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J.C. Daniel | |
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| Born | Joseph Chellaiya Daniel (1900-02-26)26 February 1900 |
| Died | 27 April 1975(1975-04-27) (aged 74) |
| Education | Maharaja's College,Trivandrum |
| Occupation(s) | Filmmaker, dentist |
| Years active | 1926– |
| Spouse | Janet Raechel |
| Children | Sundaram Daniel, Gnana Sulochana, Subamathy Vijaya, Janet Lalitha, Harris Daniel |
| Parent(s) | Dr N.J.Daniel, Gnanammal |
Joseph Chellaiya Daniel (26 February 1900 – 27 April 1975) was an Indian filmmaker, widely recognised as the "father ofMalayalam cinema". He was the first filmmaker fromKerala. He produced, directed, wrote, photographed, edited and starred inVigathakumaran (The Lost Child, 1928 or 1930), the first Malayalam feature film, made in Kerala.[a] He also established the firstfilm studio in Kerala,Travancore National Pictures. In 1992, theGovernment of Kerala instituted theJ. C. Daniel Award, the highest honour in Malayalam cinema, as part of theKerala State Film Awards, in recognition of his contributions to the industry.
Joseph Chellaiya Daniel[1][2] was born inNeyyattinkara,[1]Travancore (nowKerala) on 26 February 1900,[3] into a wealthy Tamil ChristianNadar family that owned substantial property.[2] His father, N. Joseph Daniel (died 1915), was a doctor, who worked as chief medical officer at the government hospital. Daniel was the seventh of 11 children born to his mother Gnanammal Daniel, but two siblings died. Gnanammal was an only child and inherited a fortune from her parents. In 1905 the family moved to a little village called Puthuveedu.[3][b]
Daniel attended Scott Christian School inNagercoil from the age of 10.[3] He finished his formal education fromMaharaja's College inTrivandrum.[3] He practised the Indian martial artKalarippayattu as a child, continuing his training at college.[1]
He published an English book titledIndian Art of Fencing and Sword Play in 1915, when he was 15 years old.[2]
Daniel was well aware of the scope of cinema as a public medium. He wished to populariseKalarippayattu by harnessing the popular influence of cinema. At that time, ordinary people in Kerala were not even aware of the medium of cinema, so the idea was quite a challenge. He took up the challenge and left forMadras (now Chennai) to learn techniques of film-making and to acquire necessary equipment for the purpose.[4]Madras was the budding centre of film production inSouth India and had the only permanenttalkies cinema in South India, named Gaiety, established in 1917.[citation needed] However, he was unable to realise his plans in Madras and was even denied entry to various studios in the city.[citation needed] He then travelled toBombay (now Mumbai), the centre ofHindi cinema production. He was able to obtain entry into film studios in the city, claiming that he was a teacher from Kerala and wanted to teach his students about cinema. He gathered enough knowledge and equipment for film production fromBombay before returning to Kerala.[4]
In 1926, Daniel established the first film studio in Kerala, called Travancore National Pictures. It was near the present Public Service Commission office, Pattom, Trivandrum.[5][1] He obtained funds for this purpose by selling a piece of land in his name for an amount of Rs.400,000.[5] With everything set, Daniel finally started the production work of the film of his dreams. He wrote the script and titled itVigathakumaran. The film did not have sound or dialogue. He directed and wielded the camera for the film and also played the role of the protagonist in the film.P. K. Rosie acted as the heroine. He also did most of the post-production work includingediting. The theme of the film was of social significance and was one of the earliest films of the genre.[citation needed]
Vigathakumaran was exhibited in Trivandrum at theCapitol Theatre on 7 November 1928[4] or 23 October 1930.[a] Despite being the very first film made in Kerala and having a socially-significant message, it faced the wrath of certain orthodox sections in the society due to the presence of a woman in the film. Rosie, who played the role of the female protagonist, was disbarred from entering the theatre, as upper-caste Hindus, outraged that a converted dalit played the role of a Nair woman in the film, created a ruckus.[4] During the screening, stones were pelted on the screen, damaging it.[17] The film did moderate business at the box office but the collections were way below the production cost.[citation needed]
The movie was also screened inAlleppey at the Star Theatre. Since it was a silent movie, there was an announcer at the theatre who would explain the story and the situation. Alleppey being one of the most important port towns in Kerala during that time, the audience were more liberal. They received the movie with excitement. There was a minor glitch once, when the screen faded and the audience booed. After the announcer explained that some minor problems might occur since this was the firstMalayalam movie ever made and screened, the audience welcomed his statement with applause.[citation needed]
Vigathakumaran was also screened atQuilon,Trichur,Tellichery, andNagercoil.[18]
Daniel became indebted as the movie was not a commercial success. To pay his debtors, he had to sell his equipment and close down the studio.[4]
At the age of 19 he met and fell in love with Janet Raechel, then aged just 13, and after waiting for five years and consent of the two families, they married in 1924 at the M. M. Church in Trivandrum.[3]
They had several children, including a son, Sundaram, and daughter Sulochana, both of whom appeared inVigathakumaran.[1] A younger son, Harris,[3][19] or Haris.[20] Harris was responsible for burning the last print of the film when six years old, an act of revenge against his older brother Sundaram, who he said had bullied him.[3][19]
Daniel spent the rest of his life as a dentist atPalayamkottai, Tamil Nadu.[citation needed] He spent his last years in his ancestral Palace Like home called PUDU VEEDU (NEW HOUSE0, atAgastheeswaram.[citation needed] Although he applied for pension under the scheme for ailing artists, theGovernment of Kerala rejected it since he was from Tamil Nadu.[2] In his books and articles, noted film journalistChelangatt Gopalakrishnan established thatVigathakumaran was the first Malayalam film and that Daniel was its architect as director, producer, cinematographer and leading man. He described the story ofVigathakumaran in articles published since 1960, but Kerala Government initially rejected his crusade, saying that Daniel was not a Malayalee. The Government version was that if Daniel wanted a pension or financial assistance, he has to approach the Tamil Nadu Government. However, Gopalakrishnan's campaign was finally successful and Daniel obtained government recognition as a Keralite, being honoured as the "Father of Malayalam Cinema".[citation needed] He is widely known by this moniker.[21]
Daniel died on 27 April 1975, and was survived by his wife, Janet.[3] He is buried in a tomb erected by his children in Agasteeswaram.
