''Vaddante Dabbu'' () is a 1954 Indian Telugu-language

screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a film subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1950s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary charact ...

film directed by

Y. R. Swamy Y. R. Swamy ( – 21 October 2002) was an Indian film director and screenwriter who worked primarily Cinema of Karnataka, Kannada cinema. He directed over 35 films in his career, 17 of which came in films that stars Dr. Rajkumar, Rajkumar in th ...

. It was produced by Moola Narayana Swamy and presented by

H. M. Reddy Hanumappa Muniappa Reddy (12 June 1892 – 14 January 1960), known as H. M. Reddy, was an Indian film director and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema. He directed the first Indian multilingual sound film '' Kalidas'' (1931), shot in ...

on Rohini Pictures banner. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao,

Sowcar Janaki Sankaramanchi Janaki (born 12 December 1931), widely known as Sowcar Janaki, is an Indian actress known for her works in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films. In a career spanning over seven decades, Janaki has appeared in nearly 390 fil ...

and Jamuna, with music composed by T. A. Kalyanam. It was simultaneously shot in Tamil as ''Panam Paduthum Padu'' (). The film was based on the George Barr McCutcheon novel ''

Brewster's Millions ''Brewster's Millions'' is a comedic novel written by George Barr McCutcheon in 1902, originally under the pseudonym of Richard Greaves. The plot concerns a young man whose grandfather leaves him $1 million in a will, but a competing will from ...

'' (1902). Despite originally opening to a mixed response, it attained

cult status A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, book ...

Telugu cinema Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to the production of Film, motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Based in Film N ...

, and was remade in the same language as '' Babai Abbai'' (1985).

Plot

The film follows Syam, a painter, and his close associate Rama Rao, who live together and are often engaged in borrowing money and evading creditors. Syam's artwork catches the eye of Saroja, the daughter of the wealthy Rao Saheb Hemachalapati. Saroja commissions a portrait, and the two fall in love. Impressed by Syam's talent, Rao Saheb gives him ₹1

lakh A lakh (; abbreviated L; sometimes written lac) is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand (100,000; scientific notation: 105). In the Indian 2, 2, 3 convention of digit grouping, it is written as 1,00,000. F ...

with the condition that he must spend it within 30 days, without donating or wasting the money. Syam, guided by Rama Rao, spends the money on various activities, including horse racing, gambling, theatre plays, and building a house. As the days pass, Syam’s finances continue to grow. However, he becomes disillusioned with the pursuit of wealth and decides to return the money to Rao Saheb. Rao Saheb reveals that the purpose of the task was to teach Syam the dangers of money and help him understand its true value. The film ends with Syam and Saroja’s marriage, symbolizing his newfound understanding.

Cast

* N. T. Rama Rao as Syam *

as Saroja * Jamuna as Rekha * Rajanala as Rao Saheb Hemachalapathi * Peketi Sivaram as Rama Rao *

Allu Ramalingaiah Allu Ramalingaiah (1 October 1922 – 31 July 2004) was an Indian character actor, comedian, and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. In 1990, he was honoured with the Padma Shri for his contribution to Indian cinema. In 1998, he rec ...

as Master Baddanki * Hemalatha as Yashoda * K. A. Thangavelu (Tamil version)

Production

''Vaddante Dabbu'' was adapted from George Barr McCutcheon's English-language novel ''

'' (1902), and was among the earliest

screwball comedies Screwball comedy is a film subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1950s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary charact ...

of Telugu cinema.

Music

Music was composed by T. A. Kalyanam. ;Telugu version Lyrics were written by Devulapalli,

Vempati Sadasivabrahmam Vempati Sadasivabrahmam (1905 – 1 January 1968) was an Indian screenwriter and lyricist known for his contributions to Telugu cinema. He was a prolific writer of scripts, dialogues, and lyrics in the early years of the industry.Sadasivabrahmam ...

, and Sri Sri. ;Tamil version The lyrics were written by Hanumantha Rao, Thanjai N. Ramaiah Dass and Guhan.

Release and reception

''Vaddante Dabbu'' was released on 19 February 1954, and ''Panam Padathum Padu'' was released on 4 March 1954. Regarding the Telugu version, a critic from '' Zamin Ryot'' wrote that there is no need to be poor with the knowledge of the world, but Syam is portrayed as a dunce. This flaw in the main character makes the entire film look flawed and concluded that throughout the film, Swamy tickles the audience's funny bone. Despite originally opening to a mixed response, the Telugu version attained

, and was remade in the same language as '' Babai Abbai'' (1985).

References

External links

* * {{Brewster's Millions 1950s Indian films 1950s screwball comedy films 1950s Tamil-language films 1950s Telugu-language films 1954 films Films based on Brewster's Millions Films directed by Y. R. Swamy Indian black-and-white films Indian multilingual films Indian screwball comedy films Tamil-language Indian films