. S. Jayanthi,
T. S. Kamala, D. Madhuri, T. K. Rajeswari,
Revathi, Sakunthala, C. R. Mohana, G. Bala,
G. Sundari, Leela, N. Meera, B. Shantha,
K. Rajeswari, Rajamma, Vittoba, J. N. Rajam,
G. Kamala, Nagu and P. T. Saroja.
Soundtrack
The music composed by
Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy
Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy were an Indian music composing duo composed of M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy. They worked together on over 100 films, from 1952's '' Panam'' to 1965's '' Aayirathil Oruvan''. After their split, Ramamoorthy w ...
. The song "Aadatha Manamum" is based on
Latangi raga.
Release and reception
''Mannathi Mannan'' was released on 19 October 1960, during
Diwali
Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual v ...
. It was previously scheduled for 30 September. ''
The Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnath Goenka. In 1999, eight y ...
'' wrote "the story could have been very well developed in a different way
.Anyway the picture is replete with romance, dance and fight" and praised the performances of star cast including Padmini. 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 ...
'' called it a very ordinary film, but good by Ramachandran standards. Despite facing competition from ''
Kairasi'', ''
Petra Manam
''Petra Manam'' () is a 1960 Indian Tamil-language film directed by A. Bhimsingh and produced by National Pictures. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Pushpavalli, S. S. Rajendran and Padmini Priyadarshini. It is the Tamil version of the 1953 T ...
'', and ''
Paavai Vilakku'', released on the same day,
the film became a commercial success. It achieved
cult
Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ...
status in Tamil cinema, and the song "Achcham Enbadhu Madamaiada" helped Ramachandran become a "cultural icon".
References
External links
*
* {{Rotten Tomatoes
1960 films
1960s historical action films
1960s Indian films
1960s Tamil-language films
Films about royalty
Films scored by Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy
Indian historical action films
Tamil-language Indian films