• Source: Sandhya Raagam

Sandhya Raagam (transl. Tune of the Twilight) is a 1989 Indian Tamil-language drama film produced, written and directed by Balu Mahendra. It stars Chokkalinga Bagavathar, Oviyar Veera Santhanam and Archana in prominent roles. Shot in black-and-white, the film was photographed and edited by Mahendra himself. At the 37th National Film Awards, it won the Award for Best Film on Family Welfare (1990).




Plot



Chokkalingam, an octagenarian, leaves his village upon the death of his wife. He migrates to Madras, where his nephew Vasu, a lower-middle-class man lives along with his family. Chokkalingam becomes an additional burden for Vasu, who is not able to meet the demands of his own family.




Cast


Chokkalinga Bhagavathar as Chokkalingam
Archana as Thulasi
Oviyar Veera Santhanam as Vasu
Baby Rajalakshmi as Valli




Themes


The film's central theme revolves around old age.




Production


The film was made on a shoestring budget. Like his previous films, Mahendra wrote the screenplay, edited and photographed the film apart from handling the direction. Ramasamy was hired as the art director while V. S. Murthy and A. S. Laxmi Narayanan looked after the audiography. The film did not have any songs; L. Vaidyanathan composed the background score.




Reception


Sandhya Raagam is yet to have a theatrical release, but was regularly aired on Doordarshan. N. Krishnaswamy of The Indian Express said, "Balu Mahendra narrates the plight of his lead character with a tremendously observant eye. The celluloid breathes silence and beauty, and the humour and piquancy of the situations are striking".
The film won the National Film Award for Best Film on Family Welfare in 1990. A year later, it was screened at the International Film Festival of India along with Anjali (1990) as the only two Tamil films as part of Indian Panorama. In a 2007 interview to The Hindu, Mahendra said that Sandhya Raagam and Veedu were his two films "with the fewest compromises and mistakes".
In 2011, Mahendra said that there was no existing negative of the film.




References






Bibliography


Baskaran, S. Theodore (2013) [1996]. The eye of the serpent: An introduction to Tamil cinema. Westland. ISBN 978-93-83260-74-4.




External links


Sandhya Raagam at IMDb

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Madhu
• Sandhya Raagam
• Sandhya Raagam (TV series)
• Balu Mahendra
• Nala Damayanthi (TV series)
• 2024 in Tamil television
• Padamati Sandhya Ragam
• Akshaya Rao
• Singapennae
• Anjali (1990 film)
• Ramya Krishnan filmography