Karnan (1964)
January 14, 1964Release Date
Plot.
Where to Watch.
Cast & Crew.
Sivaji Ganesan
Karna
Savitri
Bhanumathi
N.T. Rama Rao
Shri Kishan
Devika
Subhangi
Ashokan
Duryodhana
R. Muthuraman
Arjun
M. V. Rajamma
Kunti Devi
S. A. Asokan
Duryodhanan
B. Ramakrishnaiah Panthulu
Director
Kannadasan
Writer
Kannadasan
Writer
O. A. K. Thevar
Kanagan
Javar Seetharaman
Bhishma
T. S. Muthaiah
Shakuni
T. K. Ramamoorthy
Composer
R. Balasubramaniam
Parashuramar
Media.
Details.
Release DateJanuary 14, 1964
Original Nameகர்ணன்
StatusReleased
Running Time2h 57m
Genres
Wiki.
Karnan () is a 1964 Indian Tamil-language Hindu mythological film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. It stars Sivaji Ganesan leading an ensemble cast consisting of N. T. Rama Rao, S. A. Ashokan, R. Muthuraman, Savitri, Devika and M. V. Rajamma. The film is based on the story of Karna, a character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata.
Karnan, which was officially launched in 1963, was shot in palaces at Jaipur and the war sequences were filmed in Kurukshetra, which featured several soldiers from the Indian Army. The film's original soundtrack was composed by the duo Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy, while the lyrics were written by Kannadasan. The screenplay was written by A. S. Nagarajan and the dialogues by Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy. The film was the first in Tamil to be colourised using Eastmancolor.
Karnan was released on 14 January 1964, during the festival occasion of Pongal. The film ran for over 100 days in theatres, and later won the Certificate of Merit for the Third Best Feature Film at the 11th National Film Awards. It was considered a milestone in Tamil cinema as it brought together the then leading actors of South Indian cinema, Ganesan and Rama Rao. The film was also partly responsible for a resurgence in films based on Hindu epics in the industry. A digitised version of Karnan was released in March 2012 to critical and commercial success.