| Gundamma Katha | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Kamalakara Kameswara Rao |
| Story by | Chakrapani |
| Dialogue by | |
| Based on | The Taming of the Shrew byWilliam Shakespeare Mane Thumbida Hennu (1958) byB. Vittalacharya |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Marcus Bartley |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Ghantasala |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 166 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
Gundamma Katha (transl. Gundamma's story) is a 1962 IndianTelugu-languagecomedy drama film directed byKamalakara Kameswara Rao and co-produced byNagi Reddi andChakrapani under their bannerVijaya Productions. It starsN. T. Rama Rao,Akkineni Nageswara Rao,Savitri, andJamuna, withS. V. Ranga Rao,Suryakantham, andRamana Reddy in supporting roles.
Partially inspired byWilliam Shakespeare'scomedyThe Taming of the Shrew,Gundamma Katha is an official remake of theKannada filmMane Thumbida Hennu (1958). It is also the first remake by Vijaya Productions.Gundamma Katha is the story of Gundamma, a rich widow who ill-treats her selfless step-daughter Lakshmi, who is reduced to working as a maid. Lakshmi dotes on Gundamma's daughter Saroja, an arrogant woman who loves Lakshmi. The film's centrepiece is formed by the way Lakshmi's suitor Anjaneya "Anji" Prasad and Saroja's lover Raja bring a change to Gundamma's life after the couples' marriages.
The film is Rama Rao's 100th appearance and Nageswara Rao's 99th. It was photographed byMarcus Bartley, and co-edited by G. Kalyana Sundaram and D. G. Jayaram.Ghantasala composed the film's soundtrack and score. Madhavapeddi Gokhale and Kaladhar were the film's art directors. The production phase lasted for a year; it was filmed in and aroundMadras, mainly on sets at Vijaya Vauhini Studios.
Released on 7 June 1962,Gundamma Katha received praise for its story, screenplay and cast performances, and criticism for its poor character development. The film was commercially successful, completing a 100-day run in 17 centres and a silver-jubilee run at the Durga Kalamandir,Vijayawada. It is regarded as the last film of Vijaya Productions' "Golden Age". The film was simultaneously shot inTamil asManithan Maravillai, also produced by Vijaya Productions, had Nageswara Rao, Savitri, and Jamuna reprising their roles. ThoughGundamma Katha has achieved cult status in Telugu cinema, it has received criticism for its influence on stereotypes in the narration of other unrelated Telugu films.
Gundamma is a rich widow who ill-treats her stepdaughter Lakshmi, a selfless person who is reduced to working as a maid. Gundamma has a daughter Saroja and a son Prabhakar. Gundamma has a half-brother Ghantayya, a cunning but weak milk vendor. Ghantayya wants Gundamma to marry off Saroja to his criminal son Bhoopati, who is in prison. To achieve this goal without the knowledge of Gundamma, he spoils every marriage proposal Saroja receives. Saroja's arrogance and Lakshmi's courteous attitude indirectly help Ghantayya. Gundamma decides to marry off Lakshmi to a vagabond and Saroja to the son of Ramabhadrayya, a wealthy man living in a faraway town, Veerapuram.
Ramabhadrayya knows about Saroja (Gundamma's daughter) through a marriage broker and goes to Gundamma's home after finding that her late husband was a friend of his, who had aided him in convincing his in-laws to let him marry their daughter. After observing the situations in Gundamma's house with the help of Ghantayya, Ramabhadrayya sends his elder son Anjaneya "Anji" Prasad to Gundamma's house as a servant to get him married to Lakshmi, who he finds innocent and docile. He sends his younger son, Raja, to marry Saroja. Raja then meets Saroja through his cousin Padma, Saroja’s friend and Prabhakar’s classmate and lover. Anji and Lakshmi get married, and Raja and Saroja fall in love. Ramabhadrayya writes a letter to Gundamma opposing the marriage of Raja and Saroja upon the former's instructions, and Anji conducts their marriage against Ghantayya's wishes. Shortly afterward, Prabhakar and Padma's marriage is conducted.
