Jeevana Chaitra
Encyclopedia
Jeevana Chaitra is a Kannada language
feature film released in the year 1992. It marked the re-entry of Rajkumar
in film after a gap of 3 years and was an instant hit. Rumoured to be Rajkumar's life story, the character had 3 sons like Rajkumar had in real life. It re-affirmed the hold Rajkumar had on Kannada audiences.
Being an ideal son, he expresses his interest in Meenakshi (Madhavi) as his life partner, and presents the case before his parents. Though Meenakshi is enamoured towards Vishwanath, she fears that she is too poor to join ranks of Jodidar's. However, Vishwanath's father is more than satisfied with his son's choice and accepts the marriage proposal. Meenakshi and Vishwanath get married. Vishwanath takes over the mantle of Jodidar of Simhaadri and other 8 villages from his father and tries to better the lives of the people of his 8 villages.
He fights illiteracy, the illicit liquor racket and other social evils, in order to help villagers.
They are blessed with 3 children.
The parallel comedy track of the movie is handled by Putta Joisa, who joins as the priest of the family-entrusted main temple. Caught when trying to steal gold from Jodidar's home, he pleads guilty. Vishwanath, the generous man he is, gives him money and asks to leave the village. He reasons that if any one learns that he has robbed the Jodidar, the villagers are sure to kill him. Putta Joisa leaves in tears, knowing that he does not deserve to be with Jodidar's.
The rift at home begins, when their children come of age.
The elder son, a doctor, falls for his classmate, the daughter of a liquor baron (Tugudipa Srinivas), who had been beaten by Vishwanath earlier. Tugudip creates a rift between the father and son, and verbally insults Vishwanath, when he approaches Vishwanath to discuss the marriage proposal.
The real bone of contention is the hospital that Vishwanath has envisioned for the village, which he wants his son Gurudutt and daughter-in-law, both doctors to oversee and maintain for the well-being of the community. However, Tugudip berates him for his short-sightedness in presuming that his well-educated and sophisticated daughter-in-law would stay back in a lowly village. Vishwanath is firm, and he insists that if Tugudip's daughter is to marry his son, she will have to stay with her husband in their village.
Tugudip walks away threatening Gurudutt that he can choose either his father's village or his love.Gurudutt fights with his father and leaves home. This comes as a first blow to Vishwanatha Raya.
Abhijit, the second son, gets married but his wife is not very happy staying in the village and serving her in-laws. Meenakshi pleads with her brother to allow her niece Lakshmi (played by Sudharani) to stay with her for few days.
Bubbly, chirpy and sprightly Lakshmi fills the home with happiness. Vishwanath and Meenakshi plan to get her married to their last son Narahari (played by Balaraj). Narahari,who has a secret love affair, wastes no time in marrying his love and brings her home, once he learns of his parents' plan.
Meenakshi and Vishwanath are shocked to see Narahari and his wife. Meenakshi sinks into despair thinking about the heartbreak this would cause to her brother, who is delighted to have his child become a bride of the Jodidar household.The burden is too much for Meenakshi and she dies, while welcoming her daughter-in-law.
Vishwanath feels lonely and goes on a theertha yaatre, has an accident and loses memory.
He wanders around and is shown visiting Badri
, Rishikesh, Kedara and Varanasi
.
When he finds the beauty of Himalaya, he is spellbound by nature and sings his heart out.
Putta Joisa finds his old employer, clothed in rags and singing on a Ghaat. He helps Vishwanath regain memory.
Meanwhile, Tugudip sweet-talks Vishwanath's three sons into handing over the ancestral property,and takes over Vishwanath's property. The 3 sons, who have by now become addicted to sloth and a luxurious life style, even throw their Granny out.
Vishwanath returns, only to find it turned from a temple to a tavern. He single-handedly beats the daylights out of drunkards gathered over there and questions his sons about his mother. Learning that she is passing days in a lonely hut, he visits his mother.
