The Madras Film Industry in the 1960s: On the sets of "Thillaanaa Mohanambal" in a French documentary!
Today, we bring to you a clip from "L'inde Fantôme" (Phantom India), a documentary film made by Academy Award-winning French filmmaker Louis Malle. This is an excerpt from "Choses Vues A Madras," which was the second episode of the documentary. Focusing on the Madras film industry in the late 1960s, the excerpt features footage shot on the sets of the 1968-released, classic Tamil film "Thillaanaa Mohanambal," starring Sivaji Ganesan, Padmini, Balaiah, Manorama and others. Directed by AP Nagarajan and written by Kothamangalam Subbu, the film and its songs continue to be remembered even today.
What we found most interesting was the commentary in French (you can turn on the English subtitles by clicking on the "Captions" button in the bottom bar on the YouTube video). The commentator, at one point, refers to Sivaji Ganesan as the "Indian Belmondo." "Belmondo" here is a reference to Jean Paul Belmondo, the French actor who was a prominent face in the New Wave films that were made in France in the 1960s. He continues to be remembered for his portrayal of the character Michel Poiccard in Jean Luc Godard's extremely influential film "Breathless" ("À bout de souffle" in French). "Breathless" was a path-breaking film that inspired many filmmakers through its brilliant use of the jump cut. So, while the comparison to Belmondo is flattering, it's important to remember that Sivaji Ganesan had made his mark with "Parasakthi" in 1952, a good eight years before Belmondo broke out with "Breathless" (1960).
Jean Paul Belmondo in "Breathless" | Sivaji Ganesan in "Thillaanaa Mohanambal"
Do watch the clip and let us know about your thoughts on Louis Malle's commentary and his take on Indian films. You can leave a comment or write to us at tcrc.india[at]gmail[dot]com.
Video / Posted on May 6, 2013 by tcrcindia in International Cinema, Tamil Cinema / Tagged 1960s, A. P. Nagarajan, archive, À bout de souffle, Balaiah, Breathless, Choses Vues A Madras, cinema, cinemas of india, documentary, Documentary film, film, film history, French New Wave, history, Indian cinema, Jean Paul Belmondo, Jean-Luc Godard, Kothamangalam Subbu, L'inde Fantôme, Louis Malle, madras, Manorama, memorabilia, Michel Poiccard, Padmini, Parasakthi, Sivaji Ganesan, Tamil cinema, Thillaanaa Mohanambal, world cinema, YouTube / Leave a comment
Sir Richard Attenborough on working with Satyajit Ray in "Shatranj Ke Khilari": Old DD Bangla interview
Today is master filmmaker Satyajit Ray's 92nd birthday and Google's paid a lovely tribute through a doodle based on his film "Pather Panchali." For those who missed it, here's what the doodle is all about:
Google doodle on the occasion of Satyajit Ray's 92nd birthday (2nd May 2013).
We at TCRC also chanced upon a YouTube video of an old show on DD Bangla where Sir Richard Attenborough, director of "Gandhi," talks about the experience of working with Ray on "Shatranj Ke Khilari." The film, released in 1977, was based on Munshi Premchand's short story of the same name and was narrated by Amitabh Bachchan. The cast included actors such as Sanjeev Kumar, Saeed Jaffrey, Shabana Azmi, Farida Jalal, Amjad Khan, Richard Attenborough, Victor Banerjee, Farooq Shaikh and Tom Alter. Do look out for Sir Attenborough's views on cinema as an art form and Ray's soundbites!
Video / Posted on May 2, 2013 by tcrcindia in Bengali Cinema, Hindi Cinema, Others / Tagged 1977, Amitabh Bachchan, Amjad Khan, archive, Arts and Entertainment, Bengali cinema, Bengali film, cinema, cinemas of india, DD Bangla, Farooq Shaikh, film, Film Appreciation, Film Criticism, film history, Gandhi, Google doodle, Google doodle on Satyajit Ray, Hindi cinema, Hindi film, history, Munshi Premchand, Richard Attenborough, Saeed Jaffrey, Sanjeev Kumar, Satyajit Ray, Shabana Azmi, Shatranj Ke Khiladi, Shatranj Ke Khilari, The Chess Players, Victor Banerjee, YouTube / 1 Comment