NTR's Panduranga Mahathyam(1957)

N.A.T. Private Limited
Panduranga Mahatmyam (1957)

Technical:
Reels: 18
Black and White
Duration: 2 hours 55 minutes
Release Date: November 27, 1957

Cast:
N.T. Rama Rao ... Pundareeka
Anjali Devi ... Rama (Pundareeka's wife)
V. Nagayya ... Pundareeka's father
Rshyendramani ... Lakshmi (Pundareeka's mother)
K.V.S. Sarma ... Kukkuta muni, Vrutthasura
B. Saroja Devi ... Kalavathi
Ammaji ... Champa
'Shavukaru' Janaki ... Rama's sister
Padmanabham ... Sreehari
Kasturi Sivarao... Rangadasu
Balakrishna ... Ramadasu
A.V. Subbarao ... Indra
Lord Krishna ... Nirmala (baby Vijayanirmala)
Kuchalakumari, Tangappa ... Dancers
Other cast: Peketi Sivaram, Vangara Ventaka Subbayya, Koneswara Sastry, Ramachandra Rao, Lakshmayya Chowdary, Boddapati, Chayadevi, Nimmi, Reeta
Dialogues, Lyrics: Samudrala Ramanujacharya
Camera: M.A. Rehman
Choreography: Vempati Satyam
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao, V. Nagayya, Madhavapeddi Satyam, P. Susheela , P. Leela, P.G. Krishnaveni (Jikki), A.P. Komala, Pithapuram Nageswara Rao, M.S. Rama Rao
Music: T.V. Raju
Assistant Music Director: Joseph
Editing: J.D. Joshi
Art: Thota Venkateswara Rao
Production Executive: Atluri Pundareekakshayya
Producer: N. Trivikrama Rao
Director: Kamalakara Kameswara Rao

Songs:
Om namaSSivaaya ..... hara hara hara SambhO!
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: K.V.S. Sarma

1.kanavEraa muniraaja mauLee!
raagam: jayajayawanti
Playback: P. Leela
Cast: Kuchalakumari

2.taram taram, nirantaram, nee andam, ahaa, aanandam
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao

3.hE kRshNaa! mukundaa! muraarI!
raagam: mOhana/raagamaalika
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao, Vijayanirmala
(and SreekRshNa karNaamRtam)

4.Sree kaaminee kaamitaakaara (danDakam)
raagam: aarabhi
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao

5."ammaa!" ani arachinaa aalakinchavEmammaa!
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao

6.E paadaseema kaaSeeprayaagaadi pavitrabhoomula kanna vimalataramo (Verse)
raagam: shaNmaukhapriya
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao, V. Nagayya, Rshyendramani

7.chebitE vinTiva, gurU gurU? vinakE cheDitira Sishyaa Sishyaa!
Playback: Madhavapeddi Satyam, Pithapuram Nageswara Rao
Cast: Kasturi Sivarao, Balakrishna

8.pedavula raagam, madi anuraagam
Playback: P.G. Krishnaveni (Jikki)
Cast: B. Saroja Devi

9.ekkaDivaaDO yakshatanayEndu
Playback: A.P. Komala

10.neevani nEnani talachitiraa!
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao, P. Susheela
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao, B. Saroja Devi

11.vannera chinnela neraa!
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao, P. Leela
Cast: N.T. Rama Rao, Anjali Devi

12.jaya jaya gOkula baalaa! muraLeegaana vilOlaa!
Playback: V. Nagayya
Cast: V. Nagayya

13.O daari gaanani samsaari dari jErETi (saadhuvula paaTa)
Playback: M.S. Rama Rao, Chorus

14.ekkaDOyi muddula baava
Playback: Pithapuram Nageswara Rao, A.P Komala
Cast: B. Saroja Devi, Ammaji

15.aanandamu O aanandamidEnOyi sakhaa!
Playback: P. Susheela
Cast: B. Saroja Devi

16.tOlu titti yidi, tooTulu tommidi
Playback: Madhavapeddi Satyam, Pithapuram Nageswara Rao

17.sannuti sEyavE manasaa!
Playback: V. Nagayya
Cast: V. Nagayya

18.adee bijaa EkhalE (Bhajan)
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao, A.P Komala

19.tuma bina mOrE
Playback: A.P. Komala

20.aaj kaa sunhEraa din hai
Playback: Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao

21.aatalaaDa raaraa kannayyaa!
Playback: A.P. Komala

22.akkaDa unDE paanDurangaDu
Playback: Chorus

Story:
Pundareeka (N.T. Rama Rao), a wayward, falls in the trap of Kalavathi (B. Saroja Devi) though he is married to Rama (Anjali Devi). He even steals in his own house to present gifts to Kalavathi. Rama and Pundareeka part with the latter's parents, in the wake of theft accusations. Once Kalavathi possesses all the property of Pundareeka, she kicks him out of the house. A realized and reformed Pundareeka searches for his parents and changes his ways. How the place was named after him is the rest of the story.

