Pattikada Pattanama

Plot

Mookkaiyan (Sivaji Ganesan) belongs to a well-to-do family and lives in the village Sozhavandan. He is held in high esteem by the villagers for his prowess. One day, his uncle Chockalingam (V. K. Ramaswamy), Chockalingam's wife Bama (Sukumari) and their foreign-educated daughter Kalpana (Jayalalithaa) come to Sozhavandan to participate in the Mariamman festival. Kalpana is fascinated by Mookaiyan's prowess; her mother disapproves of Kalpana's emotional reaction while her father is happy. Bama settles a young man of Madurai to marry Kalpana. Moved by the pleas of Chockalingam, Mookaiyan goes to the bridegroom's house and brings back Kalpana, saying that he has the right by birth to marry her.

Married life starts well for Mookaiyan and Kalpana, but before long differences arise because of their different backgrounds. At Kalpana's birthday party, Mookaiyan objects to drinking and dancing by her hippie friends. He beats Kalpana, and she leaves him to join her mother. A lawyer's notice for divorce is received. Mookaiyan futilely tries to make Bama understand the situation. The mother and daughter are adamant and Mookaiyan returns home determined to teach them a lesson.

Kalpana, having been impregnated by Mookaiyan some time earlier, gives birth to a child. In her anxiety to save Kalpana from further involvements, Bama leaves the child in an orphanage. Kalpana is shocked by this act of her mother. By the time she goes to recover the child, Mookaiyan has already taken it away. Kalpana beseeches her father to get the child from Mookaiyan. Unexpectedly, Mookaiyan comes there to deliver an invitation card for his marriage with his cousin Rakkamma (Shubha). Kalpana and her parents are now repentant.

Kalpana goes alone to Mookaiyan's house and asks her husband to leap over their child and then tie the thali to another girl. To her surprise, Kalpana discovers that the marriage being celebrated is that of a different man named Mookaiyan, while her husband did no injustice to her; she falls at her husband's feet and the family reunites.

Cast

Production

Pattikada Pattanama was based on the William Shakespeare comedy The Taming of the Shrew. Malayalam actress Sukumari, who was doing small roles, appeared as the mother of Jayalalithaa in the film at the age of 21 and the role earned her breakthrough as supporting actress.

Awards

Soundtrack

The music was composed by M. S. Viswanathan. The song "Ennadi Rakkamma" was well received and remains a cult classic. The song was later remixed by D. Imman in the film Vaadaa (2010). According to G. Dhananjayan in his book Pride of Tamil Cinema, "the film had mass entertainment songs which helped in the film's success". D. Karthikeyan of The Hindu writing about TMS mentioned that his "folksy number Ennadi Rakkamma Pallakku from Pattikada Pattanama still makes people go crazy with its rustic beats and beautiful rendition and the song is a must in cultural festivals in Madurai".

Release and reception

The film was released on 6 May 1972 with a final reel length of 4,385 metres (14,386 ft). Former minister K. Kamaraj who saw the film at a private screening appreciated the film stating that the film "demonstrated the need to practice our culture and traditions of one wife and one husband". It was Sivaji Ganesan's first village based film, it became a commercial success and ran for 100 days. G. Dhananjayan wrote "The film's core theme of who protects the culture of our country widely appealed to the masses. The film stood out for its fine acting by Sivaji Ganesan who portrayed two different characters with conviction". Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan in its review dated 28 June 1972 stated that "Sivaji's energetic acting is a highlight of the film. The outdoor scenes were shot beautifully in this otherwise usual old wine in new bottle story". The Hindu praised Manorama's performance, stating that her character "was in full flow and enthralled everyone by effortlessly rendering Madurai dialect".