The first stand-up comic in Tamil, the actor who dazzled his audience as Thuglaq and Jaambazaar Jaggu, passed away yesterday. Our columnist Sujatha Narayanan talks about Cho Ramaswamy’s on and off-screen persona
CHENNAI: The advantage a character or comedy artiste has over lead actors is their on-screen longevity. Traversing eras and legendary lead-pairs Cho Ramaswamy’s long innings in Tamil film and theatre saw a break only when he was in his mid-70s. A sharp mind which got a warm welcome among stalwarts of his time like MGR and Sivaji Ganesan, he also bonded well with Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan in his later years.
Cho, as his adage came to stay after his name from a famous role in the play and film Themazhai (1966), is regarded as the Bernard Shaw of Tamil Theatre. Social and political satires apart from the ‘defining role’ of Cho’s filmography is something no actor before him dared to take on. Mohammad Bin Thuglak (1968 the play and 1971 the film) would be the most iconic role to many fans and stays as his key contribution to Tamil theatre as a playwright/writer. Be that as it may, I would still urge you to watch the film Bommalaattam (1970) and his portrayal of the iconic Jaambazaar Jaggu.
Born as Srinivasa Iyer Ramaswamy, Cho’s floundering local rowdy act as Jaggu, who spurns Chinnaponnu’s love (played with equal gusto by Manorama — his pair in many films) is a laugh riot. Jaggu’s lessons in romance forms a hilarious three-act scene in this runaway super-hit. It is no surprise that the screenplay and dialogues for the film were written by Cho. The song Vaa Vaadhiyaare Vootaanda is a solo number by Manorama but the swag in the visual belonged to Cho’s Jaggu who made the Madras bashai famous beyond borders with words like manaf (to forgive) isthikinu (to pull) kanduka kanduka (note it!). And that scene with Nagesh where both of them go ‘dhaa.. aaa...’ as they hatch a plot to make Sukumar (Jaishanker) impress Malathi (Jayalalitha) is a lesson in dialogue-delivery from both master-comedians!
A lawyer at Madras Higth Court whose plays ran to full houses, Cho was initiated to act in films by Sivaji Ganesan who saw him first on Y G Parthasarathy’s United Amateur Artistes’s (UAA) play Petraalthaan Pillaiyaa (1965) but Cho went on to act in a good number of MGR smash-hits early on. Most of those films starred Jayalalithaa whose stage-debut was with Cho as her pair in an English play by UAA. En Annan (1970), Engal Thangam (1970), Kumari Kottam(1971) and Adimai Penn (1969) are some of the films where the scenes without MGR worked as much as the scenes with him in it because of the freedom Cho had, to improvise his lines and make them pertinent to the political and social setting of those times.
Cho’s image outside cinema was that of an intelligent man who was bold to criticise and quick-to-retort with sharp one-liners. But some of his film roles required him to play dumb, innocent and bordering-on-crazy and be the hero’s friend and he did it all with sparkling wit intact. His big round eyes, baby face and lanky frame naturally enriched his body language and he was at ease playing rowdy (Bomalaattam) or constable (Thangapathakam 1974) or older uncle (Ninaivil Nindraval 1967) or college-mate (Niraikudam 1969).
Cho had a special equation with all his peers and his chemistry with Nagesh and Sivaji Ganesan shine bright in Galatta Kalyanam (1968) where he plays the ‘dunce murai-maappillai’ for the four daughters of Thangavelu and tries to foist Madan’s (Sivaji) plans as he goes about match-making for them. He worked on a maximum number of films with Jaishankar and later on, did character roles with Rajinikanth in films like Aarilirindhu Aruvadhu Varai (1979) and made customary appearances as a mark of their friendship in films like Adutha Vaarisu (1983), Guru Shishyan (1988) and Athisiya Piravi (1990) in which Cho strategically got to play Yama’s ‘accountant-of-lives’ Chitraguptan. Cho had a special fondness with Kamal Haasan as well and lent his support during the filming of Kadhala Kadhala (1998) when Kamal was weathering a face-off between the Director’s Union and FEFSI.
The role of the foolish king Thuglaq who introduces startling reforms in the country (he abolishes corruption by simply making it legal) remains as a timeless masterpiece commentary on any government — past or present. The first issue of his magazine Thuglak (published since 1970) had the illustration of two donkeys munching away the first copy of the magazine at a dustbin where one of the donkeys claim that they will now have regular virindhu (feast) as Cho has started a magazine. What capacity for self-satire! And what self confidence…to be the first stand-up comedian in Tamil (when such a talent was not a fad like it is today), who reflected society and hit-out at politicians with humorous barbs without losing their admiration for him!
‘We miss him’
Choked with grief and shock over Cho’s demise, friends, colleagues and admirers from both theatre and film industry had a lot to say about Cho — the Bernard Shaw of Tamil Theatre
Sowcar Janaki
Cho was a multi-faceted personality. I first met him at Sivaji Ganesan’s house when I was shooting for Motor Sundarampillai. I like people who are frank and straight-forward and he was one. His magazine Tughlaq had intelligent things that one could ponder on. I liked his comedy too; it was not slapstick but intelligent with his trademark Saidapet slang. He was a good actor and a good person. He turned up for my 75th birthday party and appreciated my work. We know he was Jayalalithaa’s trusted advisor and it looks like he wanted her to depart first and follow suit. We are losing all intelligent and dynamic people and this makes me very sad. What’s happening to Chennai?
