Tyagayya (1946 film)

Tyagayya (Telugu: త్యాగయ్య) is a 1946 film considered as masterpiece produced and directed by Chittor V. Nagaiah It is a soul stirring film about the truly extraordinary life of Saint Thyagaraja.

Thyagaraja's music is very famous for the blend of rAgam-tAnam-pallavi and the sheer devotion for Lord Rama.

The captures the societal norms in the late 18th century. While many musicians used to seek the patronage of the kings, Tyagaraja was seeking the patronage of only Lord Rama. It depicts Tyagayya as not only a devotee of Lord Rama but also as a husband, brother, student and teacher.

Thyagayya (Nagaiah) is a villager composing devotional music to Rama while rejecting the court of Serfoji, Maharajah of Tanjore (Narayana Murthy), the dominant cultural center of the region. Turning down invitations and gifts from the Maharajah, he provokes the jealous wrath of his brother Japesen (Lingamurthy). The film's climax comes when Japesen destroys Rama's idols; Thyagaraja resurrects them eventually and sacrifices his life to his God.

Nagaiah also introduced lyrics from Kannada (the Purandaradasa devara nama in the film's opening), Tamil (by Papanasam Sivan and sung by D. K. Pattammal) and Hindi (sung by J. A. Rehman).