Actor Kamal Haasan who is basking in the mega success of his latest release Vikram, made a great point about pan-Indian movies during one of the promotional interviews of the film. He said that pan-Indian movies are not based on content. In this age, when sub-titles and dubbing are the norm, no film is in 'another' language for you. Kamal said pan-Indian success is based on the ability of the production house to take (market) the film to a larger audience. His point was spot on as the recent pan-Indian successes, like Pushpa, RRR, and KGF 2 were all aggressively marketed across the country.
But there was a time when pan-Indian hits happened organically. It was mostly Bollywood movies because, unlike now when Southern filmdoms call the shots, it was the Hindi films that ruled the roost. Hindi producers had the money to take their movies to the southern markets. Not surprising our list is dominated by Hindi movies.
Aradhana (1969)
Imagine a Hindi movie running to packed houses in Madras (now Chennai) at the height of anti-Hindi agitations. Well, that was the kind of magic that Aradhana managed to whip up. Most of the public in South India did not understand Hindi, and there were no subtitles too. Aradhana rode high on its brilliant songs, so fresh and lilting even today. S D Burman tunes and Kishore Kumar's voice won the audience over. Of course, the winsome pair of Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore had the viewers all over India besotted. It is a fact that for a few years in the early 70s Rajesh Khanna's popularity in India was overpowering, the kind of which has not been replicated till now.
Aradhana can be watched on Amazon Prime India.
Sholay (1975)
This is perhaps the most popular film in the time it was released in. The thing is it ran for over a year in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. At least Aradhana, at its core, was about romance - a universal theme. Sholay, on the other hand, was all about the baddies of the Hindi heartland. That such a theme resonates with diverse audience was down to the screenplay. The film had romance, friendship, comedy, valour, action, poignancy, music and songs. It got the mix precise. so much so, Sholay, in its spirit, till date remains the template for masala entertainers. Also, it is with Sholay that the legend of Amitabh Bachchan was born for viewers in South India. (Up north, he had announced his arrival with movies like Zanjeer).
Sholay can be watched on Amazon Prime Video
Sankarabaranam (1980)
For a south Indian movie to get the approval of folks in other parts of the country, music needed to be a big attraction. This film, whose title is a Carnatic raga, had National award winning music from the baton of K V Mahadevan. This unpretentious tale of a traditional Carnatic musician and his heartwarming bondage with a dancer (courtesan) and her young daughter. true art can be a bridge between disparate humans, it is a larger theme that also finds echo in the other works of the director Viswanath. The movie won four National Film Awards including the Best Film with Mass Appeal, Wholesome Entertainment & Aesthetic Values, the first for a South-Indian film at the 27th National Film Awards. Carnatic music got a fresh lease of life in South India thanks to the success of this film.
Sankarabaranam can be watched on Amazon Prime Video
Ek Duje Ke Liye (1981)
In a sense, Ek Duje Ke Liye is a reverse Aradhana. A romantic sentimental story with great music goes from the South and wows the public in the Hindi speaking areas. Ek Duje Ke Liye is essentially a South story, it is a remake of the Telugu hit Marocharithra by the same director K Balachander. Of course, Ek Duje Ke Liye was the Hindi debut of the redoubtable Kamal Haasan. he became a national sensation and it is a fact that his success in Bollywood certainly made some big stars uncomfortable that they used some 'dirty tricks' to stall his growth there. But that is a story for another day. But now go hum, Hum Bane Tum Bane... song.
Ek Duje Ke Liye can be watched on Amazon Prime Video
Roja (1992)
By the time Roja was made, Mani Ratnam, whose movie Nayagan had made the entire country sit up and take notice of his talent, was a well-established director. And Roja with its story, a Tamil computer crypto code specialist is kidanapped in Kashmir, had a natural national appeal. Kashmir issue was raging at that time.The young and beautiful Arvind Swamy and Madhoo made a fetching pair on screen. And of course, the film saw the arrival of national phenomenon A R Rahman. His music became the national rage. He remains a national phenomenon to this day. Whne Arvind Swamy on screen tried to put out the fire on the National Flag with his body to the rousing tune of ARR, a nation was stirred into a collective belief of oneness.
Roja can be watched on Amazon Prime Video
- Don, CBI 5: The Brain, The Broken News lead OTT releases - June 10 weekend
