M.K.Thyagaraja Bhagavathar  share

The great Carnatic musician-cum-actor - M.K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, popularly known as MKT, was born at Mayavaram in Tamil Nadu on January 3, 1909 into a family of struggling goldsmiths in Trichy. His father, Krishnamurthy Achari, earned hardly enough to make both ends meet. In spite of his poverty he sent his son Thyagarajan to school, but the boy showed little interest in studies. He was more involved in music and singing in which he revealed astonishing talent in spite of lack of proper training. Krishnamurthy pulled his son out of school and got him to work in his workshop. The father was surprised to see crowds flocking to the workshop and his surprise grew greater when he found that the crowd was not of customers but people who had come to listen to young Thyagarajan singing! He thereupon decided to make his son a stage actor and took him to the noted talent-scout, impresario and theatre personality of Trichy, F.G. Natesa Iyer, a senior railway official who had his own amateur troupe. It was a time when Tamil Theatre was under the influence of the Boys Company Movement. Thyagarajan made his debut in Harishchandra as Lohidasa and at once created telling impact with his vibrant voice. Many threw coins on stage when he sang the sorrow-tinged songs. Meanwhile, his popularity continued to rise in Tamil Theatre and he emerged as a box-office draw.
Most stage artistes of the period belonged to one of the many Boys\' Companies. But Bhagavathar did not. He was so popular and sought after that he freelanced; getting a fancy fee each time he acted in special dramas. He was a great scene-stealer who delighted in one-upmanship, the favorite pastime of most stage artistes of his time. The only actress who stood up to him and often paid him back in his own coin was S. D. Subbulakshmi. Their most successful play was Pavalakkodi, a romance about the hero of the Mahabarata, Arjuna. It was made into a by Alagappa Chettiar. It was in this successful film that Thyagaraja Bhagavathar made his cinematic bow. So did S. D. Subbulakshmi. Pavalakkodi had as many as fifty songs. The composer was Papanasam Sivan, who played a major role in the rise of Bhagavathar as a singing star. He became famous by singing Sivan\'s compositions. After the success of Pavalakkodi he then starred again with S. D. Subbulakshmi in Naveena Sarangadhara in 1936, directed by K. SubramaniamSivaperuman kirupai vendum…\' became a super hit. The succeeding ten years brought him unrivalled fame as a movie star. MKT bestrode the Tamil film world like a colossus. He was a great romantic hero and a heartthrob among female fans. MKT\'s singing voice had a timbre that was unique, and he enunciated the words with a clarity that made the song very attractive.
Most of his films had music by Papanasam Sivan. The tunes were simple, with a minimum of background music. Most filmgoers were able to hum these tunes when they came out of the theatre. The later films of MKT had music by G.Ramanathan and K.V.Mahadevan. Later in the year came the other Bhagavathar hit, Ambikapathy. It portrayed romantic love with sheen of eroticism never before seen in a Tamil movie. It also gave a status to its dialogue-writer, a new trend in Tamil Cinema, which would lead to significant consequences in later years. His wink not only became famous but was also regarded as his trade mark. Ambikapathi turned out to be a super hit. Bhagavathar was now a rage and soon would be a cult figure, and phenomenon, the first in South Indian cinema, a legend in his lifetime.His other hits included Chintamani, Thiruneelakandar and Sivakavi . All the songs in these films became very famous. He was the first superstar of South Indian Cinema. His incredible following was not only among the masses but also among the classes. A great favorite among the women, he was perhaps the first film actor to achieve such popularity with a mere fistful of films. Between 1934 and 1944 he was the most sought after personality in the world of Fine Arts, Music and Cinema in South India. His films usually ran for months, and years and one film, Haridas, established a stunning record by running uninterruptedly for 114 weeks at Broadway Cinema, Madras. This is a record untouched to this day, more than half-a-century later. It witnessed three Deepavali Festivals, 1944, 1945 and 1946. Responsible for this success was the matinee idol of his day, M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar.
He was a great actor, an excellent musician, a singer with a rich and honey-dewed melodious voice. While Bhagavathar was sailing along the silvery moon of success, his life was rocked late in 1944 when a muckraking yellow journalist named C. N. Lakshmikantham was murdered and Bhagavathar, along with N.S.Krishnan, was arrested. The murder trial created a sensation and shook the film world. Both Bhagavathar and Krishnan were found guilty. They were thirty months in prison before they made a successful appeal to the Privy Council in London and were later released. But the damage was done. However, he lost it after being arrested in a murder case. Though acquitted later, he could not regain his charisma. Bhagavathar was the richest actor during his day and lived in princely style. Yet he was a humble person with many fine qualities of which many were not aware. His life and career lay in ruins around him and his attempts to stage a comeback failed miserably. After his release from prison in 1947, he produced and appeared in Raja Mukthi in 1948 a fine musical but a failure at the box-office. He also starred in Amarakavi, Shyamala, Pudu Vazhvu and Sivakami, but none of them was a success. He gradually went to pieces, losing his health and wealth, and died virtually a pauper. Even Bhagavathar\'s funeral arrangements were made possible only through the generosity of friends and admirers. When Bhagavathar died in 1959, a few scenes of Sivakami\' had been shot with him. The film was released posthumously.

Spouse:

Late.Mrs.Rajammal

Father:	Late.Shri.Krishnamurthy(Goldsmith)
Brother(s):	M.K. Shanmugam.
Son(s):	Ravindran

Mother:	Late.Mrs.Manikkathammal
Daughter(s):	Saroja