Potpourri of titbits about Tamil cinema - Actor V. K. Ramasamy

V. K. Ramasamy entered Tamil cinema during the period when stalwarts like MKT, P. U. Chinnappa and NSK were dominating the field. VKR, as endearingly known in the industry, gained appreciation from all quarters with his career spanning many decades, co-acting with heroes of all ages including Ajith and Vijay. I was introduced to him by Major Sundarrajan. I got opportunities to interview him for various magazines. During those meetings, he would share many interesting and unforgettable incidents and experiences with me with a pinch of humor.

VKR was born in the year 1929 in Virudhunagar. As per his father’s wish, he took his studies seriously and did well. But, inspired by his cousin brother Mariyappan who was an actor cum singer in Ponnusamy Pillai drama troupe, VKR left his home and joined the troupe. “My father used to take me back from the troupe and make me look after his oil business, but every time, I would run away to join back the drama company. Finally, he understood my ambition and left me to have my own way. Initially, I got only minor roles, but after a while, I joined NSK’s troupe and started getting good roles. ‘Naam iruvar’, our hit play was made into movie by AVM. T. R. Mahalingam did the role of the hero. I was given the role of a 60-year old businessman. I was only 18 years at that time, but I agreed to do the role with confidence. I entered cinema through the role of an old man. The movie was a hit and my name became known. But, I didn’t get offers for a long while after this film and I struggled for many years. My time came with roles in ‘Nalla thambi’, ‘Krishna bhakti’, ‘Laila Majnu’, ‘Tikambara samiyar’. ‘Sarvathikari’ etc. In the film ‘Singari’, I repetitively used the word ‘adhakappattathu’ and it became very popular among the youth of that time,” VKR told me once. When I asked him about his favorite usage ‘arivu ketta mundam’, meaning simpleton, in all his later films, he told me that he used to rebuke people close to him by using this phrase whenever they committed a mistake and further that he used that phrase spontaneously in one of his films and as it became very popular, he started using it in all his films. At the same time, he reiterated that he would never mean to hurt the feelings of anyone.