Vaa Raja Vaa

Vaa Raja Vaa (transl. Come Raja, Come)[2] is a 1969 Indian Tamil-language children's film written, directed and produced by A. P. Nagarajan for CNV Productions. The film features an ensemble cast including Master Prabhakar, Baby Sumathi, Sirkazhi Govindarajan, V. S. Raghavan, K. D. Santhanam and Suruli Rajan. It was released on 6 December 1969 and became a commercial success. The film was remade in Telugu as Balaraju Katha (1970), with Prabhakar reprising his role.

Vaa Raja Vaa
Poster
Directed byA. P. Nagarajan
Written byA. P. Nagarajan
Produced byA. P. Nagarajan
StarringMaster Prabhakar
CinematographyW. R. Subbarao
Edited byT. R. Nagarajan
Music byKunnakudi Vaidyanathan
Production
company
CNV Productions
Release date
  • 6 December 1969 (1969-12-06)
Running time
152 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Plot

Raja is a 10-year-old tourist guide in Mahabalipuram. An elder sculptor has a small rock sculpture tablet on which are engraved adages. Raja enters a discussion with him, wondering if those pearls of wisdom still hold relevance. The sculptor tells him that those sayings are eternal and immortal. Unconvinced, Raja sets out to find the truth for himself. Ultimately, he realises that all those sayings are still valid.

Cast

Production

In addition to writing and directing, A. P. Nagarajan also produced Vaa Raja Vaa under his company CNV Productions. W. R. Subba Rao was the cinematographer, while T. R. Nagarajan was the editor.[3] Since it was previously believed in the Tamil film industry that A. P. Nagarajan's films were successful only because of their star cast and "mammoth" scales, rather than his directorial skills, he directed this film, which featured mostly newcomers, to silence his critics.[4] It was also one of his rare films to have a contemporary setting, since he was then known primarily for directing films based on Hindu mythology.[5][6] The film was shot entirely on location in Mahabalipuram.[7]

Soundtrack

The music was composed by Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan, marking his cinematic debut.[8] The lyrics were written by Nellai Arulmani, Poovai Senguttuvan, Ulundurpettai Shanmugham and Azha Valliappa.[3]

Tracklist[9]
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Kallellaam"L. R. Eswari03:34
2."Aadi Paadi Sirikka"L. R. Eswari, S. Sarala, M. R. Vijaya, L. R. Anjali04:57
3."Unmai Ethu Poy Ethu"L. R. Eswari03:43
4."Iraivan Padai Tha"Sirkazhi Govindarajan03:31
5."Kallamilla Pillaiyidam"Sirkazhi Govindarajan03:44
Total length:19:29

Release and reception

Vaa Raja Vaa was released on 6 December 1969.[10] The film was a commercial success, running for over 100 days in theatres.[3] In a review dated 21 December 1969, the Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan praised the performances of the cast.[11] The film was remade in Telugu as Balaraju Katha (1970),[12] with Prabhakar reprising his role.[13]

References
  1. Rajadhyaksha & Willemen 1998, p. 402.
  2. Baskaran 1996, p. 185.
  3. Guy, Randor (24 September 2016). "Vaa Raja Vaa (1969)". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 13 December 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  4. Raghavan, Nikhil (5 September 2012). "Classic gets a new life". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 9 October 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  5. Thoraval 2000, p. 330.
  6. "பொன்விழா படங்கள் : வா ராஜா வா" [Golden Jubilee Films: Vaa Raja Vaa]. Dinamalar (in Tamil). 22 July 2019. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  7. ""Kalaimamani" Sirkali's Memorable Movies". Sirkali.org. Archived from the original on 28 March 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  8. Venkatraman, Lakshmi (7 February 2003). "His fingers weave magic with ragas". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 3 January 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  9. "Vaa Raja Vaa". Gaana. Archived from the original on 14 December 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  10. "Vaa Raja Vaa (1969)". Screen4Screen. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  11. "சினிமா விமர்சனம்: வா ராஜா வா" [Movie Review: Vaa Raja Vaa]. Ananda Vikatan (in Tamil). 21 December 1969. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  12. "சினிமாவில் வெற்றிக்கொடி நாட்டிய குழந்தைகள்!". Dina Thanthi (in Tamil). 4 June 2016. Archived from the original on 21 November 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  13. Narasimham, M. L. (4 October 2019). "Balaraju Katha (1970)". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 2 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.

Bibliography
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