The walls in the ‘discussion room’ of Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar recipient AR Srinivasan aka ARS at Sarangapani Street, T Nagar, is lined with awards, citations and vintage photographs of the octogenarian — a reminiscent of his work in theatre and cinema. The man who has done over 110 films, 63 TV shows and over 3,000 stage plays, in a career spanning over 50 years, chats with City Express about his journey into theatre, his interest in cricket, his memorable moments under the arch light, being a pioneer in television and more.
“I was not interested in theatre. In fact I didn’t even know I could act!” he recalls. ARS’ entry into theatre was an accident — literally. “I was interested in cricket and was even about to be a part of the Ranji trophy. But, I met with an accident and had to rest for almost three months. This changed my life in many ways.” A former employee of Philips, the Kalaimamani recipient recalls that the Independence Day programme at office used to be filled with entertainment, music and other performances and he was also asked to perform a skit. “One such year, Sundar, YG Parthasarathy’s brother dropped in while I was performing. After the act, he said that my acting was good and asked if I wanted to take it up professionally. I said I wasn’t interested in acting.
But, everyone knew the quality of United Amateur Artists and encouraged me to consider it.” ARS then visited YGP and they clicked instantly. The rest as they say was history. “We had general conversations in the beginning and gradually became close. The team was planning to go on a trip to Thanjavur and Thiruvaiyaru and invited me to join them. Since I am from Thanjavur, he was surprised that I had never been to Thiruvaiyaru. I readily agreed to join them. But, later he had a surprise or rather a shock for me!” he exclaims. In between all the excitement of the trip, Sundar broke the news to Srinivasan that one of the main artistes hadn’t turned up and that Srinivasan had to replace him. “I was shocked! And throughout the journey, I was rehearsing my dialogues and I should say, I was nervous!” But, as the curtain went up, life changed for ARS.
Playing a father role, he shared the stage with J Jayalalithaa, Vidya and other renowned stage artists of the time. “Everyone appreciated my role. YGP said that I should never leave the troupe. I had my inhibitions, but as I started attending rehearsals with Cho, YGP gave me major roles and my life in theatre began,” he smiles. ‘Unplanned, unexpected and unprepared’, as he calls his entry into theatre, ARS gradually started directing plays. His first play Kannan Vandhal, was translated into a film as Sivaji Ganesan’s Gauravam (1973) and was a thundering success. Ask him about his favourite roles in theatre and he says, “Imperfect Murder where I had a peculiar role, is my favourite. In fact that was my biggest success — MGR, Sivaji and Gemini Ganesan became my fans!” He was known for his role as a mathematics professor in the play Kurukshetra, which was, as he puts it, “a rage in Madras back then!” With diverse roles, theatre was different back then and they were ‘forced to do good plays’.
“We had people like K Balachander, Cho, VS Raghavan, Major Sundara Rajan, Sivaji and Nagesh in theatre. They used to do brilliant theatre and if us — the amateurs — didn’t do well, who would come to watch us? We had to do a good job!” he shares. A self-confessed Sivaji fan, he recalls, “He had the habit of coming to the venue by 6.15 pm for a 7 pm play. Sometimes, he would meet us in the dressing room and ask, ‘Aren’t you ready yet?’ I have always admired the man and I can go on talking about him for days. I have learnt a lot from him. In fact, I can mimic him and act like him…this, I do out of love for him!” he smiles.
His first film was Oh Manju (1976) directed by Sridhar, and Srinivasan has done a plethora of other roles — balancing his profession, cinema, theatre and ‘the promise he made to his father’. “I had to choose responsible roles because I was in a high rank in office. Also, when I asked my father if I could act (he was a strict man) he said — ‘ you are responsible, but if you want to act you should not do vulgar roles. You have to go to office every day and not take leave for the sake of films’. I followed all that till the end. I used to run from shooting spots and theatre shows to office at odd hours. I have to credit YGP for helping me out.
He used to book my flight tickets and help me in every way possible,” he says. Musing about his past, he says, “To think about it now, it seems surreal. I don’t know how I managed. But everyone from Sivaji to Kamal and Rajini have adjusted their time for me. I wasn’t even a top star like Nagesh, but they all had that magnanimity. I don’t think any actor will do it for anyone today,” he avers. So, how would he sum up this journey? “It was unexpected, yet fulfilling. From being on TV, cinema and theatre to working with maestros of our times to the recent ones, it has been ‘top class’!” he grins.