Autobiography of an Actor
 Cover of the English edition, 2007 | |
| Author | Sivaji Ganesan T. S. Narayanaswamy |
|---|---|
| Translator | Sabita Radhakrishna |
| Language | Tamil |
| Publisher | Sivaji Prabhu Charities Trust |
Publication date | 1 October 2002 |
| Publication place | India |
Published in English | 1 October 2007 |
| Pages | 310 |
| OCLC | 536676958 |
Autobiography of an Actor: Sivaji Ganesan, October 1928 – July 2001 is the autobiography of Indian actor Sivaji Ganesan published by Sivaji Prabhu Charities Trust. It is told in a Q&A format between Ganesan and T. S. Narayanaswamy. The book was originally published in Tamil under the title Enathu Suya Sarithai (transl. My Autobiography) on 1 October 2002, and the English translated version by Sabita Radhakrishna was released on the same date five years later.
Background
[edit]T. S. Narayanaswamy's desire to write a biography on Ganesan began in 1974, and he began collecting resources the same year. In 1996, after Narayanaswamy retired from UNICEF, he believed it was the right time to begin writing the book; Ganesan too agreed to talk to him. After Narayanaswamy spent over a year collecting press material related to Ganesan published between 1952 and 1996, he was ready to ask Ganesan questions. Ganesan saw numerous factual errors in the press material collected by Narayanaswamy, who then emphasised the need for Ganesan to "set things right". Ganesan asked him if he could write a book "as it comes out of my mouth", and the biography was changed into an autobiography.[1]
The book is told in the manner of a Q&A format, from nearly 80 hours of audio recordings; according to Narayanaswamy, Ganesan told him that by following the Q&A format, "there won't be any editorial licence or pussy-footing; instead, it will be all that I've experienced, as I've seen and felt it, and you'll record it without changing anything".[2] Narayanaswamy spent four years working on the book.[3] Over 2000 photographs of Ganesan had been collected for using in the book, but only 200 were used.[4] The recordings of the conversations between Ganesan and Narayanaswamy are stored at the archives of All India Radio, Chennai.[5]
Release
[edit]The book was originally published in Tamil under the title Enathu Suya Sarithai on 1 October 2002, exactly one year after Ganesan's death, and the English translated version by Sabita Radhakrishna was released in 2007 on the same date.[6][7] Ganesan's sons Prabhu, Ramkumar and nephew Giri Shanmugam said the profits made from the book sales would be donated to "education and social development projects" sponsored by the publisher Sivaji Prabhu Charities Trust.[8] While the Tamil original has 310 pages,[9] the English version has 250 pages.[10]
Reception
[edit]Sri Lankan historian Sachi Sri Kantha criticised the book for omitting numerous aspects of Ganesan's life, stating, "As an autobiographer, Sivaji’s performance – like many of his movies – provides glimpses of some class in a flop, leaving much to be desired [...] But for fans of Sivaji, it is a good memento to cherish."[11] Writing for India Today in 2013, Sadanand Menon compared Tamil film actors' biographers to the ones "who light a candle to look at the sun ... The few books till now in this genre have crashed on the rock-bed of a comprehensive incomprehension of the audience base of the Tamil film star ... Sivaji Ganesan's Autobiography of an Actor (2007) is but a series of snippets from interviews done by T.S. Narayana Swamy."[12]
References
[edit]- ^ Narayana Swamy, T S; Warrier, Shobha (14 October 2002). "'A book on my life as it came out of my mouth'". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 23 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ Muthiah, S. (4 November 2002). "He played 300 different roles". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ Ashok Kumar, S. R. (10 December 2002). "Autobiography of 'Sivaji' Ganesan". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ Kumar, Ram; Warrier, Shobha (14 October 2002). "'He wanted people to know the truth'". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 27 October 2004. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Kolappan, B. (16 June 2013). "AIR's platinum record". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
- ^ Warrier, Shobha (14 October 2002). "How V C Ganesan became Sivaji". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ "Sivaji's contribution to cinema hailed". The Hindu. 2 October 2007. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ "Sivaji's "autobiography"". The Hindu. 16 August 2002. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
- ^ "En̲atu cuyacaritai / Civāji Kaṇēcan̲ ; tokuppāciriyar, Ṭi.Es. Nārāyaṇasvāmi". National Library Board (in Tamil). Singapore. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
- ^ Kaṇēcan̲, Civāji; Nārāyaṇasvāmi, Ṭi. Es (2007). Autobiography of an actor: Sivaji Ganesan, October 1928-July 2001. OCLC 297212002. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021 – via WorldCat.
- ^ Sri Kantha, Sachi (9 November 2008). "Book Review : Autobiography of Actor — Politician Sivaji Ganesan". Ilankai Tamil Sangam. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ Menon, Sadanand (18 January 2013). "Power of the Dark Sun". India Today. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2015.