Ganesan, Sivaji

▪ 2002

Villupuram Chiniah Pillai Ganesan 

      Indian actor (b. Oct. 1, 1927, Tamil Nadu, India—d. July 21, 2001, Chennai [Madras], India), was a legendary star in southern India's Tamil film industry, employing his expressive face and eloquent voice in some 300 motion pictures over nearly 50 years. Ganesan began his stage career as a child and achieved almost instant fame with his screen debut in Parasakthi (1952). He took his professional name from the 17th-century Maratha warrior king Sivaji, whom he portrayed onstage and later in a 1956 film. Ganesan brought an intense screen presence to scores of historical and dramatic films, notably Navarathri, in which he portrayed nine roles. In the 1980s he had a brief unsuccessful political career in Tamil Nadu. In 1995 Ganesan was presented with the French government's highest civilian award, the Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters; in 1997 he received the Dada Saheb Phalke from the Indian government for his lifetime contribution to Indian cinema.

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▪ Indian actor

original name  Villipuram Chinah Pillai Ganesan 

born October 1, 1927, Sirkali, Tamil Nadu, India

died July 21, 2001, Chennai

      versatile star of Indian cinema.

      Ganesan dropped out of school at a young age in order to join a boys' acting troupe. In 1946 he made his mark playing the title role of the Maratha emperor Sivaji (the historical character who gave him his screen name) in C.N. Annadurai's play Sivaji Kanda Indhu Rajyam. When Annadurai formed the Dravida Munnertra Kazhagam (DMK) political party in 1949, Ganesan joined and made his film debut with the classic DMK film Parasakthi (1952). By the mid-1950s Ganesan had begun to move away from the DMK and its atheistic policies. He soon attained fame by appearing in several mythological films—one such film, Veerapandiya Kattaborman (1960), is probably his best-known work.

      Ganesan, capable of a wide range of types, is regarded by many as one of the most gifted actors in world cinema. Perhaps his most distinguishing feature is a highly expressive, resonant voice. He appeared in more than 300 films, portraying the leading role in nearly all of them. He also dabbled in politics in the 1980s, serving in the Indian parliament and as president of the Tamil Nadu faction of Janata Dal.

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