OpinionWhat does dubbing, a business decision, have to do with India’s non-existent national language?Sowmya RajendranIn 1948, SS Vasan, the founder of Ananda Vikatan magazine and the man who launched Gemini Studios, released Chandralekha, a Tamil historical adventure film. It took five years to complete the project, and Vasan, the producer and director of the film, reportedly had to mortgage his property in order to make it. Chandralekha was the most expensive Indian film made up till that point, and Vasan also made a Hindi version of it with the same actors that became a major hit. In his book Starlight Starbright, film historian Randor Guy writes, “Chandralekha, made in Tamil and Hindi, created a sensation and smashed box-office records all over the country. Its Hindi version opened the doors for South Indian producers to sell their Hindi-wares in the North.” The film was also dubbed and released in Japanese,...
- 4/28/2022
- by Sowmya
- The News Minute
EntertainmentFrom 'Parasakthi' to 'Gentleman', here are some of the Tamil films made before the 2000s available for streaming online on the Ott platform.Tnm StaffOnline streaming platforms are a great way to catch up with films that you might have missed watching in theatres. These platforms are also becoming a good repository for films that offer a quick fix for your K TV/Raj TV loving heart. Amazon Prime, for instance, has a very good collection of old Tamil films that you probably didn’t know was available to stream online in good quality, ad-free. On a lazy weekend afternoon, if you’re in the mood for some old Tamil drama, the ones that were made before the glitz of the new millennium, take your pick from this list. Parasakthi 1952 If you haven’t heard about this film, you’re probably not from here. But not to worry, it’s...
- 7/26/2019
- by Anjana
- The News Minute
CinemaTNM spoke to actor Disco Shanti, film critics, and industry insiders to analyse how the "item" song has changed with the times and why its expiry date may soon be here.Sowmya RajendranA saxophone or guitar plays. Men are seated in a club, cards in one hand and a cigarette or beer in another. Next, we’re shown the seductive eyes of a woman or a shot of her quivering stomach. As she dances down the stage or floor, she is joined by the hero or villain and is soon surrounded by a number of male dancers. Flashing lights and sequined clothes might be involved. The woman heaves and pouts a lot, and despite her proximity to the hero or villain, she soon disappears from the story and is never heard of again. If you’ve followed Tamil cinema for long enough, you’d immediately know what this is – an “item” number.
- 1/18/2019
- by Sowmya
- The News Minute
KollywoodWhile films in the pre-Independence era were about fighting colonisers, contemporary patriotism in cinema is about fighting terrorists.Anjana ShekarPatriotism is often portrayed in popular culture as one of the greatest virtues a person can possess. A trait of the highest order that immediately validates any action done in its name. Quite often, this notion of national pride, of unflinching devotion to one’s country, of pledging oneself for the sake of the country has been enforced through drama, films, music and art. The idea of patriotism is ever evolving and so is its portrayal in mass media over the years. In this piece, we take a look at how Tamil cinema introduced the idea of patriotism in its films, how this presentation changed later and what it has become today. Pre-Independence films The very first Tamil film to talk about independence, patriotism, and with it social evils like untouchability,...
