Karnan (1964 film)

For other uses, see Karna (disambiguation).

Karnan
File:Karnan poster.jpg Promotional Poster
Directed by	B. R. Panthulu
Written by	Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy
Produced by	B. R. Panthulu
Starring	Sivaji Ganesan N. T. Rama Rao S. A. Ashokan R. Muthuraman Devika Savitri
Cinematography	V. Ramamurthy
Edited by	R. Devarajan
Music by	M. S. Viswanathan T. K. Ramamoorthy
Production company	Padmini Pictures
Release date	14 January 1964
Running time	175 min
Country	India
Language	Tamil
Budget	₹40 lakh (US$48,000)

Karnan is a 1964 Indian Tamil mythological epic film written by Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy and directed by B. Ramakrishnaiah Panthulu. It features an ensemble cast composed of Sivaji Ganesan, N. T. Rama Rao, S. A. Ashokan, R. Muthuraman, Devika, Savitri and M. V. Rajamma. The film's original soundtrack was composed by M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy. A "magnum opus" for its time, Karnan was the first Tamil film to be shot in "opulent" locations such as the palaces of Jaipur, while also being filmed extensively in Kurukshetra. It was considered a milestone for Tamil cinema, since it cast Ganesan and Rama Rao, both who were then leading actors of South Indian cinema.

The film is based on the story of Karna, a character from the Indian Hindu epic Mahabharata, who is born to an unwed mother Kunti and is therefore set afloat in the Ganges, later discovered and adopted by a kind charioteer and his wife. He does not want to follow in his foster father's footsteps and wants to be a warrior. He then befriends Duryodhan, thereby setting the initial grounds of the Kurukshetra war - where he will join Duryodhan to battle the Pandavas - none other than Kunti's sons. The film was dubbed in Telugu as Karna, and subsequently as Dhaan Veer Karna in Hindi. Karnan was released on 14 January 1964, coinciding with Pongal day, and received critical acclaim. The film was digitized and re-released in March 2012, and this version also became a success.

Plot

Born with Kavasam and Kundalam (Armour and ear-rings), and bequeathed as a gift from the Sun God to an unwed Kunti (M. V. Rajamma), Karnan is abandoned so as to prevent embarrassment for her. He is set afloat in the Ganga, rescued and adopted by a charioteer, who is employed with Dhritarashtra, the blind king. Years later, the now-grown up Karnan (Sivaji Ganesan) realizes that the charioteer is his foster father only, therefore heartbroken. He does not want to become a charioteer like his foster father, and chooses to become a warrior instead. He masters archery and challenges the Pandava prince Arjuna (R. Muthuraman) at a contest. When Karnan is insulted on account of his birth, the Kaurava prince Duryodhana (S. A. Ashokan) defends him and accepts him as his partner. Karnan is eventually crowned the king of Anga. Shortly after, a young orphan Meghanathan ("Master" Sridhar), who was accused of setting a school on fire, runs to Karnan seeking justice. The latter, knowing he is equally an orphan, willingly supports Meghanathan.

At one time, Lord Indra, the rain god and king of heavens, disguised as an old Brahmin, goes to Karnan and asks for his Kavasam and Kundalam in daanam (donation). Indra was apprehensive that Karnan, by virtue of his phenomenal skills as a warrior, may be able to overwhelm Arjun. He therefore asked for this gift so as to reduce his strength. Karnan had been cautioned by the Sun God that Lord Indra was going to make some such move. But Karna is so large hearted that he cannot refuse anyone. Knowing fully well, that Indra was playing a trick on him disguised as a Brahmin, he yet parts with his Kavasam and Kundalam, which were parts of his body since birth and which made him invincible. Lord Indra is taken aback at Karnan's capacity to give away anything asked for. He tells that what Karnan has done today, no ordinary mortal could have done. Immensely pleased with Karnan's generosity, Indra lets him ask for any varam (wish). Karnan asks Indra to kindly give him the weapon Shakti which has the potential to destroy any enemy. Lord Indra gives Shakti to Karnan with the proviso however that he could use it only once and that thereafter the weapon shall return to Lord Indra.

