Manam Oru Kurangu

Manam Oru Kurangu (transl. The heart is a monkey) is a 1967 Indian Tamil-language satirical film directed by A. T. Krishnaswamy and produced by T. V. Arasu. Based on the play of the same name, itself inspired by the 1913 George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion, the film stars Cho Ramaswamy (who also wrote the screenplay), R. Muthuraman, T. S. Balaiah, A. V. M. Rajan, K. R. Vijaya and Vijayarani. It was released on 14 January 1967 and became a commercial success.

Manam Oru Kurangu
Theatrical release poster
Directed byA. T. Krishnaswamy
Produced byT. V. Arasu
Screenplay byCho Ramaswamy
Based onPygmalion
by George Bernard Shaw
StarringCho Ramaswamy
R. Muthuraman
T. S. Balaiah
A. V. M. Rajan
K. R. Vijaya
Vijayarani
Music byD. B. Ramachandran
Production
company
Sashti Films
Release date
  • 14 January 1967 (1967-01-14)
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Plot

Maruthayi is a village-based vegetable seller who, by sheer accident, becomes an actress named Mallika Devi. Murgesa, a farmer from the same village, loves Maruthayi and wants to marry her, but after she becomes an actress, she moves away from him. It was Gopinath, a wealthy socialite, who made her an actress as he laid a challenge that he would transform a vegetable seller into an actor if his regular heroine exited at the last second. A rich man's son Chellappa aspires to marry Maruthayi, but ends up marrying another girl. Murgesa realises that Maruthayi has a new status; when he tries to meet her, Gopinath discourages him, and he returns to his village. When Gopinath confesses his love for Maruthayi, she does not reciprocate. She is left alone, with nowhere to go.

Cast

Production

Manam Oru Kurangu was a play written by Cho Ramaswamy and inspired by the George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion. It was originally announced as Dil Ek Bandhar, a pun on the title Dil Ek Mandir.[2][4] The play Manam Oru Kurangu, which also starred Delhi Ganesh,[5] was later adapted into a feature film with the same name directed by A. T. Krishnaswamy and produced by T. V. Arasu under Sashti Films. Cho was part of the cast and also wrote the screenplay.[2][6] M. P. Viswanathan worked as an assistant make-up artist.[7]

Themes

The film exposes the snobbish values dominating society in everyday life.[8]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by D. B. Ramachandran.[9] The title song, performed by T. M. Soundararajan, became the film's most popular song.[2][10]

No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Aruppu Kotta Machchan"L. R. Eswari3:24
2."Beautiful"Sirkazhi Govindarajan, L. R. Eswari3:05
3."Manam Oru Kurangu"T. M. Soundararajan3:17
4."Pattanathu Santhaiyile Koodaikari"Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi 

Release and reception

Manam Oru Kurangu was released on 14 January 1967,[6] during the festive occasion of Thai Pongal.[11] Film historian Randor Guy called it "one of the best satirical comedies" by Cho and said it would be remembered for "the excellent screenplay and dialogue of Cho and his performance. Superb acting by T.S. Balaiah, K.R. Vijaya, A.V.M. Rajan, and Vijayarani."[2] Despite facing competition from other Pongal releases such as Kandhan Karunai, Pattathu Rani and Penne Nee Vazhga,[11] the film emerged a commercial success.[2]

References
  1. Vamanan (24 December 2016). "கலைமாமணி வாமனனின் 'நிழலல்ல நிஜம்' – 56 | திரை வடிவம் பெற்ற சோவின் மேடை நாடகங்கள்!". Dinamalar. Nellai. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  2. Guy, Randor (25 December 2016). "Manam Oru Kurangu (1967) TAMIL". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  3. Pandian, Anand (2009). Crooked Stalks: Cultivating Virtue in South India. Duke University Press. pp. 132–133.
  4. Venkatachalapathy, AR (11 December 2016). "Cho Ramaswamy articulated the anxieties of conservative, middle-class Brahmins". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 3 March 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  5. "ராகவேந்திரா படத்தில் நடித்ததன் மூலம் எனக்கு நல்ல வரவேற்பு கிடைத்தது: நடிகர் டெல்லி கணேஷ் பேட்டி". Maalai Malar (in Tamil). 26 August 2016. Archived from the original on 3 March 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  6. Film News Anandan (2004). Sadhanaigal Padaitha Thamizh Thiraipada Varalaru [Tamil film history and its achievements] (in Tamil). Chennai: Sivagami Publishers. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  7. "He would reach studio at 7am with a bowl of porridge". The Times of India. 8 December 2016. Archived from the original on 3 March 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  8. Ramanujam, K. S. (1971). Challenge and Response: An Intimate Report of Tamil Nadu Politics, 1967–1971. Sundara Prachuralayam. p. 161.
  9. "Manam Oru Kurangu (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". iTunes. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
  10. Velayutham, Selvaraj (2008). Tamil Cinema: The Cultural Politics of India's Other Film Industry. Routledge. p. 129. ISBN 978-1-134-15446-3.
  11. "சாண்டோ சின்னப்பா தேவர்! (16)". Dinamalar (in Tamil). 22 November 2015. Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
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