‘Sowcar’ Janaki was, until her demise, probably the oldest surviving south Indian actor, and was known for her versatile roles in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films. The name ‘Sowcar’ became part of her name when she made her film debut in Shavukaru, a Telugu film directed by L.V. Prasad.

In Tamil, her entry began with the film Valayapathi in 1952. She went on to be associated with some of the finest songs and roles, displaying style, finesse, majesty and a range of expressions. She even earned the title ‘weeping face’. But, she preferred to call herself a feminist.

She, a recipient of Padma Shri and Kalaimamani awards, acted and worked with three Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu — M.G. Ramachandran, M. Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa — and, in Telugu, with N.T. Rama Rao.

She was one of the favourite actors of director K. Balachandar. She played a remarkable role as the pretend mother of Rajinikanth in Thillu Mullu, intended to fool the character played by actor Thengai Srinivasan. With her eyes bulging, she would say, “Enakku konjam bayama irukku,” and then, “Pressure konjam jasthiya irukku.”

“Maalaipozhuthin Mayakkathile Naan Kanavu Kanden Thozhi” from the film Bhagyalakshmi, though composed by Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy, is a favourite of maestro Ilaiyaraaja. The song always conjures up the image of ‘Sowcar’ Janaki, who played a widow in the film. Another film, Babu, starring Sivaji Ganesan in the lead role, also featured ‘Sowcar’ Janaki prominently as Sridevi’s mother.

In a way, her life resembled that of the poor mother in the film Babu, born-rich-turned-poor. Born in 1931 in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh, into a Brahmin family, she grew up in a household where her father, who had studied paper-making technology in England, valued education. English was the language spoken at home. The atmosphere was conservative, and watching films was taboo. Listening to the radio was her favourite pastime. She participated in dramas broadcast by All India Radio and soon became an A-grade artiste because of her robust voice.

In Pictures | Remembering ‘Sowcar’ Janaki’s remarkable journey in cinema

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1956 ‘Sadarame’ (left); in 2008

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1960

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1960

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1960

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1960

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in 1960

Sivaji Ganesan and ‘Sowcar’ Janaki in ‘Pattakkaththi Bhairavan’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in ‘Nankanda Swargam’

Sivaji Ganesan, ‘Sowcar’ Janaki and Sivakumar in the Tamil film ‘Uyarndha Manithan’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in ‘Sadarame’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki and Sripriya in ‘Olimayamaana Ethirkaalam’, directed by K. Krisshnamurti.

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in`Penn Manam’ (Tamil).

‘Sowcar’ Janaki and Thengai Srinivasan in`Kaliyuga Kannan’ (Tamil).

A portrait of ‘Sowcar’ Janaki ahead of the release of ‘Parthal Pasi Theerum’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in `Kan Malar’ (Tamil).

Actors Manorama, Nagesh and ‘Sowcar’ Janaki in Tamil film ‘Edhir Neechal’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in ‘Deiva Leelai’

Sivaji Ganesan, ‘Sowcar’ Janaki and others in the Tamil film ‘Padikkatha Methai’

‘Sowcar’ Janaki in`Ninaippatharkku Neramillai’ (Tamil).

‘Sowcar’ Janaki and Thengai Srinivasan in `Kaliyuga Kannan’ (Tamil).

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In an interview with Suhasini Maniratnam, she had recalled how an opportunity to act in films knocked on her door. Nagi Reddi, the Telugu film producer, captivated by her voice, offered her a role in a film. But, her family was against it, and she was forced to marry at the age of 15 to prevent her from acting. She became a mother at 17. Her fortunes changed later. ‘Sowcar’ Janaki herself had spoken about the abject poverty she faced when she began her film career as a mother of two children.

Even though many female actors played opposite ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan, Sowcar Janaki’s acting and roles in films such as Puthiya Paravai, Uyarntha Manithan and Mahakavi Kalidas measured up to the thespian’s. Her songs, body language and delivery of dialogues made fans sit up and take notice of her performances. Paavai Vilakku was her first film with ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan (however, the film Padikkatha Medhai was released first).

With her extraordinary hairstyle and Singapore-style costume, she would enter humming to the beats of bongos while Sivaji Ganesan lit a cigarette in Puthiya Paravai. Her expression in the song “Paartha Gnaabagam Illaiyo” was stunning. Her role in tormenting ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan throughout the film, particularly in the song “Enge Nimmathi, Enge Nimmathi”, is another milestone.

When these songs and roles are compared with her role in Mahakavi Kalidoss as the princess who was forced to marry Kalidoss, and that of the housewife in Ethir Neechal, in which she rendered the song “Aduthathu Ambujatha Paarthela,” they offer glimpses into her talent for slipping under the skin of the characters she played. She also enthralled audiences as Sivaji Ganesan’s imperious wife in Uyarntha Manithan. Another film in which she excelled was Kaviya Thalaivi.

