Kaanal Neer

Kaanal Neer
Promotional poster
Tamil	கானல் நீர்
Directed by	P. S. Ramakrishna Rao
Produced by	P. S. Ramakrishna Rao
Written by	P. S. Ramakrishna Rao
Based on	Badi Didi by Sarat Chandra Chatterjee
Starring	P. Bhanumathi A. Nageswara Rao Sowcar Janaki Javar Seetharaman
Music by	Master Venu
Distributed by	Bharani Pictures
Release date	21 July 1961
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Kaanal Neer (English: Mirage) is a 1961 Indian Tamil-language film written and directed by P. S. Ramakrishna Rao. The film stars A. Nageswara Rao and P. Bhanumathi in the lead. It was simultaneously filmed in Telugu as Batasari.

Suren (Nageswara Rao) hails from a zamindari family, and not able to get permission to pursue his studies, he leaves home and reaches Madras, hiding his identity. A rich man engages him to teach his younger daughter Pramila; his elder daughter Madhavi (Bhanumathi) has become a widow at a young age. Hearing about the goodness of the teacher, she gets drawn to him though she has never met him. Later, due to mischievous relatives, she begins to dislike him and dismisses him. Suren is involved in a horse-carriage accident and admitted to a hospital, after which his father takes him away. Suren, unable to forget Madhavi, names a village in his zamindari after her. To please his parents, he marries a young woman (Sowcar Janaki) but he cannot forget Madhavi. A conspiracy is hatched by evildoers to get Madhavi’s property. To fight for her rights, she goes to meet the zamindar not aware that he is Suren! Unable to neither forget her nor go against tradition, he pines away and dies in Madhavi’s arms.

The soundtrack was composed by Master Venu. The lyrics were written by Kannadasan and Ku. Ma. Balasubramaniam. Singer is P. Bhanumathi. Playback singers are P. B. Srinivas, Jikki, P. Suseela & K. Jamuna Rani.

The song Manamennum Maaligai Meedhu was released only on the record (not included in the film).

Randor Guy, film historian and critic, said, "the film will be remembered for the excellent performances of the lead pair and the story depicting the lifestyle of landed gentry".