2 months ago
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Will an aspiring 21-year-old actor, with a palmy signifier career, settee for a relation arsenic a villain successful his archetypal film? After all, each debutant wants to beryllium the hero. Wouldn’t a young histrion beryllium acrophobic of typecasting? Not if the histrion successful question happens to beryllium V.K. Ramasamy oregon VKR to his fans.
He indispensable person been supremely assured astir his strengths arsenic an actor, to hold to play a 60-year-old villain successful his archetypal film, Naam Iruvar, released successful 1947. In this film, VKR leads dishonest Sarangapani down the plot path, promising that helium volition get his teenage girl joined to the aged man. Eventually, it turns retired to beryllium a lawsuit of a diamond cutting a diamond, with the clever VKR proving to beryllium much than a lucifer for Sarangapani. You wouldn’t conjecture this was VKR’s archetypal film. There is conscionable the close premix of mockery and villainy successful his portrayal of a stingy, sly aged man, arsenic helium hoodwinks Sarangapani. In Paar Magale Paar, incapable to carnivore Sivaji’s taunts, helium blurts retired the information astir Sivaji’s daughters, and the household is torn apart. With his changing expressions — humiliation, rage and remorse — VKR steals the scene.
However, V.K. Ramasamy is champion remembered for his comic roles, though helium was seldom the main comedian. For instance, successful Ooty Varai Uravu, Balaiah has much scenes than Ramasamy. VKR’s quality isn’t adjacent needed to stitch assorted scenes unneurotic to pb to the blessed ending. And yet, erstwhile you person seen Ooty Varai Uravu, you cannot ideate a mentation of the movie without Ramasamy.
In Kanni Thai, erstwhile V.K. Ramasamy doesn’t wage for the nutrient successful a restaurant, the restaurateur strips him of each his clothes, leaving him with conscionable his dhoti. He feels embarrassed. But helium is resourceful, and applies vibhuti each implicit his thorax and steps retired similar a mendicant. The comic interaction lies successful the mode helium takes mincing steps to the tune of ‘Nandavanathil oraandi’.
Perhaps 1 of the fewer films successful which V.K. Ramasamy was the main comedian was Kasi Yathirai. But present again, determination was a postulation of comedians — Cho, Surulirajan, ‘Thengai’ Srinivasan, M.R.R. Vasu and Manorama. The movie centres astir Paramasivam Pillai (V.K. Ramasamy), a champion of bachelorhood and an iconoclastic hostile of romance. He is the guardian of his nephew and niece, some of whom person their respective romanticist interests. The youngsters trap Ramasamy into penning a compromising missive to an histrion (Manorama), which is past utilized for blackmailing him. VKR shows a tumult of feelings and portrays good the conflict betwixt piety and long-suppressed desire. The complexion of the quality Paramasivam Pillai keeps changing erstwhile helium falls for Manorama, and V.K. Ramasamy’s acting keeps gait with the changes.
In Kumara Vijayam Ramasamy is caught successful a trap due to the fact that of an amatory matter years ago. A communal capable concern successful astir Tamil films. But you don’t caput the cliched situations, due to the fact that you are chortling astatine VKR’s crisp 1 liners.
His avuncular attitude, erstwhile helium regales Kamal’s lad with stories (film Japanil Kalyanaraman), is endearing.
V.K. Ramasamy was a comedian with a difference. There was ne'er immoderate physicality to his comedy. He ne'er indulged successful horseplay. He didn’t person to effort hard to beryllium funny. Just a grimace, oregon a chuckle, oregon the diagnostic VKR guffaw, and helium would person the assemblage eating retired of his hands.
There was a comic borderline to the mode helium rendered his dialogues, sometimes adjacent erstwhile helium played a villain. Perhaps VKR enjoyed being a comedian Otherwise, helium could ne'er person been truthful earthy successful comic roles. You often get the feeling that his comic lines were unscripted and came from his innate consciousness of humour. Comedy was so 2nd quality to him.
