Nenjam Marapathillai (நெஞ்சம் மறப்பதில்லை, Tamil;1963)Screenplay and Direction: Sridhar
Sati, daughter of Daksha, had the hots for this hunk named Siva. Siva, however, probably not Sati's father's favourite icon, did not make the guest list of the invitees to her father's prayers. Feeling humiliated that even unimportant guests, like her sisters, for instance, were invited, Sati was overcome with shame and fury. She immolated herself (or maybe also jumped into the sacrificial fire). Sati died and was reborn as Parvati daughter of the mountains Himalaya. Siva, being Siva, whom even Brahma and Vishnu could not predict where he starts and ends, quickly went in pursuit of his divine love. He knew where she would be reborn. But attaining her was another Herculean task that involved celibacy and meditation. That is another story for another day. Their union which took place eventually is the energy that spins the universe. Some quarters insists that Sati's self-sacrifice is the first Sutee and is the yardstick of loyalty. Intertwined in this practice was also public order, interest in the inquisition of property by a third party and fear of clandestine carnal activities.
Many figures in the scriptures, like Buddha and Krishna, are said to remember vividly of their past lives. There are even mythological stories which tell of individuals who die, live another life to 'wash' their sin and return to their previous lives to continue living!
It seems that in the local newspapers, back in the 1950s, there were many write-ups of people retelling their past lives. This was where Director Sridhar got the idea for this movie.
I remember squinting to see this film in the grainy 16" TV screen back in the days when the transmission sometimes ran like a movie of dirty oil floating on water; could not make out what was swimming under the surface, could not visualise the video. We could only hear the screechy high pitched decibels of P. Suseela's voice against the whirling and rustling sounds of wind. Anyway, when the video came around, it was easily one of the scariest shows that I ever viewed in my childhood. (Together of course with Athey Kangal, 1967). Amma was not impressed. All that long camera shots and silence to create the suspense was a waste of time for her. She demanded emotional display and dialogue, not 'inaction'!
Anand (Kalyana Kumar) follows his university mate to his village to spend his holidays. At the first sight, upon laying his eyes on the plush greenery of the fields, a sense of déjà vu hits him. Everything seems familiar. He swears that he has seen an old tree and the lake before. He is quite sure there must be a bungalow some around there. Sure enough, there is an old debilitated one nearby. The mate's sister is locked up in a room after apparently being hit by bad spirits. One day, Anand wanders to the old bungalow. An avalanche of the memory of his previous life flowed through him. He was the son of a haughty Zamindar (MN Nambiar) who was entwined in a forbidden love with a peasant girl.
The lovebirds, who were shot to smithereens in cold blood by the Zamindar, vowed to return in their next birth as lovers, and they just did. The friend's sister is peasant girl in her previous life! And what do you know, the 109-year-old Zamindar is living incognito in the corner of the bungalow after serving time in Andaman prison. And he has vengeance on his mind! Nagesh and Manorama make a short but memorable presence with his wisecracks, witty and philosophical.
The view of a quicksand made its presence here. It used to scare the hell out of me those days, indicating the wrath of Mother Nature when evil hits the ceiling and man cannot do anything to kerb it.
The film must have been made with the intention of imparting the message that the social setup of old India is over. With Nehru's socialist programmes to spearhead India to regain its glory days, the new social order was the order of the day. The old stratum of blind obedience to the feudalistic economy was over. Equality was the new way of life. As seen at the end of the movie, the Zamindar is a shadow of old past, unkempt, unwanted and without his henchmen, living alone in a uncared surrounding. In fact, he is fearful of the general public, afraid that he may be ostracised for his past misdeeds. The country was all set to pave the way to a new horizon.
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