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| Suhasini and Chiranjeevi in Manchupallaki |
In Suhasini's words...
"The film is about a platonic friendship between five guys and a very special but simple girl! I played the role of the girl, and I die at the end. I was still at the film school when I acted in the Tamil version of the film! Rajeshekaran sir was my lecturer in the film institute and his brother Jayachandran was my classmate. When they were working on the script, it was Jayachandran who suggested my name for the movie. The film was produced by Vadivelu, the fitness master for my uncle Kamalhasan. I agreed to do the film on one condition: that I would still attend the school too. In order to accommodate that condition, they shot from 6 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. I used to start at 5:30 a.m. at my home to attend the shooting with makeup, albeit minimal. At 10 a.m. again, I used to clean the makeup in the car on the way to the school, attended the school at least after the first period. That's why one can observe most scenes either in morning or evening backdrop. I didn't take any remuneration for the film. All lead artistes in the Tamil version were newcomers, yet the film is a big hit. I did Robert sir's second film also, which was an experimental film too".
...In Telugu, this was my second film after Bharathiraja's
Kottha Jeevithalu. Until my exams were completed in August '81, I was not concentrating on acting career seriously. When
Manchu Pallaki was offered, I was done with my studies. Thus, I started taking my career more seriously with this film. Honestly speaking, I personally think that the Telugu version was much better than the Tamil version! Even, I think I look better in Telugu than in Tamil. I was paid almost equal - probablyten to fifteen thousand rupees less - compared to the hero's remuneration in Telugu! I still remember Chiranjeevi
gaaru grumbling about it... "How come a new herione gets as much amount as an already established hero?" - This was his point, and it was genuine too, of course! ...If I shouldbelieve what I heard, his exact question was to know if I was receiving high remuneration because I wasKamal Hasan's brother's daughter. ...It was nice of him to do the role still, where his was one of the five male leads and the film actually revolves around the female lead!
...I met Chiranjeevi
gaaru in the flight. He was sitting next to me in the flight and said "If you have any problems with food or accommodation, please let me know, since you're a newcomer in Telugu.", and after a pause, he added "I can only listen to your problems but cannot help in any way."("
meeku Emannaa samasyalu vastE cheppanDi... vinipeDataa kaanii Em cheyyalEnu!") (laughs). On the sets, he used to tease me in Tamil, singing a song, along with the other four male leads (Rajendra Prasad, Saichand, Narayana Rao, and Girish), which irritated me and I told them the same. Then, in order to tease me in another way still, he asked the other four to not talk to me so that I'll be annoyed and will say sorry ("
aa ammaayiki chaalaa pogaru. manam maaTlaaDakunDaa unTE appuDu tagguntundi."). But the other four used to come to me when he was not there and used to give me Tamil magazines, offer a masala dosa, or interact in some other way. After four days, I revealed to Chiranjeevi that he was the only one who was not talking to me but rest of them became good friends. He was surprised first,but soon he became a good friend. ...My father liked the subject so much that he took distribution rights in Nellore along with a friend. This was not as a part of my remuneration, though.
Chiranjeevi about Vamsy and
Manchu Pallaki:
"In [
Manchu Pallaki], [Vamsy] thought that I should play the main character which falls in love with Suhasini. Vamsy approached me through producer Edida Nageshwara Rao
gaaru while I was working for his
Subhalekha. I was also doing
Intlo Ramayya-Veedhilo Krishnayya then. I agreed to do the role. ...Vamsy is a different kind of director altogether. He never used to go the conventional way. I was like, "Who's this guy? He's doing a good job!" His thoughts were novel, his approach was unique, his taking, shot division, and shot cutting were different, and his narration was too good. Also, he has a great sense for music. Songs in Vamsy's movies are all wonderful! I particularly like the song
mEghamaa, dEhamaa!... sung by Janaki
gaaru - it's one of my favorites!Not only this one film, he did so many other musicals with Ilayaraja. His editing sense is exceptionaltoo! ...He's someone who goes for innovation anytime!"
Release theaters
Vijayawada Shailaja A/c
Guntur Pallavi
Nellore Kanaka Mahal
Elur Venkatrama
Vishaka Patnam Sharat A/c
Rajahmundry Kumari & Venkateshwara A/c
Kakinada Padmapriya A/c
Vijaya Nagaram Leelamahal
Bhimavaram Padmashri
Machili Patnam Radhika
Nizam
Hyderabad Shanthi A/c, Sridevi, Meera Delux, Konark & Satyam
Secunderabad Paradise A/c (1 show)
Ceded
Tirupathi D.R. Mahal
Anantapur Venkateshwara
Bellary Radhika
Acknowledgements : Sri Vemuri Satyanarayana garu, Vamsy Garu, Suhasini Garu and Chiranjeevi Garu.
Release Centers Info : Sri Vijayabhaskar
Edited by Nachaki
Article by Sri
