Kalvanin Kadhali (1955 film)

Kalvanin Kadhali
Theatrical release poster
Directed byV. S. Raghavan
Screenplay byS. D. Sundharam
Based onKalvanin Kadhali
by Kalki Krishnamurthy
Produced byP. Rajamanickam Chettiar
StarringSivaji Ganesan
P. Bhanumathi
CinematographyN. C. Balakrishnan
Edited byV. S. Rajan
Music byG. Govindarajulu Naidu
Ghantasala
Production
company
Revathi Productions
Release date
  • 13 November 1955 (1955-11-13)
Running time
190 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Kalvanin Kadhali (transl. The Thief's Lover) is a 1955 Indian Tamil-language romantic crime film directed by V. S. Raghavan and written by S. D. Sundharam. Starring Sivaji Ganesan and P. Bhanumathi, it is based on the novel of the same name by Kalki Krishnamurthy. The film was released on 13 November 1955 and completed a theatrical run of 80 days.

Plot

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At the Poonkulam village, Kalyani and Muthayyan are lovers. Circumstances brand Muthayyan a dacoit, but Kalyani remains steadfast in her love. Evading the police, Muthayyan leads the life of an exile in the forest. When things come to a head, Muthayyan and Kalyani decide to run away to some far-off place and settle down to marital bliss. Muthayyan's loyal friend Kamalapathi, a stage actor, makes all arrangements for their escape. In order to hoodwink the vigilant police inspector Shastri, Kamalapathi disguises himself as a woman and goes to the forest to meet Muthayyan and appraise him of the plans.

When Kalyani comes to the appointed place, she finds Muthayyan embracing another woman. Not realising that it is Kamalapathi whom Muthayyan is expressing his heartfelt thanks to, she suspects her lover's loyalty and runs away in a rage. Inspector Shastri, who is also in disguise, meets Kalyani at this juncture and enquires Muthayyan's whereabouts. Unthinking in her anger, Kalyani blurts out Muthayyan's location. Seeing Shastri run with his gun, Kalyani realises that he is a police officer, and runs after him. Muthayyan is shot dead by the police, and Kalyani commits suicide to reunite with him in death.

Cast

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Production

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Drawing inspiration from a dacoit in Thanjavur, Kalki Krishnamurthy wrote a story titled Kalvanin Kadhali with the intention of making it a film. Unable to attract investors, he instead published the screenplay as a serial novel in the magazine Ananda Vikatan upon advice from S. S. Vasan.[2] In 1949, N. S. Krishnan announced a film adaptation of Kalvanin Kadhali,[3] with C. N. Annadurai as screenwriter, but the project never came to fruition.[2] The film rights to the novel were later acquired by Revathi Productions, who kickstarted the film with V. S. Raghavan as director and S. D. Sundharam as screenwriter.[2]

Soundtrack

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The music composed by G. Govindarajulu Naidu & Ghantasala.[citation needed]

Song Music Singers Lyrics Length
"Kaalam Varugudhu Nalla Kaalam Varugudhu" G. Govindarajulu Naidu T. M. Soundararajan
"Thamizh Thirunaadu Thannai Petra" M. L. Vasanthakumari & N. L. Ganasaraswathi Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai 02:01
"Ezhuthi Sellum Vidhiyin Kai" T. M. Soundararajan
"Manadhil Urudhi Vendum" T. M. Soundararajan & P. Bhanumathi Mahakavi Bharathiyar 02:51
"Manadhil Urudhi Vendum" T. M. Soundararajan 00:32
"Nallathor Veenai Seidhe" P. Bhanumathi 02:30
"Valaipugum Podhe Thalaivaangum Paambe" T. M. Soundararajan 03:32
"Alli Malar Solai Inba Valli Ival Thaane" P. Bhanumathi, A. P. Komala & K. Rani S. D. Sundharam 03:38
"Therkatthi Kallanadaa...."
(Sadhaaram Naadagam)
Thiruchi Loganathan, Sirkazhi Govindarajan & Shanmugasundharam 09:21
"Mannukkeedu Pon Kettaal" Ghantasala Ghantasala 02:01
"Veyirkktera Nizhalundu" Ghantasala & P. Bhanumathi Kavimani Desigavinayagam Pillai 02:48
"Veyirkktera Nizhalundu" Ghantasala 02;53

Release

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Kalvanin Kadhali was released on 13 November 1955, Diwali day.[4] The film was released in five theatres – Gaiety, Mahalakshmi, Sayani, Rajakumari and Prabhat – and completed a theatrical run of 80 days.[5] According to historian Randor Guy, the sequences where Ganesan delivers "long-winding dialogue in high flown Tamil, filled with alliterative phrases" felt incongruous since his character was an illiterate thief.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Rajadhyaksha, Ashish; Willemen, Paul (1998) [1994]. Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema. British Film Institute and Oxford University Press. p. 341. ISBN 0-19-563579-5.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Guy, Randor (22 November 2008). "Kalvanin Kadhali 1954 [sic]". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  3. ^ "கள்வனின் காதலி". Kalki (in Tamil). 10 April 1949. p. 8. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2024 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "'எங்கிருந்தோ வந்தாள்' இங்கிருந்து வந்தாள்!". Dinamalar (in Tamil). Nellai. 17 February 2020. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  5. ^ தீனதயாளன், பா. (1 January 2016). "பானுமதி: 4. பூங்கோதையும்... கல்யாணியும்..." Dinamani (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
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