Whether comedy or drama, Manorama’s success sprang not just from her remarkable talent but also her amazing ability to adapt.
Maalayitta Mangai, the 1958 drama produced by Kannadasan and directed by GR Nathan, is remembered mainly for two reasons today. One, the magical Viswanathan-Ramamurthy score, studded with hits like Naanandri yaar varuvaar and Senthamizh thenmozhiyaal. And two, the actress listed as “puthumuga arimugam” at the bottom of the second scroll of cast names, far below the character artists: Manorama. She plays Anjalai, the domestic help earning a salary of six rupees in a rich household. It’s a supporting role, with comic shades – she would go on to play a similar role in many films. Forty-four years later, in 2002, she told The Hindu, “[Kannadasan] told me that if I did that comic role, I’d come up in life. Today, his words have come true.” The year she gave this interview, she had four releases – one in Telugu (Ninu Choodaka Nenundalenu) and three in Tamil (Thamizh, Jaya, Gemini). She got her start when TR Mahalingam was a hero. She was still at it when Vikram burst on the scene.
This kind of longevity is the blessing of a character artist – even after stars fade, supporting actors keep shining. Even so, Manorama was unique. It wasn’t just her talent, evident in the numerous films that remain forgotten even as their “comedy tracks” find a new life on YouTube. It was also her ability to adapt – to drama, and to the times. For a while, she played along, establishing herself as a comedienne. One of the earliest instances of her cutting loose is in Kalathur Kannamma (1959), where her character, named Alamu, is caught between a younger suitor and an old man who wants her for himself. Heeding the suggestion of the film’s overall fixer-upper, played by a boy named Kamalahasan, Alamu decides to frighten the old man away. She invites him to dinner. She sweet-talks him, casually letting slip the information that she’s alone. Her mother is at the temple praying for her, as she tends to get possessed by the spirit of Maariyatha. Then, slowly, she loosens her hair. She pretends to feel faint. Slowly, her tone changes – no longer pliant, but harsh. Soon she’s yelling, Ey manidha poochiye, you human insect… The terrified old man flees.
In certain critical circles, this would be called “low comedy,” which, to steal from the encyclopaedia definition, has no underlying purpose except to provoke laughter by boisterous jokes, buffoonery, and other riotous activity. That, in general, is how comedy is in our cinema, and that’s what actors like Manorama did over and over, with great skill, to great success. Without her comedy track, Kalathur Kannamma is just a turgid melodrama about a star-crossed couple and the son who unites them. A few years later, Manorama played a character named Kannamma herself, in the comedy track in Anbe Vaa (1966), where she threatens to blind Nagesh with a pair of knitting needles. The name seems to have followed Manorama through her career. She played another Kannamma in Samsaaram Adhu Minsaaram (1986), another domestic worker who’s practically part of the family.
It’s flat-out impossible to talk about all her memorable roles – there are just so many. But we should certainly pause to note that she co-starred with all the top comics – Nagesh, most famously, but also Cho (Bommalaattam, where Manorama sang that legendary ode to ‘Madras Tamil,’ Vaa vaadhyaare vootanda) Surulirajan (Thirumalai Thenkumari), Mouli (a double role in Oru Malarin Payanam) and ‘Thengai’ Srinivasan (Kaasedhaan Kadavulada). Not that Manorama needed a co-star. In Savaal (1981), she played the lungi-clad ‘Burma’ Pappa, a Fagin-like leader of a gang of young pickpockets. In Kodai Mazhai (1986), she guest-starred as a schoolteacher who cannot help winking. (Just how big was Manorama by then? Another guest star in the film, which starred newcomers, was… Rajinikanth.) And of course, ‘Jil Jil’ Ramamani, that walking sine curve in Thillana Mohanambal (1968), named after her tinkling anklet bells. By this time, Manorama’s name was at the top of the supporting-cast scroll. The Sivaji Ganesan character refers to her as sakalakalavalli, the mistress of arts. He could be talking about her affecting dramatic turns in subsequent decades.
