CV Sridhar was an extremely successful director in both Tamil and Hindi cinema, besides directing films in Kannada, Malayalam and Telugu as well. He is known for breathing freshness into Tamil cinema with his treatment of romance and dialogue right from his directorial debut, Kalyana Parisu (1959). He made several films on the eternal triangle, a plot device often used in his films.
Sridhar was born on July 22, 1933 in Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu studying at St Joseph’s school there. Before becoming a director, he first made it as a successful writer. “He wrote very interesting stage plays when we were in school,” according to Chitralaya Gopu, a classmate, close friend and colleague. He came into notice for his writing skills first with a play of his – Rathapasam. Theatre personality TK Shanmugam was very impressed with this production and ensured that the play was staged at all major sabhas in the city. Following the success of the play, Sridhar began receiving offers to write for Tamil films.
Among others, Sridhar scripted the extremely successful Sivaji Ganesan – Padmini starrer Ethirparadathu (1954). The film, directed by Chitrapu Narayanamurthy looks at Sunder (Sivaji Ganesan) who is the only son of a rich man in Madurai, Dayaparar (Chittor V Nagiah). A student, he stays in Madras with Sumathi (Padmini) and her father. Sumathi’s brother Doctor Gopu (SV Sahasranamam) has left the house with his wife, Nalini (S Varalakshmi) to live in Bangalore. Sunder leaves for USA and is thought to be dead in the plane crash. He survives, is resued by tribals and is blind. Gopu and Nalini return heavily in debt. To settle her brother’s debts, Sumathi marries Dayaparar not knowing he is Sunder’s father. The film was the inspiration for the LV Prasad directed Raj Kapoor-Meena Kumari-Shyama starrer Sharada (1957).
Anohter mega-hit that Sridhar scripted was Amaradeepam (1956). The film starring Sivaji Ganesan, Padmini and Savithri. In trying to rescue the woman he loves, Aruna (Savithri), from her kidnappers, Ashok (Sivaji Ganesan) gets hit by a car and loses his memory. As he wanders around, he joins a group of nomads. Rupa (Padmini), the gypsy in the group, falls in love with him. Eventually, Ashok does regain his memory and is reunited with Aruna. It is also revealed that Rupa is in fact Aruna’s sister and was kidnapped as an infant. Rupa dies saving Ashok from the villain. The film’s Hindi version, Amar Deep (1958), was produced by Ganesan and starred Dev Anand and Vyjayanthimala with Padmini playing her original role.
From writing, directing was the next logical step for Sridhar. He made a major impact on the Tamil film industry with his first film, Kalyana Parisu, itself. In the film, Baskar (Gemini Ganesh) and Vasanthi (B Saroja Devi) are college mates who are in love. Vasanthi’s elder sister, Geetha, supports the family by stitching clothes. Baskar rents the room upstairs in their house. He falls ill and in nursing him, Geetha falls in love with him. She confides her love to Vasanthi who decides to sacrifice her love for her the sake of her sister and convinces Baskar to marry Geetha. A few years later Geetha dies leaving Baskar alone to bring up thier child. Baskar learns of Vasanthi’s impanding marriage to her former boss Raghu (A Nageshwara Rao). He reaches there by the time Vasanthi and Raghu are married. He hands over his child to Vasanthi as a wedding gift and walks away… The film, one of Gemini Ganesh’s most popular films, was the breakthrough film for B Saroja Devi and singer AM Rajah, who composed its superhit music. The success of its songs made P Susheela the leading female playback singer of Tamil cinema. Sridhar would go on to make a highly successful remake, Pelli Kanuka (1960) as well.
With Kalyana Parisu‘s success, Sridhar launched his own production company, Chitralaya Pictures. The first film to come out from the banner was Then Nilavu (1961), starring Vyjayanthimala and Gemini Ganesh. The love story, a rare Tamil outing for Vyjayanthimala, was known for its lilting music by AM Rajah and was among the earliest Tamil films to be shot in Kashmir.
Sridhar entered Hindi cinema with Nazrana (1961), a re-make of Kalyana Parisu with Raj Kapoor and Vyjayanthimala taking on the Gemini Ganesha and Saroja Devi roles. While the film was a faithful enough copy, the melodrama is somewhat toned down in this version, in particular, in the performances of Raj Kapoor and Usha Kiron as the elder sister. Consequently, the film has held up better cinematically today even if unable to achieve the cult status of the original. It did win Sridhar a Filmfare Award for Best Story though.
Sridhar would go on to re-make two of his most famous films in Hindi as well. Nenjil Oru Alayam (1962), another love triangle and one of his most successful films that he made without stars was re-made into the equally successful Dil Ek Mandir (1963), this time with big stars like Meena Kumari, Rajendra Kumar and Raaj Kumar. The outstanding comedy Kadallika Neramillai (1964) found its Hindi avatar in Pyar Kiye Jaa (1966). If Mehmood narrating his ‘film story’ to Om Prakash was a highlight of the latter film, Tamil fans swear by the original where Nagesh ‘narrates to TS Balaiah. Both versions proved to be extremely successful at the box office.
