Apoorva Sagodharargal () is a 1949 Indian Tamil-language action film directed by Acharya. The film which was adapted from Alexandre Dumas' 1844 novella The Corsican Brothers stars M. K. Radha and P. Bhanumathi, with Nagendra Rao and Suryaprabha playing supporting roles. It revolves around the two lookalike brothers who were separated during childhood by their cruel uncle who murdered his parents, rest of the film shows how two brothers join in avenging the death of their parents.

Apoorva Sagodharargal was simultaneously produced in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi languages by Gemini Studios. The Telugu version Apoorva Sahodarulu () was directed by C. Pullayya, and the Hindi version Nishan () by S. S. Vasan. While the Telugu version had the same cast as the Tamil version, the Hindi version had Ranjan replacing Radha and a slightly different supporting cast.

Plot Mahendra Bhoopathi and Marthandan are rival kings. When Bhoopathi's wife gives birth to conjoined twins, Dr. Nanjappa successfully separates them. During a surprise attack, Marthandan and his men set fire to Bhoopathi's fort, believing the entire clan has perished. However, Nanjappa secretly takes the babies to safety. The elder twin, Vijayan, grows up in the city, while the younger, Vikraman, is raised in the forest by the loyal Marudhu.

When the twins turn 25, Nanjappa reunites them and reveals their history. They vow to avenge their father's death and restore their kingdom's glory. Meanwhile, Vijayan rescues the beautiful Kanchana from the ageing but lustful Marthandan and his men, and the two fall in love. Conflict develops when Vikraman also falls for Kanchana. As the younger twin, he experiences intense physical desire whenever Vijayan and Kanchana are together, threatening the brothers' relationship.

Determined not to come between the brothers or distract them from their mission, Kanchana leaves Vijayan in the forest, but is captured by Marthandan. The remainder of the story centres on the twins' efforts to rescue Kanchana and bring Marthandan to justice.

Cast Cast according to the opening credits of the Tamil version and the respective songbooks:

+ Cast (Tamil)Cast (Telugu) Cast (Hindi) Role (Tamil) Role (Telugu) Role (Hindi) P. Bhanumathi Kanchana Ranjana M. K. Radha Ranjan Vijayasimhan, Vikramasimhan Vijaya, Vikrama Vijay Singh, Vikram Singh Nagendra Rao Marthandan Marthandavarma Zorawar Singh Narayana Rao Marthandan's servant Marthandavarma's servant Zorawar's servant G. Pattu Iyer J. S. Casshyap Doctor Nanjappa Doctor Gaurinath Doctor Shanker V. P. S. Mani Jambu Shambhu Himmat D. Balasubramanian Mahendra Bhoopathi Mahendra Singh Suryaprabha Maragatham Manikyam Al Beli Lakshmiprabha Neelaveni Neelam Venkumamba Rajeswari Devi Rani Mahendra Singh's Wife Krishna Bai Doctor's sister Shyam Sunder Doctor's brother-in-law Stunt Somu Balkrishna Kalla Maruthappa Madhav Singh Madho Singh J. S. Casshyap G. Pattu Iyer Rajasekharar Rajasekharam Raj Sekhar Ramakrishna Rao Messenger Velayutham K. S. Sengar Mayanti Maraiah Chandan Vijaya Rao Marthandan's soldiers Marthandavarma's soldiers Zorawar Singh's soldiers Sampath Kumar Anand G. V. Sharma Anand Balaram Mahendra Singh's soldiers T. S. B. Rao G. V. Sharma — Shop servant Gemini Boys and Girls

Production Apoorva Sagodharargal was adapted from Alexandra Duma's novel The Corsican Brothers. Gregory Ratoff adapted the film and Douglas Fairbanks Jr played the dual role of the conjoined twins Lucien and Mario Franchi. The film became successful which inspired Vasan to adapt the film in Tamil. T. G. Raghavachari alias Acharya lawyer turned film maker was selected to direct the film. M. K. Radha was selected to play the lead characters with Bhanumathi playing the lead actress. For the negative character, Vasan approached P. U. Chinnappa who refused fearing his image with Kannada actor Nagendra Rao being finalised for the role. "Stunt" Somu who did the stunt choreography appeared in the role of Marudhu, close associate of Bhoopathi. This film was often considered an unofficial sequel to Chandralekha.

Soundtrack The music was composed by Rajeswara Rao, M. D. Parthasarathy and R. Vaidyanathan and lyrics were written by Kothamangalam Subbu and V. Seetharaman. The song "Laddu Laddu" sung by Bhanumathi was well received. A duet meant for the Hindi version was composed on the piano by Rajeswara Rao, and Vasan liked it so much he wanted it for the Tamil version too. This song was added after the shoot was over. Malayalam lyrics written by P Baskaran

No. Song Singer/s Lyricist Duration(m:ss) 1 "Enga Rasa Vanthan" Chorus Kothamangalam Subbu 00:32 2 "Thalelo Rajakumarargale" Chorus 03:09 3 "Maya Vinthaiyethane" T. A. Mothi & P. Leela 3:54 4 "Manum Mayilum Adum Solai" P. Bhanumathi 2:55 5 "Laddu Laddu Mittai Venumaa" P. Bhanumathi 06:02 8 "Manamohaname Vanavaasame" P. Bhanumathi 02:31 9 "Aaha Aaduvene Geetham Paduvene" P. Bhanumathi & T. A. Mothi 03:30 10 "Paradhesame Pogaadhe" T. A. Mothi 05:39

Release and reception

Apoorva Sagodharargal was released on 21 October 1949. The film was a major success both at the box-office and with the critics. Dhananjayan praised M. K. Radha's acting as "finest and best in his career" and appreciated director Acharya for "bringing out the best performance from everyone and presenting an entertaining and engaging film". Randor Guy of The Hindu wrote that the film "is remembered for the excellent performances of Bhanumathi and Nagendra Rao, and for the music". The film was simultaneously shot in Telugu as Apoorva Sahodarulu, with Radha reprising the character. It was also remade in Hindi as Nishan with Ranjan replacing Radha. Bhanumathi was the lead actress for all the three versions.

Legacy The film introduced the concept of identical twins and their feelings and eventually became a trendsetter for similar themes. Later, the 1999 film Vaalee, starring Ajith Kumar also had a similar concept.

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