Karnan is keen to acquire the Brahmastra Mantra from the great teacher Parasurama. However, he knows that Parasurama gives instructions to Brahmins (the priestly tribe) only. So he disguises as a Brahmin and beseeches Parasurama to accept him as a sishya (disciple). Parsurama accepts him as such and starts giving him instructions. One day when Parasurama is resting in Karnan's lap, it so happens that a giant bee stings Karnan on the lower portion of his thigh. It was very painful and he starts bleeding. However, fearing that if he moved his legs, he would awaken Parasurama, he does not move at all and continues to suffer. When Parasurama wakes up, he sees Karnan bleeding, He asks Karnan about his true identity, and states that a Brahmin cannot suffer so much physical pain. Only a kshattriya (the warrior tribe) can endure so much discomfort. Karnan is obliged to disclose his identity. Parasurama is greatly enraged, because he is a sworn enemy of kshattriyas. He therefore curses Karnan that as he had learnt through deceit, he shall forget the vidya (skill) which Parasuram had taught him at the crucial juncture.

Meanwhile, Karnan saves Subhangi (Devika) from an out-of-control chariot, and they fall for each other. However, Subhangi's parents disapprove of this because they don't want their daughter to marry someone who doesn't know about his own parents. But after some time they accept, so Karnan and Subhangi are happily married. She gives birth to a son Vrishasena. A few years later, shortly before the Kurukshetra war, Lord Krishna (N. T. Rama Rao), a supporter of the Pandavas, finds out about Karnan's true background. He tells Kunti that Karnan is her first born son who she abandoned, she realizes it soon, and so does Karnan. He reconciles with his mother. Kunti gets two wishes from Karnan, one that he will not attack the other four sons of Kunti other than Arjuna, and he will attack Arjuna with the Nagastra only once. However, Krishna goes against Karnan after this.

Parasurama's curse was to prove Karnan's undoing. At the Kurukshetra war, while having a sword fight with an enemy soldier, Karnan's son Vrishasena gets killed by Arjuna's arrow upon Krishna's commands. This results in Subhangi and Karnan's dismay, making Karnan more determined to kill Arjuna. The next day during war, Karnan uses the Nagastra to try killing Arjuna, but Krishna saves Arjuna by preventing the arrow from hurting him. Since he cannot use the Nagastra more than once, he is unable to kill Arjuna. A wheel of his chariot gets stuck in a big hole, and he gets down to take it out. At that time, Arjuna shoots many arrows at the helpless Karnan, severely wounding him, but is curiously unable to kill him. Krishna tells him that the great Dharma of noble charity that Karnan had performed during his lifetime was protecting him. Krishna disguises as a Brahmin, goes to Karnan and asks him his virtues as donation. Karnan who cannot say no to anyone gives his virtues to the brahmin, then dies after Arjuna shoots a few more arrows at him. The other Pandavas, who realize that Karnan was their eldest brother, arrive and are saddened by his death, so is Kunti. Arjuna, struck by guilt, curses himself for killing Karnan. But Krishna reminds him that before the final battle, the curses that inflicted Karnan (e.g.: by Lord Indra and Parasurama) were also responsible for his death, and that there was no need for Arjuna to blame just himself. The film however ends on a positive note, as Karnan is blessed when entering heaven.

Cast

Main

• Sivaji Ganesan as Karnan, the titular protagonist and eldest of the Pandavas. He is the son of Kunti and the Sun god Surya. He was born to Kunti before her marriage with Pandu, thus abandoned to prevent embarrassment. Karnan is the closest friend of Duryodhan and fought on his behalf against the Pandavas in the Kurukshetra war. Karnan fought against misfortune throughout his life and kept his word under all circumstances.

• N. T. Rama Rao as Krishna. He reveals to Karnan that the latter is the eldest son of Kunti, and therefore, technically, the eldest Pandava. He asks Karnan to change sides, but he refuses because he has sworn fidelity to Duryodhan. Thus, Krishna is against Karnan during the Kurukshetra war, where he orders Arjun to kill both Karnan and his son.

• S. A. Ashokan as Duryodhana, Karnan's eternally best friend and the eldest of the Kauravas. When Karnan is insulted on account of his birth, Duryodhan defends him and makes him king of Anga so that he is regarded as Arjun's equal. Karnan pledges his allegiance and friendship to Duryodhan, as Duryodhan had rescued him from a source of continuing humiliation and hardship. Neither of them know that Karnan is in fact Kunti's oldest son.

• R. Muthuraman as Arjuna, the third of the five Pandavas. He and Karnan form a terrible rivalry when Karnan seeks to avenge his humiliation by Arjuna's guru and the princely order. During the Kurukshetra war, Karnan's chariot wheel gets stuck in a big hole and Karnan stops to get it out. That time, Arjuna kills Karnan on Krishna's orders, not realizing that Karnan is his half-brother and is distraught when he realizes the truth.

