Showing all artists born in 1927

Viluppuram Chinnaiahpillai Ganesan Mandrayar, popularly known as Sivaji Ganesan was a Tamil stage and film actor who was considered to be among the first and finest method actors in India. His fame came from his versatility and expressive prowess in Tamil cinema. He was the first Indian film actor who won a best actor award in an international film festival, the Afro-Asian Film Festival held in Cairo, Egypt in 1959 and the first Indian actor to be made a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

Sivaji Ganesan was born on 01.10.1927 to Chinayya Mandrayar and Rajamani Ammal, in a Tamil middle class Kallar family. That day was a Monday, and on that day his father Chinnaiya mandrayar was arrested for taking part as a freedom fighter in an anti-British campaign in Villupuram.

Sivaji Ganesans acting career runs to more than 6 decades. He came to cinema from Stage. Apart from his immense success and reception in Tamil cinema, he has also acted in Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada-language films. Ganesans first film was the Tamil film Parasakthi in 1952, co-starring actress Pandari Bai. The script for the film was written and directed by the now-Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Karunanidhi. Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, a torch bearer for Dravidian Movement, freedom fighter and atheist, was very much impressed by Ganesans performance as the Maratha warrior Sivaji in the Play "Sivaji Kannda Hindu Raajiyam" and called him as Sivaji.Incidentally the role should have been played by M.G. Ramachandran.

In his career spanning 6 decades, Sivaji Ganesan has donned innumerable characters. Right from the first film Parasakthi, he has covered almost all characters of the society as well as puranic, historic and the like. In puranic epic stories, his performance as Bharatha in Sampoorna Ramayanam was outstanding and the accolade came from none other than Chakkaravarthi Rajagopalachariar. In Karnan, based on Mahabharatha, his performance as Karna, stands evergreen even today. In historic roles too, his performances as Raja Raja Sozhan, Samrat Asokan, have won him laurels throughout the world. And his performance as Appar in Thiruvarut Selvar, received appreciation from the Saint Maha Periyaval, Jagat Guru Chandrasekarendra Saraswathi. His performance as Lord shiva in the movie Thiruvilayaadal is a classic and is the first to be bought one intends to collect movies for personal use. In the film Navarathiri (1964), Ganesan donned nine different roles that represented the nine emotional states of a person. His role in the film Veerapaandiya Kattabomman won him the Best Actor Award at the Afro-Asian Film Festival held in March 1960 at Cairo. Sivaji Ganesan was the first Indian actor to get an award for Best Actor abroad. His roles included V.O.C., Vanchinathan, Thiruppur Kumaran, Bhagat Singh (freedom fighters), Karnan, Bharathan (epic characters), Naradhar, Appar, Aazhvar (puranic characters), lepor, doctor, judge, advocate, rickshaw puller, etc. in real life characters. This is only a sample and this page would be insufficient to describe the versatile and variety of roles he has played. More information available in the website.

Nadigar Thilagam, as fondly remembred by his fans the world over, struck on success note from his very first film Parasakthi, which was a Silver Jubilee Hit (25 weeks run). He was the darling of the producers throughout his career and was a Directors actor. His films Veerapandiya Kattabomman, Bhaga Pirivinai, School Master (Kannada), Paava Mannippu, Paasa Malar, Thiruvilaiyadal, Dharti (Hindi), Pattikkada Pattanama, Vasantha Maligai, Thanga Padhakkam, Uthaman, Thiyagam, Thirisulam, Theerppu, Needhipadhi, Sandhippu, Mudhal Mariyadhai, Padikkadhavan, Dhevar Magan, Padaiyappa, were all Silver Jubilee Hit Films. Nearly 100 of his films saw more than 25 weeks run.

After a brief respiratory problems, Sivaji Ganesan, breathed his last on Juy 21, 2001 at around 7.45 pm (IST) the Apollo Hospital in Chennai. A documentary, Parasakthi Muthal Padayappa Varai was made to commemorate Sivaji Ganesans legacy. His funeral was attended by millions of people including politicians and personalities from the South Indian film fraternity. 

