Thedi Vandha Selvam was produced and directed by Pa. Neelakantan, under his own banner, Arasu Pictures.
The film is a typical Tamil family melodrama. A poor man (D. Balasubramaniam) hands over his motherless child to a friend (T.S. Balaiah), a landlord in a village, and goes away to Singapore. He returns to India after many years as a rich man, looking for his son. But he cannot trace his friend or his son.
Soon after, you are shown a farmer’s wife begetting a son (T. K. Ramachandran), who grows up to be a lecherous loafer, not averse to taking money from his father under the pretext of studying in a Chennai college. He is also after a young woman (Rajasulochana), who resists his advances. Using a fake letter, he makes her come to Chennai. Overwhelmed by the city, she realises that she has been misled, but a wealthy man (Balasubramaniam) gives her refuge in his bungalow, where she falls in love with a young man (SSR). SSR, however, doesn’t realise that the owner of the bungalow is actually his father, who is looking for him. After many complications, the truth emerges, and the rich man gets the couple married. Meanwhile, the landlord’s nefarious son meets a rich man (V. K. Ramasami), and bluffs his way into marrying his attractive daughter (Saroja Devi). Soon, SSR exposes his evil intentions, and in the all-too-familiar twist, the villain falls at the feet of the hero, seeking his pardon.
SSR excels in his role and , while T. K. Ramachandran, an import from Tamil theatre, also performs admirably.
T. P. Muthulakshmi is the comic relief, and plays a tea-shop vendor who is forced to don a male garb to keep off lecherous men. Providing able support to her is comedian A. Karunanidhi.
The film’s fight sequences were choreographed by Rajendran and Ramachandran, with music being handled by T. G. Lingappa. Incidentally, the music was a big plus, with some songs— ‘Panguni Poi Chithirai Vandha’ and ‘Pakkathile Nippen’—becoming hits. The film performed reasonably well at the box office, mainly on account of the good music and performances by Rajendran, Ramachandran, Ramasami and Balaiah.
Remembered for: The music, excellent acting by SSR, and good performances by Ramachandran, Ramasami and Balaiah.
Published - August 27, 2016 03:50 pm IST
