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Chandramukhi (character)

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For other fictional characters, see Chandramukhi (disambiguation).
Chandramukhi
Devdas character
Created bySarat Chandra Chattopadhyay
Portrayed byChandrabati Devi
Vyjayanthimala
Supriya Devi
Kalki Koechlin
Anwara
Madhuri Dixit
For more see "Performers"
In-universe information
AliasChandrika
NicknameLeni
GenderFemale
OccupationTawaif (courtesan)
SpouseDevdas Mukherjee
ReligionHindu

Chandramukhi is one of the pivotal characters in the 1917 Bengali novel Devdas by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Her character was inspired by the Hindu mystical singer Meera, who devoted her life to Lord Krishna; similarly Chandramukhi devoted her life to Devdas.[1] Chandramukhi is portrayed as a tawaif in the novel and its film adaptations.[2] Chandramukhi means "moon faced" or "as beautiful as the moon" in Sanskrit.[3]

In the novel

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Chandramukhi is a courtesan (tawaif) who lives in Calcutta also known as Kolkata. She is considered the most beautiful and richest prostitute in the area of Chitpur.[4] She is first introduced to Devdas by Chunnilal, who returns to Calcutta heartbroken after the marriage of Parvati "Paro". Devdas, disgusted over Chandramukhi's profession insults her and leaves her kotha. Chandramukhi, impressed by Devdas's attitude, later falls in love with him after realizing his steadfast love for Paro. She leaves her profession for Devdas and convinces him to marry her; he, however, has to reluctantly reject her offer as he has devoted his life to Paro. In return, Chandramukhi does not force him to be with her but waits patiently for him. Subsequently, she also moves to Ashthajhari village, where she lives in a muddy house located at the bank of a river and helps the needy. After some struggle, she meets with Devdas again, who now accepts her love.

Film

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Chandrabati Devi as Chandramukhi and Pramathesh Barua as Devdas in the 1935 Bengali film Devdas

In most of the film adaptations of Devdas, the story of Chandramukhi is similar to the novel. However, in most of the films her humanitarian work in helping the needy is not depicted. Unlike in the novel, a scene in which Chandramukhi and Parvathi meet was added in Bimal Roy's 1955 version when Paro, played by Suchitra Sen riding in a human rickshaw, comes across Chandramukhi, played by Vyjayanthimala, who just stares at Paro without a single word being exchanged between them.[5] The meeting scene of Paro and Chandramukhi in the 1955 version was still regarded as one of the memorable scene in Bollywood with the background music adding the impact to the scene.[6] In the 2002 version, the director, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, extended the interaction between Paro and Chandramukhi, also showing them dancing together to the hit song "Dola Re Dola".[7]

Performers

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Year Title Portrayed by Language Other cast Notes Ref.
Devdas Paro
1928 Devdas Niharbala / Miss Parul Silent Phani Sarma Tarakbala First film adaptation of Devdas
1935 Devdas Chandrabati Devi Bengali Pramathesh Barua Jamuna Barua All directed by Pramathesh Barua.
1936 Devdas T. R. Rajakumari Hindi K. L. Saigal
1937 Devdas Mohini Assamese Phani Sarma Zubeida
Mukti Menaka Devi Hindi Pramathesh Barua Kanan Devi A contemporary retelling capturing the nostalgia and emotions of its male protagonist. [8]
Bengali
1953 Devadasu Lalitha Telugu Akkineni Nageswara Rao Savitri The film was simultaneously shot in Telugu and Tamil.
Devadas Tamil
1955 Devdas Vyjayanthimala Hindi Dilip Kumar Suchitra Sen
Selamat Tinggal, Kekasihku Molly Lim Malay S. Roomai Noor Chang Lai Lai Malaysian film also known as Good Bye My Lover. [9]
1965 Devdas Nayyar Sultana Urdu Habib Taalish Shamim Ara Pakistani film
1974 Devadasu Jayanthi Telugu Krishna Vijaya Nirmala
1978 Devadasu Malli Puttadu Vanisri Akkineni Nageswara Rao Savitri Sequel to the 1953 film Devadasu and follows the rebirth of the characters Chandramukhi and Devadasu, now known as Aruna and Sridhar Raja, who are reunited by Parvathi. Additionally, the role of Aruna was portrayed by Vanisri instead of Lalitha.
Muqaddar Ka Sikandar Rekha Hindi Amitabh Bachchan Raakhee Loosely inspired by Devdas and the French play Cyrano de Bergerac.
1979 Devdas Supriya Choudhury Bengali Soumitra Chatterjee Sumitra Mukherjee Also known as Debdas.
1980 Prema Tarangalu Jayasudha Telugu Krishnam Raju Sujatha Remakes of Muqaddar Ka Sikandar.
1981 Amara Kaaviyam Sripriya Tamil Sivaji Ganesan Madhavi
1982 Devdas Anwara Bengali Bulbul Ahmed Kabori Bangladeshi film
1989 Devadas Ramya Krishnan Malayalam Venu Nagavally Parvathy
2002 Devdas Indrani Haldar Bengali Prosenjit Chatterjee Arpita Pal
Devdas Madhuri Dixit Hindi Shah Rukh Khan Aishwarya Rai
2004 Devdas Sreelekha Mitra Bengali Parambrata Chatterjee Monami Ghosh [10]
2009 Dev.D Kalki Koechlin Hindi Abhay Deol Mahie Gill Modern-day take on Devdas set in contemporary Punjab and Delhi.
2010 Devdas Meera Urdu Nadeem Shah Zara Sheikh Pakistani film
2013 Devdas Moushumi Bengali Shakib Khan Apu Biswas Bangladeshi film
2017 Devi Shataf Figar Paoli Dam Shubh Mukherjee Modern-day take on Devdas with gender bent versions of characters.
2017-2021 Dev DD Sanjay Suri Hindi Asheema Vardaan Akhil Kapoor Web series and a modern-day take on Devdas with gender bent versions of the characters.
2018 Daas Dev Aditi Rao Hydari Rahul Bhatt Richa Chadha Modern-day take on Devdas. The film follows a politician's son, Dev, who leads a lavish but troubled life as a drug addict with massive debts, until he is kidnapped and then returns to claim his father's legacy after his uncle suffers a heart attack.