Watch Manorama as Gemini Ganesan’s devoted daughter-in-law in Unnal Mudiyum Thambi (1988) or as the sympathetic slum-dweller who harbours the heroine in Pudhiya Paadhai (1989) and you’ll see why she was referred to, sometimes, as the female Sivaji Ganesan. It wasn’t just the force of these performances but also the style – a style that harked back to theatre and its emphasis on powerful dialogue delivery and a gestural range to match. Down the decades, Manorama became so beloved that directors began to cast her in parts calculated to extract extreme sympathy. To see any actress suffer in circumstances like the one in Chinna Thambi (1991; another Kannamma) is horrible, but to see Manorama suffer… To acquire that kind of goodwill in the hearts of audiences takes a special kind of talent, and frankly, a special kind of person.
An edited version of this piece can be found here. Copyright ©2015 The Hindu. This article may not be reproduced in its entirety without permission. A link to this URL, instead, would be appreciated.
Anu Warrier
October 12, 2015
I have a deep abiding love for her, and all I know of her is what I’ve seen on the screen. To have Manorama appear on screen was, for me, to have the universe settle into its predictable pattern. The sun was in its orbit, as Wooster would have said, and all was right with the world. I knew – whatever the character she portrayed – I would see someone ‘become’ that character.
Thank you for this obituary; the accolades heaped on her are richly deserved.
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Cuddalore Ramji
October 12, 2015
One of the excellent articles written on Achi. It is not known how Mr Rangan is able to remember the films, the name of the character etc. beautiful. thanks a lot Sir.
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Ram Murali
October 12, 2015
I remember that your tribute to Nagesh (following his death) was focused on a key scene from “Server Sundaram.” That’s what I thought of as I was reading your last paragraph where you had mentioned, “Unaal Mudiyum Thambi.” All of the fascinating aspects of Manorama’s acting are on display in KB’s glorious character Angayarkanni played with pitch-perfect perfection by Manorama.
There’re two small but unforgettable sequences in UMT, one funny and one moving, which show what a superb actress she could be.
The first scene involves a cute conversation and some spontaneous singing. (Watch this to see how casual and effortless she could be. This is in sharp contrast to the more dramatic roles that she was cast in by the likes of P Vasu and KSR.)
The second one is just a 20-sec stretch that involves no dialogue but some very beautiful acting by Manorama. I love the way the camera just lingers on Manorama and Kamal as they exchange unspoken words for a few seconds. (It’s also sheer genius the way this sequence was staged, with the nadaswaram in the background.)
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Hari E
October 12, 2015
Rangan – Well written tribute to a versatile actress and probably one of the last links to the bygone era! She could dialup the dramatic as you mentioned but also could underplay it if required. It is very difficult to find any actress comparable to her in indian film history. I had a fortune of seeing her in a shooting when I was 12 years old, when ashok nagar, chennai were known for tree filled streets. What struck me still today was how down to earth she was and the way she mingled casually with mostly women fans who came to watch the shooting.
This song from Kanne Papa – She demonstrated another dimension of her talent.
This song from SooryaGandhi – not the most popular Brahmin dialect song, never the less enjoyable and showing another side of her talent.
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Raj Balakrishnan
October 12, 2015
Wonderful actress. Pray to God that her soul may rest in peace.
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kaaviyathalagani
October 12, 2015
So glad to see “Savaal” here. Burma Paapa-poi-kai-thupaaki is I think the only time the “kai-thupaaki” cliché worked. Her drama-comedy range is really visible even in an otherwise hectic-Kamal vehicle like Aboorva Sagotharargal.
It’s a special kind of joy watching the two of them trade steps during the interlude in Annatha Aadurar.
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Priyangu
October 12, 2015
Her way of saying “Gammunu Kada” become part of regular conversations for while soon after “Samsaaram adhu minsaram”, especially it sounded so funny for those who were not familiar with Madras lingo. Ippo avangale ‘gammunu’ aaitaanga. Rip.
As Ulaganayagan rightly put it, people might smile or laugh during her funeral, remembering her comedy scenes.
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venkatesh
October 12, 2015
RIP Aachi
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Deva Fan (Original!) (@DevaFan)
October 12, 2015
Her cameo in “Indian” will forever be etched in our minds as to what a powerful performer can bring to screen. She almost steals the show in the movie. You can literally feel the plight of a widow running behind corrupt govt officials in getting her dues (pension or whatever on behalf of her husband getting killed). The sarcasm-tinged tone in which she “introduces” us to the value-chain of corrupt clerks and officers in the Govt building, the emotional pleading to give her the money, the anger and wail later as the officer abuses her, there is no other actor who could have displayed such vast spectrum of emotions as what Manorama did (with the exception of the film’s hero Mr. Kamal Hassan). Truly complete actor.
