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{{Infobox person<br />
|name = Kothamangalam Subbu<br />
|image = Kothamangalam_Subbu.jpg<br />
|caption = Kothamangalam Subbu in 1948<br />
|birth_name = S.M. Subramanian<br />
|birth_date ={{birth date|df=yes|1910|11|10}}<br />
|birth_place = Kannariyenthal, [[Karaikkudi]], [[Madras State]], [[British India]]<br />
|death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1974|2|15|1910|11|10}}<br />
|death_place =<br />
|residence = <br />
|nationality = [[India]]n<br />
|other_names =<br />
|known_for = actor, director, author, poet<br />
|education =<br />
|employer =<br />
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| title =<br />
| religion=<br />
| spouse= [[M. S. Sundari Bai]] (m.1945-1974)<br />
|children=<br />
|parents= S. Mahalingam Iyer,<br/>Kanagammal<br />
|speciality=<br />
|relatives=<br />
|signature =<br />
|website=<br />
|}}<br />
'''Kothamangalam Subbu''' (born '''S. M. Subramanian''', 10 November 1910 – 15 February 1974)<ref>https://www.dinamalar.com/news_detail.asp?id=2213665</ref> was an Indian poet, lyricist, author, actor and film director based in [[Tamil Nadu]]. He wrote the cult classic Tamil novel ''[[Thillana Mohanambal]]'' and was awarded the [[Padma Shri]]. According to novelist Ashokamitran's memoirs, Subbu functioned as the No. 2 of the giant Gemini Studios of [[Chennai]] (formerly Madras), South India for over three decades and was a close associate of movie mogul [[S. S. Vasan]], who established those studios and published the popular Tamil weekly ''[[Ananda Vikatan]]''.<br />
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==Early life==<br />
Subbu's natural name was Subramanian. He was born in the village of Kannariyenthal, near [[Pattukkottai]], Tamil Nadu. His parents were Subbiah Ganapadigal Mahalinga Iyer and Kangammal.<!-- Names given by Kothamangalam Subbu's son Srinivasan Subbu --> After losing his mother when he was young, Subbu received patronage from his younger aunt. He could continue his studies only up to 8th grade. After marrying a kin, Subbu settled in Kothamangalam and worked as an accountant in a business concern. However, his interests shifted towards Tamil drama, acting, singing and composing songs. By the late 1930s, Subbu received opportunities for acting in the then blossoming Tamil movies in Madras.<br />
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==Career==<br />
Subbu directed the epic film ''[[Avvaiyar (film)|Avvaiyar]]'' in which the great artiste of those days Smt [[K. B. Sundarambal]] played the lead role. Ashokamitran had profiled humorously how this film took shape in the Gemini Studios. Subbu, with his wife Sundari Bai, played a minor role in the movie as the husband of an incorrigible lady who refuses to serve Avvaiyar food. Subbu also directed ''Kannamma En Kadhali'', that featured his wife Sundari Bai. Furthermore, Subbu acted as a hero in ''[[Miss Malini]]'' that was remade in [[Hindi]] as ''Mr. Sampath''. ''Miss Malini'' was an adaptation of RK Narayan novel ''Mr Sampath''. ''Dasi Aparanji'' was another movie in which Subbu and Sundari Bai played the leads. In addition, Subbu has acted in Tamil movies ''Thiruneelakantar'' and ''Pava Mannippu''.<br />
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As a writer Subbu's most well-known work is ''Thillana Mohanambal'' that was transformed into a popularly and critically successful Tamil movie, starring [[Sivaji Ganesan]] and [[Padmini (actress)|Padmini]]. Subbu was awarded the Padma Shri for authoring this novel, which originally appeared as a weekly serial in the ''Anantha Vikatan''. Respected for his encyclopedic knowledge of music and satirical writing style, Subbu's tongue-in-cheek writing won the appreciation of many. He authored ''Rao Bahadur Singaram'', ''Bandanallur Bama'', ''Ponnivanathu Poonguyil'', ''Miss Radha'', and ''Manju Virattu'' (a collection of short stories).<br />