The Department of Cultural Affairs,Government of Kerala instituted theJ. C. Daniel Award in honour of him in 1992.[5][22] The award, a part of theKerala State Film Awards is to honour lifetime achievements in outstanding contributions toMalayalam cinema.[citation needed] From 1998, theKerala State Chalachitra Academy, an autonomous body under the Department of Cultural Affairs,Government of Kerala hosts the award.[citation needed]
The J. C. Foundation Awards are instituted by the J.C. Foundation, which was founded in memory of J.C. Daniel by his family and friends. The awards are given annually for achievements in Malayalam film-making and literature. There are a variety of categories for film, while the literature award is given for the best Malayalam novel.[23]
The Lost Life is a 21-minute documentary about Daniel's life made by R. Gopalakrishnan[24] (aka Gopalakrishnan Raghavan Nair[25]), released in 2006. Gopalakrishnan, astills photographer for films, was as of 2013 the general secretary of the Film Photographers' Union ofFilm Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA).[20]The Lost Life won aSpecial Mention in the Kerala State Film Awards in 2006.[16]
In 2013,Kamal wrote and directed abiopic on Daniel titledCelluloid. The film details the struggles of Daniel to produce and exhibitVigathakumaran, while plunging into financial crisis. The movie generated criticism over its subtle reference to anIAS Officer and the thenChief Minister, which purportedly points to the bureaucrat and writerMalayattoor Ramakrishnan andK. Karunakaran, who worked together to deny J. C. Daniel credit for his contribution to Malayalam cinema as he was a Christian,[26][better source needed] Author and civil servantN. S. Madhavan, as well asD. Babu Paul, former Chief Secretary of Kerala, have pointed out factual inaccuracies in the film's depiction of Malayattoor and Karunakaran. The film, based partially on the novelNashta Naayika byVinu Abraham and theLife of J. C. Daniel, a biography by film journalistChelangatt Gopalakrishnan, also deals with the life ofPK Rosy, the lead actress inVigathakumaran.Prithviraj plays the role of Daniel, whileMamta Mohandas plays his wife Janet, and newcomer Chandni plays Rosie. The film won sevenKerala State Film Awards in different categories, includingBest Film.[27][28]
In October 2020 R. Gopalakrishnan published a book calledBroken Dreams, which tells the story of Daniel, his wife Janet, producerR. Sunder Raj, his wife Devaki Bai, and Rama Reddy, who owned the Capitol Cinema Hall, whereVigathakumaran was filmed. Gopalakrishnan believes that the film was not released in 1928, but must have been released at the later date. DirectorSreekumaran Thampi wrote the prologue for the book.[16]
Published in the July 2013 issue of theForward Press magazine.
Vigathakumaran (1928); Hailed as the first Malayalam film, released in November 1928 in Trivandrum. Its lack of success ruined the director and no literature about, or footage from, the film appear to have survived.
The first Malayalam film (silent), Vigathakumaran by J.C. Daniel, was made in 1928
In 1928, J. C. Daniel, the director of the first Malayalam film, spent almost six months searching extensively before finding a female lead for Vigathakumaran (The Lost Boy).
From the very beginning of the twentieth century Kerala, or the erstwhile kingdoms of Travancore, Cochin and Malabar, had a thriving film culture. Touring film companies brought the flavors of Tamil, Marathi and Hindi cultures to Malayalee populations. Only two films were produced during the silent era of Malayalam cinema-Vigathakumaran (The Lost Child) in 1928 and Marthandavarma in 1931.
The origin of Malayalam cinema dates back to the late 1920s, the fag end of the Silent era. The first Malayalam film Vigathakumaran (Silent) was made in 1928 by J. C. Daniel.
CINEMA (Malayalam); The first movie in Malayalam came out in 1928. J.C. Daniel's Vigathakumaran was a silent film. Efforts to make a sound film (Talkies) started and as a result the film Balan came out in 1938.
Gender issues in the Malayalam film industry have a long-standing history, starting from the controversial casting of the Dalit woman P. K. Rosy in the first Malayalam film Vigathakumaran (1928).
In 1928, the first Malayalam silent movie Vigathakumaran was produced.
...his contribution to Malayalam film-making was recognized in 1992 when Kerala's Department of Cultural Affairs instigated the JC Daniel Award.
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