• Devika as Subhangi, wife of Karnan. When she is trapped in an out-of-control chariot, Karnan saves her and they fall for each other. However, Subhangi's parents disapprove of this because they don't want their daughter to marry someone who doesn't know about his own parents. However, after some time they accept, so Karnan and Subhangi are happily married.

• Savitri as Bhanumati, Duryodhana's wife. Karnan, being Duryodhana's close friend helps the latter to marry Bhanumati, who is the princess of Chitragandha.

• M. V. Rajamma as Kunti, the mother of Karnan and the elder three Pandavas. When young, she is taught a mantra, which will give her a son. Kunti does not believe it, so she tries to use it. The sun god Surya appears and Kunti asks him to go, but Surya said he is compelled to fulfill the mantra before returning. After the birth of the child (Karnan), Kunti abandons him and he is set afloat in the Ganges, before being discovered by a childless horse-carriage driver.

Secondary

"I’ve been extremely blessed to act with such a storehouse of talent. As I delivered my dialogue, Sivaji Ganesan was so moved that tears rolled down his cheeks. He called out ‘Cut’ and the scene had to be re-shot. Drawing me towards him after the shoot, he gave me Rs.1000 as a reward and gave me a hug. It was a memorable moment for me."

— "Master" Sridhar, to The Hindu

• "Master" Sridhar as Meghanathan. An young orphan, who after being accused of setting fire to a school, runs to Karnan seeking justice. Sridhar was six years old at the time of filming, and finished his "long scene in one take", for which he was paid a remuneration of ₹1,000 (US$12).

• V. S. Raghavan as Vidhuran. According to the actor, "Panthulu means magnificence". He had appeared only in a "couple of scenes", but he felt that it was "enough to make an impact". A report mentioned that "the man behind his success was Sivaji Ganesan." Raghavan stated that "You can talk about Sivaji and his passion for acting for another 100 years, as he has made Tamil Nadu proud."

• Shanmugasundaram as Salliya Chakravarthy, a charioteer "as skilled as Lord Krishna". He was 19 at the time of filming and according to him, playing the character was "a terrific experience". He further mentioned that, "I think my fit physique gave Panthulu the idea that I could pull it off".

• O. A. K. Thevar as Kanagan
• Javar Seetharaman as Bheeshma
• Mutthiah as Sakuni
• K. Natarajan as Adhiradhan
• Mustafa as Kripacharya
• R. Balasubramaniam as Parasurama
• Veerasamy as Dronacharya
• S. V. Ramadoss as Indra
• S. A. G. Samy' as Dhritarashtra
• Kannan as Sanjayan
• Prem Kumar as Dharman
• Thangaraj as Nagulan
• Chinnaya as Sahadevan
• K. V. Srinivasan as Munivar
• Master Suresh as Vrishasena
• Prabhakar Reddy as the Sun God
• Soban Babu as the Moon God
• Stunt Somu as Ghatotkatch

Production

Karnan is based on the life of the namesake warrior from the Indian epic Mahabharata. The film's art work, a mammoth task was done by Ganga, and the cinematography was handled by V. Ramamurthy. While Sivaji Ganesan was cast as the titular character, Telugu actor N. T. Rama Rao as Lord Krishna, and R. Muthuraman as Arjuna, actresses Devika and Savitri were cast as the female leads, and S. A. Asokan played the role of Karna's friend Duryodhana. According to one report, politician Jayalalithaa's mother Sandhya played the role of the character Karna's mother, though another report has stated that the role was portrayed by M. V. Rajamma. Other supporting cast members included V. S. Raghavan as Vidhuran, Shanmugasundaram as Salliya Chakravarthy, and a then six-year old "Master" Sridhar as Meghanathan. Actor K. V. Srinivasan, who played a minor role as the sage who christens the lead character as Karnan, had dubbed for the voice of Rama Rao, following Ganesan's request.

The film was Sivaji Ganesan's "most expensive epic" in his entire career and was considered to be "one of the grandest and most expensive films of its times", having been made on a budget of ₹40 lakh (US$48,000) — which was then considerably high. Notable reasons for the film's high cost were that huge moving chariots were made in Chennai and transported to Kurukshetra, where the war sequences were filmed. Permission from the government was sought, cavalry and infantry from the Indian Army were brought to the locations at Kurukshetra and the first rows of the charging armies on horses and elephants had soldiers from the Indian Army. Shooting also took place at the Bangalore Palace, in the Cantonment area. Sivaji Ganesan was then invited by the Maharaja, Sri Jayachamaraja Udayar [sic] who wanted to "have tea with Karnan", for which Ganesan was asked to stay in "full makeup and costume". A few shots involving Ganesan and Rama Rao took 4 days to can, because of a "huge number of extras involved". After completion of the film, all the chariots which were made specially for the film's war sequences shot in Kurukshetra, were donated to a "sacred" temple in Thanjavur.

