Tag Archives: Kerala

Filmy Ripples – Movie featured Festivals

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By P.V. Gopalakrishnan

We cannot imagine a life without festivals. The customs, colours, flavours, aromas, warmth, joy and whatnot that they bring to cement family & friendly relationships and bond the community at large! It’s hard to overstate their importance in our lives and the life of a community. Festivals are the very spirit of mankind. Through them, we are made to spread happiness and share good times. They motivate us to be better people and to share our joy with the world.

Every country has their own festivals, dependent on their culture & civilizations, such as The Beer Festival of Germany and The Tomato Festival of Spain. But when it comes to India, there are so many festivals as divergent of the various cultures & beliefs that our country is composed of. India can be easily called a Country of Festivals that is spread throughout the year. This brings colours, aroma, gaiety, bonding, culinary delights everything to the fore.

Our films, after all, represent the way we live here. As such, the screenplays of our Indian films do capture these festivities in some sequence or the other. We will look at some of the important Festivals as they were shown in our films.

Diwali, the most prominent & popular of all Hindu festivals, is celebrated with a lot of pomp and show. During this festival of lights, people wear new clothes, participate in family puja, burst crackers (now increasingly without it), and share sweets with friends & families. Sridhar’s Directorial debut was ‘Kalyana Parisu’ (1959) in which he also wrote the story & screenplay. It was a highly acclaimed film, which was later made in Hindi too as ‘Nazrana’. This triangular love story featured a song-sequence celebrating Deepavali as it is celebrated in the South.

Kalyana Parisu

Song book of Kalyana Parisu with the page containing the song UNNAI KANDU NAAN PC: From the archives of TCRC

Mid-January is an important time in the Tamil calendar as it marks the Harvest Festival, Pongal, which is the quintessential ‘Tamil Festival’. Pongal marks the traditional occasion for thanks giving to Mother Nature, for celebrating the life cycles that give us grain. This is the height of any culture, so to say. They say ‘Thai pirandhaal vazhi pirakkum’, and believe that knotty family problems will be solved with the advent of the Tamil month Thai that begins on Pongal day. ‘Thai pongalum vanthathu’ from the film ‘Mahanadhi’ showcases the important visual aspects of this great Festival.

Navrathri festival is celebrated throughout India though in different ways. In Gujarat, it is a nine-day celebration with rejuvenating Garbha nights and highly energetic Dandiya Raas dances, when People dress in beautiful, colorful traditional clothes bringing youthful environment. Basically, this festival denotes the celebration of the Goddess Amba or Sakthi as sheer Power in nine different forms.
 The South of India celebrates it with the households making a colorful Expo of dolls, known as ‘Kolu’. It is believed, kolu dolls represent the assembly of Goddess Durga. Best-dressed womenfolk exchange visits to each other’s Kolu where they sing devotionals & are given haldi, kum kum & prasadam. Durga Puja & Dusserah are variants of celebrating the Goddess!

Catch Nadigaiyar Thilakam Savithri in a Navarathiri Kolu sequence song from he film ‘Navarathiri’ in which Doyen Sivaji Ganesan donned nine different characters.

Navarathiri

Song book of Navarathri with the page containing the song NAVARATHIRI SUBHARATHIRI PC: From the archives of TCRC

Holi, known as the festival of colors, too is one of the important festivals, celebrated mostly in North India, with a lot of fervor. On the eve of Holi, people make huge Holika bonfires and sing and dance around it. On the day of Holi, people gather in open areas and apply dry and wet colors of multiple hues to each other, with some carrying water guns and colored water filled balloons. Holi signifies the victory of good (Prince Prahlad) over evil (Holika) and the arrival of spring. Holi falls on Full moon of March of the Gregorian calendar. There are many Hindi film songs on Holi but this song ‘Anthi mazahai megam’ from Nayakan (Tamil), filmed in the erstwhile Venus Studios, stands out as capturing the spirit of Holi. Why Holi in a Tamil fim? Well, the ‘Nayakan’ character played by Kamal was based on the Tamil Don of erstwhile Bombay, Velu Naicker of Dharavi!

