Kamal Haasan reveals he convinced Sivaji Ganesan to reject National Award for Thevar Magan. Here’s why

Thevar Magan remains a milestone film in the history of Tamil cinema, thanks to the brilliant performances of Kamal Haasan and Sivaji Ganesan.

A still from Thevar Magan.

Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan recently opened up about how he convinced late acting legend Sivaji Ganesan to decline the National Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Thevar Magan (1992). Even though Sivaji was celebrated as the greatest actor Indian cinema has ever produced, he had not won the prestigious National Award till Thevar Magan.

Kamal felt that the recognition did not do justice to Sivaji’s talent or stature as it was given in the supporting actor category.

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“I am proud of helping my gurus win National Awards. Nagesh sir got the award for his performance in Nammavar (1994). Sivaji sir got it for Thevar Magan. Everybody was upset that he was given the award for supporting actor. I told him (Sivaji Ganesan) not to collect the award. He asked me why. I told him that he can go there to collect the Dadasaheb Phalke award. Let’s wait,” Kamal Haasan revealed during his interaction with Galatta Plus.

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Kamal Haasan and Sivaji Ganesan in Thevar Magan.

In 1996, Sivaji Ganesan was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, which is India’s highest honour in the field of cinema.

In Thevar Magan, Sivaji Ganesan had played the role of Periya Thevar, the father of the protagonist Sakthivel Thevar, essayed by Kamal Haasan. Besides playing the lead role and bankrolling it under his home production banner Raaj Kamal Films International, Kamal also wrote the film. It’s noteworthy that Kamal wrote the full script for Thevar Magan within seven days. The movie was helmed by Bharathan.

Thevar Magan remains a milestone film in the history of Tamil cinema, thanks to the brilliant performances of Kamal Haasan and Sivaji Ganesan.

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