Sankarabharanam

Sankarabharanam (also spelt Shankarabharanam, meaning “The Ornament of Shankara”) is a 1980 Telugu musical drama co-written and directed by K. Viswanath and produced by Edida Nageswara Rao under Poornodaya Movie Creations. Stage actor J. V. Somayajulu, in his first film role, plays a revered Carnatic singer, with Manju Bhargavi, Chandra Mohan and Rajyalakshmi. K. V. Mahadevan composed the largely classical score. Released on 2 February 1980, it opened to near-empty halls, then became a phenomenon through word of mouth, won four National Film Awards and is regarded as a cult classic of Telugu cinema.

What the story is about

Sankara Sastri is a Carnatic musician renowned for his mastery of the raga Sankarabharanam, living with his daughter Sarada and devoted entirely to his art. Tulasi, the daughter of a courtesan, is a trained classical dancer who reveres his music. When her mother tries to force her into the family trade, Tulasi escapes, and Sastri gives her shelter. His decision to protect her, and to let her perform at his side, turns his orthodox village against him. The film then follows both of them across the years, as popular taste moves from classical music to Western-style pop and Sastri refuses to compromise. Its emotional final concert is best experienced without knowing what happens.

Cast

• J. V. Somayajulu as Sankara Sastri
• Manju Bhargavi as Tulasi
• Rajyalakshmi as Sarada, Sastri’s daughter
• Chandra Mohan as Kameswara Rao, a school teacher
• Allu Ramalingaiah as Sastri’s friend Madhava, and Nirmalamma
• Tulasi as the boy Shankaram

How it was made

The producers were taken aback by the art-film tone of the subject before Edida Nageswara Rao agreed to make it. Several stars were considered for Sastri, including Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Sivaji Ganesan and Krishnam Raju, but Viswanath felt a star image would overwhelm the role and cast the debutant Somayajulu. Jandhyala wrote the dialogue, Balu Mahendra was the cinematographer, G. G. Krishna Rao the editor and Thota Tharani the production designer; future director Vamsy was an assistant director. The film was shot in 60 days, mostly around Rajahmundry and other locations in Andhra Pradesh, with scenes at Belur and Halebeedu in Karnataka.

Music

K. V. Mahadevan’s songs, with lyrics by Veturi, stay closer to classical form than most film music. M. Balamuralikrishna was the first choice to sing Sastri’s songs, but when he was not inclined, Mahadevan insisted on S. P. Balasubrahmanyam taking up the challenge. The songs, sung by Balasubrahmanyam, S. Janaki and Vani Jairam, won him his first National Award for singing and, according to Wikipedia, made him a household name across South India. Balasubrahmanyam often called it the highlight of his career.

Release and box office

The film opened in only a few theatres to almost empty halls, but within a week positive reviews and word of mouth were filling them, according to critic Gudipoodi Srihari’s account to Idlebrain.com. It ran for 216 days at the Royal theatre in Hyderabad and over 25 weeks in many centres, played to packed houses in its original Telugu in Tamil Nadu, and its Malayalam-dubbed version, released on 12 September 1980, ran for over 200 days in Kerala. A Tamil-dubbed version was re-released on 13 March 2015.

What critics said

Gudipoodi Srihari called it the best Telugu film he had seen after Mayabazar. Reviewing the 2015 Tamil re-release, M. Suganth of The Times of India called it “a textbook example of how music and storytelling can go hand-in-hand to create a brilliant film”. Forbes India included Somayajulu’s performance in its list of the “25 Greatest Acting Performances of Indian Cinema”.

Awards and legacy

Sankarabharanam won four National Film Awards, mostly in music categories, including Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, the first South Indian film to win that award. It also won seven Nandi Awards, including Best Feature Film, and the Prize of the Public at the Besançon Film Festival in France in 1981. In a 2013 CNN-IBN online poll it came eleventh among the “greatest Indian film ever”. Its success opened the way for a run of music-centred Telugu films, including Viswanath’s own Saagara Sangamam, Swathi Muthyam and Swarna Kamalam, and he remade it in Hindi as Sur Sangam (1985).

Where to watch Sankarabharanam

We do not have a confirmed streaming platform for Sankarabharanam on file. The OTT details on this page will be updated when a platform’s own listing confirms it.

Sources: the Wikipedia article on Sankarabharanam and the interviews and reviews it cites, linked above; Wikidata; our own cast and crew records.