Pandari Bhai is filled with joy to find her son alive. She pleads his son to take cudgels against the liquor baron Tugudip. Life comes a full-circle to Vishwanath. He once again starts the task of fighting liquor racket, gambling and other evils.
He ends up on a winning note, as the gamblers den is made into a primary school and the liquor factory is closed down. His children too learn their lesson and join hands with him.
A happy man, Vishwanath creates a will dividing his assets among his sons and leaves to a higher calling. The last scene shows Vishwanath ascending a hill, far away from Simhaadri.
Screenplay, Lyrics and Dialogues Chi Udayashankar
Music Upendra Kumar
Direction Dorai-Bhagawan
There were no release by Rajkumar
in previous years. People were so craving for wholesome entertainment that Satya Harishchandra, a black-and-white movie of Rajkumar
, was re-released and ran to packed houses.
Jeevana Chaitra, on release ran to packed houses across Karnataka. The movie completed 100 days and had to be removed from theatres, to help other producers to garner money. Rajkumar
's cut-out of suit clad hero had the usual ritual of getting soaked in milk at many places. Chinnegouda, Parvathamma's brother had left Vajreshwari Combines before the movie was started and it was expected that commercial constraints (budget, distribution and theatres) would limit the movie from becoming a success. However, the movie re-iterated that Brand Rajkumar was a sure success.
Kannada language
Kannada or , is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas and number roughly 50 million, is one of the 30 most spoken languages in the world...
feature film released in the year 1992. It marked the re-entry of Rajkumar
Rajkumar
Rajkumar , born as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju was a popular actor and singer in the Kannada film industry...
in film after a gap of 3 years and was an instant hit. Rumoured to be Rajkumar's life story, the character had 3 sons like Rajkumar had in real life. It re-affirmed the hold Rajkumar had on Kannada audiences.
Plot
Jeevana Chaitra tracks the life and times of Vishwanath, from his youth, through the days of his jodi inamathi- when he becomes Jodidar Vishwanatha Raya to his end.Being an ideal son, he expresses his interest in Meenakshi (Madhavi) as his life partner, and presents the case before his parents. Though Meenakshi is enamoured towards Vishwanath, she fears that she is too poor to join ranks of Jodidar's. However, Vishwanath's father is more than satisfied with his son's choice and accepts the marriage proposal. Meenakshi and Vishwanath get married. Vishwanath takes over the mantle of Jodidar of Simhaadri and other 8 villages from his father and tries to better the lives of the people of his 8 villages.
He fights illiteracy, the illicit liquor racket and other social evils, in order to help villagers.
They are blessed with 3 children.
The parallel comedy track of the movie is handled by Putta Joisa, who joins as the priest of the family-entrusted main temple. Caught when trying to steal gold from Jodidar's home, he pleads guilty. Vishwanath, the generous man he is, gives him money and asks to leave the village. He reasons that if any one learns that he has robbed the Jodidar, the villagers are sure to kill him. Putta Joisa leaves in tears, knowing that he does not deserve to be with Jodidar's.
The rift at home begins, when their children come of age.
The elder son, a doctor, falls for his classmate, the daughter of a liquor baron (Tugudipa Srinivas), who had been beaten by Vishwanath earlier. Tugudip creates a rift between the father and son, and verbally insults Vishwanath, when he approaches Vishwanath to discuss the marriage proposal.
The real bone of contention is the hospital that Vishwanath has envisioned for the village, which he wants his son Gurudutt and daughter-in-law, both doctors to oversee and maintain for the well-being of the community. However, Tugudip berates him for his short-sightedness in presuming that his well-educated and sophisticated daughter-in-law would stay back in a lowly village. Vishwanath is firm, and he insists that if Tugudip's daughter is to marry his son, she will have to stay with her husband in their village.
Tugudip walks away threatening Gurudutt that he can choose either his father's village or his love.Gurudutt fights with his father and leaves home. This comes as a first blow to Vishwanatha Raya.
Abhijit, the second son, gets married but his wife is not very happy staying in the village and serving her in-laws. Meenakshi pleads with her brother to allow her niece Lakshmi (played by Sudharani) to stay with her for few days.
