Neelagiri Express
Neelagiri Express is a 1968 Indian Tamil-language thriller film directed by Thirumalai-Mahalingam and produced by V. Arunachalam. The screenplay was written by Cho Ramaswamy. The score was written by T. K. Ramamoorthy. It stars Jaishankar, Cho Ramaswamy, Vijaya Nirmala and Vijaya Lalitha. The film is a remake of a 1967 Malayalam film Cochin Express (1967).[1] It was a commercial success.[2]
| Neelagiri Express | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | Thirumalai-Mahalingam |
| Produced by | V. Arunachalam |
| Screenplay by | Cho Ramaswamy |
| Starring | Jaishankar |
| Music by | T. K. Ramamoorthy |
| Cinematography | G. Vittal Rao |
| Edited by | A. Paulduraisingam |
Production company | A. L. S. Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 120 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Plot
A murder takes place aboard Neelagiri Express, bound to Coimbatore from Madras. Ravanan is the only passenger who is travelling with a deceased. One of Ravanan's co-passengers is a mysterious woman named Kalavathy. She takes him off the train to have food at Arakkonam and purposely makes him lose the train and she disappears. In the meantime, a wealthy man named Sabapathy is murdered and Ravanan becomes a crime suspect. CID Inspector Shankar is assigned the task of nabbing the criminal behind the murder. He realises that Ravanan is innocent and begins the investigation. So, he sets out of solve the case with the help of Ravanan and eventually finds the murderer.
Cast
- Jaishankar as CID Inspector Shankar[1]
- S. A. Ashokan as the villain with eye-patch[1]
- Cho Ramaswamy as Ravanan[1]
- Vijaya Nirmala as Geetha[1]
- Vijaya Lalitha as Kalavathy[1]
- V. S. Raghavan as Sabapathy[1]
- S. V. Ramadas as Boopathy[1]
- K. Vijayan as Kumar
- S. Parvathi as Mahalakshmi
- Tambaram Lalitha as Geetha's mother
- Kallapart Natarajan[1]
- Srividya (special appearance in the song "Thiruthani Muruga Thennava Thalaiva")
- M. Bhanumathi (special appearance in the song "Thiruthani Muruga Thennava Thalaiva")
Soundtrack
The music was composed by T. K. Ramamoorthy and the lyrics were written by Kannadasan. The music of T. K. Ramamoorthy stumbles through the movie with typical ear-shattering music. At the Kalavathy Aalayam, two dancers perform to the only popular song "Thiruthani Muruga Thennava Thalaiva"- P. Suseela & Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi (A very young Srividya appears as one of the dancers).
| No. | Song | Singers | lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Vallibam Oru Velli Thattu" | T. M. Soundararajan, L. R. Eswari | Kannadasan | 5:11 |
| 2 | "Naan Kalaingan Alla" | 3:56 | ||
| 3 | "Thiruthani Muruga Thennava Thalaiva" | P. Susheela, Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi | 4:20 | |
| 4 | "Kalyana Pennai Konjam" | P. Susheela, L. R. Eswari | 4:18 | |
| 5 | "Kadavul Madhuvai Kangalil Aada" | L. R. Eswari | 4:20 |
Release and reception
Neelagiri Express was released on 23 March 1968.[3] Randor Guy said that film would be remembered for "the interesting storyline, gripping on-screen narration and fine performances by Jai Shankar and Cho who wrote the screenplay and dialogue".[1]
References
- Guy, Randor (14 March 2015). "Neelagiri Express 1968". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
- Guy, Randor (7 November 2008). "Bond of Tamil Screen". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- "Nilgiri Express". The Indian Express. 23 March 1968. p. 3.