- 8/16/2018
- by Anjana
- The News Minute
KollywoodWhile this genre has always been popular among audiences, we’ve listed some of the best films from the past.Anjana ShekarYoutube ScreengrabsWhat would be the ideal scale to rate a good thriller? Is it by the number of screams and gasps it elicits? Is it by the number of dramatic ‘pa-pa-pa-paaaam’ background music? Or is it by the number of times it gets your heart racing for inexplicable reasons? My very first recollection of a thriller is that of a major cult classic from Tamil cinema, a film that’ll garner the same ‘dramatic’ wide-eyed reaction from many when you name it – Athey Kangal! I’ve seen this film so many times that I can perfectly match the loud screams just by listening to the film’s audio. Directed by AC Tirulokchandar, this film that came out in 1967 was a major success upon its release. Starring Ravichandran and Kanchana in lead roles, Athey Kangal is a Raymond Chandleresque, tightly wound thriller, centred around a series of mysterious killings that take place inside a house. The intense plot twists, heightened drama and the final big reveal make this film a gripping watch, irrespective of the number of times you’ve already seen it. While the thriller genre has always been popular among Tamil audiences, here is a list of some of the must-watch films from before the 1990s. Andha Naal (1954) All hell broke loose in Tamil cinema when this film released. In addition to being one of the best thrillers to this day, this film was also the first Tamil film without any song, dance or stunt sequences. While it is popular belief that Sundaram Balachandar’s Andha Naal was adapted from Akira Kurosawa’s classic Rashomon (1950), film historian Randor Guy writes that the film is actually an adaptation of Anthony Asquith’s The Woman in Question (1950). Rajan (played by Sivaji Ganesan), a radio engineer, is found dead under suspicious circumstances. The film unfolds in the form of investigations where one character leads them to the other until the killer and their motive is finally revealed. With a short runtime of 130 minutes, the film was also lauded for its camera work and narrative technique. Nenjam Marappathillai (1963) With its unusual storyline, this is another film worthy of being called a cult classic. Director CV Sridhar has admitted to have been inspired from real life incidents that he read in the newspaper. The film has some brilliant sequences, and the cinematography by Aloysius Vincent was lauded by many. The climax is quite literally edge-of-the-seat and the brilliant background score compensates for the absence of dialogues in the climax. Puthiya Paravai (1964) Puthiya Paravai, starring Sivaji Ganesan, Saroja Devi and Sowcar Janaki, was a great success when it released. A popular adaptation of the English film Chase A Crooked Shadow (1958) by noted filmmaker Michael Anderson, Puthiya Paravai is best known for its narrative technique. There’s plenty of glitz, reckless living and endearing romance in the film. The big reveal, however, is one that will not fail to take you by surprise. The film was also popular for its chart-busting songs. Shanthi Nilayam (1969) This film is a loose adaptation of Charlotte Bronte’s novel Jane Eyre. The film’s narrative steadily builds up with eerie sounds and clever play with light and shadows. The scene where the woman walks with a lantern at night and the song shot in a hot-air balloon are some of the memorable scenes from this film. Interestingly, Shanthi Nilayam fetched its cinematographer Marcus Bartley a National Award. Sigappu Rojakkal (1978) This film can be called Tamil cinema’s coming-of-age thriller, one of the very earliest successful psychological thriller films. In fact, Bharathiraja’s Sigappu Rojakkal brought in an interesting resurgence of thriller films soon after. Kamal Haasan plays a successful businessman who seduces women and later kills them. Kamal’s hatred towards women is slowly unveiled as the film progresses, leading up to a thrilling chase with the heroine, Sridevi. This film has inspired several other films including Dhanush’s Kadhal Kondein (2003) and Simbu’s Manmadhan (2004). Moodu Pani (1980) The song ‘Yen Iniya Pon Nilave’ from this film might be a breezy number, but there is nothing breezy about the film’s plot-line. In a sense Moodu Pani has strong similarities to Sigappu Rojakkal. This film has often been compared with Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho for its uncanny resemblance to the latter’s climax. Directed by Balu Mahendra, the film has nail-biting sequences and has often been regarded as one among Balu Mahendra’s masterpieces. Needless to say, the film has some of Tamil cinema’s best visuals. Nooravathu Naal (1984) This film is a cult classic in its truest sense. So much so that it was believed to have inspired real-life serial killer Auto Shankar who went on a killing spree between 1988 and 1989. The film’s solid storytelling by its director Manivannan and a riveting performance by Sathyaraj are its highlights. The film’s suspense is sustained till the very end leading to an insanely unexpected climax. Also on our list: Tik Tik Tik (1981) Karayellam Shenbagapoo (1981) Oru Kaidhiyin Diary (1984) Also Read: Beyond romance: 9 on-screen couples from Tamil cinema who gave us relationship goals p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 17.0px; font: 14.7px Helvetica; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 17.0px; font: 14.7px Helvetica; color: #500050; -webkit-text-stroke: #500050; background-color: #ffffff} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 15.0px; font: 12.8px Arial; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none}...