Bubbly, chirpy and sprightly Lakshmi fills the home with happiness. Vishwanath and Meenakshi plan to get her married to their last son Narahari (played by Balaraj). Narahari,who has a secret love affair, wastes no time in marrying his love and brings her home, once he learns of his parents' plan.
Meenakshi and Vishwanath are shocked to see Narahari and his wife. Meenakshi sinks into despair thinking about the heartbreak this would cause to her brother, who is delighted to have his child become a bride of the Jodidar household.The burden is too much for Meenakshi and she dies, while welcoming her daughter-in-law.
Vishwanath feels lonely and goes on a theertha yaatre, has an accident and loses memory.
He wanders around and is shown visiting Badri
Badri
-People:*Badri Patarkatsishvili, a Georgian businessman*Badri Kvaratskhelia, a Georgian-Azerbaijani footballer*Abdallah Salem el-Badri, Libyan politician*Abdul Qadir al-Badri, Libyan politician*Haitham al-Badri, Iraqi al-Qaeda member...
, Rishikesh, Kedara and Varanasi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
.
When he finds the beauty of Himalaya, he is spellbound by nature and sings his heart out.
Putta Joisa finds his old employer, clothed in rags and singing on a Ghaat. He helps Vishwanath regain memory.
Meanwhile, Tugudip sweet-talks Vishwanath's three sons into handing over the ancestral property,and takes over Vishwanath's property. The 3 sons, who have by now become addicted to sloth and a luxurious life style, even throw their Granny out.
Vishwanath returns, only to find it turned from a temple to a tavern. He single-handedly beats the daylights out of drunkards gathered over there and questions his sons about his mother. Learning that she is passing days in a lonely hut, he visits his mother.
Pandari Bhai is filled with joy to find her son alive. She pleads his son to take cudgels against the liquor baron Tugudip. Life comes a full-circle to Vishwanath. He once again starts the task of fighting liquor racket, gambling and other evils.
He ends up on a winning note, as the gamblers den is made into a primary school and the liquor factory is closed down. His children too learn their lesson and join hands with him.
A happy man, Vishwanath creates a will dividing his assets among his sons and leaves to a higher calling. The last scene shows Vishwanath ascending a hill, far away from Simhaadri.
Cast
| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| Dr Rajkumar | Vishwanath |
| Madhavi | Meenakshi |
| K S Ashwath | Vishwanath's father |
| Pandari Bhai | Vishwanath's mother |
| Gurudutt | Elder son |
| Abhijit | Second son |
| Balaraj | Last son |
| Tennis Krishna | Putta Joisa |
| Sudharani | Lakshmi |
Crew
Story Vishalakshi Dakshinamurthy's novel Vyaapti-PraaptiScreenplay, Lyrics and Dialogues Chi Udayashankar
Music Upendra Kumar
Direction Dorai-Bhagawan
Reception
Jeevana Chaitra created a sort of hysteria, when it was released and the movie tickets became a prize commodity.There were no release by Rajkumar
Rajkumar
Rajkumar , born as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju was a popular actor and singer in the Kannada film industry...
in previous years. People were so craving for wholesome entertainment that Satya Harishchandra, a black-and-white movie of Rajkumar
Rajkumar
Rajkumar , born as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju was a popular actor and singer in the Kannada film industry...
, was re-released and ran to packed houses.
Jeevana Chaitra, on release ran to packed houses across Karnataka. The movie completed 100 days and had to be removed from theatres, to help other producers to garner money. Rajkumar
Rajkumar
Rajkumar , born as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju was a popular actor and singer in the Kannada film industry...
's cut-out of suit clad hero had the usual ritual of getting soaked in milk at many places. Chinnegouda, Parvathamma's brother had left Vajreshwari Combines before the movie was started and it was expected that commercial constraints (budget, distribution and theatres) would limit the movie from becoming a success. However, the movie re-iterated that Brand Rajkumar was a sure success.