The Role of Naradha in Tamil cinema.

   

   Naradha also known as Naradhamuni is said to be the king of all sages in Hindu puranas/ Hindu mythology.He is described as the incarnation of knowledge and wisdom with his itinerary of musical parade and story-telling. The other most important version is that of Naradha being the brainchild of Lord Brahmma. He is always depicted with a modern kind of Veena on hand and Veena as a stringed instrument is stated to have existed as early as the times of {the Bronze Age} the Rig and the Sama Vedic period.

  The character of Naratha would have found a solid place in more number of Telugu films than in Tamil. However,Tamil cinema too, has offered a significant place in films,that have found an immortal place in audience memory. Interestingly, the Naradha character was donned by none other than M.S. Subbulakshmi in the film Savithri{1941}.A woman taking up a male character was rare those days, because it was usually men who did female characters in street plays as well as in films, for want of women coming out to do acting, either in dramas or films. But M.S.Subbulakshmi  appearing as Naradha was the rarest of rare events.at the starting era of Tamil cinema. The film directed by Y.V.Rao also showed him as Sathyavan and Shanta Apte as Savithri.

  The very next year {1942} there came the film Bhaktha Naradar directed by Soundarajan which cast Ranjan the sweet and swash buckling actor of those days, in the role of Naradha. The film narrates the mythological/divine circumstances leading to the birth of Naradhar and the vagabond journey undertaken by him, towards intellectual and spiritual enlightenment. Seven years later {1949},Tamil cinema's famous singer Chidambaram Jeyaraman took up the role of Naradha in the widely acclaimed film Krishna Bhakthi starring P.U.Chinnappa and T.R.Raja kumari. The story screen play and direction were done by R.S.Mani. Krishna Bhakthi was the only film in which the traditionally popular singer M.L.Vasanthakumari played a role, though later her daughter Sri Vidya occupied the Tamil big screen for quite long.

  Sterling singer T.R.Mahalingam, very fascinatingly did the role of Naradha in two films. The first film was Sivaji Ganesan's Sri Valli.{1961}.Incidentally, T.R.Mahalingam himself had acted as hunter Velan in the earlier Version of Sri Valli {1945}.While this earlier release was directed by A.V.Meyyappan& A.T.Krishnasamy, the Sivaji Ganesan film was made by T.R.Ramanna.The story of T.R.Mahalingam's Sri Valli was written by A.T.Krishnasamy and the screen play of Sivaji Ganesan's film went to the hands of lyricist Thanjai.N.Ramaiahdas.The second film showcasing T.R.Mahalingam as Naradhar was  A.P.Nagarajan's Agathiyar{1972} in which Sirkazhi Govindarajan portrayed the role of  the Tamil saintly poet Agathiyar.

  It was Sivaji Ganesan who created a dramatic space for Naradha in the A.P.Nagarajan film Saraswathi Sabadham{1966}.The film exuberantly delineated the essence of Naradha through an extraordinary exhibition of body language and captivating delivery of cutting dialogues,of the sage while talking to the three goddesses of Art,Wealth and Bravery.By his brilliant roleplay the chevalier created an excellent image for Naradha in the minds of the audience. It was an image of mischief and massive meaning, that Naradha was capable of presenting to the world, through his cerebral churning. 

  After this colossal depiction of Naradha, it was the bilingual film Baktha Prahlaadha under the AVM banner, that showed Naradha in a mildly mischievous form by, casting the illustrious singer Balamurali Krishna in the role of Naradha. The vibrant Carnatic singer really did a fabulous job as Naradha, by indirectly motivating Prahladha on the one hand towards Mahavishnu,and instigating Hiranyakasibu against the Vaishnavite deity on the other. In this film serenely dedicated to the Prahalatha myth, Roja Ramani as Prahladha and S.V.Renga Rao as Hirnya, created indelible impressions in the minds of the viewers. But the late singer would ever stay in audience memory as impeccable Naradha.

  The character of Naradha was included in K.S.Gopala Krishnan's film Aadhi Parasakthi {1971}.The last role of Naradha that this blog writer watched was that of A.V.M Rajan,in another A.P. Nagarajan film Thirumalai Deivam{1973}.A.V.M.Rajan who was a passionate actor doing characters embedded with high voltage of emotions, did his very best as Naradha,with adequate voice modulation and sweetness expected of the role of the sage.

  Naradha is thus the foremost part of not only the Hindu puranas/ myths, but is an also enchanting part of Tamil mythological films. As Naradha is an exemplary symbol of art, culture, music and enlightenment, most of the films allocating a specific role for Naradha, have not gone without songs sung by this myth-centric character.

  As this blog writer has less knowledge of the musical component of films released before the Nineteen fifties, this post would happily place on record with admiration, the T.R.Mahalingam's songs Unakkaagave Pirandha Azhagan and Karpaga Cholaiyile from Sri Valli{1961},Andavan Tharisaname and the two dynamic songs Isaiyaai Thamizhaai Iruppavane & Namachivaaya Ena Solvome sung by this veteran singer with the other musical stalwart Sirkazhi Govindarajan  in Agathiyar. Similarly, the most popular song Kalviyaa Selvamaa Veeramaa sung by T.M.Sounda rajan for Naradhar Sivaji Ganesan in Saraswathi Sabadham,and Thiruppaal Kadalil Palli Kondaaye Sriman Naaraayanaa,sung by Balamurali Krishna as Naradha in Bhaktha Prahlaadhaa are also to be cherished in the musical archives of Tamil cinema.

   The character of Naradha as a whole, is an ensemble of tricks, tales, punch and perception. The name 'Narayana' sitting on his tongue is a harbinger of hopes of salvation and support, for an ailing humanity, ailing with the ignorance of what life is, and how it should be lived. Though Naradha the Narayana devotee, seems to carry the Vaishnavite tag, he should be perceived as the spokesperson of ethics and instructiveness, endowed with the divine responsibility of leading mankind, to its height of glory and ennoblement. 

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