“Kalathapasvi K Viswanath fully understood the transience of life and immortality of art. Hence, his art will be celebrated beyond his lifetime and reign. Long live his art,” actor Kamal Haasan wrote in a moving, handwritten note on Friday, February 3, in tribute to the late legendary filmmaker K Viswanath. Sharing the note on Twitter with the caption ‘salute to the master’, the actor referred to himself as an “ardent fan” of Viswanath — a five-time national award winner and the recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke award, the highest recognition in Indian cinema. Viswanath, known for his craftsmanship in skilfully combining realism with commercial viability, passed away at a private hospital in Hyderabad on Thursday, at the age of 92.
Kamal Haasan has had a long-running association with the master filmmaker, starting with his stint as the protagonist in Viswanath’s 1983 directorial Sagara Sangamam. The Telugu film revolves around the life of an economically disadvantaged classical dancer named Balu (played by Kamal) and the trials and tribulations in his life. The movie was also dubbed into Tamil and Malayalam as Salangai Oli and Sagara Sangamam respectively.
The duo next came together in Swathi Muthyam, which was released in 1983 and tells the love story of Shivaiah, a man with autism, and Lalitha (Raadhika), who is a widow and a single mother. The Telugu film centres on the struggles this couple has to face as the villagers do not approve of their marriage. Owing to its popularity, Swathi Muthyam was later dubbed into Tamil as Sippikkul Muthu, and remade in both Hindi and Kannada languages.
Salute to a master . pic.twitter.com/zs0ElDYVUM
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) February 3, 2023
Another iconic Telugu film for which Viswanath and Kamal joined hands is Subha Sankalpam, which was released in 1995, and tells the story of a young man who loses his family while trying to protect the fortune of his employer. Moved by his act, his employer leaves a portion of his wealth to him.
Interestingly, Viswanath also made his acting debut in this film, which was dubbed into Tamil as Paasavalai. Kamal is said to have been instrumental in convincing the filmmaker to take up the role. Viswanath had later acted in two other films written by Kamal, namely Kuruthipunal (1995) and Uttama Villain (2015).
Kamal was also on the committee that endowed Viswanath with the Dadasaheb Phalke award in 2017. The actor later told the media that it was going to be very difficult for the film industry to produce another talent like Vishwanath. “But try, we must. As it is the burden of that duty endowed upon us by masters like K Viswanath. Bravo sir. The film Industry not only applauds but owns your laurels and you as theirs," he added.
On November 23 last year, Kamal had shared on Instagram a photograph from his visit to Viswanath’s house, in which the actor can be seen bowing and reverentially holding the filmmaker’s hand to his eyes. “Met the master K Viswanath sir at his home. Lots of nostalgia and respect,” he wrote in the post.
Kamal is currently shooting for his upcoming multilingual actioner Indian 2, directed by Shankar. It is a sequel to the 1996 film Indian, in which he played the dual role of a former freedom fighter-turned-vigilante Senapathy and his son Chandru.