M. S. Viswanathan
Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. Popularly known by the sobriquet Mellisai Mannar (King of Melody), he composed songs for more than 800 Indian films and various albums across languages primarily in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films. He has also acted and sung in a few Tamil films. The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J Jayalalithaa conferred the Thirai Isai Chakravarthy (Tamil for "The Emperor of Cine Music") title on him in August 2012 and presented him with 60 gold coins and a new car.
M.S.Viswanathan | |
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| Born | Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan 24 June 1928 Elappully Village, Palghat Taluk, Malabar District, Madras Presidency, British India (modern-day Palakkad District, Kerala, India) |
| Died | 14 July 2015 (aged 87) |
| Other names | M.S.V. Mellisai Mannar, Melody King, Thiraisai Chakravarthi, Isai Kadavul |
| Occupation(s) | Film score composer; singer; actor; music director |
| Years active | 1940–2015 |
| Spouse | Yezhuvath Janaki |
| Children | 7 |
| Parents |
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Viswanathan composed film music together with composer and violinist T. K. Ramamoorthy from the 1950s to 1965, as Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy for 100 Films. He independently composed for 700 films from 1965 to 2015.