Ratha Thilagam

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Ratha Thilagam
File:Ratha Thilagam poster.jpg
Poster
Directed byDada Mirasi
Produced byPanchu Arunachalam
P. V. Krishnan
Screenplay byDada Mirasi
StarringSivaji Ganesan
Savitri Ganesan
Music byK. V. Mahadevan
CinematographyJagirdhar
Edited byR. Devarajan
Production
company
National Movies
Release date
  • 14 September 1963 (1963-09-14)
Running time
142 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Ratha Thilagam (transl. Tilaka of Blood) is a 1963 Indian Tamil-language romantic war film directed by Dada Mirasi. The film stars Sivaji and Savitri Ganesan (no relation). Based on the Sino-Indian border dispute of 1962, it was released on 14 September 1963. The film was not commercially successful.

Plot[edit]

Kumar is a graduate who decides to enlist in the Indian Army, following news of Chinese invasion in the country during the midst of the Sino-Indian War, only to find out that his love interest Kamala was working against the Indian Army.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

Ratha Thilagam is based on the Sino-Indian border dispute of 1962. It was directed by Dada Mirasi who also wrote the screenplay. It was produced under National Movies by Panchu Arunachalam and P. V. Krishnan while Kannadasan, along with, P.C. Ganesan and Thyagan wrote the dialogue; Kannadasan also presented the film. Cinematography was handled by Jagirdhar and editing by R. Devarajan.[1][3]

Themes[edit]

Critic Baradwaj Rangan noted Ratha Thilagam's similarities to the Bengali film Saptapadi (1961) in that both films had "the backdrop of war, the star-crossed lovers, and, of course, the staging of Othello, which, in both films, appears to have been dubbed by the same voices (Jennifer Kapoor, Utpal Dutt)."[4] Writing for The Times of India, Ganesh Krishnamoorthy felt that, as the film was set in the backdrop of the Sino-Indian War, "this scene, used as a play enacted by the characters, provides a structural unity to the main plot."[5]

Soundtrack[edit]

The music was composed by K. V. Mahadevan, with lyrics by Kannadasan.[6] The songs "Oru Koppaiyila" and "Pasumai Niraintha" were well received.[1]

Song Singers Length
"Buddhan Vanthan" T. M. Soundararajan 02:55
"Happy Birthday" Suzi Miller 03:22
"Oru Koppaiyile" T. M. Soundararajan 02:33
"Pani Padarntha" T. M. Soundararajan 06:06
"Pasumai Niraintha" T. M. Soundararajan, P. Susheela 03:49
"Pogathe Pogathe" Manorama 01:56
"Thazhampoove" T. M. Soundararajan, L. R. Eswari 05:53
"Vaadai Kaatramma" L. R. Eswari 03:27

Release and reception[edit]

Ratha Thilagam was released on 14 September 1963.[3] Kanthan of Kalki praised the film for the comedy subplot and the Othello play.[7] T. M. Ramachandran, writing for Sport and Pastime, commended Ganesan and Savitri's performances, calling their roles in the Othello play the film's pièce de résistance.[8] The film was not commercially successful.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 Guy, Randor (17 October 2015). "Rattha Thilakam (1963)". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2015. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch (help)
  2. ↑ "Just In: Veteran actor Shanmuga Sundaram is no more". The Times of India. 15 August 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2021. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch (help)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "91-100". nadigarthilagam.com. Archived from the original on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Rangan, Baradwaj (12 September 2014). "Lights, Camera, Conversation... "All the world's a screen..."". Baradwaj Rangan. Archived from the original on 20 March 2018. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  5. ↑ Krishnamoorthy, Ganesh (9 May 2016). "All the world's a stage, Tamil Nadu too". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2018. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch (help)
  6. ↑ "Ratha Thilagam". Raaga.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  7. ↑ காந்தன் (6 October 1963). "இரத்த திலகம்". Kalki (in தமிழ்). p. 29. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  8. ↑ Ramachandran, T. M. (5 October 1963). "A Good Effort". Sport and Pastime. Vol. 17. p. 50. Retrieved 30 September 2021.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.bharatpedia.org/index.php?title=Ratha_Thilagam&oldid=364275"