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raja
October 12, 2015
She was a bit predictable but she still got a free pass. I guess it’s the magic of aachi.
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gvsafamily
October 12, 2015
BR,
Maybe it’s just me, but I was hoping for a more in-depth analysis of her long, fascinating and eventful career – her growth, the range she exhibited, her very many talents, her ubiquitous presence in nearly every movie released in the 80s and 90s, and then the gradual sunset post 2000s. True, you did allude to these but they seemed like only passing mentions.
But on second thoughts, maybe you’d end up writing a book if you were to try and do justice to Achi and her body of work 🙂
Agree with Hari E., Ram Murali and others. The most amazing aspect was how effortlessly she could dial it up/down a notch depending on the role/situation she was in, using body language, dialect changes or merely facial expressions. But till her last breath, never stopped regaling us, all the same.
RIP.
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raja
October 12, 2015
It’s important to come up with measured praise. Don’t be confronted by numbers (1000 films, 6000 stage plays, 9000 radio plays etc)
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Ravi
October 12, 2015
Wonderfully written tribute, BR.
But, 1958 – 2002 is 42? “engineer-kkum math sarukkum”
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brangan
October 12, 2015
Ravi: Thanks 🙂 But then, I was never really much of an engineer.
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KayKay
October 12, 2015
Holy crap! I was always under the impression Manorama was of the MGR-Sivaji era. I’m gobsmacked to learn she entered the cine field one star-generation earlier, that of TR Mahalingam’s time!
Plonked in front of the telly for the better part of my childhood, devouring Tamil movies, you got used to a few things such as the barely-connected and parallel comedy track that ran alongside the main (melo) drama. And while the funny men would rotate (Nagesh-Cho-Thangavelu-Suruli-Thengai), the female mainstay was Manorama. As ubiquitous as painted backdrops, back projections and glycerin flow during the emo scenes, one simple couldn’t watch a Tamil movie without seeing Manorama.
RIP, another great Artiste passes on.
Vasanth’s little seen Nee Pathi Naan Pathi featured a brief but terrific performance from her, notable because it was the rare role where she was allowed to cut loose as a formidably menacing matriarch. See the 1.00:00- 1.05:00 mark of the movie below to see her versatility, going from amiable to antagonistic in seconds!
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KayKay
October 12, 2015
Deva Fan: Absolutely agree. Her Indian scene at the Govt Office is rewind-worthy!
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brangan
October 12, 2015
KayKay: Actually, Malayitta Mangai is late-period Mahalingam, and by then Sivaji/MGR had already starting making their presence felt (Madurai Veeran for MGR, Parasakthi/Ambikapathi for Sivaji)– so yes, you could consider her as part of their era.
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Ram Murali
October 12, 2015
Kaykay, I was going to write about NPNP but I feared that bart would pull my leg for mentioning Vasanth yet again! (I had already mentioned my other favorite Kamal in my comment!) Actually I also really like the scene that begins at 1:07:05. Love the way she delivers her lines in this scene.
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bart
October 12, 2015
She was not just a part of but ingrained in Tamil Cinema in 80s, 90s and 00s. Every hero worth his salt would have played either son of or grandson of this wonderful lady. Without her, their films would be incomplete. May her soul rest in peace…
Ram, you should pick your favourites irrespective of what detractors (myself 🙂 ) say.. “Vasanth”am perugattum …
My favourite is “Chinna Gounder”. The opening scene where she does harvesting in her knees in respect of her husband’s burial in that field, she just goes sits right on top of the honour pyramid the film builds after that – Vijayakanth, Suganya & Kavundamani picking up the remaining spots. Other than setting the moral benchmark in the film with her emotional, upright, values-upholding potrayal, her scenes with Suganya, Kavundar and Senthil are a riot – “Yenda, endra pallukennada”…. These scenes did not dilute her built-up image at all.
She has been just one of her kind in Tamil Cinema with her versatality for more than 5 decades and that says it all…
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Ram Murali
October 12, 2015
bart – you are a “detractor” of mine?! ipdi solliputeeya… ombada commenta paathuputtu embada randu kannulayum kuththaala kannaka thaneeru kottudhungaren… (Oh my, why did you comment on “Chinna Counder?!” I feel like I am in Pollachi, not Pennsylvania!)
