This is a rare archive clip of 1943 Kannada Movie Vani which features Great exponent of Carnatic Music Shree Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar along with Palghat Mani Iyer besides him. What was unique about ‘Vani was the on-screen appearance of the legend, Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar. ‘Chembai had a very poor opinion of cinema and hardly seen films. But Chowdaiah managed to persuade Chembai. The movie had a scene in which Chembai performed accompanied by Chowdaiah and the mridangam was played by another legend, Palakkad T. S. Mani Iyer. Chowdaiah composed a song, ‘Nikihila Paapa Vilasini in Shanmughapriya, which was rendered by Chembai in his usual lively and virile style. The song was shot at Chembais village Ottapalam where a large crowd gathered to watch the proceedings, a novelty in those days. It was a long reel and its on-screen running time was over 10 minutes. It was a musical treat. Chowdaiah offered Chembai a fee of Rs 5000, which he refused to touch. In 1943 it was quite a handsome sum. But Chembai felt it was ill-gotten money. However, after much cajoling by Chowdaiah and friends, he donated the money to the Parthasarathiswami temple at his village. ‘Vani was about a musician, his life, trials, tensions and relationships. Chowdaiah also sang in the film besides playing the violin. However ‘Vani was not a success and was a heavy loss for the producers. But it found a permanent place in Kannada Cinema, because of historical interest.
Posted on: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 12:37:36 +0000