Those were the days: Legendary JP Chandrababu — tears in life but laughter on screen

Madras, a city of migrants, has its own lingo, a slang that got popular mainly through comedians in cinema. One of its most popular proponents on-screen was Chandrababu, who had a mastery of the Madras Bashai and to exploit it would specifically take on the role as a rickshaw puller or a milkman. 

Born in Tuticorin as Joseph Panimayadas Chandrababu Rodriguez to a very principled freedom fighter, Chandrababu was educated in Ceylon where the latter went into exile. The burgher style of music in Ceylon performed not only in night clubs but even in street corners was very popular and it seemed to have had sway on Babu. Very early in his career and during its fading, Babu would sing Sinhala songs for sustenance. Their family was in Colombo till the Japanese decided to bomb the city on an Easter Sunday. 

Back in India, Babu was hooked on to the entertainment industry and would start searching for cinema chances. It was tough and not getting entry into studios, Babu struggled for six years, even singing on the Santhome Beach to get a few meals. BS Ramaiah of the Manikodi movement gave him the first break in cinema as a comedian in Dhana Amaravathi but his further future sank along with the film. 

The Gemini Studio canteen was known for its excellent food where the greatest minds in cinema interacted. Many a great cinema had found its genesis idea amongst its hot spicy food, and even visitors were permitted to eat once they got an entry into the studio. But amidst all the enjoyment and creativity it offered, not one till then had tried to die there. 

It was in this canteen that a frustrated Babu mixed a few crystals of copper sulphate in a glass of water and drank it in a gulp. The studio officials took the slipping man to a clinic. Leading the group was studio executive Ganesan who would later become Gemini Ganesh. Babu was saved and the poison ejected from his bowels. Babu demonstrated his acting skills in court and got away from the attempt to suicide charge as well. Even Gemini Vasan on hearing of this event gave him a break in the forthcoming movie. 

Even a small role in Gemini had its cascading effect. Even before the release of the Gemini film, Chandrababu acted in two of singer TR Mahalingam’s movies. Recognising his unique voice, producers started assigning him songs on screen. He even sang playback for veena maestro S Balachander in a movie and one for Sivaji too. 

Songs were specially written for him. With plenty of scope for dancing with lots of philosophy in lyrics, Babu became a distinctive comedy actor as his songs reverberated through gramophone records across the Presidency. Soon all top heroes were insisting that Babu be added to the cast. 

When AVM shot a movie and then realised it was a hopeless chance at the box office, they called Chandrababu to rewrite the story with his comedy track involved, a couple of songs freshly written to add some gaiety to the proceedings. He charged a bomb but accomplished just that and the movie was a hit. 

But his eccentricities and guileless talk were getting on people’s nerves. For some movies, he demanded one rupee more than the hero’s fee. It was a matter of time before the hierarchy-stratified cinema field was going to trip Babu in his stride. 

Babu married a beautiful Anglo-Indian girl half his age at a glittery wedding attended by the chief minister himself to have it break down in a matter of weeks. His failed marriage was the beginning of his descent. Sheila, his wife, wanted to call it quits just weeks after the nuptials. The broken marriage triggered scandalous whispers and hurt Babu more than his erstwhile poverty or non-recognition. He slowly sank into liquor. 

It was the time when poet Kannadasan tried to make a film promoting Babu as a hero. A truant Chandrababu, not realising the potential that was being handed to him on a platter, would bankrupt the poet as well who in his autobiography would say no one more than Babu had troubled him in his life. Kannadasan had to go to the actor’s house to wake him from his drunken slumber and take him to the shooting spot on a daily basis. 

But his nemesis was MGR. Outspoken Babu would call MGR by name, something no one dared to do in the Tamil cinema field. Babu had even gone to the level of asking MGR to quit acting in the interest of Tamil filmdom. It did have repercussions when a smiling MGR gave the call sheet to Chandrababu when the latter wanted to produce a film with him. The movie was a disaster being shelved weeks after production commenced. It pushed Chandrababu into further financial trouble. 

It opened doors of misery and in a few months, he was on the street. An alcoholic beyond redemption with empty pockets had a lot of self-respect to lose, death must have been a thankful relief for him. 

Buried in Quibble Island Cemetery where Madras’s greatest war — the Battle of Adyar — took place, his place in history is assured even otherwise.