SUBRAMANIAN N

Research Scholar,
Research Department of Visual Communication,
Hindusthan College of Arts and Science,
Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, Pin-641028.
e-mail : [email protected]
Cell: 9894655854

ABSTRACT

THE MELODRAMATIC EXCESS USED TO PERSUADE THE

DRAVIDIAN/SELF RESPECT THOUGHTS THROUGH TAMIL
CINEMA WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO “RATHA KANNEER”.
The consequence of talkies revolution in India, the regional cinema (cinemas of India)
which figured prominently became an effective art form. The 30’s had seen the emergence of
language cinema in India as well as the birth of Dravidian Movement (Self-Respect thought)
in south India. This article focuses on the content analysis of the Tamil movie ‘Ratha
Kanneer’ (Tear of Blood) that showed how the Self-Respect thoughts were transferred
through the cinema to the Tamil public, who were closely intertwined with the traditional
street play, modern drama and dialogue. The Tamil stage actor and activist of the Dravidian
Movement, M.R.Radha who was protagonist of this film was a familiar figure among Tamil
society. This study examines how the melodramatic approach (exaggerated characters and
exciting events intended to appeal to the emotions) strengthened the perception of Dravidian
thoughts especially, the cultural and social issues on Tamil women.
Key words
Tamil cinema, Dravidian Movement, Self-Respect thought, Melodrama, M.R.Radha, Tamil
women.

1. A) INTRODUCTION

This paper intends to analyze the contents of the Tamil movie RATHA KANNEER
(Tear of Blood) and how the director attempts to persuade the thoughts of Dravidian
Movement/Self Respect Movement, especially on woman. The Indian public was exposed to
cinema at the turn of the nineteenth century by the French inventors. But only between the
mid-1910s and 30s that, there evolved the film culture. The political and cultural changes
took place in the same period. When talkies era boganned, it was a result of language
(regional) cinema in India. The evolve of Tamil cinema and the Dravidian movement are
parallel. After six years of the talkies, the Tamil film industry transformed from the
mythological and devotional to secular dimension. The social reform film RATHA
KANNEER (1954), the melodramatic construction made a deep shake in Tamil film culture.
The spectators were relish the narrative form.

1
Melodramatic narratives therefore tend to represent the most significant characters of social life as
key familial figures, father, mother and child.

…. However, a melodramatic narrative and dramaturgy is also employed in Indian film genre……
-Ravi S. Vasudevan

The performance of M.R Radha, who was a well-known theatre artist later became cinema
actor, swathed the spectators, as well as cultivated the social reform. Therefore, this study
attempts to find the contemporary Dravidian Movement’s thoughts among the performances.

1. B). THE TAMIL CINEMA

The Tamil people had been experienced the traditional street play ‘Theru Koothu’
and the Stage Drama, a hybrid form of Tamil tradition which is a combination of ‘Theru
Koothu’ and the ‘Parsi theatre’ from Bellary, Andhra Pradesh. Meanwhile, they were first
exposed to cinema in 1897 at Madras. The exhibition included, ‘The living photographic
pictures in life sized reproductions’ of the arrival of train, of workers leaving from factory, of
a sea-bath. In 1905, the French film exhibitor Du Pont screened the film “Life of Jesus” in
Trichirappalli. One of the spectators Vincent Samikannu, a railway clerk, bought the
projector, accessories and film from the French exhibitor and screened the film all over Tamil
Nadu, South India, Burma and Malaya. The first Tamil and South Indian silent movie
‘Keesaka Vatham’ was produced in 1916. The production of silent movies was continued by
many Tamil production houses like ‘Star of the East Film Company’, ‘Exhibitor Film
Services’, ‘General Picture Corporation’, ‘Associate Film’ and so on till the mid-30s.

