It was lunch time. At the office of the Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce, Kochi, almost all the staff members had gone out for a bite. A woman stenographer was in the office when an aged man with obvious physical problems entered the office. He was dressed shabbily and carried an old umbrella. The stenographer thought that the man was there to seek alms. In a knee-jerk reaction she shouted, “Get out you won’t get anything from here. Don’t you know that this is an office? Try your luck in the shops nearby.” The old man looked at the lady and in a soft voice replied, “I have not come here to beg but to submit an application for pension for indigent artistes.” The woman was taken aback. The man put his application on the manager’s table and left.
That man was Muthukulam Raghavan Pillai. He was once more than a superstar; he was once ‘everything’ in Malayalam cinema.
Cut to the past. Hundreds of people throng in front of Madras Café, south of Banerji Road, Ernakulam. All of them want to catch a glimpse of Muthukulam, as he was called. After a long wait, some of the lucky people in the crowd spotted him for a brief moment on the second floor of the building. There were a few cars parked in front of the hotel. They were all hired by producers waiting to take Muthukulam to various film locations.
There was a loud cheer from the crowd on spotting Muthukulam. When the ‘star’ prepared to enter one of the cars waiting there a few people rushed forward trying to touch him. Muthukulam drove off with the other cars following.
During the late 1950s and early half of the 60s Muthukulam was an indispensable factor in Malayalam cinema.
Born in 1900 as the son of Velu Pillai and Karthiyayani Amma in Muthukulam village, near Kayamkulam, Raghavan Pillai, completed his schooling and cleared a few language examinations. Instead of opting for a teaching career he moved to the arts. Muthukulam wrote more than 250 stage plays for various troupes. Most of them created a turbulent impact on the political scene in Travancore. One of his plays, Sudheeran MBBS was banned three times in the State of Travancore. Thoppil Bhasi made his stage debut in Muthukulam’s play Sthanarthi (Candidate).
Muthukulam’s experience in theatre set him to work on Balan , Malayalam’s first talkie. He wrote the script and dialogues for this landmark film. After this film Muthukulam’s stars were on the rise. He went on to write the story and script for more than 150 Malayalam films. He also acted in more than 170 films. In fact, some of his dialogues even acquired the status of popular proverbs. Muthukulam also wrote the story for the Tamil film Manithan . Muthukulam also wrote an Ottam Thullal story, Thadakaa Parinayam , an Attakatha or dramaturgy Tharakasura Vadham and hymns including the popular Sree Bhoothanatha Vijayam .
Muthukulam remained a bachelor throughout his life. He once said that he was so busy that he forgot all about marriage.
Later he tried his hand in producing a film, Oru Jathi, Oru Matham . This attempt was responsible for his downfall. Muthukulam who never demanded his rightful fee for his stories, scripts or for his roles, put all his savings into this project. This film could not be completed and Muthukulam lost all his wealth. After all the glamour of the celluloid, Muthukulam’s last years were mired in poverty. He stayed in a rundown lodge in Madras. Muthukulam breathed his last in 1979. His death went unnoticed and the news buried in the inside pages of the newspapers.
(Saju Chelangad is a film columnist)