Crazy Mohan
It is a great loss. He was a father figure to me and he was the one who told me to focus on humour that will appeal to all. He achieved everything he wanted in life and had made some great friends in the political world, cinema and theatre. He is my mentor. My much-loved drama Chocolate Krishna was inspired by Cho’s Sambhavami Yuge Yuge. I am sure he has gone to heaven and that too right after Jayalalithaa. He must be advising her there also! He didn’t like anyone quitting their job. I met him 20 days ago and he asked me if I am still working. He wanted me to be an engineer.
Kathadi Ramamurthy
I have known Cho from 1958. I got the name ‘Kathadi’ because of him. In the early 1960s, Cho directed the drama Ennidam Kidaithal, where I played Kathadi, a cartoonist. Since then, I have been addressed as Kathadi and that’s how I’ve been recognised. Cho has been an integral part of our lives. We have joined hands in various stages and dramas including Sambavami Yuge Yuge and Mind is a Monkey. He was a person who could fight negativity and a man with tremendous courage. He was never been afraid to voice his opinion and his demise is a big loss for me. I have lost my ‘gurunathar’ but his visions and his way of life will always be remembered and followed by us
Visu
I was never that close to Cho but we were admirers of each other’s works. Though we all belonged to theatre, he was close to S Ve Shekar, Crazy Mohan and others. Cho was the one person who brought out different type of plays. We did drama as stage plays but he introduced the concept of comedy on stage. I admired him for his politically bold statements. He used to watch all my dramas and when it was houseful, he even stood in a corner to watch. I did the same. We congratulated each other after our plays and that was it. What’s surprising is that he was an advisor to Jayalalithaa and he passed away right after her. It is a different feeling.
S Ve Shekher
Politician, actor, playwright
Cho Ramaswamy was a genius and my manaseega guru. He was the one who introduced me to Narendra Modi. I know him for 56 years, since I was just 10. His first ever stage play was directed by my father (SV Venkatraman). He didn’t mince words and was fearless. I can say with pride that he has mentioned me in his book about famous personalities he came across in life. Cho had guts to announce retirement from stage plays when he was at his peak in the theatre circuit. He stood by his strong ideas. He was an ardent devotee of Kanchi Paramacharya, and a believer. His Enge Brahmanan was a big hit. It was no ordinary mega serial. The appreciation everybody had for it was overwhelming. He’d never show off. Though we had differences in political ideologies, we got along very well.
Sachu:
I was his pair in several films and have known him since his theatre days. When we were travelling to Singapore along with Manorama and Chandrababu for a fundraiser, we indulged in a few fun games to kill time. During one such game, we were supposed to pick a chit and do as told. Cho had written ‘Sachu should give me five dollars’ in all the chits! I gave it but challenged that I will get it back from him. Recently, a few months back, he told me that I won’t be able to get back the five dollars from him. My point is…he remembered everything and was a person who loved challenges, small or big. I lost a sister yesterday and today, I have lost a brother. He used to love the way I talked and we have had our share of fun moments. Today, we lost him. His energy was infectious and having people like him in the industry and working alongside him has kept us energetic. We can never forget his writing, his direction and his works…Cho will always be in our hearts.
Neelu
I was associated with Cho for the last 60 years and we had performed together on several stages. In fact, the characters he wrote for his plays were tailor-made and I must say that I was lucky to be a part of them. If not for that, I would not have become popular. For a play called Kalyani, the person who played the role of CID Chandru couldn’t make it. So Cho took his place. The investigation scene with the hero Sundaram and villain Narasimhan was very popular and usually one of the two would score during the scene. But, this time it was Cho who stole the show and everyone was spellbound. A dynamic, straightforward person, he did not expect anything from others. A simple man is how we remember Cho. I have admired and learnt from him. His loss is very personal and we can never find another Cho.
Chinni Jeyanth
As a child I watched a lot of his plays. We lived behind Music Academy and the minute I knew there was a play, I would grab the front seat. The first play of Cho I watched was Madras by Night and later on enjoyed Mohammed Bin Tughlaq, Saraswathi Sabadham and Sambhavami Yuge Yuge. I did not understand his jokes as a child. I loved his role as Tughlaq in the play; he had an unmatched style! I watched a sketch show three years ago and I with pride I told my children that I had watched it by the person who had actually invented it. I also had the opportunity to work with him. His improvs and political satire were very lively. Even when he spoke, there was always a tinge of political satire. He loved it when I mimicked Kamal Haasan and would always request me to do so and laugh out loud. He told me once that unlike other mimicry artistes I had my own style and that is my plus. He was not just a comedian, but an intelligent person and a great actor. Nobody can ever beat his style.
Madhan Bob
My association with Cho goes back to the days of Saraswathiyin Selvan, a show which was aired on Sundays, mostly parodies and spoofs of commercial Tamil cinema. I composed music for the series and our relationship has been great since then. He is sometimes child-like, sometimes humourous with extreme satire. I’ve always admired his courage and straightforwardness. If you need an honest opinion, you had to go to him. He used visit my house for all the functions and his demise is definitely a loss in many ways.