The first Tamil talkie ‘Kalidas’ was produced in Bombay on the sets of India’s
first talkie film ‘Alam Ara’ (Hindi) and was released in1931. The transformation of industry
increased a series of production, the drama artists including the activists cum artists of
Dravidian movement became cinema actors. Most of the films were mythological and Tamil
epics which were staged by the Tamil theatre companies. The performances of artistes and
the aspects of the films were similar to that of the dramas till 1936. But the same year, there
was a revolving in the Tamil cinema. A super hit secular film ‘Sathi Leelavathi’, introducing
M.G. Ramachandran, was released. It was directed by Elis R Dungan, an American born film
director and an alumnus of the Cinema department, University of California. He introduced
many techniques including camera movements, make-up and the Euro-American influential
melodramatic approaches of acting that moved away from the influence of stage plays.
During the 1935-50 he made a number of Tamil films, which paved the way for personality
construction and its implication. And the industry progressed into genre and classical

2
 spectacles. Afterwards the Inter National approaches were implemented in Tamil Cinema.
Various genres films were introduced, notable films like, Pathala Bhairavi(1951),
Parasakthi(1952), Devadas(1953), Antha Naal(1954), Thookku Thookki(1954), and in this
series Ratha Kanneer(1954), was one of the movies.

1.C) SYNOPSIS OF RATHA KANNEER

Mohan (M.R. Radha) is a foreign returned, conceited discourteous

philanderer. After return to India Mohan married to Chandra (Sri Ranjani), a cultured and
well-mannered girl, but he is in affair with Kantha (M.N. Rajam), a dancer-cum-prostitute.
He has good friend, Balu (S.S. Rajendran), who accompanied him during his studies abroad.
Mohan abounded his wife, foolishly transfers all his properties to concubine Kantha. A few
months later, he affects leprosy and Kantha starts ignoring him. She even locks him up in a
cellar and treats him like an untouchable. After some time, Kantha throws him out of her
house and Mohan subsequently loses his eyesight. He starts wandering around, begging for
food. He finally meets his wife Chandra, but they cannot recognize (he is blind and she
cannot identify him because of his deteriorated physique). Mohan finally comes to know
about Chandra through Balu, who visits her house at that time. Chandra wants to nurse
Mohan, but he refuses, as he does not want her to get afflicted by the disease. Mohan make
his wife and Balu to marry.

Technicians/Crew: Story, Screenplay and Dialogue: Thiruvarur K. Thanga Rasu, Cinematography:

R.R. Chandran, Editing: S. Punjabi, Art Director: A. K. Shekar, Music: Chidambaram Jayaraman,
Lyrics: Subramanya Bharathi, Bharathidasan, Udumlai Narayanakavi, Ku. Sa. Krishnamurthy,
Director: Krishnan-Panju, Producer: Perumal Mudaliar.

Film details: Genre: Social Reform, Release Date 25-10-1954, Film: Black and White, Length: 4848
meters, Duration: 151 minutes, Box Office: Super Hit, Rating: U, Source: Film DVD.

2. DRAVIDIAN/SELF-RESPECT MOVEMENT AND E.V. RAMASAMY (PERIYAR)

The people of south and central India and north Sri Lanka who speak
Dravidian languages are called Dravidians. They are called so for purely linguistic reasons; it
is thought that Dravidian-speaking people may have been spread throughout the Indian
subcontinent before the invasions of the Aryans (Brahmins).

Erode Venkata Ramasamy (1879-1973) was born in Erode, Madras Presidency

to a wealthy family. He was honored as ‘PERIYAR’ by Tamil Nadu Women Conference

3
which was held in Madras on 13.11.1938, for his self-less contribution to women's rights.
Afterwards he has been affectionately called by his followers as ‘PERIYAR’-which means
‘respected one’ or ‘elder’ in Tamil.