Raja acts like a drunkard and masquerades as Ramabhadrayya's son seeking to gain Saroja's wealth. A rift develops between Anji and Gundamma, and he leaves with Lakshmi. Anji, Raja, and Ramabhadrayya reveal the truth to Lakshmi later. Raja storms out of Gundamma's house and Saroja follows him; they join Ramabhadrayya's house as gardeners and Raja ensures Saroja is unaware of their employer. In the process, Saroja's character transforms from one of arrogance to one of a hardworking, courteous person.
Gundamma is tortured by Padma's ruthless, confidence-trickster aunt Durga. Bhoopati is released from prison and Ghantayya asks Gundamma to give him some money. Because of Gundamma's arrogance, Prabhakar and Padma leave forBangalore. Durga steals the money in the locker, accuses Gundamma of robbery, and locks her in a room behind the house. Lakshmi and Anji visit Gundamma and become aware of her condition. Lakshmi and Gundamma coerce Durga and retrieve the money she stole. Bhoopati comes to Durga's rescue but is defeated by Anji in a duel and is hospitalised.
Saroja meets Ramabhadrayya, her employer, and walks out after a heated argument. She meets Lakshmi on the way and learns about Raja's plans and that Ramabhadrayya is her father-in-law. The film ends with Gundamma staying with her daughters in Ramabhadrayya's house.
Nagi Reddi ofVijaya Productions helpedB. Vittalacharya in the production ofMane Thumbida Hennu (1958), the latter's directorial debut inKannada cinema. As an act of gratitude, Vittalacharya sold the remake rights to Nagi Reddi.[1]Mane Thumbida Hennu revolves around the life of a rich woman whose brother marries off her daughter to a criminal when she chooses a mentally challenged person as her step-daughter's life partner.[1] Nagi Reddi chose to remake the film in Telugu and discussed it withD. V. Narasa Raju; it was the first time Vijaya Productions decided to remake a film.[2] After the script was ready, Nagi Reddi approachedC. Pullayya to direct the remake after consideringB. N. Reddy. Pullayya was not appreciative of Narasa Raju's treatment of the script and Nagi Reddy met his partnerChakrapani to develop the script further.[2]
Chakrapani decided to retain only the background of Gundamma's family from the original and rewrote the remaining script, taking inspiration fromWilliam Shakespeare'scomedy,The Taming of the Shrew.[2] Chakrapani killed the character of Gundamma's cowardly husband because he felt that a husband who cannot answer his wife's questions was not eligible for inclusion.Kamalakara Kameswara Rao was chosen to direct the film.[2] Chakrapani named the central character Gundamma in the remake after one of the characters in the original, despite a lack of nativity.[2] Nagi Reddi's family members and the employees of the Vijaya Vauhini Studios used to ask him "Gundamma Katha Entha varaku vachchindi?" (What is the progress in Gundamma's story?), which prompted Nagi Reddi to title the filmGundamma Katha after considering various options.[2]Marcus Bartley was recruited as thedirector of photography; G. Kalyana Sundaram and D. G. Jayaram edited the film.Ghantasala composed the soundtrack and score. Madhavapeddi Gokhale and Kaladhar were the film's art directors. M. Pithambaram and T. P. Bhaktavatsalam provided the make-up.[3]
Suryakantham was chosen to play Gundamma and Chakrapani suggested Kameswara Rao not to make any special efforts to make her character look ruthless because Suryakantham had an aggressive body language.[4]N. T. Rama Rao andAkkineni Nageswara Rao were chosen as the male leads Anjaneya "Anji" Prasad and Raja, makingGundamma Katha their 10th film together;[5] the film was Rama Rao's 100th film as an actor and Nageswara Rao's 99th.[6]Savitri andJamuna were chosen as the female leads Lakshmi and Saroja, respectively.[5][7] Saroja was created by Chakrapani for the film, taking cues fromThe Taming of the Shrew.[5]S. V. Ranga Rao,Ramana Reddy andRajanala Kaleswara Rao were cast in the supporting roles of Ramabhadrayya, Ghantayya and Bhoopati.Haranath andL. Vijayalakshmi were chosen to play Gundamma's son Prabhakar and daughter-in-law Padma, whileChhaya Devi appeared as Padma's aunt Durgamma.[5][7]
I can understand [Nartanasala] or [Mahamantri Timmarusu] having classical dances, because one was a mythological and the other a historical. But Telugu producers insisted that if I acted in a film, there had to be a dance. InGundamma Katha, for example, a dance was included in the last minute at the producer’s insistence.
