Paravai Muniyamma (25 June 1937 – 29 March 2020)[1] was an Indian folk singer and actress. She got the adjective Paravai as she was born in a village called Paravai in Madurai. She featured in many Tamil films mostly in supporting roles and also worked as a playback singer.[2][1][3] Muniyamma also had her own cooking show on Kalaignar TV.[4] She was introduced by music director Vidyasagar in the Tamil film industry.

Paravai Muniyamma
Born
Muniyamma

(1937-06-25)25 June 1937
Died29 March 2020(2020-03-29) (aged 82)
AwardsKalaimamani (2019)

Career

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Muniyamma pursued her career as a singer by performing at cultural temple functions and also performed around 2,000 stage performances of folk songs in her 60s, which also include shows in London, Singapore and Malaysia on behalf of the Lakshman Sruthi.[5] In an interview with The Hindu in 2004, she once pointed out the fact that her overseas international folk related programmes stand testimony to the fact that human race has a passion towards folk art and culture.[6]

She was approached by several musical directors during her peak, notably by A. R. Rahman to croon a song for the 1995 film Muthu, however she turned down the offer due to unknown reasons.[7] She was also approached by music director Vidyasagar to croon a folk song for the film Dhool (2003) and she accepted the offer. She made her film debut as playback singer with the film Dhool and sang her first film song "Singam Pola Nadanthu Vaaraan" which was well acclaimed by the audience as the song was shot during a fighting sequence.[8] She was eventually cast in a supporting role in the same film by director which also eventually marked her film acting debut at the age of 66.[9] She then appeared in over 50 films, usually playing grandmother roles.[10] The success of the film and the song prompted further acting and singing offers for Muniyamma from the film industry.[11]

After she was hospitalized in 2015, the Tamil film industry helped her, including actors Sivakarthikeyan, Sarathkumar and Vishal.[12][13] Then, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa helped her under the MGR welfare scheme by arranging 6 lakhs fixed deposit in her name, and actor Dhanush took care of her treatment expenses.[citation needed]

In November 2019, she was rumoured to have died after being critically ill.[14] In February 2020, she came to promote and watch the film Maayanadhi in theatre after a request from actor Abi Saravanan despite being critically ill for years.[15][16][17] She was awarded the Kalaimamani in 2019 by the government of Tamil Nadu.[18]

Filmography

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Tamil films
Malayalam films
Singer
  • "Singam Pola" - Dhool
  • "Aala Pirandhavanda" - Unnai Charanadaindhen
  • "Kiyan Kiyang" - Arivumani
  • "Naadu Summa" - Nagareega Komali
  • "Happy" - Bale Pandiya
  • "Karuppusattai" - Bhavani IPS
  • "Royapuram Peter" - Maan Karate

Death

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On 29 March 2020, Muniyamma died in her Madurai residence at the age of 82 due to age related illness.[6]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Popular folk singer and actress Paravai Muniyamma has passed away". 29 March 2020. Archived from the original on 29 March 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  2. ^ "Metro Plus Tiruchirapalli / Personality : Ruling with RUSTIC ragas". The Hindu. 4 December 2004. Archived from the original on 8 February 2005. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  3. ^ "Tamil Folk Singer and Actress Paravai Muniyamma Passes Away". News18. 29 March 2020.
  4. ^ "Cooking up a smile Nuggets from Aatha". The Hindu. 30 July 2007. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  5. ^ "Archive News". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 15 August 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Tamil folk singer, actress Paravai Muniyamma no more". The Hindu. 29 March 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  7. ^ "Veteran folk artiste, actor-singer Paravai Muniyamma passes away". Cinema Express. 29 March 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  8. ^ "Actor-singer Paravai Muniyamma passes away". The New Indian Express. 30 March 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  9. ^ "Dhool paati Paravai Muniyamma dies aged 83". thenewsminute.com. 29 March 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  10. ^ "Throaty treat". The Hindu. 21 January 2004. Archived from the original on 4 March 2004. Retrieved 1 December 2016.
  11. ^ "Full Story Page Template 2". Sify. Archived from the original on 3 May 2003. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  12. ^ "At last, Paravai Muniyamma gets financial aid - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  13. ^ "Dhanush, Sarathkumar help Paravai Muniyamma". Deccan Chronicle. 1 August 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  14. ^ Kumar, Pradeep (1 November 2019). "Hospitalisation stirs up false news on Paravai Muniyamma's health". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  15. ^ Subramanian, Anupama (8 February 2020). "Abi Saravanan takes Paravai Muniyamma to watch Maayanadhi". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  16. ^ "நடக்க முடியாத நிலையிலும் பிரபல நடிகருக்காக திரையரங்கம் வந்த பரவை முனியம்மா! பார்த்த கடைசி படம் இதுதான்!". Asianet News Network Pvt Ltd (in Tamil). Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  17. ^ "பரவை முனியம்மா பற்றி பேஸ்புக்கில் பகிர்ந்த அபிசரவணன்". Samayam Tamil (in Tamil). Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  18. ^ "Kalaimamani awards after 8 years: 201 artistes get awards". Deccan Chronicle. 1 March 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
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