Krishna Janmashtami or Gokulashtami is again a beautiful one among the most important religious festivals of India. its celebrations in Mathura and Vrindavan are notable. Visiting temples, praying, dancing, and singing bhajans (hymns) at midnight is a part of the celebrations of the birth of Lord Krishna with kids, often, dressing up as Lord Krishna this day. As part of Janmashtami festivities, breaking pots hung from lofty heights by revelers forming a human pyramid, is common sight. The Shammi Kapoor starred Hindi film Bluff Master featured the song ‘Govind Aalaa re’ showing the revelry of ‘handi’ breaking, which in Tamil is known as ‘Uri adi’.

Ganesh Chaturthi, another important Hindu religious festivals, is a ten-day affair of colorful festivities, in places like Mumbai. Huge handcrafted Ganesh idols are installed in homes or public pandals and Pujas are performed, before the deity is taken with grand fan fare on the last day for immersion. Cultural activities of singing, dancing and theater go hand in hand on this occasion of great celebration of the elephant faced God. The film Agnipath featured a typical street procession atmosphere during Ganpathi festival, normally witnessed in Maharashtra, charged with devotion & celebration. The song ‘Sree Ganesha Deva’ from the film is an all time favourite of Ganesh devotees.

Onam is the most important festival of the state of Kerala. It is also a harvest festival and is celebrated with joy and enthusiasm by people of all communities. According to a popular legend, the festival is celebrated to welcome King Mahabali, whose spirit is said to visit Kerala at the time of Onam. Carnival of Onam lasts from four to ten days. Elaborate feasts, folk songs, elegant dances, energetic games, caparisoned elephant, Snake Boat races and flower decorations (PookaLam) all are a part of the dynamic festival called Onam. We feature ‘Thiruvavani Ravu’ bringing the essence of Onam from the Malayalam movie ‘Jacobinte Swarga Rajyam’.

Raksha Bandhan festival, aka Rakhee, is one of the important festivals in the North. Celebrated each year in the month of August, this ceremony takes place on the full moon day of Shravan. The festival highlights the bondage between siblings. On this propitious day, a sister ties the sacred thread of Rakhi to her brother’s wrist for his prosperity & long life, even as the brother promises to protect his sister from all hardships of life. Rakhi is an emblem of love and protection. This festival of sibling bondage between sisters & brothers was showcased in the film ‘Chotti Behen’ in the song ‘Bhaiya mere Rakhi ka bandhan’.

Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed most commonly on December 25, though in some parts of the world like Russia it is observed in January. Christmas, religiously celebrated by the vast majority of Christians, is celebrated by other communities as well, as a cultural festival. There was a song & dance featured celebration of Christmas in the Tamil film ‘Kanne Pappa’, which we bring in here.

Kanne Pappa

Song book of Kanne Pappa with the page containing the song Merry Merry Christmas  PC: From the archives of TCRC

In the Islamic Faith, Eid al-Fitr (Feast of breaking the fast) is an important celebration by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of religious fasting. During the holy month of Ramadan, muslims fast from dawn to dusk when they refrain from consuming food & liquids, smoking, and engaging in any pleasures. They are supposed to carefully abstain from sinful behavior that may negate the reward of fasting, such as false speech (insulting, backbiting, cursing, lying, etc.) and fighting. Chand Raat is an important day in the month of Ramadan which marks the end of Ramzan fasting as the moon (Eid ka Chand) sighting is done.

Here is a song on the happy sighting of Eid Moon in the Hindi Film ‘Barsaat ki Raat’

 

Filmy Ripples – Exotic Instruments in Film music – Part 4

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By P.V. Gopalakrishnan

In this concluding part on the above caption, we would strive to feature & discuss about some more of the exotic musical instruments used in our film music.

Trumpet is another popular wind instrument to form a part of the Brass Section of an orchestra, which has been in use in Indian films for a long time.

MSV-TKR has used Trumpet bits in many of his compositions, notables of which include ‘Thulluvatho ilamai’, ‘Adho andha paravai pola’ & ‘Unnai onru ketpen’.