Self-Respect thoughtful Periyar, a staunch supporter of Gandhian Philosophy, joined

Indian National Congress, as the leader of Madras Presidency in 1919. Periyar actively
participated in Satyagraha, Non-Cooperation Movement and observed that, the goal of
congress was only liberation from the British rule, but it did not cover individual self-respect
or the eradication of social ills from Indian society. During 1929 to1930, to propagate the
Self-Respect philosophy, he conducted the first Self-Respect Conference in 1929 at
Chenggalpattu, near Madras. The conference passed the resolution which contained 34-fold
demands, so called the demands of Self-Respect Movement. He had been propagated the
movement all over south India through public meetings. In1938 Periyar was elected as the
leader of the ‘Justice Party’ (a non-brahmin association which formed in 1916 by non-
brahmin leaders). In 1944 ‘Justice Party’ along with ‘Self-Respect Movement’ was
rechristened, as ‘Dravidar Kazhagam’ (Dravidian Movement) and the rest, as the cliché goes,
is history. Periyar was convinced that if a man developed self-respect, he would
automatically develop individuality and would refuse to be led by the nose by schemers. One
of his most known quotes on Self-Respect was, "we are fit to think of 'self-respect' only when
the notion of 'superior' and 'inferior' caste is banished from our land".

Periyar propagated the Dravidian Movement/Self-Respect philosophy as the

“Principles of Rationalism”. It focused on three concretes. They are: -

Toward Indian society: Self-Respect to demolition of the monolithic structure of

Varnashrama (Varna system in Hinduism). Universal enjoyment of human rights should be a
reality.

Toward Indian individual: Self-Respect to eradicate caste, religion, community and

traditional occupations based on the accident of birth, which has chained the mass of the
people and created “superior” and “Inferior” classes and to provide people equal rights,
united society based on brother/sisterhood.

Toward Indian woman: Self-Respect to give equal rights to women, to prevent child
marriages, to conduct and encourage love marriages, widow marriages, inter caste and inter
religious marriages and to have the marriages registered under the civil Law, to establish &
maintain homes for orphans & widows and to run educational institutions. Marriages should
be conducted without Brahmin priests (prohits) and without religious rites.
4
3. RESAERCH METHODOLOGY

This study is a qualitative content analysis of the Tamil cinema Ratha kanneer (Tear
of blood). The variables of the study were selected core scenes from the plot: The
Established, Plot-points, pinches, Pre-climax and Climax. The method of data collection was
purposeful sampling. The data were classified as two melodramatic devices based on its
performances such as Manifested devices and Transformation devices. Both devices were
analyzed by their performances with the scale of Dravidian Movement’s Self-Respect
thoughts.

4. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The specific aims and objectives of this study were:

• To observe the melodramatic performances that intend to convey the Self-Respect
thoughts.
• To identify the devices of the plot.
• To analyze the devices with Self-Respect thought.
• To identify the usage of performance to persuade the Self-Respect thought.

5. DATA CREDIBILITY

The variables were divided as two melodramatic devices based on its performances
such as Manifested devices and Transformation devices. The Manifestation devices were
Fetish and Misogynism and the Transformation were Phase-I and Phase-II.

5.1) THE MANIFESTATION DEVICES:

A) The Fetish Manifest

In the establishment, the protagonist (Mohan) talks about his experiences with the
women that he looked at from the banks of the Thames and in Naples, about his dances on
the stages of Paris with cabaret girls. He compared them to apple. It is a symbolic presence of
a woman as a voluptuous object in his mind and expects the same from the concubine
(Kantha), the antagonist.

5
B). The misogynist manifest
As he is a male, he prefers free life. When his father in-law begs him to be
stay in house with his newly-wed wife (Chandra), he refuses and even threatens with a
divorce, knowing that if it happens, she wouldn’t be able to step out because of the social
taboos on woman. During the scene he uses heartbreaking words while comfortably siting on
cushion. His wife and her father, meanwhile, were standing with mortification. It is a
symbolic presence of misogynism.

C). The Fetish manifest

When his friend (Balu) signalizes him about his behavior at his home, he comes out
with a scissor, saying that he is researching with seductive images and defines that the
painting and sculptures in the caves and temples are for pleasure, and that he was doing what
our ascendant painters and sculptors did. He justifies his fetishize with both objects and
human images, sculptures, & Kantha.