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Subbu has written several novels using the pen name of '''Kalaimani''' and penned ''Gandhi Mahan Kathai'' narrating the life of [[Mahatma Gandhi]] in folklore form. He wrote about 120 radio plays for [[All India Radio]].<ref>Ashokamitran; My Years with Boss at Gemini Studios. Orient Longman, Hyderabad, 2002, pp.17–19. P.S.Ramanan: Kothamangalam Subbu. Thenral, Sept. 2010, pp.36–38 (in Tamil) {{cite web | url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/theatre/The-multifaceted-Kothamangalam-Subbu/article14639417.ece | title=The multifaceted Kothamangalam Subbu | work=[[The Hindu]] | date=15 September 2016 | access-date=12 May 2017 | last=Vijayaraghavan | first=Sujatha | archive-url=https://archive.is/20170512055907/http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/theatre/The-multifaceted-Kothamangalam-Subbu/article14639417.ece | archive-date=12 May 2017 | url-status=dead | df=dmy-all }}</ref><br />
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==Filmography==<br />
;Screenwriter<br />
*''[[Chandralekha (1948 film)|Chandralekha]]'' (1948)<br />
*''[[Apoorva Sagodharargal (1949 film)|Apoorva Sagodharargal]]'' (1949)<br />
*''[[Avvaiyar (film)|Avvaiyar]]'' (1953)<br />
*''[[Valliyin Selvan]]'' (1955)<br />
*''[[Vanjikottai Valiban]]'' (1958)<br />
*''[[Irumbu Thirai]]'' (1960)<br />
*''[[Motor Sundaram Pillai]]'' (1966)<br />
*''[[Thillana Mohanambal]]'' (1968)<br />
*''[[Vilaiyaattu Pillai]]'' (1970) <small>(story only)</small><br />
<br />
;Director<br />
*''[[Kannamma En Kadhali]]'' (1945)<br />
*''[[Miss Malini]]'' (1947)<br />
*''[[Avvaiyar (film)|Avvaiyar]]'' (1953)<br />
*''[[Valliyin Selvan]]'' (1955)<br />
<br />
;Lyricist<br />
*''[[Naam Iruvar]]'' (1947)<br />
*''[[Chakradhari (Tamil Film)|Chakradhari]]'' (1948)<br />
*''[[Valliyin Selvan]]'' (1955)<br />
*''[[Aadi Perukku (film)|Aadi Perukku]]'' (1962)<br />
*''[[Annai (1962 film)|Annai]]'' (1962)<br />
*''[[Pazhani (1965 film)|Pazhani]]'' (1965)<br />
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==Legacy==<br />
''Ananda Vikatan'' magazine is currently republishing the works of this writer, lyricist, director and actor. As an exponent of the traditional folk form of narrating stories in Tamil Nadu, the Villu Pattu, Kothamangalam Subbu popularised the lives of many Indian luminaries using the Villu Paatu.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.winentrance.com/general_knowledge/kothamangalam-subbu.html|title=Biography of Kothamangalam Subbu|last=editor|date=2011-03-21|website=Winentrance|language=en-US|access-date=2020-03-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://tamilnadu.com/arts/villu-paatu.html|title=Arts - Villu Paatu|publisher=Tamilnadu.com|date=26 February 2013}}</ref><br />
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Subbu's wife, [[Sundari Bai]], was a popular actor, known for her versatility in playing character roles in movies such as ''Kannamma En Kadhali'', ''Sumathy En Sundari'', ''Chandralekha'', ''Bama Rukmani'' and ''Avvaiyar''.<br />
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==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
* [http://kothamangalamsubbu.in/ Official Website of Kothamangalam Subbu]<br />
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{{Authority control}}<br />
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Subbu, Kothamangalam}}<br />
[[Category:Male actors from Tamil Nadu]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian film directors]]<br />
[[Category:1910 births]]<br />
[[Category:1974 deaths]]<br />
[[Category:Tamil writers]]<br />
[[Category:Poets from Tamil Nadu]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian male actors]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]<br />
[[Category:Indian lyricists]]<br />
[[Category:People from Sivaganga district]]<br />
[[Category:Tamil screenwriters]]<br />
[[Category:Screenwriters from Tamil Nadu]]<br />
[[Category:Tamil-language lyricists]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]]<br />
[[Category:Film directors from Tamil Nadu]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian screenwriters]]</div>imported>Monkbot