The production phase ofGundamma Katha lasted nearly a year, with one of the reasons being that both Rama Rao and Nageswara Rao had delays in giving bulk dates for the project.[2][5] A house set was erected in Vijaya Vauhini Studios, Madras (nowChennai) where scenes featuring Gundamma and other key characters were filmed.[2] C. Kuppuswami Naidu and K. Srinivasan supervised the erection of sets.[3]
The film's shooting was severely affected by scheduling conflicts; Chakrapani would make telephone calls to all the key artistes, and sequences were filmed based on their availability. The filming of the song "Kolo Koloyanna" was significantly affected by this; all four lead actors were supposed to take part in the song's shoot; the film's editor took care to ensure a smooth flow in the sequences during thepost-production phase.[2] The scene before the song that features Anji and Raja communicating with whistles was conceptualised by Narasaraju.[9] Harbans Singh supervised the film's special effects.[3]
Since Vijayalakshmi was a trained dancer, an elaborate dance sequence with no connection to the film's story was introduced as a stage performance and Nageswara Rao, Jamuna, and Haranath were made to sit along with the audience.[4] The song "Prema Yatralaku" was filmed in the gardens near the Vijaya Vauhini Studios after abandoning plans to film it in eitherOoty orBrindavan Gardens,Srirangapatna.[9] During the film's shoot, akickboxing tournament was held in Madras; this inspired Chakrapani and Kameswara Rao to add a fight sequence between Rama Rao and Kaleswara Rao.[9] Pasumarthi Krishnamurthy conducted the choreography for the song sequences.[3] The film was processed at Vijaya Laboratory and was recorded onWestern Electric equipment.[3] Its total length was approximately 14,999 feet (4,572 m) in 18 reels,[3] with a running time of 166 minutes.[10]
Gundamma Katha is based partially on William Shakespeare's playThe Taming of the Shrew. It focuses on a widow named Gundamma and her two daughters.[2] The film's main theme is the step-daughter Lakshmi facing problems because of the widow, and the former's suitor teaching the latter a lesson.[4] Using the first conversation between Gundamma and Lakshmi, in which the former abuses the latter for disturbing her sleep, Narasaraju introduces Gundamma's mindset and behaviour. Further incidents include the dismissal of a server fired from a hotel after refusing to work as a servant in Gundamma's house, and Ghantayya explaining Gundamma's character to Ramabhadrayya.[9]
According toFilmfare's V. V. S. R. Hanumantha Rao, true friendship is the theme of the film.[12] Most of the film's dialogue, especially that between Ramana Reddy andAllu Ramalingaiah, are satirical and provide references to Indian society during the 1960s.[9] The song "Lechindi Nidra" is about the empowerment of women and their role in areas of the government.[9] In her article "Manifestation of devotion" about the importance of theKrishna Janmashtami festival, Rajeswari Kalyanam ofThe Hans India said the lyrics and photography of the song "Aligina Velane Choodali" recall the romantic side ofKrishna that every woman sees in her husband or the person she loves. It also recalls the bond Krishna shared with his foster motherYashoda.[11]
| Gundamma Katha | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Length | 22:09 |
| Language | Telugu |
| Label | His Master's Voice |
The official soundtrack ofGundamma Katha was composed by Ghantasala; it consists of eight songs whose lyrics were written byPingali. The sound mixing process was supervised by A. Krishnan and V. Sivaram, and the soundtrack was processed by N. C. Sen Gupta.[3] Ghantasala provided vocals for Rama Rao and Nageswara Rao;P. Susheela andP. Leela provided the vocals for Savitri and Jamuna.[3] The songs "Entha Hayi" and "Mounamuga Nee" were composed in theragaMohanam.[13] The song "Aligina Velane" is based onDesh raga.[14]
The soundtrack was marketed byHis Master's Voice; it was successful and all eight songs were well received.[9] "Lechindi Nidra", "Kolu Koloyanna", "Aligina Velane Choodali", and "Prema Yatralaku" achieved cult status in Telugu cinema, particularly for their lyrics.[9] M. L. Narasimham ofThe Hindu noted that all songs from the film "are being enjoyed even today by music lovers."[5]
