‘Sringaram’ set to re-release for Margazhi: Why this Tamil film on the devadasis is relevant

Adito Rao Hydari in ‘Sringaram’
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Madhura (Aditi Rao Hydari) shuts the door. She removes her sari and jewels, changes into simpler clothing, places them in front of landlord Mirasu, and walks out of the house. 

It’s a powerful sequence in Sringaram, made even more poignant due to Madhu Ambat’s frames and Lalgudi Jayaman’s music. Originally released in 2008, the critically-acclaimed film has now been digitally remastered in 4K and is set for a re-release during this Margazhi season when music and dance are celebrated in Chennai.

Set between the 1920s and 1950s, this feature, based on the Devadasi era, tells the story of Madhura’s exploitation by her landlord. While it marked the debut of both its director (Sharada Ramanathan) and lead actor (Aditi Rao Hydari), Sringaram was packed with heavyweights in the technical team, boasting names like choreographer Saroj Khan, art director Thota Tharani, cinematographer Madhu Ambat and musician Lalgudi Jayaraman.

“One of the major meanings that the film explores is: what does art mean? Where it come from and what did it mean to the community from where it came? Sringaram contextualises it for you. After watching it, when you go to a kutcheri, maybe you will listen to it differently because you know where it came from,” says Sharada.

A still from ‘Sringaram’

The film strives to delve deep into its lead actor’s (played by Aditi Rao Hydari) relationship with dance and her passion towards the art form. How did she zero in on a young Aditi, who has since then come a long way in her film journey? “Initially, the script lent itself to having someone like Shobana. At that point, I had actually asked Aditi if she was interested in acting as Shobana’s younger sister. After the script changed, Aditi became the lead, something that overwhelmed her initially, but then things fell in place.”

One of the highlights of Sringaram is its music by the late Lalgudi G Jayaraman, the legendary 20^th century composer and violinist. “I remember chasing him for over six months for this project,” recalls Sharada, “At that time, he had several offers from prospective filmmakers, which he had turned down. Finally, he relented to listen to the story and within 20 minutes of the narration, he was on board.”

For its re-release, the process of re-mastering the film took over a few months and was arduous, she adds. “The first step was to find the negative; so many negatives have been lost in the past, including some of Mani Ratnam’s works. We were lucky to find it and part of it had to be restored; Prasad Labs made it happen for us.” Colour correction and re-doing the sound were part of the process, something that Madhu Ambat worked on for several weeks.

Sharada Ramanathan, director of ‘Sringaram’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Sringaram has been much celebrated among the film fraternity; it won three National Awards and two state awards, besides featuring in over 10 international film festivals. Its re-release, Sharada hopes, will resonate among current audiences as it is rooted in Indian history and culture and has a universal message. In its premiere screening held recently, actors like Andrea Jeremiah and Ashwin Kakumanu hailed the film for its “purity and innocence”. Sharada say, “The soul we put into the project is visible. It reminds me not to lose that soul in anything else I do.”