Kishore Sodha has been a reputed trumpet player in Bollywood since 1978 and had worked for composers such as R.D Burman, Kalyanji-Anandji, Bappi Lahiri, Anu Malik, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Anand-Milind, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and more.  His first song on trumpet accompaniment was ‘Rote Hue Aate Hain Sab’ (Muqaddar Ka Sikandar).

The Trumpet is also used placing a ‘mute’ in its ‘bell’ portion so that the sound emanates from there in a muted form. If you hear ‘Maan kanda sorgangal’ from ‘47 Naatkal’, composed by MSV, there are notes from a muted trumpet throughout. The following video explains about a muted trumpet.

Saxophone is an amazing wind instrument, grouped again under Brass Section in Western Orchestra. It was invented in 1840 by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax, after whom it is named.

Sax, as it is called in short form, it has been used in many compositions such as ‘Unnai onru ketpen’ (Puthiya Paravai) composed by MSV-TKR, ‘Ammamma keladi thozhi’ (Karuppu panam) by MSV-TKR & ‘Vannam konda vennilave’ (Sigaram) composed & sung by SPB.

Puthiya Paravai

Song book of Puthiya Paravai with the page containing the song UNNAI ONRU KETPEN  PC: From the archives of TCRC

When we talk of Sax in film music, we cannot but mention the late Manohari Singh, a Sax wizard of Nepali  origin, who had played for leading Hindi composers in immortal songs such as ‘Gatha Rahe mera dil’ (Guide) by Sachin Dev Burman & Yeh Duniya usiki (Kashmir ki kali) by O.P.Nayyar.

Another beautiful composition of S.D.Burman featuring Sax was ‘Oh mere jeevan sathi’ from the movie ‘Guide’.

In the film ‘Duet’, A.R.Rahman had the classical sax player, Mr. Kadri Gopalnath, to play through the film. This film, in fact, popularized this instrument.

Trombone is a Brass wind Instrument, the sound of which is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column vibrate inside the instrument, having a telescoping slide mechanism that varies the length of the instrument to change the pitch.

While Trombone is usually played in Brass bands – accompanying the main theme by giving punching phrases, the potential of this instrument to perform as solo cannot be undermined.

Here is a piece on Trombone playing Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’.

In Indian films’ BGM scores, Trombone is usually played together with other brass instruments. They have had limited scope as a solo in the interludes of movie songs.

In songs such as ‘Ulagathil siranthathu edhu’ (Pattanathil Bhootham), ‘Atho antha paravai pola’ (Ayirathil oruvan) & ‘Kalyana naal parkka’ (Parakkum Pavai) you could hear Trombone bits. Here is the latter song in the composition of MSV-TKR.

Pattanathil Bootham

Song book of Pattanathil Bhootham with the page containing the song ULAGATHIL SIRANTHATHU ETHU PC: From the archives of TCRC

Ilaya Raja’s ‘Ennamma Kannu’ too had Trombone predominantly.

Oud is a short-necked, pear-shaped multi-stringed musical instrument belonging to Lute family, used in Middle Eastern & North African music.

You can rarely hear Oud in Tamil film music.  Ilayaraja’s ‘Matha un kovilil’ from ‘Achani’ (1978) had distinct Oud usage along with Bells in its BGM. Another good usage could be spotted in the A.R.Rahman composed song from ‘Ravanan’

Achani

Song book of Achani with the page containing the song MATHA UN KOVILIL PC: From the archives of TCRC

Maraca is a rhythm instrument of Mexican origin used in Latin American & Rumba music. It is a humble instrument originally made out of gourd shell.

We can spot the rhythmic sounds of Maraca in many film songs if we very carefully listen, but often it gets submerged in the BGM in most of the songs. Here we have selected a Hindi song, ‘Mujhe duniya wale’ by Mohd. Rafi from the film ‘Leader’ (1964) in the music composition of Naushad Ali, where one can make out the ‘chik-chik’ notes raised by Maraca in rhythmic pattern.

Mexican Scratcher is another humble but exotic rhythmic instrument used in Latin American music & Salsa.

R.D.Burman was the pioneering Music Composer to use it in Indian film music when he used it in the poular song ‘Samne wali kidki pe’ from ‘Padosan’. It features very prominently in the song when Keshto Mukherji enacts with a broom, in the early part of the song.