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Lechindi Nidra" | Ghantasala | 02:26 |
| 2. | "Sannaga Veeche" | P. Susheela | 03:13 |
| 3. | "Aligina Velane Choodali" | P. Susheela | 02:58 |
| 4. | "Entha Hayi" | Ghantasala, P. Susheela | 02:43 |
| 5. | "Prema Yatralaku" | Ghantasala, P. Susheela | 02:49 |
| 6. | "Manishi Maraledu" | Ghantasala,P. Leela | 03:03 |
| 7. | "Kolo Koloyanna" | Ghantasala, P. Susheela | 02:29 |
| 8. | "Mounamuga Nee" | Ghantasala | 02:28 |
| Total length: | 22:09 | ||
Gundamma Katha was released on 7 June 1962.[1] In the opening credits, images of the film's cast were used instead of their names; the leads and Ranga Rao's images are screened first, and are followed by those of Suryakantham and the other supporting cast.[9]
Gundamma Katha was a profitable venture for Vijaya Productions; it completed a 100-day run in 17 theatres acrossAndhra Pradesh,[16] and completed a silver-jubilee run at the Durga Kalamandir,Vijayawada.[5][17] It became the first film to be run for 100 days with three screenings per day inHyderabad.[16][6] The silver-jubilee celebrations were not held, and the planned budget for the event was donated to a fundraiser who was active during theSino-Indian War.[9]
Upon release, many critics praisedGundamma Katha for its story, screenplay and performances of the lead cast, while some criticised its poor character development. Krishnanand, writing forAndhra Patrika on 15 June 1962, praised Suryakantham's role in particular and said, "Justifying the film's title, the makers have placed utmost importance on Gundamma's character, and Suryakantham who breathe life into that character, has equally mesmerized the audience with her performance."[18] On the same day, an article fromZamin Ryot opined that the film was filled of humour, "The screenplay, each and every scene, and every character in the story is purposefully made for humour; Humour in anger, humour in brawl – humour everywhere!" it stated.[19] Earlier on 8 June, a critic fromAndhra Jyothi praising the film, wrote, "This isn't Gundamma's story, rather the story we see everyday – Our story."[20]
In an essay by V. Chakravarty writing forEenadu in 2012, it was expressed that the characters played by Jamuna and Suryakantham were poorly written and under-developed. Chakravarty also found the characters played by Haranath and Vijayalakshmi out of place. Similar views were expressed after a special screening atL. V. Prasad's residence but Chakrapani was confident of the film's success when he saw children clapping in response to Rama Rao's performance in comical sequences.[4] Narasimham wrote in his review of the film forThe Hindu in 2016, "With more emphasis on banter in the story, the actors, without straining a nerve, sailed smoothly through their characters."[5]
Gundamma Katha was remade inTamil asManithan Maravillai (1962) by Vijaya Productions. Chakrapani directed the remake andGemini Ganesan replaced Rama Rao,[4] while Nageswara Rao, Savitri and Jamuna reprised their roles.[21]Manithan Maravillai was Nageswara Rao's 100th film as an actor;Gundamma Katha became a notable film for both Rama Rao and Nageswara Rao as they completed 100 films as actors with two versions of the same film.[6] Unlike the original film,Manithan Maravillai was a commercial failure.[10][22] Vijaya had also planned to remakeGundamma Katha inHindi, but this plan never came to fruition.[23] However it was remade in Hindi asSwayamvar in 1980.[24]
Rama Rao's sonNandamuri Balakrishna and Nageswara Rao's sonNagarjuna, who established themselves as actors in Telugu cinema, planned to remakeGundamma Katha but withdrew after failing to find a suitable replacement for Suryakantham.[9] In 2012,D. Ramanaidu planned to produce the remake of the film with Rama Rao's grandsonN. T. Rama Rao Jr. and Nagarjuna's sonNaga Chaitanya playing the leading male characters but the plans were cancelled.[25][26] In April 2016,Mohan Babu expressed interest in remaking the film with his sonVishnu Manchu andRaj Tarun . He added thatG. Nageswara Reddy would direct the remake which he would announce after acquiring the rights.[27]