- 7/5/2018
- by Monalisa
- The News Minute
CinemaWhether it's Genelia, Simran, Aishwarya Rai or Rana Daggubati, it's through the voice artists that we've heard some of our biggest stars speak.Anjana Shekar“Anthena? Inkem kavali? Veelaithe nalugu maatalu. Kudirithe cup coffee?” When Bommarillu came out in 2006, this dialogue was all the rage. So much so that close to three lakh people had set these lines as their ringtone/caller tune. Genelia’s perky expressions on-screen, complemented by the squeaky, highly enthusiastic voice, rendered the character an immediate hit among the masses. But not many know that it was Savitha Radhakrishnan and not Genelia herself who delivered the dialogues, behind the screens. We’ve heard their voice in many films, we’ve even memorised dialogues and mimicked the exact intonation in which they’ve said it but most times, we do not know their names or their faces. The identity of a voice artist in India remains behind screens, and is often reduced to “the voice” only. The history of the voice When the silent era progressed to the talkies, the need for actors to use their own voice became imminent. During the initial days, most actors spoke their own dialogues and many even sang their own songs - M K Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, K B Sundarambal were well known for their vocal prowess. It was Av Meiyappan, the country’s most lauded pioneer in cinema, who set the earliest stage for dubbing. Randor Guy writes in The Hindu, “A milestone was crossed in 1943 with the making of Harishchandra, dubbed from Kannada to Tamil. At Krishnaswamy wrote the dialogue to match the lip movements of the actors. Sri Valli, a folk mythology, the favourite story of Tamils, hit the bull's eye.” He goes on to add: “A revolution of sorts happened at this time. On hearing feedback that the singing of Rukmini lacked pep, Meiyappan made a bold move and roped in Periyanayaki to sing playback. Pragati technicians worked round the clock to synchronise voice and lip. Reels were recalled and new ones rushed to theatres in cars and trains. Avm had done something no producer would dare to do after the release of a film.” This perhaps laid the first stone for dubbing in the industry as we know it. Today, there’s a union for dubbing artists called South Indian Cine, Television Artistes and Dubbing Artistes Union (Sictadau) formed almost 30 years ago and is currently headed by Kr Selvaraj. The voices behind the big names The role of a voice artist was quite unknown among the audience during the eighties and the nineties. “Even back then, we had several voice artists dubbing for actors like Radha, Amala and Kushboo. However, when more north Indian actors started acting in Tamil and Telugu films, that’s when people realised that there should be someone else dubbing for them,” says Savitha. “I gained a lot of attention only after director Shankar’s Jeans when I dubbed for Aishwarya Rai. People wondered how Aishwarya Rai spoke so fluently in Tamil,” laughs Savitha. While talking to her over the phone, several faces of her on-screen characters flashed before this writer's eyes: Simran from Priyamanavale, Laila from Pithamagan, Nayanthara from Boss Engira Bhaskaran, Meera Jasmin from Sandakozhi… before I could steer my attention to her words alone. Having dubbed for over a thousand films for several actors including Jyothika, Simran, Hansika Motwani, Kajal Aggarwal, Amy Jackson, etc., Savitha remains one of the most adaptable and sought-after voices in the industry. Savitha Radhakrishnan felicitated by director Ameer at Jfw event “When it comes to dubbing, there’s a lot of observation involved. Even laughter differs from person to person. Then comes memorising the dialogues. If you were to keep reading from the paper, it’ll affect the quality of the output,” explains Savitha. A very shy person in real life, Savitha says she prefers the dark room with no-one inside while recording. “Some people stand and move to emote while dubbing. I always sit, two inches away from the mic, in a dark room,” she says. Priya Anand, on the other hand, was someone who challenged the notion of the soft-spoken, chirpy female lead. With her bass voice, she rattled the industry that was slowly introducing female leads with strong tonality. Having first dubbed at the young age of five, Priya thanks father Mohan who introduced her to the world of recording. “My father was a yesteryear actor who used to act along with Mgr. When he went for recordings he used to take me along and that’s how my journey began," she recounts. To this day, the biggest compliment she has received, which she considers to be an