Actor Sivakumar, who acted with her in films including Uyarndha Manithan and Motor Sundaram Pillai, said she had acted in around 450 films. ‘Sowcar’ Janaki was the first film actress to act in K. Balachander’s play Mezhuguvarthi, and she went on to act in several films directed by him. In a letter to Balachander, she said that her best and most memorable films had come only from him.

Published – August 21, 2026 05:55 pm IST

There was always something unmistakably independent about Sowcar Janaki.

Even at 90, she did not seem particularly interested in the revelry that usually surrounds a milestone birthday. In the conversation I had with her in 2021, at the peak of COVID-19 pandemic ahead of her 90th birthday, she was more concerned about the health of everyone around her than about celebrating herself. “Everyone’s health is more important than my birthday celebrations,” she told me.

That was Janaki — direct, spirited and unconventional.

In September that year, after returning to Chennai from a solo trip to Coonoor, she surprised her family by announcing that she had come back from a shooting stint. It was entirely in keeping with the woman they knew. Independent and unwilling to allow age to dictate her. For an actor whose career stretched across seven decades and nearly 400 films in five languages, it would have been easy to reduce Sowcar Janaki to the roles she played. But she was always much more than the characters on screen.

She could be the orthodox woman in Edhir Neechal, a nightclub singer in Pudhiya Paravai, a socialite in Thillu Mullu, the blind woman in Akka Chellellu or Chilakamma, speaking in the Srikakulam dialect in Samsaram Oka Chadarangam. She brought something distinctly her own to every role.

Janaki entered films almost by circumstance rather than ambition. When she was barely a teenager, B.N. Reddi had heard her voice on radio and offered her an opportunity to act. Her parents, alarmed by the prospect, hurriedly got her married. Years later, with a young child and a family facing financial difficulties, she went back to B.N. Reddi and asked him to honour that old promise. That decision changed the course of Indian cinema.

She made her debut in Shavukaru in 1950, opposite N.T. Rama Rao, when she was only 17. Because MGR’s wife V.N. Janaki was already known in the industry, the newcomer was given the prefix ‘Sowcar’ after her debut film and the name stayed with her for the rest of her life. Her entry into Tamil cinema came in 1952 with Valayapathi. What followed was a remarkable career in which she refused to remain confined to the conventional image of a heroine. “I always loved to play emotionally charged roles,” she had told me. It was perhaps that appetite for challenge that kept her career alive for so long.

She recalled asking for a role only twice in her entire career. The first was when she sought an opportunity with B.N. Reddi. The second was when Oli Vilakku, the Tamil remake of Phool Aur Pathar, was being planned. She hesitated before calling MGR to ask if she could play Meena Kumari’s role. He agreed immediately.

She had a particular fondness for Iru Kodugal and Kaviya Thalaivi, both associated with K. Balachander. She considered producing Kaviya Thalaivi one of her biggest achievements. She also ventured into theatre at the height of her film career, acting with the Ragini Recreation Amateur Drama Company alongside performers such as Major Sundarrajan and Nagesh, with Balachander among the playwrights.

But perhaps what made Janaki especially fascinating was that cinema was only one part of her life. She was a formidable cook and an enthusiastic host. Her lunches and dinners in Chennai were spoken of almost as much as her films. In the 1990s, she hosted ‘Ruchi-Abhiruchi’, a cookery programme on Gemini TV. And when the opportunity arose, she took over the lease of Coconut Grove on Harrington Road, running the restaurant between 1992 and 1995.

She remembered those three years with pride: preparing nearly 25 dishes a day, working with 50 to 60 chefs and procuring fresh fish from Marina. She had wanted to prove something to her children, and she did.

Speaking about her marriage, she acknowledged the loneliness she felt most of her life. After her children married, she and her husband were separated, and she spoke of the emptiness of returning home after a day’s shooting to find nobody with whom she could talk about her work. “I was just a mother. I’ve led a lonely life,” she said.

Yet there was no bitterness in the way she spoke. There was, instead, an acceptance of life and its uncertainties.

By then, she lived alone in Bengaluru and stayed connected with her family and friends through email, WhatsApp and video calls. She was amused that she wasn’t quite tech-savvy enough for our Zoom interview. She was also, she admitted, an incurable romantic and in love with Nature. “Today, I have no responsibilities,” she said.

And then came the line that, in retrospect, feels like the most fitting summation of her philosophy, “Life is uncertain. You must exit when the curtain is down. Be prepared and go peacefully, that’s my only wish.”

Those words stay with me. What I did not know when I interviewed her was that the conversation would grow into a warm personal connection. After the interview, she kept in touch with me on WhatsApp, and her messages would often end affectionately ‘Janu.’

For generations of audiences, Sowcar Janaki will remain the woman who could do almost any character and make it memorable. For those who knew her beyond the screen, she was something even more enduring: a woman who lived with courage.

And when the curtain finally came down, it was on a life lived very much on her own terms.

Published – August 21, 2026 07:21 pm IST