Her stellar performance stands out beyond tears

In Tamil cinema, ‘Sowcar’ Janaki is widely known for her tragic, tearful roles. However, several films stand out precisely because of her highly versatile performances.After she played sentimental roles ever since her debut, she was introduced in a strikingly different avatar in director Dada Mirasi’s Puthiya Paravai (1964). In this remake of the Bengali film Shesh Anka, Sivaji Ganesan chose ‘Sowcar’ Janaki to play Chithra, a nightclub singer, as well as the wife who seemingly returns from the dead. However, Dada Mirasi was reluctant to cast ‘Sowcar’ Janaki, who had only portrayed family-oriented, sentimental characters until then, in such an ultra-modern role. Yet, he eventually agreed. ‘Sowcar’ Janaki happily accepted the challenge. In a interview to The Hindu later, she said, “Honestly,