achievement, remains a comment registered by writer Sujatha in Kalki magazine. “In an interview, writer Sujatha had said that although he doesn't watch Tamil soaps on TV, he watches Mandira Bedi’s Shanti just for the ‘sweet voice of that unknown girl’. I was overwhelmed when I read that,” she reminisces. Priya rose to become the dubbing director of the Madhavan starrer Amazon Prime series - Breathe. Her big break, however, came in 2004 with Selvaraghavan’s 7G Rainbow Colony. Priya Anand with her friends - actor Sonia Agarwal and actor Pooja “Bass voice is now sought-after but back then not many preferred it. In that regard, I’d say all of Selvaraghavan’s female protagonists have strong, bass voice," she says. The industry The industry now, however, is saturated with many RJs, VJs, singers and even artists dubbing for themselves. “Today we have many youngsters coming in to dub and the technology has become easier as well. That’s where the association comes in as a regulator,” explains Savitha. Sictadau has a membership fee of Rs. 1,50,000 for those who wish to dub in feature films. The field, however, is open for those who want to do voice-overs for commercials and documentaries. “If someone’s voice happens to be approved after voice test, they can go ahead and dub just by paying a small amount of 20,000. But from the second film onward, they cannot dub without the membership. This makes sure that only those who are serious about the career can dub,” shares Savitha. But have things changed with more actors choosing to dub for themselves? “I really appreciate it when an artist comes forward to dub for their own characters. It gives them a complete experience. But there are those who simply cannot pick up a language. Here again, actors like Asin, Tamannaah and Nithya Menen have huge potential to dub for themselves,” says Savitha. Changing with the times Every industry has had its fair share of advancements and so has the recording industry. “At first there was a loop system that had just a single track. Everyone had to dub at the same time. There was one mic for the men, one for the women and a stool for the children to stand on when it was their turn. I was 10 when did my first recording in 1990. If someone made a mistake, everyone had to redo it again!” recounts Savitha. From there, it progressed to the track system that had several tracks - one for the main actors, one for character artists, one for bit artists (small parts), one track for the crowd/atmosphere, etc. “Now we have all the latest technology that has made recording very easy. You can make your voice sound thinner, baser. Earlier, syncing was the biggest challenge. In your head you should have timed your sentences accurately. But now there’s absolutely no need for that,” she adds. While it is the women actors who usually do films across industries, the dubbing industry also has a good number of male voice artists. A good example to recall is actor Mohan. The star who was at his peak during the eighties and the nineties had most of his films (75 films) dubbed by singer and voice artist Sn Surender. With the coming of many bilingual, trilingual and dubbed films, the scope for dubbing artists has increased. The industry also expanded itself with dubbed cartoons and soaps that are now very common on TV. Having entered the field by chance, Azam found his big break in 2015, dubbing for Rana Daggubati’s character in Baahubali. Azam with director SS Rajamouli “When I was asked to dub for Baahubali, I went in thinking that it’d be for a small character. I was shocked when they played Rana’s scene on screen,” he says. Cinema is known for casting a huge shadow on the many hands that actually help propel it. Junior artists, technicians, stunt actors, body doubles, lighting crew and many such roles are under-appreciated. So how do the voice artists feel about the recognition they’ve got so far? “I cannot lobby enough for our recognition,” says Priya. “We are treated very well by the team, the directors I’ve worked with have always held us very respectfully. Actors I’ve worked with - Soniya Aggarwal and Pooja are my best friends. But I still believe more can be done when it comes to recognition.” Ironically, dubbing artists had their first award only in 2000. Savitha who received the first ever Tamil Nadu state award for Best Female Dubbing Artist for the film Priyamanavale says, ”It was a hope-giving improvement for us. But I do hope we get to receive national awards as well. 50 percent of the life to the character on screen is attributed to the voice.”...
- 2/3/2018
- by Editor
- The News Minute
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