Panneer Pushpangal


Panneer Pushpangal is a 1981 Tamil-language Indian romance film directed by Bharathi-Vasu in their directorial debut. It is loosely based on the 1979 film A Little Romance.

Plot

Panneer Pushpangal is a love story between Suresh and Shantikrishna supported by their teacher Prathap Pothen.

Cast

Development

During an impromptu discussion, K. Rajeswar had narrated the story of two convent students coming of age to Gangai Amaran. Moved by the tale, Gangai Amaran gave the directorial opportunity to P. Vasu and Santhana Bharathi at the helm. Vasu, son of make up man Peethambaram and Santhanabharathi, son of producer M. R. Santhanam, made their directorial debuts with this film. According to Amaran, "The idea of the story came out of friendly banter".

Casting

A photographer friend of Suresh's father opined that Suresh could make it as a lead actor and with a portfolio, Suresh approached director C. V. Sridhar to feature in his films, but his effort went in vain. He then met director duo Santhana Bharathi and P. Vasu who decided to cast him their venture, Panneer Pushpangal, while simultaneously he was cast in the lead role in P. Bharathiraja's Alaigal Oivathillai presenting him with a dilemma of which film to choose; he chose the former. The film also marked the Tamil debut of Shanthi Krishna.

Filming

The film was shot at The Laidlaw Memorial School of St. George's Homes, Ketti, in the Nilgiris.

Themes

Panneer Pushpangal deals with adolescent love, a theme that was not frequently explored in 1980s Tamil cinema.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Ilaiyaraaja while the lyrics were written by Gangai Amaran. The song "Ananda Raagam" is set in Simhendramadhyamam raga, and "Vengaya Sambarum" is set in Shanmukhapriya. Ilaiyaraja later reused "Ananda Ragam" as "Saara Yeh Aalam" in Shiva.