“Vasanth”am perugattum …
–> LOL! You might amused to know that my twitter tagline is “Kamal Daasan” 🙂
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Manorama Fan
October 12, 2015
Manorama did far more for women in Tamil cinema than any other mainstream female artist of any generation. No role was too small for her. She brought to screen the everyday woman of our lives, whether it was cheerful maidservant, the struggling mother or the brisk socialite. Truly one of the greats!
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Madhu
October 13, 2015
Nadigan is a movie, which probably wouldn’t have worked at all, had the wealthy spinster role been played by any other actor than Manorama. So many entertaining performances that she has made – her “ding, ding, ding, brruumm” scene in Singara Velan; the way she would enact the ‘sivarathiri’ song in MMKR and bend into Kameshwaran’s hands, or her intonation in ‘love pannadhu podhum, erangudi’ to Shalini(Kushboo) in the climax scene of the same movie; and many, many more that I am forgetting right now.
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Madhu
October 13, 2015
Nadigan wouldn’t have worked at all had the role of the wealthy spinster been played by any other actor than Manorama. Her ‘ding ding ding bruumm’ scene in Singara Velan; her Chakku Bai role enacting the ‘sivarathiri’ song and falling into Kameshwaran’s arms, the same character’s intonation in ‘love pannadhu podhum, erangudi’ to Shalini(Kushboo) in the same movie; and many, many more that I am forgetting right now.
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Anu
October 13, 2015
I echo Anu warrier – I always used to list manorama as my fav actress. She was such a joy to watch on screen. I loved her role in aboorva sagotharagal. I read somewhere tha Gandhimathi was initially cast in that role. I Cld not imagine her doing the aiyayayayooo scenes! Truly a great loss!
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apala
October 13, 2015
Miss you dearly Aachchi-ma… RIP.
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tonks
October 13, 2015
Manorama was one of the most beloved of the movie stars of my childhood though I haven’t seen many of her later films : this tribute to her and the YouTube links shared here were a lovely way of revisiting those movies. She will be missed.
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Madhu
October 13, 2015
Nadigan is a movie that probably wouldn’t have worked had the wealthy spinster role been played by any other actor. There are so many scenes from so many movies that have worked and are evergreen only because of her: the ‘ding, ding, ding, bruuumm’ scene in Singara Velan; her Chakku Bai role in MMKR in which she would enact the ‘Sivarathiri’ song in Madan’s house and fall into Kameshwaran’s arms, her intonation into the dialog, ‘love pannadhu podhum, erangudi’ to Shalini (Kushboo) in the climax scene of the same movie; and so many, many more which I am forgetting right now.
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Rahini David
October 13, 2015
Madhu, I was about to say the very same movies and the very same scenes. Sivarathiri of MMKR would have gone down history as the vulgarest tamil song sequence if it had been someone else.
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gvsafamily
October 13, 2015
Madhu, Rahini,
This is bizzare!
You are not going to believe me if I tell you that I covered these exact scenes in my YouTube Manorama Movie Marathon today – the ‘ding, ding, ding, bruuumm’ scene, the nadigan scenes and finally ended it with samsaram adhu minsaram (in this case, Lakshmi – another awesomely talented actress – being a huge factor in making me change my mind and watch the whole movie instead of just the Achi scenes)
So had to reserve Aboorva Sahodarargal and MMKR for another day. Just don’t seem to get enough of her 🙂
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Madhu
October 13, 2015
Rahini: Exactly. That role in MMKR is about a woman sending her daughter to sleep with a rich man to ensure that he marries her. Any other actor and it would have been atleast tinged with melodrama – only Manorama can make it hilarious.
Some of the other scenes which I remember now:
Aaraaro Aareeraro – Her scene with the villian in the climax.
Manalkayiru – The scene where she is upset with her brother for shouting at her and ends up calling her husband, inviting him to a movie.
Both the above movies are not something I enjoy on a whole, but her portions and some other scenes in them make it a little hard to dismiss.
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Dracarys
October 13, 2015
RIP!
Seems bizarre bit I can’t recollect a single movie of her’s with Mani Ratnam!! Huh!
