Namma Veettu Lakshmi (1966)
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Achievements
BR Panthulu is considered one of Indian cinema’s leading personalities. He was an actor, director and producer, and has even been involved in theatre. He made many movies in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu and made his mark as a stage actor, along with another star of South Indian cinema, MV Rajamma. Their play in Kannada, Samsara Nowka , was staged successfully all over India, including Madras.
With newscaster and film journalist, Chitra N Krishnaswami, as his associate producer, he launched his own production house called Padmini Films, and produced Namma Veettu Lakshmi among others.
Namma Veettu Lakshmi is a family drama about an ordinary man (BR Panthulu), who makes his way up the ladder of life due to sheer hard work. His wife and children, however, do not share the same work ethic and are exactly the opposite. His wife Saradamma (Rajamma) is carried away by a pompous lifestyle. Their son (AVM Rajan), a graduate, feels he is much smarter than his father and disobeys him. He spends lavishly and indulges in all the pleasures of life. His younger son Raju (Nagesh) doesn’t care about the world around him, and his sole interest lies in acting.
One day, Panthulu tells his family that he has lost all his money and they are shocked to hear this. He then leaves his home and the city, and lives in a village, where he and his wife run a small business to sustain themselves. The sons and daughter now realise the value of their father’s teachings. Finally, the father reveals that their wealth is safe and that he played this game only to teach them the values of life.
Namma Veettu Lakshmi was written by Ma Ra, who was a writer and also a director. The movie did well, thanks to the performances of Panthulu, Rajamma, AVM Rajan, Muthuraman, Vanisree and others. Music was composed by MS Viswanathan, and it contributed to the success. Lyrics were penned by Kavignar Kannadasan and TM Soundararajan, Sirgazhi Govindarajan, KJ Yesudas, P Susheela, S Janaki, LR Easwari lent their voices for the songs.
The film was photographed by V Ramamurthy, and TS Rangaswami was in charge of audiography. Dances were choreographed by Thangappan, Sundaram and Krishnakumar. The film was edited by R Devarajan.
Remembered for: Excellent performance by Panthulu, Rajamma, AVM Rajan, Muthuraman, Nagesh and Vanisree. MS Viswanathan’s music and Ramamurthy’s cinematography.
