Padmini Ramachandran (12 June 1932 – 24 September 2006)[1][2][3] was an Indian actress and trained Bharatanatyam dancer, who acted in over 250 Indian films.[1] She acted in Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu and Russian language films. Padmini, with her elder sister Lalitha and her younger sister Ragini, were called the "Travancore sisters".[4]

This article may be written from a fan's point of view, rather than a neutral point of view. (December 2020)

Padmini Ramachandran
Padmini in 1950
Born	Padmini (1932-06-12)12 June 1932[1] Trivandrum, Travancore
Died	24 September 2006(2006-09-24) (aged 74) Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Other names	Natiya Peroli, Pappima, Thiruvancore Sisters
Years active	1947-1979 (as a leading actress), 1984-1994 (as a supporting artist), 2002 (Television)
Spouse	Ramachandran ​ ​ (m. 1961; died 1981)​
Children	Premanand (b.1963)
Relatives	Shobana (niece) Ambika Sukumaran Vineeth (nephew) Sukumari (cousin)
Family	Lalitha (sister) Ragini (sister) Chandra Kumar (brother)
Signature

Early life

Padmini was born and raised in Trivandrum (present-day Thiruvananthapuram), in what was then the princely state of Travancore (now the Indian state of Kerala) to a Malayali-speaking family. She was the second daughter of Sree Thankappan Pillai and Saraswathi Amma.[1] Her sisters Lalitha and Ragini, were also well-known film actresses. Together, the three were known as the Travancore sisters.[4] Padmini and her sisters learned Bharathanatyam from Thiruvidaimarudur Mahalingam Pillai. The trio were the disciples of Indian dancer Guru Gopinath. They learned Kathakali and Kerala Natanam styles of dancing from him. N.S. Krishnan noticed her talents while she was presenting Parijatha Pushpapaharanam in Trivandrum. After that performance, he said that in the future she would become an actress. She was cast as the heroine in his own production Manamagal.^{[citation needed]}. The Travancore Sisters grew up in a joint family tharavadu (Malaya Cottage) in Poojappura, Trivandrum. Their mother was Karthiyayini Amma, whose husband was P.K. Pillai (Palakunnathu Krishna Pillai of Cherthala) alias "Penang Padmanabha Pillai". P.K. Pillai had six sons, of whom Satyapalan Nair, the youngest, was a leading producer of many early Malayalam films. They performed at the 1955 Filmfare Awards. Padmini was a leading actress and one of the highest-paid actresses of the 50s, '60s and '70s.^{[citation needed]} She is also known as one of the charming beauty queens of the '50s and '60s.^{[citation needed]} She was given the title "Natya Peroli" in Tamil Nadu because of her excellent Bharatnatyam performances in Tamil films. Her Tamil movie Thillana Mohanambal, is a cult classic of Tamil cinema and continues to be remembered even today. Her beautiful performance in Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai was outstanding and made her a national star.

Career

At the age of 16, Padmini was cast as the dancer in the Hindi film Kalpana (1948), launching her career.[5] She acted in films consecutively for nearly 30 years in the first lease of her career.[6] Padmini starred with several of the most well-known actors in Indian film, including Sivaji Ganesan, M. G. Ramachandran, N. T. Rama Rao, Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Sathyan, Prem Nazir, Rajkumar, Gemini Ganesan and S. S. Rajendran. Ezhai Padum Padu, released in 1950, was her first film in Tamil. V A Gopalakrishnan taught Padmini sisters Tamil since their mother-tongue was Malayalam. He was associated with Pakshi Raja studios.[1] Padmini Ramachandran's association with Sivaji Ganesan started with the film Panam in 1952.[5] Some of her notable Tamil films include Sampoorna Ramayanam (1958 film) (1958), Thanga Padhumai, Anbu (1953), Kaattu Roja, Thillana Mohanambal (1968), Vietnam Veedu, Edhir Paradhathu, Sri Valli (1961). Other projects include Mangayar Thilakam and Poove Poochudava (1985), Thaikku Oru Thalattu (1986), Lakshmi Vandhachu (1986) and Aayiram Kannudayaal (1986). Some of her Malayalam films include Prasanna, Snehaseema, Vivaahitha, Adhyaapika, Kumara Sambhavam (a 1969 Tamil/Malayalam bilingual), Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu (1984). Whereas Vasthuhara and Dolar marked the latter's last few films in her acting career and in Malayalam too after which, she immediately retired as an actress and hasn't appeared in any movies since.[4]

In two of her Bollywood films— Mera Naam Joker (1970), also Rishi Kapoor's debut film and Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai (1960), she was paired with Raj Kapoor. She did another film with Raj Kapoor – Aashiq (1962). Her other Bollywood films include Amardeep (1958 film), Payal (1957), Afsana (1966), Vaasna (1968), Chanda Aur Bijli (1969) and Babubhai Mistry's Mahabharat (1965).[1] Her most famous was Thillana Mohanambal- a Tamil film where she plays a dancer competing against a musician to see, whose skills are better.[4] She also acted in a 1957 Indian-Soviet film Journey Beyond Three Seas (Hindi version: Pardesi) based on the travelogues of Russian traveler Afanasy Nikitin, called A Journey Beyond the Three Seas.

Personal life

In 1961, Padmini married Ramachandran, a U.S.-based physician.[4][1] She immediately retired from films, joined her husband in the United States, and focused on family life.[4] The couple had one son, born in 1963, who now lives in Hillsdale, New Jersey and works for Warner Brothers.[7][5] Sixteen years after her wedding, in 1977, Padmini opened a classical dance school in New Jersey, named the Padmini School of Fine Arts.[5] Today, her school is considered one of the largest Indian classical dance institutions in America.^{[citation needed]}. Actress Sukumari was the maternal first cousin of Padmini and her sisters (the Travancore sisters). Shobana, the famous dancer, is the niece of Padmini. Malayalam actress Ambika Sukumaran is her relative. Actors Vineeth and Krishna are among her relatives. Padmini died of a heart attack at the Chennai Apollo Hospital on 24 September 2006 (aged 76 at the time). She was hospitalized on the previous day when she suffered a fatal heart attack during a meeting with the then Tamil Nadu CM M. Karunanidhi. She was survived by a son, who is settled in the United States. Padmini was well known for her professional rivalry with actress Vyjayanthimala, the successful dancer-actress.[8] They performed a dance number in the Tamil film Vanjikottai Valiban; the well-known song was "Kannum Kannum Kalanthu", which was sung by P. Leela and Jikki. In the song, they were pitted against each other. Due to their professional rivalry, the song has a cult following since the film was released.[8]

Awards

Won

• 1954 – Film Fans Association Award for Best Actress[9]
• 1957 – The "Best Classical Dancer Award" from Moscow Youth Festival
• 1958 – Kalaimamani Award from the Government of Madras State
• 1959 – Film Fans Association Award for Best Actress
• 1960 – Certificate of Merit for Veerapandiya Kattabomman at the Afro-Asian Film Festival[10]
• 1961 – Film Fans Association Award for Best Actress
• 1966 – Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for Kaajal
• 1966 – Film Fans Association Award for Best Actress
• 1970 – Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actress for Thillaanaa Mohanambal
• 1990 – Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South
• 2000 – Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary Award – Kalaivanar Award

Nominated

• 1960 – Filmfare Best Actress Award for Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai

Filmography

Endorsements

• Lux
• Filmfare Magazines
• Star & Style
• Remy Talcum Powder

See also

• List of Indian film actresses

References

External links

• Padmini at IMDb
• Actress Padmini speaks about her Film career on YouTube

На других языках

[de] Padmini

[ru] Падмини