Anjali Devi (24 August 1927 – 13 January 2014) was an Indian actress, former model and producer in Telugu and Tamil. She was well known for her role as the mythological Sita in Lava Kusha as well as for the titular roles in movies like Suvarna Sundari and Anarkali.

Anjali Devi was born in Peddapuram, East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh, India, as Anjamma. She changed her name to Anjani Kumari when acting in dramas. Later, director C. Pullaiah changed her name to Anjali Devi.

Career

As actress

She was a theatre artiste before venturing into movies. Her debut film role was as Lohitasya in Raja Harishchandra in 1936. Her first movie as a heroine was Kashtajeevi by L. V. Prasad in 1940, but that movie was abandoned after three reels shooting. Later, C.Pullayya discovered her and gave her the opportunity to star as Mohini in Gollabhama. Based on her acting ability and looks, she became a star overnight in 1947. She eventually acted in more than 350 Telugu films and a few Tamil and Kannada films as the heroine.

She acted in Lava Kusha, a milestone film and the first color film in the Telugu film industry in 1963. She is well known for playing Sita in Lava Kusha and her performances in films like Suvarna Sundari and Anarkali were also appreciated. She has acted in nearly 500 films. Brundavanam (1992), Anna Vadina (1993) and Police Alludu (1994) were the last few films of her career. In Balaiah's Police Alludu and Anna Vadina she appeared alongside Brahmanandam. She acted in various roles, such as a damsel, an angel, a dancer, a demon, a goddess, a traditional woman and later in mother roles.

As producer

In 1955 she produced the film Anarkali, in which she herself played the titular role, with Akkineni Nageswara Rao as Prince Salim. Then she produced V. Madhusudan Rao's Bhakta Tukaram and Chandipriya. Bollywood and Tollywood actress Jayapradha played the lead role in the latter alongside Shobhan Babu and Chiranjeevi. As a producer she has produced 27 films. She was an ardent devotee of Sathyasai Baba and produced a tele-serial on Sathyasai.

Personal life

She married P. Adinarayana Rao, a music director, in 1940.  They settled in Chennai. They have two sons. Together, they produced many Telugu films under the banner, Anjali Pictures. Their granddaughter, Saila Rao, is also an actress.

Death

She died at the age of 86 on 13 January 2014 at Vijaya Hospital, in Chennai, with her organs donated to Ramachandra Medical College.

Kannadasan given name at birth was Muthiah. But when he made his exit from this world, at the age of 54, on October 16, 1981, millions of Tamils remembered him only by the name Kannadasan. For Tamils all over the world, he epitomised Tamil poetry. Even the illiterate, who couldn't read and memorise the poetry of Kamban or the maxims of Valluvan, could hum the compositions of poet Kannadasan.

A number count of his publications shows a tally of 109 volumes, which include 21 novels and 10 slim volumes of essays on Hinduism, captioned Arthamulla Indu Matham (Meaningful Hinduism). In addition, he produced about 4000 poems and approximately 5000 movie lyrics, between 1944 and 1981, all with an eighth grade education at the formal level. He was also an excellent example of this century's Tamil goliard.

What made Kannadasan click? There is no doubt that he had a penetrating eye and keen observational powers. He also did not live a cocoon-type of life. He dipped into everything that  Tamil Nadu could offer - wine, women, drugs, gambling, politics, polemics, atheism and religious sanctuary. After enjoying everything, what he did was remarkable - he composed verses about all his experiences, with self depreciating humour and biting sarcasm. These verses touched the sympathetic chords of Tamils from all walks of life - school boys, undergrads, housewives, farmers, manual labourers, plantation workers, middle class representatives and even upper class elites.

He was at his best when he wrote lyrics on the philosophy of cycles of life. Let me reminisce on some of his most popular compositions in this column. It is a pity that Kannadasan's verses has not been translated into other languages yet. I have made an elementary effort here, while not attempting a literal translation.