Another exotic but humble instrument called ‘Elathalam’ is a Clash Cymbal used in Temple Music in Kerala. It is a pair of heavy brass cymbals played with one held firmly & the other clashed with it rhythmically.

A.R.Rahman has creatively used it in the song, “Narumugaiye” in the movie ‘Iruvar’. You can hear this bit in the said song when the visual of the hero & heroine appear in the waterfalls sequence.

In our 5th & concluding part of ‘Exotic Instruments in Film music’ next week, we would look at few more of the instruments used in film music.

Screening of Ozhivudivasathe Kali (An Off- Day Game)

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The Cinema Resource Centre in Association with Ashvita events is excited to release the critically acclaimed film Ozhivudivasathe Kali (with english subtitles) At Escape Cinemas, Chennai on July 8th, Friday.

The film revolves around a public holiday where five friends meet in a resort deep in the jungles to spend a day drinking and merrymaking. They come from different backgrounds and professions, but they have only one aim – to enjoy life for one day and forget the everyday hassles. But, during the course of the day, the animal instincts within them come to the fore. To resolve the crisis and to end the boredom,they decide to play a game – a game played when they were kids. What happens when an innocent game for children is played by drunk adults?

The film was made in an unconventional way. Says director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan :

“The movie “Ozhivudivasathe Kali” (An off-Day Game) is based on a short story. I have not developed the story into a written screenplay or shooting script. The film is not the story; but it is my reading experience of the story. Making of this film was very interesting
because of the total absence of a written screenplay. Almost all the artistes in the film are new faces. Almost all the dialogues which you hear in the film are spoken by the artistes themselves without any specific written instructions from my part. I was just telling them
the situation, the history of each character and the politics behind the scene. The moment
we switch on the camera, the artistes turned into characters and started uttering their own
dialogues. The decision to go without script helped me to attain a raw and real looking movie”

Don’t miss this film this weekend. Book your tickets here: http://bit.ly/29kAjci

Watch the trailer of the film:

 

 

 

Discussion with Award winning director Manohar

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National award winning director Manohar, discusses his short film ‘Post man’ during the Shamiana short film screening with TCRC hosted by Ashvita Bistro. The film maker brings to light the issues he faced during the making of his debut film, how the film finally proved to be commercially viable and much more.

JC Daniel: Father of Malayalam Cinema

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We at TCRC are always scouring the internet for interesting material on the origins of the regional cinemas of South India. And the internet never ceases to surprise us. Recently, we chanced upon CinemaofMalayalam.net, a website that had a separate page on JC Daniel, the man who wrote, directed and produced the first ever Malayalam feature film.

The movie, titled “Vigathakumaran,” was a silent film and was released in November 1928. In fact, the Kerala state government’s award for lifetime achievement in Malayalam cinema is called the JC Daniel Award, recognizing his efforts in starting up what is today one of India’s most interesting film industries. Interestingly, Daniel was a dentist who showed keen interest in martial arts. He is said to have been an expert at Kalarippayattu and is reported to have written a book about Indian martial arts in English before he ventured into cinema.

English: A short note on Vigathakumaran

A still from “Vigathakumaran,” the first ever Malayalam feature film (released in 1928). Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Given below is a Malayalam documentary on the life of the director JC Daniel.

There has also been quite a bit of controversy over when “Vigathakumaran” was released. While many acknowledge it to be 1928 (including those such as noted Malayalam film journalist Chelangatt Gopalakrishnan and Yves Thoraval, author of “The Cinemas of India”), a photocopied version of a handbill announcing the release of “Vigathakumaran” in 1930 by producers Travancore National Pictures has been circulating on the internet of late, an artifact whose source is yet to be confirmed. Blogger CineMatters has written a detailed post about the 1928 v/s 1930 controversy here for the blog Old Malayalam Cinema. However, there is no dispute over the fact that “Vigathakumaran” by JC Daniel was the first ever Malayalam feature film.

TCRC has, in its archives, memorabilia from various Malayalam films that have been released over the years. Seeing this page on JC Daniel compelled us to revisit some of the old material and we’re working on the digitization of the same. So, do revisit the TCRC blog for updates.