About the film:
Background:
After the super success of Jayasimha, NTR wanted to make another film. At that time ANR's Vipranarayana was a big hit. NTR also wanted to do a devotional film comparable to Vipranarayana. While looking for a suitable story, NTR heard that the Tamil super hit Haridas (1946), starring Thyagaraja Bhagavatar and Vasundhara Devi (mother of noted actress Vyjayanthimala) that ran for 110 weeks at that time, was being screened for a special midnight show in Elisonstone theater in Madras on the occasion of Ekadasi. NTR, along with Trivikrama Rao, Pundareekakshayya, and D.V.S. Raju (DVS was sleeping partner for the films Thodudongalu, Jayasimha, Panduranga Mahatmyam, Seetarama Kalyanam and Gulebakavali Katha), went and saw the film and they liked it. They discussed further and finalized that it can be tailored for NTR. For script modifications, dialogues, and lyrics, they approached Samudrala Junior who ealier worked for NAT banner for the film Jayasimha. The film was completely shot in Vauhini Studios.

Technical:
Director Kamalakara Kameswara Rao debuted with Chandraharam and then made Penki Pellam, both with NTR, and both the movies were disasters at the box-office. However, NTR still had a faith in his talent and still gave him a third chance in the form of this film. And, he indeed proved NTR right by giving him one of the greatest hits of the hero's entire career. Utmost care had been taken in each shot. There were many symbolic shots in the film, such as gradually waning moon in the song vannela chinnela neraa! to indicate passage of time, night turning into day as Rama awaits Pundareeka, etc. Thota's art and Rehman's camera are worth mentioning. They did a wonderful job for the film. Each detail is taken care of very well indeed.

Musical:
Songs like jaya kRshNaa mukundaa muraaree!, "ammaa!" yani arachinaa..., hara hara hara SambhO!, etc. are all-time hits. The song jaya kRshNaa mukundaa muraaree! was such an all-time great hit that it is the only Telugu song that's played in Vayur Krishna temple in Kerala even to this day! The film's assistant music director Joseph later composed music for N.A.T 's Gulebakavali Katha. This is the only film Nagayya sang under the direction of T.V. Raju; however he did not get credited as a playback singer for his own songs for the movie. Ghantasala's songs from the movie are huge hits even today, but his name too missed out of the titles! After seeing the première of the film, Smt. Ghantasala Savithramma gaaru pointed this flaw to NTR, who was too shocked to hear this and apologized to Ghantasala gaaru personally.

Cast:
B. Saroja Devi shares her experiences
My mother used to go to NAT office at that time to request a chance for me in NTR's films. I was 14 years old then; I already made my debut in Kannada with Mahakavi Kalidasa (1955), and I was also working with MGR in Tamil when I signed this film. In fact, both the cameraman M.A. Rehman and NTR's personal makeup man Peethambaram both rejected me, feeling that my dusky appearance will not suit opposite the fair and handsome N.T. Rama Rao. But NTR convinced them to take me for the role of Kalavathi. After this film, I made a place for myself as a glamorous heroine in both Telugu and Kannada. Singer Krishnakumari dubbed my voice for this movie (and Seetarama Kalyanam). Though I was very happy to do the film under NAT banner, and that too opposite NTR gaaru, I was in two minds since it was a negative character, but NTR gaaru patiently explained to me the character and made me take up the role. A newbie I was, I did not know much about makeup, and my makeup used to go away very quickly. Peethambaram gaaru had hard time to keep in the makeup, and he finally had to use hard brush to paint my face. Pundareekakshayya gaaru helped me with the language as I was not familiar with Telugu... Thus happened my debut in Telugu.

Vijayanirmala shares her experiences
Vijayanirmala, who appeared in the role of Lord Krishna in a song and a couple of scenes, recollects her memories for TeluguCinema.Com. She says that this was her third film and the first one in Telugu. (She did a couple of Tamil films as child artiste before this film, and NTR called upon her for a screen test for Lord Krishna's role, after seeing her films.) NTR, who was already famous for his portrayal of Lord Krishna, made her makeup for the film himself. After she was selected for the role, she practiced full two weeks for the song. She fainted on the sets once, and NTR felt that it was because of evil eyes, stopped the shoot, performed pooja, and started the shooting again. With the great respect that she since had for NTR, she requested NTR to inaugurate their recording theater, and screened the jaya kRshNaa mukundaa muraaree! song as the first one in the theater.

Chayadevi played two roles in the film. She appears as Subbamma and also as Yashoda (in the song jaya kRshNaa mukundaa muraaree!). K.V.S. Sarma also appeared in two roles. Ammaji (Jayachitra's mother) played the role of Champa.

Records:
NTR's two other films released in the same month - Saarangadhara on 1st and and Kutumba Gauravam on 7th, but that didn't affect this film any bit; Panduranga Mahatmyam became one of the biggest hits for NTR and also for Kamalakara Kameshwara Rao. Made under a budget of less then four lakhs, the film celebrated 100 days in 9 centers and ran for 24 weeks in Vijayawada and Guntur. The 100-days run was celebrated Sreelakshmi theatre in Vijayawada, which is now transformed into Swarna Picture Palace complex. 2007 marks the golden jubilee of the movie's release.

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