Kannadasan (24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was a Tamil poet and lyricist, heralded as one of the greatest and most important writers in the Tamil language. Frequently called Kaviarasu (King of Poets), Kannadasan was most familiar for his song lyrics in Tamil films and contributed around 5000 film lyrics apart from 6000 poems and 232 books, including novels, epics, plays, essays, his most popular being the 10-part religious essay on Hinduism, Arthamulla Indhumatham (Meaningful Hindu Religion). He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Cheraman Kadali in the year 1980 and was the first to receive the National Film Award for Best Lyrics, given in 1969 for the film Kuzhanthaikkaga.

Kannadasan worked in Thiraioli, a cine magazine run by 'Papa' Rama.Thiyagarajan in Rayavaram. Pudukkottai Distt and in Chennai. He also worked for "Thirumagal" magazine in Ramachandrapuram, Pudukkottai Distt. M. Karunanidhi conferred the title Kavingar to Kannadasan in a public meeting held at Pollachi in 1949.

Proud to have him in Hinduism

Muthiah was a staunch atheist and a follower of the Dravidian atheistic movement. He had a great love for the Tamil language and culture, and excelled in Tamil literature, both prose and poetry. He read the Thiruppavai of Andal, and was amazed at its mystic poetry, which was to have a deep and lasting impact on him. After a lot of introspection, he decided to convert back to Hinduism. He renamed himself as Kannadasan, meaning the servant of Lord Krishna (In Tamil Kannan means Krishna, and in Sanskrit, Dasa means servant). He dug deep into understanding Hinduism, and wrote his series of books on Hinduism titled Arthamulla Indhu Matham.

Songwriting

Kannadasan's greatest contribution to Tamil culture is his songwriting. Lyrics with simple words but a profound philosophical message were his trademark style. Before Kannadasan, many lyricsists like Papanasam Shivam, Kambadasan, Vindhan, Maruthakasi, and Ku.Ma.Balasubramanian were sought after in the Tamil music industry, but after the advent of Kannadasan, the scene changed. He quickly became the most sought after lyricist in the industry and remained so until his death. Kannadasan was so popular that though there were many excellent poets like Vaali, Pulamaipithan, Alangudi Somu, Avinasimani, Panchu Arunachalam and Jayakanthan during that period, their hits are wrongly considered by many Kannadasan fans as songs written by him.  Though, after his death, film lyrics have come a long way from Vairamuthu to Tamarai, many people still consider Kannadasan to be the best songwriter.

He is considered to be the greatest modern Tamil poet after Subramanya Bharathi.

He was the producer of the historic Tamil film Sivagangai Seemai portraying the pioneers of the Indian freedom struggle "Marudhu Pandaiars". The song "Santhupottu" from that film remains popular.


Notable novels

• Aval oru hindhu pen (1992)
• Sivappukal mukkuththi (1992)
• Swarna saraswathi (1992)
• Nadantha kathai (1992)
• Mica (1992)
• Suruthi ceratha rakangkal (1992)
• Muppadhu nalum pournami (1992)
• Arangamum antharankamum (1992)
• Ayiram thIvu angkayarkanni (1992)
• Theivath thirumanangkal natakam (1992)
• Ayirangaal mandapam (1992)
• Athaivida rakasiyam (1992)
• Kathal konda thennadu (1992)
• Oru kavingnanin kadhai (1978)
• Singkai partha chennai (1992)
• Velangkattiyur vizha (1992)
• Vilakku mattuma sivappu (1992)
• Vanavasam (1981)
• Athaivida ragasiyam (1981)
• Birunthaavanam (1994)
• Cheraman Kathali
• Sandhithen Sindhithean
• Yesu kaviyam