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Ram Murali
October 13, 2015
Madhu – that’s a marvelous list of movies and moments from those movies. I laughed out loud just recollecting her line from the climax of MMKR that you had quoted. To add a few more to your list…
Her interaction with Kamal at the start of the “Raja Kaiya Vecha” song (“Thukkiri Thanama Pesikinu Irundha Thunra Sothuku Thaalam Thaanda Podanum!”)
Singaravelan:
Jaishankar: “Naan Param Veer Chakra vaangiruken”
Manorama: “Andha Sakkaram Ipo Endha Vandeela Oaduthu?!”
Nadigan:
Manorama: “Ena Kanthasamy anney, harmoniuthula ethana kattai irukku-nu kooda theriaadha?!”
Counds: “Ada enange…vaasikravan kattaya elaama enni paathutrupaan!
…
Manorama: “Raja, nee paaka un chithapa maariye thaan irukkey!”
Counds: “Chithapave thaan!”
Manorama: “No no…avar muscular!”
Counds: “Ena thangachi?!”
Manorama: “Kattu masthanavar-nu sonnen!”
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Sundar Sampath
October 14, 2015
Leaving aside all the roles that she donned in movies, the one that I liked and was in awe was the role that she played in the tamil drama “en veedu, en kanavan, en kuzhandhai” – as a middle-aged childless brahmin lady alongside noted dramatist kambar jayaraman. I saw it on DD, but my parents used to say in the theatre version it was a “tour de force” performance from aachi…
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newbie
October 16, 2015
I confess I did not expect to see this when coming to your site yesterday. I was just going to catch up on the latest reviews as it had been a while since the last visit. Living abroad, (unusually) it had been about a week since I caught up with news back home. What a shock to know about the great, the one and only Manorama! I lost all sleep with my mind struggling to process the news. She was truly one of the best, most brilliant and most versatile actresses of any generation and of any film industry. Trying to pick one favourite scene or two from her career to talk about is just impossible as there is one too many. After many hours of intermittent contemplation though, the one thing that keeps coming to me is not any one particular scene but rather the feeling that I got whenever I saw her on the screen. Like her contemporary Nagesh, just her presence in a movie – particularly in bad or boring ones – gave me a kind of comfort along the lines of ‘Oh at least the movie has got her in it – it can’t be all that bad’. She had that rarest of talent to make the best out of any script and scene however mediocre it was. Needless to say, with fantastic scripts, she was too fantastically in her element. For e.g., I know the movie ‘Sarvar Sundaram’ is meant to be all about Nagesh and rightly so, but I feel Manorama just stole the scene in which Nagesh gets his intro into movies as a newcomer. Her depiction (or spoof) of a traditional tamil movie heroine of that era is just so hilarious that one can only imagine she was on great terms with the actual heroines to be able to get away with it. And as mentioned in the article and in many comments here, her ability to adapt and her versatility have almost put her in a league of her own considering the repertoire of roles she has played. She could give both character actors and comedy actors a run for their money whichever period it was (like in Chinna Kounder – I don’t honestly think any other comedian could match or supercede Koundamani during his peak particularly acting alongside him but boy did she do it superbly). She was just born to be an actress and I am grateful we had her in the Tamil film industry. May she rest in peace.
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Venkatesh
October 17, 2015
Although she won a National Award for PP, I personally consider UMT as her finest performance. As others pointed out, she was exceptionally good in Apoorva Sagotharargal, MMKR, and Nadigan as well. But how come there is no mention about Guru Sishyan? The telephonic conversations with Rajini, and Radha Ravi (with the backing of Vinu Chakravarthi) were hilarious! N. Kalyani 🙂
Dracarys, good catch! Except for KB and Bhagyaraj none of the biggies – including the likes of Mahendran, Balu Mahendra, and Bharathirajaa (correct me if I’m wrong) – cast her in their movies.
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Sriram G
November 9, 2018
Dear BR,
I was going through this article and saw your reference to Thillana Mohanambal. This being the 50th year of Thillana Mohanambal (released in 1968) and the Golden Jubilee was celebrated by the diehard YGM last week. You should write something (a detailed review perhaps !!!!???) about this movie.
It deserves a review from a master craftsman like you.
Please oblige……
GS
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Lakshmi
July 20, 2019
True! A super star! 🌹❤️
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