AfterGundamma Katha's release, Chakrapani wrote a story named "Gundamma Gari Kootulla Katha" (The Story of Gundamma's Daughters). It was serialised inBharathi magazine. Its plot involves Ghantayya creating a rift between Lakshmi and Saroja. Readers expected Chakrapani to produce a sequel toGundamma Katha but he showed no interest. In 1982, Rama Rao andKrishna acted in a film,Vayyari Bhamalu Vagalamari Bhartalu, whose story resembled "Gundamma Gari Kootulla Katha".[9]
In November 2007, a Hyderabad-based company named Goldstone Technologies acquired the film negative rights to 14 Telugu films produced by Vijaya Vauhini Studios, includingMayabazar (1957) andGundamma Katha, to release colourised, digitally remastered versions.[28] The remastered and colourised version ofMayabazar, released in January 2010, was commercially successful but Goldstone Technologies decided not to remaster the remaining 13 films, includingGundamma Katha, saying most of the producers who sold the rights to the negatives to television channels lost control over them. Goldstone further explained that a number of legal issues over ownership and copyright issues arise whenever producers try to do something on their own.[29]
Gundamma Katha is regarded as the last film of Vijaya Productions' "Golden Age".[10][22] In commemoration of the Centenary of Indian Cinema,The Hindu listedGundamma Katha,Pathala Bhairavi (1951),Missamma (1955),Mayabazar,Maduve Madi Nodu (1965),Ram Aur Shyam (1967),Julie (1975), andShriman Shrimati (1982) as the iconic films produced by Nagi Reddi.[30]Gundamma Katha is a notable film in the careers of Suryakantham and Ramana Reddy;[5][31][32] Nagi Reddi said the latter played a key role in the film's success.[33] Various words and phrases, such as "dush propaganda" and "alludirikam" (Mother-in-law staying at son-in-law's house), later became part of Telugu vernacular.[5]
In an interview withThe Hindu in December 2005, Telugu actorMallikarjuna Rao cited the film andMayabazar as examples of incidental comedy, arguing that the situation and the subject should go "hand in hand".[34] In May 2012, Radhika Rajamani ofRediff.com mentionedGundamma Katha for the letter G in her list, "The A to Z of Telugu Cinema", calling it an "unforgettable film".[35] In November 2012,The Times of India listedGundamma Katha alongside unrelated filmsMissamma,Mayabazar,Narthanasala, andBommarillu (2006) in its list of "Telugu classics to watch along with family this Deepavali". The commentator forThe Times stated thatGundamma Katha "touches many layers of human [emotions] and situations" and features "top class actors, a strong script, melodious and meaningful songs".[a][37]Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu (2013), which was rumoured to be a remake ofGundamma Katha,[38] adapted the style of its opening credits—use of images rather than text to credit its principal cast.[9][39] In their 2013 bookRoutledge Handbook of Indian Cinemas, K. Moti Gokulsing and Wimal Dissanayake wrote thatGundamma Katha, along withAppu Chesi Pappu Koodu (1959),Missamma andRamudu Bheemudu (1964), "represented the scope comedy had in the 1950s and 60s."[40]
The story and treatment ofGundamma Katha inspired many other Telugu films, resulting in stereotypes in narration. The filmmakerK. V. Reddy stated thatGundamma Katha had good dialogue and production design but lacked a proper story to narrate.[4] In her review of screenwriterTrivikram Srinivas' filmAttarintiki Daredi (2013), Sangeetha Devi Dundoo ofThe Hindu expressed hope that Srinivas "will give us something more innovative than relying on a story that’s been rehashed since the time ofGundamma Katha".[41] In August 2015, the filmmakerTeja admitted that the Telugu film industry is stuck with two types of narratives and concepts—hero-centric films and those similar toGundamma Katha.[42] During the promotion ofSoukhyam (2015), its director A. S. Ravikumar Chowdary said comedy is a dominant element in Telugu films, citingGundamma Katha andAha Naa-Pellanta! (1987) as examples.[43]
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