Thirteen years may have passed since Chevalier Sivaji Ganesan breathed his last, but the birthday celebrations of the actor at Music Academy showed that his popularity amongst his fans hasn’t diminished at all.
On Wednesday, on the occasion of his 86 birth anniversary, the actor’s family paid tribute to four distinguished artistes — Bharathanatyam dancer Padma Subrahmanyam, actor V.S. Raghavan, singer K. Jamuna Rani and actor C. R. Parthiban.
All four have been associated with the actor in the past.
It was an evening filled with nostalgia and awe as film clips from the actor’s popular films were played to a hall-full hall of fans for whom the actor is still alive. Some of them couldn’t stay in their seats during the screening of the iconic scene from Veerapandia Kattabomman in which Jackson Durai demands tax from Veerpandia Kattabomman, a role played by Sivaji.
Later, a frail-looking C.R. Parthiban, who played the role of Jackson Durai, received the award to generous applause.
Speaking at the event, Union minister Pon Radhakrishnan said that Sivaji Ganesan, despite his artistic achievements, hadn’t been given his due, and urged the Tamil film industry to honour him adequately.
He added, “His characters have so become a part of our daily life that if we see a man who is very kind, we taunt him by saying, ‘you think you are Pasamalar Sivaji?’ He was an extraordinary actor on screen. Unfortunately, he couldn’t act as a politician in real life.”
