Karnan (film)

Karnan
Promotional Poster
Directed by	B. R. Panthulu
Produced by	B. R. Panthulu
Screenplay by	A. S. Nagarajan
Starring	Sivaji Ganesan N. T. Rama Rao Savitri Devika M. V. Rajamma S. A. Ashokan R. Muthuraman
Music by	Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy
Cinematography	V. Ramamurthy
Edited by	R. Devarajan
Production company	Padmini Pictures
Release date	14 January 1964
Running time	180 minutes
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Karnan is a 1964 Indian Tamil-language epic historical drama film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. It features Sivaji Ganesan leading an ensemble cast consisting of N. T. Rama Rao, S. A. Ashokan, R. Muthuraman, Devika, Savitri and M. V. Rajamma. The film is based on the story of Karna, a character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He is born to an unmarried mother Kunti who abandons him in the Ganges to avoid embarrassment. The child is discovered and adopted by a charioteer. Karnan does not want to follow his foster father's profession, and instead, becomes a warrior. He then befriends Duryodhana, the Kaurava prince, eventually setting the initial grounds of the Kurukshetra War, where he will join Duryodhana to fight against his own half-brothers, the Pandavas.

Karnan, which was officially launched in 1963, was the first Tamil film to be shot in the palaces of Jaipur and the war sequences were filmed in Kurukshetra, which featured several soldiers from the Indian Army. The film's original soundtrack was composed by M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy, while the lyrics were written by Kannadasan. The dialogues were written by Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy, and the screenplay by A. S. Nagarajan. Karnan was considered a milestone in Tamil cinema as it brought together the then leading actors of South Indian cinema, Ganesan and Rama Rao.