Autobiographies

• Enathu Suyasaritham
• Enathu Vasantha Kaalangal
• Vanavasam
• Manavasam

Selected filmography

Lyrics

• Singari (1951)
• Aayirathil oruvan
• Mannadhi Mannan
• Thaai Sollai Thattadhe
• Thaayai Kaatha Thanayan
• Paasam
• Karuppu Panam
• Panathottam
• Periya Idathu Penn
• Dharmam Thalaikakkum
• Ananda Jothi
• Neethikkupin passam
• Kudumbathalaivan
• Kaanchi Thalaivan
• Parisu
• Vettaikaran
• Panakkara Kudumbam
• Thiruvilayadal
• Saraswathi Sabatham
• Pattikada Pattanama
• Urimaikural
• En Kadamai
• Nadodi
• Thanga Pathakkam
• Moondram Pirai
• Iruvar Ullam
• Dheerga Sumangali
• Aalayam
• Annai
• Naanum Oru Penn
• Pazhani
• Varumayin Niram Sivappu

Scriptwriter

• Karuppu Panam
• Madurai Veeran
• Nadodi Mannan
• Thirudadhe

Onscreen appearances

• Karuppu Panam
• Ratha Thilagam
• Suryakanthi
• Apoorva Raagangal
• Kavalai Illatha Manithan
• Parasakthi

Poet laureate

Kannadasan was the poet Laureate of the Tamil Nadu Government at the time of his death. He wrote two notable autobiographies, titled Vanavasam, a book about his past life whilst he was atheist, with the DMK and a sequel, titled Manavasam a book about his life after he had left DMK

His contribution to Tamil literature

Kannadasan was a prolific writer and his writing covered a variety of forms- poems, novels, lyrics for Tamil films and books on spirituality. His series titled Arthamulla Indu Matham (Meaningful Hindu Religion) is known for its simplicity in explaining the principles of Hinduism. He wrote a number of spiritual works in the later part of his life including Yesu Kaviyam the story of Jesus told in the poetic form. Many of Kannadasan’s poems have been translated into French.

He wrote and published several volumes of poetry. He was an admirer of Kambar and wrote a number of poems praising Kambar's artistry,contrary to the satire ("Kambarasam") on the same by C.N.Annadurai. He also spoke at several of the Kambar festivals. He sang the beauty of Seethai's gait and the shoulders of Rama; he spoke of beauty intoxicating and dropped me in a vessel of amrut(liquour)" This is one of Kannadasan's tribute to the poet Kambar.

He was a great person, he has no religious boundaries, He wrote a book about the life of Jesus Christ "Yesu Kaaviyam" rendered in a pristine poetical Tamil. It was published at Trichirapalli in the year 1981. The function was presided over by the then chief minister of Taminadu Mr. M.G. Ramachandran. Yesu Kaaviyam was the last literary work of Kannadasan.

Death

Kannadasan died on 17 October 1981 in Chicago, United States, where he had gone from India to attend a Tamil conference organised by the Tamil Association of Chicago. He was aged just 54 at the time of his death. A house in Sirukoodalpatti is now a memorial for the Tamil film music's evergreen favourites. The Kannadasan memorial museum was inaugurated on 21 October 1992.  The evergreen song 'Kanne Kalaimane' from the film 'Moondram Pirai', released a few months later, was his last song.

Legacy

The Government of Tamil Nadu erected a memorial hall as "Kaviarasar Kannadasan Manimandapam" at Karaikudi.  The road adjoining Natesan Park in T.Nagar, Chennai is named "Kannadasan Road" in his honour.

S. N. Lakshmi or Sennalkudi Narayana Thevar Lakshmi (born 1927 – 20 February 2012) was an Indian film actress, who appeared in supporting roles, often essaying roles of mother or grandmother in films. A recipient of the state government's Kalaimamani and Kalaiselvam awards, Lakshmi acted in more than 1,500 films and 6,000 dramas.

Lakshmi was born to Narayana Thevar as the 13th child in her family, and left home anguished aged just 11, because her six brothers who were much older did not give her the attention she deserved. Her family had to move from their village town of Sennalkudi to Virudhunagar after their father had died and her mother worked at a small hotel and also at the temple there to keep the family financially afloat. Her neighbour, a dancer, helped Lakshmi join a drama troupe and she quickly picked up the steps she was taught and travelled with them from place to place.