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Chandramukhi is one of the first characters in an Indian novel to deal with prostitution.[11] She was often depicted as a tawaif with a heart of gold.[12] The character of Chandramukhi had paved the way for other portrayals of prostitutes and tawaifs in films like Pyaasa (1957), Sadhna (1958) and Pakeezah (1972).[13]

Legacy

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Chandramukhi was well-received in India by critics. In 2006, Rediff included Chandramukhi in their list of "Bollywood's Best Tawaif".[14] Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India also ranked Chandramukhi at #5 in his list "Tart with a heart".[15]

Awards

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There are many actresses who have portrayed Chandramukhi in film adaptations of Devdas. The first notable award was won by Vyjayanthimala in 1956 when she won the Filmfare Awards[16] in the Supporting Actress category. However, she was also the first person to decline the award, as she thought that her role was not a supporting one but was of equal importance and parallel to that of Paro in the 1955 version.[17] Madhuri Dixit and Kalki Koechlin and also won the same award as Vyjayanthimala for their respective portrayals.

The following are awards and nominations received by actresses who have played the role of Chandramukhi in film:

Year Film Nominee Award Result Note Ref.
1957 Devdas Vyjayanthimala Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress Won She refused to accept the award as she thought that Chandramukhi and Parvathi were parallel roles and not a supporting role [18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
[22]
2002 Devdas Madhuri Dixit
Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress
Zee Cine Award for Best Actor – Female Nominated
IIFA Award for Best Actress
2010 Dev.D Kalki Koechlin Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress Won
Stardust Award for Breakthrough Performance – Female Nominated
2013 Devdas Moushumi Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Actress Won
People's Choice Meril-Prothom Alo Award for Best Film Actress Nominated [23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Guha, Srejara (2002). Devdas: a novel. Penguin Books. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-14-302926-7. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  2. ^ Vidya Pradhan (21 January 2008). "Heart of gold, speckled with sin". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  3. ^ Ghose, Anindita (August 2006). "Of Names of Women in Hindi Cinema: An Exploration in Semantics" (PDF). e-Social Sciences. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2012. Madhuri Dixit in 'Devdas' (2002) is Chandramukhi which means 'moon faced'.
  4. ^ Shubha Tiwari (2005). Indian fiction in English translation. New Delhi Atlantic Publication. p. 151. ISBN 978-81-269-0450-1. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  5. ^ Corey K. Creekmur (13 December 2001). "The Devdas Phenomenon". University of Iowa. Archived from the original on 13 January 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  6. ^ Vijay Lokapally (20 February 2009). "Devdas (1955)". The Hindu. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  7. ^ "Fighting Queens". Outlook (magazine). 13 December 2001. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  8. ^ "Pramathesh Barua: A Forgotten Hero of Indian Cinema -". 20 January 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  9. ^ Allan Koay (2 April 2007). "A new era". The Star (Malaysia). Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  10. ^ "Screen On & Off". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  11. ^ Lindsay J. Proudfoot, M. M. Roche (2005). (Dis)placing empire: renegotiating British colonial geographies. Ashgate Publishing Limited. p. 160. ISBN 0-7546-4213-5. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  12. ^ Sumita S. Chakravarty (1993). National identity in Indian popular cinema, 1947-1987. Harward Academic Publication. p. 271. ISBN 978-0-292-71156-3. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  13. ^ Meghnad Desai (2004). Nehru's hero Dilip Kumar in the life of India. Lotus Collection, Roli Books. p. 95. ISBN 978-81-7436-311-4. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  14. ^ Dinesh Raheja (30 October 2006). "Bollywood's top tawaifs". Rediff. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  15. ^ Nikhat Kazmi (16 January 2006). "Tart with a heart". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 9 July 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
  16. ^ Mishra, Vijay, Bollywood Cinema: A Critical Genealogy (PDF), Victoria University of Wellington, p. 9, archived from the original (PDF) on 29 September 2012, retrieved 18 February 2012
  17. ^ Sheela Bhatt (22 June 2012). "A star spangled evening". Mumbai, Maharashtra: Rediff. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  18. ^ "Vyjayanthimala". Upperstall. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  19. ^ "The Winners – 1956". Indiatimes. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  20. ^ Subhash K. Jha (22 February 2003). "Shah Rukh, Ash, Ajay Devgan's rich haul". Rediff. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  21. ^ Raymond Ronamai. "The winners of the 55th Filmfare Awards are..." Oneindia.in. Archived from the original on 2 July 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  22. ^ "Nominations for Max Stardust Awards 2010". Bollywood Hungama. 16 January 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2012.[dead link‍]
  23. ^ "মেরিল—প্রথম আলো পুরস্কার ২০১৩" [Meril Prothom Alo Award, 2013]. Prothom Alo (in Bengali). 17 April 2014. Archived from the original on 30 September 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
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