Nine Cameras

This is the video clip showing the work of nine cameras and also the editing brilliance.

In the previous post I have given the interview of K.Kannan from an old magazine told to Vijayan. This is the visual of the previous post.

Total duration of this video clip of nine cameras is 2 minute 10 seconds. I checked the clip and counted the cameras it came to 10 and again I checked with one person view and it came to 9. Please check yourself and write in comments were and which the camera are placed.

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All the nine cameras are placed on the right side to show the Soldiers and Elephants 1000 in number.

The last 15 second of this clip is from 3 cameras side by side on the right side of the characters played by K.Kannan and Latha. A frame is not missed. Watch the clip. This clip is not only for the camera work of those days (MGR movies) but also the editing techniques used in those days.

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As said by K.Kannan this camera placement was done by MGR with a map and his editing mind. This kind of camera work is done to other characters and not to important MGR character. That shows MGR’s good nature to other actor. Who will allow such a first time feat (great skill) featured by other actors in this Tamil movie world?

And I don’t know which camera angle MGR have handled.

For the previous post click here

Madurai Meeta Sundara Pandian – A Look Back II

MGR directed movie Madurai Meeta Sundarapandian has showcase of technical brilliance. MGR used 9 cameras to shoot one scene to reduce the time and money.

K.Kannan who acted as Kosala King in that movie narrates MGRs techniques in filming the long scene into one shot.

At 2 pm MGR handed over 7 page dialogue to Kannan and asked him to by heart the dialogs and the shot will be ready by 4 pm. Since it is last day of shooting in Jaipur if the scene does not end by 5 pm (as the Sunlight gets weak) they have to stay another 1 day.

Kannan was eager how MGR will shoot this lengthy scene. Within two hours MGR fixed 9 cameras and no camera is visible to other camera angle. His placement of 9 cameras was checked again.

By 4.15 pm MGR said “Action” then Kannan as the King and Latha as Kayalvizhi spoke the 7 page dialog without any mistake and the shot was ok.

And further Kannan says that to shoot that scene it will normally take one day to complete but MGR’s brilliant mind completed the scene within 15 minutes. MGR’s Cinema technology mind is far ahead of others of his day.

The video part will be uploaded in next post.

Madurai Meeta Sundara Pandian – A Look Back

One MGR Fan has commented to post about Madurai Meeta Sundarapandian. I searched my collection and contacted MGR Fans having collection about Madurai Meeta Sundarapandian and here the post.

The film was started in the year 1974 by the then Director and Producer B.R.Panthalu. Later after his death MGR took up the Direction part and new producer Sokkaiah (Soliswar Combines). The story is by Akilan, Gnanapida award historical story “Kayalvizhi”. The story was not changed in the movie.

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This article is from “Pesum Padam” published in January 1978. The article was written by Chitra Krishnasamy He narrates how the movie was taken in Jaipur and the obstacles faced during the shooting and interesting information about the location.

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The very interesting matter is 5 Directors and technicians combinedly worked for this movie for the climax scene. They are P.Neelakandan, K.Sankar, Karnan, Sekar (Telugu Director) P.Ramasamy (Malayalam film camera man) and Shanmugam (Camera man). The video clip of the climax scene with many cameras will be posted in next post.

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Another interesting fact is the journey from Chennai to Jaipur and what they took with them for the shooting.

Chitra Krishnasamy continues with the location part and how the Maharaja of Jaipur treated them and how they helped in shooting of Madurai Meeta Sundarapandian.

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The three songs from the movie such as MGR philosophical song and two duets one with Padmapriya and one with Latha and how they managed to change the location that was not noticeable in the song the first part of the song was taken in Jaipur palace and the last part of the song in Samoth palace.

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Thanks to Mr.D.Venkatesan Hardware Merchant, who painstakingly collected these informations for our blog.