Mention must be made of two films that Sridhar did with Sivaji Ganesan in this period – Ooty Varai Uravu (1967) and Sivadha Mann (1969). Both were immensely successful films. The Hindu, in its review, praised the script in the former, highlighting the fact that in spite of a massive cast, equal justice was done to each and every character. The latter, co-starring Kanchana, was an early Tamil film shot abroad in various countries across Europe. However, its Hindi remake, Dharti (1970), also directed by Sridhar and starring Rajendra Kumar and Waheeda Rehman, did not do well at the box office.
While Sridhar launched stars like Devika, Jayalalithaa and Ravichandran, he also turned down a young Hema Malini for a Tamil film he was making when she was still in her teens. Years later, when the same Hema became the queen of Hindi cinema, the same Sridhar worked with her in Gehri Chaal (1973)!
Sridhar continued making successful films right through the 1970s and 1980s. Some of his memorable films in this period include Seeta Geeta Datithe (1977), Ilamai Unchaladugirathu (1978), Azhage Unnai Aarathikkirean (1979), Prema Sangamam (1984) and Yaro Ezhuthia Kavithai (1986).
Sridhar, ailing for sometime and confined to a wheelchair, passed away due to cardiac arrest in Chennai on October 20, 2008.
Karan – Please note that Hema Malini was not even signed for the film, so how can she be thrown out? The rumor mills in Chennai have a different story to tell. Hema was 18 years old. Sridhar felt she wasn’t buxom and looked too immature for the role of the widow in “Vennira Aadai” – a child widow who is mentally unstable. Jayalalitha’s mother Sandhya was eager to get this role for her daughter Jayalalitha. She requested Sivaji Ganesan who was close to Sridhar then. It has to be noted that Sandhya was in love with Sivaji Ganesan but the latter was not ready to marry a woman who had two children. Sridhar played a trick. He told Hema Malini’s mother Jaya Chakrabarthy – “Your daughter looks too young for the lead role. But I have a supporting role – the role of the 2nd heroine. For this you may have to send your daughter alone to Hotel Woodlands, Mylapore. Myself and my associate director shall conduct screen test and drop her back home tomorrow morning.”
Hema was shocked and so was Jaya Chakrabarthy. Both mother and daughter fled the scene. This is the truth.
1. Sarojadevi fell prey to the charms of Gemini Ganesan. She was about to live in with him. Her mother gave her a resounding slap on the shooting spot. News reached Ganesan’s wife actress Savitri. She complained to Sridhar. He retorted, ” If the bull is a stud, cows are bound to get attracted. You need to rein in your bull. Why don’t you talk to Saroja directly?”. The romance was nipped in the bud. Savitri did not meet Sarojadevi but threatened Ganesan to stay away from Saroja Devi.
2. Saroja Devi told a lie to Sridhar during the shooting of the Telugu version of ” Kalyanapparisu”. Sridhar was stung by this lie. He never worked with her again. So Sarojadevi lost an opportunity to work with Raj Kapoor in “Nazrana”.
3. Ganesan had a roaring affair with vijayakumari too. Vijayakumari played the elder sister in the movie Kalyanapparisu. Vijayakumari was in a trance looking at Ganesan’s suave manners and masculine charm. She succumbed to his advances and one day after the shooting both of them reached a hotel on the outskirts of Chennai. Ganesan drove the car himself. When Karunanidhi got wind of the matter, he landed at the hotel and warned Ganesan to stay off Vijayakumari. The DMK chief was madly in love with the actress and they were a couple for many years. This is what estranged Vijayakumari from her husband S S Rajendran Nadar.
BTW, Gemini Ganesan was an affable personality – handsome, charming and suave. According to insiders, he was a flirt. Given a choice, he would have proved his masculinity to half the actresses in filmdom. One actress who spent many months with him when he was shooting a Telugu film said that GG was the only one who was sensuous in bed, managing to achieve foreplay before the climax. He was also keen that the woman who shared the bed with him had an orgasm. So, just imagine – if you have that kind of man – a charming handsome man who is great in bed and also chivalrous and additionally insisted on the woman having an orgasm – which woman would refuse such a man?
Much information has been provided by Karan Bali about
a great director/writer/producer
late Sridhar. He was very smart and
attractive. I read somewhere
that story woven in films about
love largely reflected his personal
life love failure.
Girija Santhabam has given
more information about
Gemini Ganesan and his
ability to attract many woman
from Tamil Nadu film industry and used them to his his lust after
different women.
Like to hear from Girija
Santham more.
With respects