Valmiki (1946 film)

Valmiki
Directed by	Sundar Rao Nadkarni
Produced by	B. Rangaswamy Naidu, S. M. Sriramulu Naidu & Samikannu Vincent
Starring	C. Honnappa Bhagavathar U. R. Jeevarathinam T. R. Rajakumari N. C. Vasanthakokilam T. S. Balaiah
Music by	Papanasam Sivan
Distributed by	Central Studios
Release date	1946
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Valmiki was a 1946 Tamil-language film starring C. Honnappa Bhagavathar, U. R. Jeevarathinam, N. C. Vasanthakokilam, T. R. Rajakumari and T. S. Balaiah. It was directed by Sundar Rao Nadkarni.

Pre-production

Valmiki was one of the eleven movies announced with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar as the lead before his arrest in the Lakshmikanthan Murder Case. Sundar Rao Nadkarni commenced shooting in 1944 with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, but following his arrest, all the scenes had to be re-shot with C. Honnappa Bhagavathar whom Nadkarni cast in his stead.

Plot

The film was based on the story of the Hindu sage Valmiki (played by Honnappa Bhagavathar) who starts as a bandit and eventually undergoes spiritual transformation into a religious mendicant. Valmiki falls in love with a princess (played by Jeevarathnam) who is kidnapped by the villain (played by T. S. Balaiah).

Cast

Actor	Role
C. Honnappa Bhagavathar	Valmiki
U. R. Jeevarathinam
T. R. Rajakumari
N. C. Vasanthakokilam	Sage Narada
T. S. Balaiah
D. Balasubramaniam
Kali N. Rathnam
C. T. Rajakantham

Crew

• Producer: B. Rangaswamy Naidu, S. M. Sriramulu Naidu & Samikannu Vincent
• Production Company: Central Studios
• Director: Sundar Rao Nadkarni
• Music: Papanasam Sivan
• Lyrics:
• Story:
• Screenplay:
• Dialogues:
• Art Direction:
• Editing:
• Choreography:
• Cinematography:
• Stunt:
• Dance:

Soundtrack

1. Sundarananda mukunda by N. C. Vasanthakokilam
2. Poi thavazhum maaya Bhoomi by N. C. Vasanthakokilam
3. Bhagawan avadharipaar by N. C. Vasanthakokilam
4. Bhuvimeedhu by N. C. Vasanthakokilam

Post-production

The film was fairly successful and remembered for its music. Honnappa Bhagavathar cemented his place as a star performer in the absence of Thyagaraja Bhagavathar.

References

• Randor Guy (24 December 2009). "Valmiki (1946)". The Hindu.