Chakradhari (1948 film)

Production

Gemini Studios in Madras (now Chennai) was a lucrative film producing company since its inception in early 1940s. None of the films produced by the company failed in the box-office. However, a film made in 1948 failed to keep up their reputation.

Usually Gemini films are all successful productions. However, their previous film Gnana Soundari, released in June 1948, was a flop. In order to repair the damage caused to their name, Gemini produced a low budget film in quick succession. A story from a well known book titled Sri Maha Bhaktha Vijayam was selected by the Story department of Gemini Studios. The film was named Chakradhari (He who holds the wheel) - a name attributed to the Hindu God Vishnu. This tale has been filmed many times in many languages such as Marathi, Hindi, Kannada, Hindi and twice in Tamil.

Plot

Chakradhari is all about Gora, a potter who lives with wife Thulasi and child Hari in Thodaki, a village near Pandaripur in Maharashtra. Gora’s religious pre-occupation disturbs his calling. He does not care for money and such mundane things. Consequently he and his wife argue over them constantly. Venkat, Gora’s affluent elder brother, marries a young woman Sona. She hates Gora and his family and plans to ruin them. One day, Gora while mixing clay and water goes into devotional ecstasy and fails to notice his son Hari coming towards him to play in the mound of clay. Unconsciously Gora kills his son by stamping him. Heartbroken, Thulasi threatens to break the idol of Panduranga, her husband worships, and Gora picks up his axe to kill her. She tells him not to touch her for the rest of her life and Gora takes such a vow. Thulasi gets her sister Shantha married to her husband so that a child will be born to bring joy to the grief-filled home. Thulasi’s father makes Gora promise him that he would treat Thulasi and Shantha alike. Much to the shock of the sisters, Gora refuses to touch Shantha too! One night the sisters try to seduce Gora while he is asleep. Shocked on waking up, the pious potter cuts his hands off for breaking his vow! Panduranga and his consort Rukmini visit Gora in disguise and work as his domestic servants. Their divine presence restores happiness. Hari comes back to life. Sona is punished for her misdeeds. Gora gets back his hands and the family lives happily thereafter singing the praise of Panduranga.

Cast

Chittor V. Nagaiah as Gora Kumbhar
Pushpavalli as his first wife Thulasi Bai
Surya Prabha (Pushpavalli's sister) as his second wife Sandhu Bai
Gemini Ganeshan as Pandurangan
Nagarcoil K. Mahadevan as Naama Devar
K. N. Kamalam as Sona
L. Narayana Rao as Venkat
Varalakshmi as Rukmini
H. Krishnamurthi as Paentha
Suppiah Pillai as Sevaji
D. V. Kalyani as Parvathi Bai
Nandi Velayutham as Beat policeman
G. V. Sarma as Goldsmith
Baba Narayanan as Mali
N. Thiyagarajan as Astrologer
M. Ramamurthi, V. P. S. Mani, N. Narasimhan, Raja Rao and K. D. K. S. Mani as Rowdies
Balaraman and K. Sampathkumar as Officers
Panduranga Doss, D. S. P. Rao and Vijaya Rao as Panduranga Devotees
Chopra and A. Chandra as dancers
S. R. Lakshmi as Betel leaf vendor
Kumari V. Thulasi as Flower vendor
B. Ramakrishna Rao as Bangle vendor
Pudukottai Cheenu as Arecanut vendor
Balan as Beggar

Crew

Producer: S. S. Vasan
Direction: K. S. Gopalakrishnan (not the later day KSG)
Cinematography: Thambu (C. V. Ramakrishnan)
Art Direction: A. K. Sekar
Editing: N. K. Gopal
Choreography: Jaishankar, Chopra
Photography: L. K. Rao
Audiography: B. Ranga Rao
Makeup: Sahadeva Rao
Costume: Saiyadu Ahamed
Studio: Gemini

Soundtrack

Music was composed by M. D. Parthasarathy with P. S. Anantharaman as assistant. Parthasarathy also sang one or two songs. Lyrics were written by Papanasam Sivan, Kothamangalam Subbu and Sangu Subramaniam. Playback singers are S. S. Mani and T. V. Rathinam.