CHENNAI: India Post, which marked its 170th anniversary on October 1, has long been a cornerstone of India’s communication and emotional history. Letters, transported by postmen across vast distances, carried a profound emotional significance for people in both urban and rural India. In the pre-digital era, the anticipation of receiving a letter was a source of immense joy and anxiety, and this emotion left a deep imprint on Bollywood as well as regional film industries.
The postman, as a symbol of connectivity, became an endearing figure in popular culture, delivering not just messages but stories of love, separation, and longing. Migration — where one left their homes in search of work — or lovers communicating through letters, made the medium a vehicle for both sorrow and joy.
This melancholy is best captured in the wistful songs of the past, keeping alive the nostalgic magic of letter-writing, where each chitthi or kaditham (letter) held a universe of emotions.
Message, messenger
In Bollywood’s romantic narratives, love letters played a special role. Songs like Likhe Jo Khat Tujhe from Kanyadaan (1968) and Kabootar Ja Ja Ja from Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) immortalise letters as messengers of love. The anticipation of receiving a letter from a beloved, and the emotions tied to it gave Bollywood some of its most unforgettable moments. They were intensified by the slow, deliberate pace of handwritten letters, which contrast the instant communication of modern times.
In Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein (1977), Rajesh Khanna played a postman in the song Dakiya Daak Laya, which highlights the importance of a postman in villages. In real life, too, the postman was a trusted figure, connecting communities and many times reading out letters to the recipients, for he was one of the few literate people in some places.
A moving portrayal of the world of letters and postmen can also be found in Shyam Benegal’s Dak Ghar (1965), based on a Rabindranath Tagore’s play. It tells the story of a terminally-ill child whose only connection to the outside world is his window. When he learns about a new post office being built, he dreams of becoming a postman and delivering letters all over the country.
The song Jhan Jhan Baaje Ektaara in particular showcases this imaginative leap, as the boy envisions himself crisscrossing the country, from Ooty to Shimla, carrying letters and connecting with the wider world. Through this dreamlike exploration, Dak Ghar mirrors the emotional weight that letters carried in real life, offering a bittersweet portrayal of the freedom they symbolised for those bound by physical limitations.
One of the most iconic Bollywood songs that captures the essence of emotional connection is Chitthi Aai Hai from Naam (1986). Sung by Pankaj ‘Udhas’, it resonated deeply with millions of NRIs longing for home. Its simple melody and lyrics stirred such strong emotions that it’s said some people left their jobs and returned to India after hearing it. The song reflects the pain of a migrant, longing for home, and the joy of seeking reconnection through a letter.
The emotional role of letters extended beyond love stories, as seen in films like Border (1997). Sandese Aate Hai vividly depicts soldiers waiting for letters from their families, letters becoming the symbols of hope and memory.
Connected by kaditham
Novelist Franz Kafka once wrote to his lover, Milena, “Written kisses don’t reach their destination, rather they are drunk on the way by the ghosts.” While these kisses may not read this destination, the scrawled words travel.
From Tamil black-and-white films to modern day cinema, kaadhal and kaditham are inseparable, words of endearment spill across the pages. In Kuzhandaiyum Deivamum’s (1965), song Anbulla Maanvizhiye, a letter is not merely a letter. It begins with Jaishankar hurriedly writing on a crumpled piece of paper and hands it to Jamuna.
Addressed to his maanvizhiye, this letter of love and desire has been penned with eyes, and not pen, the song declares. The piece of paper seems to be forgotten as coy, cheeky romancing and dance ensue. But the words remain embedded in the scene, just as letters carry burning aching affection and passionate prose. How does one begin a letter? In Naan Anuppuvathu Kaditham Alla Sivaji Ganesan, armed with pen and book, sings he isn’t sending a letter but his soul.
In the silent misty caves in Kodaikanal, Kamal Hassan as Gunaa asks Roshini to pen a letter to his kanmani, ponmani, to convey his pure love. Which word to choose a lover? How to phrase it? And in letter format? — this character, grasps for the apt words. After all, “unna nenachu pakumbothu kavitha, manasula aruvi maari kothuthu (when I think of you, words inside flow like waterfalls). Kamal’s words echo inside the cave, and end up in a tearful song-like letter Kanmani Anbodu Kadhalan.
When words do not suffice, lovers of the world succumb and borrow from nature’s dictionary. Gazing at cloudy skies, yearning letters are filled with metaphors from the world of stars, moons, skies and constellations to capture overwhelming feelings.
AR Rahman’s Kaadhal Kaditham from Jodi is no different. Here, a piece of sky turns into a blank sheet, the blue doubling as ink. “Chandhiranum sooriyanum anjal karargal, iravu pagal eppozhuthum anjal unnai sernthidum.” (The sun and moon are postmen, and whether it is day or night, you will receive the mail).
Letters aren’t restricted only to romance-potential lovers. In Ezhuthugiren Oru Kaditham, a mother’s feelings fill the yellowed pages of a black notebook. In Tamil, a letter addressed to a not-yet-born child, In K Balachander’s Kalki.
The ink hasn’t dried yet
Messages have taken many forms, but none have been as enduring as the handwritten letter. The time for reflection that a letter allows makes the communication more thoughtful and sincere. The ritualistic aspects — getting the address right, selecting the stamp, and visiting the post office — transform letter writing into more than just an exchange of words. It becomes an experience, a meaningful connection between sender and receiver, imbued with the effort and care that only this medium can provide.
(Inputs from Archita Raghu)