Soundtrack

Untitled

The film's soundtrack, consisting of 14 tracks, was composed by M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy, while Kannadasan penned the lyrics. Notable instruments used for recording the songs included Sarangi, Santoor, Shehnai, Dilruba and other such instruments, all which were then rarely used in Tamil films. The soundtrack was very successful, with film critic Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu stating that "Musically, ‘Karnan' is of a calibre that few have surpassed" and that the "Panthulu-Mellisai Mannar [MSV] combo resulted in songs that will live on forever".

Tracklist

No.	Title	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Maharajan"	T. M. Soundararajan, P. Susheela	3:02
2.	"Iravum Pagalum"	T. M. Soundararajan, P. Susheela	3:46
3.	"Nilavum Malarum"	T. M. Soundararajan, P. Susheela	3:43
4.	"Ullathil Nalla Ullam"	Seerkazhi Govindarajan	3:50
5.	"Kangal Engey"	P. Susheela	4:52
6.	"Malai Kodukum"	Thiruchi Loganathan	6:54
7.	"Aayiram Karangal Neeti"	T. M. Soundararajan, P. B. Srinivas, Seerkazhi Govindarajan, Thiruchi Loganathan	1:27
8.	"En Uyir Thozhi"	P. Susheela	3:44
9.	"Manjal Mugam"	P. Susheela	4:23
10.	"Maranathai Enni"	Seerkazhi Govindarajan	3:03
11.	"Poi Vaa Magale"	Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi	3:44
12.	"Ennakoduppan"	P. B. Srinivas	1:31
13.	"Naanichivandhana"	Thiruchi Loganathan	1:14
14.	"Malargal Sutti"	P. Susheela	1:18
Total length:			43:5

Critical reception

The soundtrack received generally positive reviews from critics. Baradwaj Rangan of The Hindu said, "My interest in Karnan (apart from the critic's mandate that I see everything) was primarily the songs", but pointed out that "Seergazhi Govindarajan's liquid diction and brass-throated conviction makes today's male singers sound like tentative little boys in a parent's day recital." Meera Srinivasan, another critic from The Hindu praised the film for the "music score and songs by the inimitable Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy duo with Kannadasan's striking lyrics". Malathi Rangarajan said, "The illustrious composing duo of Viswanathan and Ramamurthy has worked magic with music." M. Suganth of The Times of India stated "The [film's] pacing is uneven, the complexities of the plot are overtly simplified, the songs are one too many (but what songs they are!)". Film critic Balaji Balasubramaniam said, "The first half definitely has a little too many songs [....] Iravum Nilavum... is one of the melodious ones. Ullathil Nalla Ullam... is ofcourse [sic] a classic and loaded with meaningful lyrics." K.N. Vijayan of The New Straits Times said, "Instead of trooping out, the audience sat through the 14 songs composed by the Viswanathan-Ramamoorty pair. They are that famous and many can sing along to the lyrics as the songs have been heard countless times on the radio."

Release

The release of Karnan on Pongal day in January 14, 1964, created a much-hyped affair and the Chennai based Shanthi Theatre had a 60-feet banner of a chariot to attract the audience. When released, Karnan was the first of a "mythology series of films" that made a comeback during the 1960s. It was an answer to the "rationalistic" dialogue that was catching up in the early 1950s and almost "drowned" the mythology genre — a trendsetter, even then.

Reception

Karnan received mostly positive reviews. Ayngaran International called the film as "One of the all time great Indian Classics with a fantastic star cast and great acting". Meera Srinivasan of The Hindu stated that "Karnan, directed by B.R. Panthulu in 1964, is considered a classic for many reasons, including the stunning performances of Sivaji as Karnan and N.T. Rama Rao as Lord Krishna", while highlighting "the powerful battlefield sequences and the music score". M. Suganth of The Times of India gave the film 4.5 out of 5 stars, saying "You might find the chaste Tamil and over-the-top scenes difficult initially, but once you tune into to the rhythm of the film, you will end up saying, They don't make them like they used to." Behindwoods labelled the film as "One of Sivaaji [sic] Ganesan's most commanding performances ever".

