Lena Chettiar (born S. M. Letchuman Chettiar) was an Indian film producer from Chettinad known for his works in Tamil cinema.[1]
Career
S. M. Letchuman Chettiar hailed from the Nattukottai Nagarathar clan in Chettinad.Template:Sfn Early on in his career, Lena was known for staging plays in southern Tamil-speaking areas and was a used car dealer, who became the first person to circulate handbills about cars in Tamil. He advised M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, a stage actor, against producing films. Bhagavathar's first film Pavalakkodi, which ran well in Tamil-speaking areas of India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), marked the debut of Lena as a film producer.[2] Soon after the release of Pavalakkodi, Lena moved to and managed his own production unit titled Krishna Pictures, which marked the Tamil debut of P. Kannamba.[3] Lena was never credited as producer in any of his films as he was an "undischarged insolvent" in the later half of his life, because of which he could not carry on any business under his name. According to historian Randor Guy, he died "unsung and unhonoured".Template:Sfn
Filmography
| Year | Film | Template:Tooltip |
|---|---|---|
| 1934 | Pavalakkodi | [4] |
| 1940 | Krishnan Thoothu | [3] |
| 1944 | Prabhavathi | [2] |
| 1949 | Krishna Bhakthi | [5] |
| 1953 | Marumagal | [6] |
| 1953 | Ammalakkalu (Telugu) | [6] |
| 1955 | Kaveri | [7] |
| 1956 | Madurai Veeran | [8] |
| 1958 | Mangalya Bhagyam | |
| 1960 | Raja Desingu | [9] |
References
- ↑ The story of Lena Chettiar, the used-car dealer who turned into a film producer!. The Cinema Resource Centre(3 May 2013). Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedprabhavathi - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedKrishnan Thoothu - ↑ Those Were The Days: Pavalakodi, the first Tamil talkie blockbuster that launched the first superstar, Ramarkrishnan, Venkatesh. DT Next(22 December 2019). Retrieved 24 December 2019.
- ↑ Krishna Bhakthi 1948. The Hindu(15 February 2008). Retrieved 24 December 2019.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedmarumagal - ↑ Kaveri (1959). The Hindu(19 October 2013). Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ↑ MGR Remembered – Part 13 – Ilankai Tamil Sangam, Kantha, Sachi Sri. Ilankai Tamil Sangam(22 December 2013). Retrieved 24 December 2019.
- ↑ Raja Desingu (1960). The Hindu(15 August 2015). Retrieved 9 February 2020.
Bibliography
- Memories of Madras: Its Movies, Musicians & Men of Letters{{#if:Guy|, Guy}. Creative Workshop(2016). ISBN 978-81-928961-7-5