When the actors reached Raja Mannargudi they left her with a family which put her on a train to Madras and bade farewell. When she was wondering alone, help came in the form of a lorry driver's wife who noticed her and showed her the way to Gemini Studios, which opened its doors to the destitute. It took eight years for her family to find her.

She soon joined the studio staff at a salary of Rs.150 and then rented a house with four other young girls and hired a cook. Before her film career began, Lakshmi had years of theatre experience, with more than 2,000 plays to her credit. From Ganandesikar's and N. S. Krishnan's theatre troupes to S. V. Sahasranamam's Seva Stage and K. Balachander's Ragini Recreations, Lakshmi trained under stalwarts. Lakshmi acted as a man in many all-woman plays, doing stunts and acrobatics and even fought a leopard as an extra in the MGR film, Baghdad Thirudan.  In 1959, she bought her first home in Royapettah on Pachaiappan Nayakkan Road. Three years later, she bought her first car, a Morris Eight.

She started as a group dancer in Chandralekha. Plays and one-scene appearances in films continued till N. S. Krishnan gave her a pivotal role in Nalla Thangai and then her real breakthrough came through Muktha Srinivasan's maiden venture Thamarai Kulam followed by Engal Kula Devi and Naalu Veli Nilam. Nagesh then recommended her to K. Balachander to star in Server Sundaram, after he had been impressed with her performance in the theatre show of the same name, and the film's success prompted more offers for the actress.

Kamal Haasan called her to feature in Thevar Magan while she was taking a break in Puttaparthi and from then til Virumaandi, Lakshmi has been a part of nearly all of Kamal Haasan productions and such was his confidence in her ability that he would ask the assistants to give her the dialogue and move away, confident that she would handle it on her own.

Before her death she was doing a role as Meenakshi's grand mother in the serial "Saravanan Meenakshi" in Vijay TV.

Lakshmi has mentioned that "marriage didn't appeal to her", and that her brothers' grand children and their kids are now regulars at the grand aunt's place.

Till the early 2000s, Lakshmi would move around town by driving but was forced to give it up after she broke her leg. On Sunday mornings she would visit Sai Kripa, a free medical centre in Chennai and help the staff.

S. N. Lakshmi died in Chennai on 20 February 2012, aged 85. She suffered a cardiac arrest in the early hours of February 20, following which she was rushed to a hospital. However doctors there declared her dead. Her body was kept at her Saligramam residence where film personalities made a beeline to pay last tributes. Her cremation took place in her native town of Virudhunagar.

Nirmalamma (1927 – 19 February 2009) was an actress in the Telugu film industry of India. She has acted in more than 800 films. She was well known for her grandmother roles in several films.

She was born in Machilipatnam, Madras Presidency, British India.

Her debut film was Garuda Garvabhangam in 1950. Nirmalamma has worked along with almost all famous artists in Telugu Cinema like NTR, ANR, S.V. Ranga Rao, Rajendra Prasad, P. B. Srinivas, Megastar Chiranjeevi, Nandamuri Balakrishna and Venkatesh many more. She is one of the artists who appears in almost all of the movies of S.V. Krishna Reddy and E. V. V. Satyanarayana. She has had unforgettable roles in the films Chinnodu Peddodu, Padaharella Vayasu, Kanakamahalakshmi Recording Dance Troupe, Gang Leader, Mayalodu, Egirey Paavurama, Rendilla Poojari, Devatha (Shoban babu's movie), Chinnarayudu, Dalapathi, Alibaba Aradajanu Dongalu, Sitharatnam Gaari Abbayi, Mamagaaru, Aa Okkati Adakku, Karthavyam, Chalaki Mogudu and Chadastapu Pellam.

She has established Nirmala Arts and produced Chalaki Mogudu Chadasthapu Pellam starring Rajendra Prasad, directed by Relangi Narasimha Rao.

Her last movie was Premaku Swagatham, directed by famous director S.V. Krishna Reddy.  Her last public appearance was at the Vajrothsava celebrations of Telugu cinema where many celebrities remembered her for the fact that she has played as mother/grandmother for many generations of Telugu Cinema.

She had no children of her own but adopted a child.