Anupama Subramaniam of The Deccan Chronicle called it "the timeless Mahabharath classic of thespian Sivaji Ganesan, directed by B.R. Panthulu." Rediff called it "one of the most significant films in Sivaji Ganesan's career". Balaji Balasubramaniam rated it 4/5 and said, "There is no one who suited mythological roles quite as well as 'Sivaji' Ganesan. His majestic voice, distinctive walk and commanding presence were tailor-made for those roles and he put them to good use as he brought mythological as well as historical characters alive on the silver screen. Karnan is one of these roles". K.N. Vijayan of The New Straits Times called it "one of the greatest hits of the late Sivaji Ganesan", but pointed out that, "The actions of certain characters, like Indra and Krishna may appear perplexing to some. Some reading on the Internet is needed to understand their reasons" and concluded, "Such mythological film is important for the younger generation."

In contrast, film critic Baradwaj Rangan of The Hindu called the film a "disappointment, a historical epic with little so-called relevance to contemporary life (unless you want to acknowledge the Duryodhana-Karna storyline as the granddaddy of today's bromances)" and stated that Ganesan's performance "isn't as all-consuming as his performance in, say, “Thiruvilayaadal”; The Mahabharata, after all, is a tale with an ensemble cast, unlike The Ramayana with its solo hero".

Box office

Karnan was released in about 35-38 screens on January 14, 1964. It completed 100 days in four theatres, including Madurai Thangam, which was Asia’s second largest theatre with a seating capacity of 2500 seats. The film was reportedly removed after completing 80 days from another 10-12 theatres in order to allow the release of Pachchai Vilakku – another Sivaji Ganesan-starrer, the reason being the limited availability of theatres at that time. The film successfully managed to complete 105 days at Ganesan's family-owned Shanthi theatre.

In its theatrical run, Karnan took a big opening by collecting ₹ 46,773 in the opening week. In the second week however, the collections dropped as the film then made ₹ 31,051. The film's total collections amounted to ₹ 1,86,805 by the end of 14 weeks, and contradicting "the lie spread by vested interests" that Karnan was a failure, the film was officially declared a success.

"Karnan made a huge impact on me during my childhood. With the help of technology, I wanted to bring the film back to the big screens to give audiences a taste of the movie's grandeur and valuable message."

"Most of our films have become so damaged that we will never be able to see them on the big screen. A classic example is Thillana Mohanambal, whose prints have been totally damaged. I'm happy that I was able to save Karnan which I'm sure will last for 100 more years after this restoration."

— Shanthi Chokkalingam, to The Times of India

Accolades

• The film won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil - Certificate of Merit for the Third Best Feature Film in 1964.

Re-release

A digitally restored version of Karnan (with digital enhancements and restored audio) was released on 16 March 2012, to commemorate director B. R. Panthulu's birth centenary. Notably the first "Tamil classic" to be digitally restored, the mammoth efforts of re-releasing the film, which cost ₹40 lakh (US$48,000) and consumed three years of intense work, had been undertaken by film distributor Shanthi Chokkalin­gam, who stated that "The sound negative was totally gone and the five to six reels from the picture negative were damaged to a great extent". The digital restoration of Karnan took place at Sangeetha Sound Studios in Chennai, after failed attempts to approach the Mumbai-based Famous Studios, who had earlier restored the Hindi film Mughal-e-Azam. Excessive work was done on audio restoration, notably DVDs were used to "get the sound and music in its original form". To create awareness about the restoration of Karnan, a teaser trailer was launched on February 21, 2012 to a positive response.

Finally, the film was released in DTS 5.1 surround sound, and visual improvements in 50 screens across Tamil Nadu, and was distributed by Shanthi's Divya Films. The restored version of Karnan was also very well received upon release, although the restoration process was criticized for being "far from perfect". Taking a big opening, the film collected roughly ₹2 crore (US$240,000) within a few weeks in Chennai, and was later reported to have collected totally ₹5 crore (US$600,000). Becoming the first Tamil re-release to have a theatrical run of over 100 days, and having "surpassed what it managed to originally collect in its entire 105 day run in Chennai’s Shanthi theatre", the film was officially declared a commercial success. When asked whether Karnan should be remade, Santhi said, "Even with `100 crores, a film of that magnificence cannot be recreated today". Director-actor Cheran responded in a similar manner, saying "One can remake Billa's and Maapillai’s, but it is impossible to remake Sivaji’s immortal Tamil classics." The film's success soon started a trend of digitizing and re-releasing "yesteryear blockbusters" in Tamil cinema. After the film completed a theatrical run of 125 days, it was confirmed that it would release in the United States on 27 July 2012, with English subtitles.

External links

• Karnan at IMDb