Samikannu Vincent

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Samikannu Vincent
Film maker
LanguageTamil
NationalityIndian

Samikannu Vincent (18 April 1883 – 22 April 1942) was a

Tamil movies
.

Early life and family

Samikannu Vincent was born on 18 April 1883 to Thambusamy in

South Indian Railway at Ponmalai in Tiruchirappalli.[2] Samikannu had four wives with whom he had four sons and two daughters.[3] Samikannu died on 22 April 1942.[4] Tamil film actor J. P. Chandrababu was married to one of the granddaughters of Samikannu.[5]

Career

During his career as a clerk with South Indian railway, Samikannu was exposed to short films exhibited by DuPont, a

Madras called Edison's Grand Cinemamegaphone.[6] The electrically lit tents drew large crowds and quickly became popular. Buoyed by the success, Samikannu established a brick and mortar cinema house called "Variety Hall" in 1914, which was the first theatre in South India.[8][9] The cinema hall initially screened silent films with commentary, later moving on to talkie films with the evolution of Indian cinema.[10]

In 1916, he established a printing press near his theatre to print handbills. Called an electric printing works, he used the cinema house's power plant to power the machinery for the press.

C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyer, then member of the Governor's Executive Council of the Government of Madras, Samikannu brought an electric generator to set up a power house and lighted up the Variety Hall road in Coimbatore.[10][11]

In 1933, Samikannu along with

T.P. Rajalakshmi in the lead role and went on to become a commercial success.[12] He also co-produced other Tamil movies such as Sampoorna Harichandra and Subhadra Parinayam later.[13][6] In 1935, when Central Studios was established in Coimbatore, Samikannu joined the studio as a director.[6]

Legacy

Samikannu's birthday is celebrated as Cinema Theater Day.[14] A Tamil documentary Pezhamozi (Silent Language) based on Samikannu's life was released in 2016.[15]

References

  1. ^ "Pioneering film production in Tamil Nadu". The Hindu. 21 July 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b "A movie theater that bound people". Time News. 9 February 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  3. ^ "Down memory lane". The Hindu. 30 August 2007. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "Memories of Coimbatore: A silent revolution". The Hindu. 23 March 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  5. ^ Guy, Randor (2 October 2009). "A voice that mesmerised". The Hindu. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d e "He brought cinema to South". The Hindu. 30 April 2010. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  7. ^ a b "A way of life". Frontline. 18 October 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  8. ^ "Cinema and the city". The Hindu. 9 January 2009. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  9. Times of India
    . 9 May 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  10. ^ a b "Born in Coimbatore". The Hindu. 14 March 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  11. ^ a b "Tracing Coimbatore's rich heritage through cinema and industry". News Minute. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  12. ^ "Blast from the past: Srivalli". The Hindu. 26 February 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  13. ^ Guy, Randor (14 September 2013). "Subhadhra Parinayam (1935)". The Hindu. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Calling film lovers out to theatres". The Hindu. 20 March 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  15. ^ "From the shadows into the limelight". The Hindu. 13 January 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
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