Ganapathi Subramania Sarma (17 November 1920 – 22 March 2005), better known by his stage name Gemini Ganesan, was an Indian film actor who worked mainly in Tamil cinema. He was nicknamed "Kadhal Mannan" (King of Romance) for the romantic roles he played in films. Ganesan was one among the "three biggest names of Tamil cinema", the other two being M. G. Ramachandran (known by his acronym as MGR) and Sivaji Ganesan.While Sivaji Ganesan excelled in films with drama, and MGR dominated films with fight sequences, Gemini Ganesan held his own with sensitive portrayals of the yearning lover. A recipient of the Padmashree in 1971, he had also won several other prestigious awards such as the "Kalaimamani", the "MGR Gold Medal" and the "Screen Lifetime Achievement Award". He came from an orthodox Brahmin family, and was one of the few graduates to enter the film industry at that time.
Gemini Ganesan made his debut with Miss Malini in 1947, but was noticed only after his villainous performance in Thai Ullam in 1953. After playing the lead role in Manam Pola Mangalyam (1954), he finally acquired star status. However, unlike Sivaji Ganesan or MGR, Gemini Ganesan was not originally a stage performer, and was never involved in politics. In his long film career spanning over five decades, Ganesan acted in more than 200 films, mainly in Tamil, and Hindi, Malayalam , Telugu, and Kannada. His performances on the screen were enhanced by successful playback singers such as A. M. Rajah and P. B. Sreenivas. In spite of his celebrated film career, Ganesan's personal life, particularly his marriage to multiple women over the years, has often been a subject of criticism. He won 2 Filmfare Awards for his entire acting career.
In his career spanning nearly 50 years, Ganesan played a variety of roles, from Abhimanyu in Mayabazar (1957), to freedom fighter Madasamy in Kappalotiya Thamizhan (1961), and in Pennin Perumai (1960), he played a non-assertive imbecile morphing into a well-moulded human being. Ganesan also starred in Kalathur Kannamma (1959), which was also the debut for Kamal Haasan, who would later become one of the leading actors in Tamil cinema. The film won the Certificate of Merit for the Third Best Feature Film in 1961. Ganesan also starred in Veerapandiya Kattabomman (1959), alongside Sivaji Ganesan. The film was selected for the Afro-Asian Film Festival in 1960. It was also nominated for the National Film Award in 1960, along with Gemini Ganesan's Kalyana Parisu, but both lost to Bhaaga Pirivinai. The Ruritanian romance film Vanjikottai Valiban (1958) was a high budget film and became a huge commercial success due to much hype. The historical fiction film Parthiban Kanavu (1960) won the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film, but failed commercially.
His 1961 film Then Nilavu, was the first Tamil film to be shot extensively in Jammu and Kashmir, and became a great success at the box office. He co-starred with rival actor M. G. Ramachandran in Mugarasi (1966), which was their only film together. Konjum Salangai (1962), which featured Ganesan alongside Savithri was released in various countries outside India, having subtitles in over 22 languages, and it was also the first Tamil film to be released in Poland, in a dubbed version. Ganesan's best performance is considered to be in his home production Naan Avan Illai (1974), in which he played many roles as a seducer of women. Directed by K. Balachandar, this film won high critical praise for Ganesan's performance, but according to Ganesan, the film did not succeed commercially. Some of his other best works include Missiamma, School Master, Kanavaney Kankanda Deivam, Meenda Sorgam, Shanti Nilayam, Vaazhkai Padagu, Karpagam, Ramu, Thamarai Nenjam and Punnagai. Ganesan had paired with several leading actresses such as Anjali Devi, Pushpavalli, Padmini, Vyjayanthimala, Savithri, Devika, Vijayakumari, Saroja Devi, Rajasree, Kanchana, Jayanthi, K. R. Vijaya, Bharathi and Jayalalithaa.
Bollywood career
Gemini Ganesan acted in a few Hindi films, most of which were remakes of his Tamil films. His first Hindi film was Missiamma's remake Miss Mary (1957), where he was paired with Meena Kumari. The film became one of the biggest hits of that year. Notably, he played the lead role in Devta, which was the Hindi version of his own Tamil film Kanavaney Kankanda Deivam. He also acted in the Ruritanian epic film Raj Tilak (1958), which was the Hindi remake of his own Vanjikottai Valiban. It was a box office failure, having collapsed within a week of its release. He later appeared in a guest role in Nazrana (1961), the Hindi remake of his own Kalyana Parisu, that had him in the lead. Though the film was an average grosser, it was the 12th highest-grossing film of the year.
Later years
Later in his career, he switched to slightly different character roles. Notable among these was the Telugu film Rudraveena (remade in Tamil as Unnal Mudiyum Thambi), considered one of his best films in Telugu. Another notable film was Avvai Shanmughi (1996), in which he characteristically played the role of an old man longing for an old maid, portrayed by Kamal Haasan. Towards the end of his acting career, he kept himself busy with elegant roles in television serials, one notable serial was Krishnadasi. Ganesan also appeared in Mettukudi (1996), Kaalamellam Kadhal Vaazhga (1997), Thodarum (1998), and his last major role came the same year with Naam Iruvar Namakku Iruvar,followed by special appearances in Gemini (2002) and Adi Thadi (2004).
Death
After a prolonged illness caused by renal failure and multiple organ failure, Gemini Ganesan died surrounded by Bobji and their daughters at his residence on 22 March 2005, 13:30 IST. He was cremated with full state honours. Prominent personalities including Tamil Nadu's chief ministers M. Karunanidhi and Jayalalitha paid their last respects to the veteran actor. Ganesan's funeral was not attended by his estranged daughter Rekha, who was then in Himachal Pradesh shooting for a film.
Accolades
1970 – Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for Kaaviya Thalaivi
1990 - Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary Award - MGR Award
1971 – Padma Shri Award
1974 – Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor for Naan Avanillai
1993 – Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South
MGR Gold Medal
Screen Lifetime Achievement Award
Kalaimamani Award
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