D). The misogynist manifest

His mother confronts him about his attitude towards his wife and he reasons it by
saying that she doesn’t listen to him, doesn’t understand his ways. He tells that his wife
should listen to him and even goes on to demand that she changes the way she dresses- into a
gown and the way she wears her hair. He wants to be in control of everything his wife does,
without any questioning. When his mother insists him to love his wife, he thrashes her.

5.2) TRANSFORMATION DEVICE:

Phase-I
When she goes to meet her husband at kantha’s house to accept her as a
servant, she is turned down and is instead hurt as a strumpet (in Tamil, Thevadiyaal). Not
able to put up with her husband any longer and hurt by the word ‘Thevadiyaal’, she is taking
decision to suicide by cattle-rope. While having the rope on her palm, suddenly, her
conscience appears on the screen and tells that “your abandonment is not your mistake. Why
should you take this decision for an immoral man? Move on and choose someone according
to the way you desire and remarry him. Not in secret but in public and live happy life that the
nature gifted for the world”. This makes her a courageous woman and to rethink her decision.
When Balu looked at her, having the rope on her palm and asked about the rope, she smile
6
boldly, instead of crying and says, “This is garland, I want to remarry, with who I want” and
bravely approaches him to marry her.

Phase-II

When the protagonist gets leprosy, he yearns for kantha’s comfort but only received
her embitterment. He is kept in a room as an untouchable. He begs kantha saying, “Please be
with me. Neither sex nor pleasure but as a comfort and a companion”, but he is refused.
Being a fetish with magazines, he burns with the thoughts of kantha that leads to him being
violent to her. Kantha despises him and insults him by telling not to touch her. She later locks
him up in a separate room. This makes him realize his mistakes to his wife and he feels the
pain of loneliness and need of sex. When his wife calls him back home, he hides and tell her
leave him alone and to go remarry someone who likes her.

6.FINDING AND ANALYSIS

6.1). Analysis of 5.1: A&C, B&D

The manifestation devices reveal the influences of the internal environments such as
beliefs, attitudes, value, intentions, training, purpose and interest and external environments
like social, political, cultural, traditional and religion. As the character is affected by the
internal environment, his attitude and training, he became a fetish (5.1-A&C) on both human
and images. By the influences of external environment, he became a misogynist (5.1-B&D).
With the traditional, religious and social system, he threatens with divorce in such a manner.
Yet it is the same system that makes his wife submissive. Every individual of a particular
society, while socialized by the existing system, is also made to question it. His friend raises
questions on his justifications on both the fetish and misogynism, that
“I have come here to channelize you. Your irrational thinking is a shame to an educationalist.
Which one is research, either your erratic behavior or a scientist (GD Naidu) from Kongu
Nad (The Chera dynasty) who has achieved in agriculture for social development?”
Through these devices (5.1-A&C) & (5.1-B&D): The Self-Respect movement condemned
fetishizes and misogynism through the following demands:
Demand 23. Rationalism, Self-effort, Research must be implemented in educational sectors.
Demand 24. Women must be treated their legitimate position in society as equals of men & that they
should be given good education & have the right to property.
- R.Rathinagiri, The first self-respect conference’s 34folds demands on 1929, Chengalpat.

7
6.2). Analysis of 5.2- Phase-I & Phase-II

Her conscience speaks against social system that clutches a woman’s freedom.
The contemporary folkways on woman was biased. Polygamy practices were common, but
remarriage had its contradictions. On this (Phase-I) the cattle rope indicates biased social
norms that have been killing the freedom of women. It encourages her, not to follow after her
husband’s philanderer ways, but to carve a way for herself. Oh, Oppressed one! Come to the
new light. Choose a man of your heart and marry him, not in secrecy but out in the open.
Don’t cower anymore. Come out from the clutches of male chauvinism and rise up. Let the
world know that the time has come for women to rise up. When Balu asks about the cattle
rope she replies, “It is a garland”. This courage implies the self-respect thoughts in a woman
will changes hers to lead a willing and full life. The same way, in (Phase-II) protagonist feels
his loneliness and need for companionship. His confinement is a symbolization to all the
women who have been confined to their rooms through marriage. He realizes and compare
his pain with that of his abandoned wife’s and turns into a phylogeny. When she meets him,
he advises her to remarry according to her will. As the rational thinking which insists one to
respect fellow human being, sets in, a possessive husband is un-clutched from the
contemporary system. In Phase-I & II the melodrama functions as a persuasion tool to convey
the Self-Respect thoughts to women.

Demand 09. a) The Self-Respect movement encourages inter-caste marriages, conventional

marriages as mere financial arrangements and often caused great debt through dowry, replacing
arranged marriages by love marriages that are not constrained by caste.
b) Relf-Respect marriage system, whereby marriages should conduct without being officiated by a
Brahmin priest.
c) Divorce, re-marriage must allow for woman, child marriage should demolish.
-R.Rathinagiri, The first Self-Respect conference’s 34folds demands on 1929, Chengalpat.

7. CONCLUTION

According to the manifestations of fetish and misogynism, the scenes are

constructed to condemn the external and internal influences on an individual. And the
transformation scenes are the results of Dravidian thoughts. The woman who has been
oppressed all along has come into a new light and is set on a path of courage. It seems like
the devices used in the movies are done with the Self-Respect Movement’s thoughts kept in
mind. The protagonist is a paradoxical one, a fetishist and misogynist turned into the
8
phylogeny while on the other hand the Shero, a lynch of the system, is rehabilitated into
power. In the end, the protagonist, becomes a reformer of Self-respect thought. He
encourages remarriage and becomes a forerunner of this by marrying his own wife off to his
friend as he is affected with leprosy. The leprosy here is a reference to the social hazards. He
realizes that with hazard filled in him, he is unfit to live with his wife. He becomes a rational
thinker.
Periyar propagated the Dravidian Movement/Self-Respect philosophy as
‘Principles of Rationalism’. This is seen in Mohan who changes from a chauvinist to a
reformer, in Chandra who breaks down the taboos and comes into a new world, and in Balu
who accepts circumstances with an open mind in a modern society, which should be seen in a
rationalized system.

REFERENCES
i). G. Dhananjayan. (2011). The best of Tamil cinema: 1931 to 2010 (vol.I). Rattha kanneer.
(pp.146,147). Chennai. Galatta media private limited.
ii). Ravindran Gopalan. (2011). Journal of creative communications. Singing Bodies and ‘Movement’
Images in a 1937 Tamil film-A deluzian perspective. (pp.16). New Delhi. sage publications.
iii). Aranthai narayanan.(1981). Thamizh cinemavin kathai. (pp.8-12). Chennai. New century book
house (P)Ltd.,
iv). R. Rathinagiri.(1997).Thandhai periyar- vaazhvum thondum. New Delhi. National book trust,
India.
v). Theodore Baskaran. (2012). Paambin kan. Tamil cinema orr arimugam. Tamil translation of ‘The
Eye of the Serpent: An Introduction to Tamil Cinema’. Chennai. Kizhakku Pathipagam (New Horizon
Media Pvt. Ltd.)
vi). Charles R. jansen.(1986). Studying art history. (pp.6). New Jersey, US. Prentice-hall.
vii). Ravi S. Vasudevan. (2006). Asian cinemas-a reader and guide. Dimitris Eleftheriotis-Gary
Needham. Genre criticism and popular Indian cinema. Addressing the spectator of a ‘Third world’
National Cinema: The Bombay ‘Social’ film of the 1940 and 1950s. (pp.300). Edinburg. Edinburgh
university press ltd.
viii). Mulvey, Laura. (1999) “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Film Theory and Criticism:
Introductory Readings. (833-44). Eds. Leo Braudy and Marshall Cohen. New York: Oxford UP.
ix). "Dravidians." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed... Encyclopedia.com. 4 Oct. 2018
<http://www.encyclopedia.com>.
x). http://www.thanthaiperiyar.org/political-career/self-respect-movement/