Valmiki was a 1946 Tamil-language film starring Honnappa Bhagavathar

Honnappa Bhagavathar

Honappa Bhagavatar/C. Honnappa Bhagavathar , was a Kannada - Tamil theater artist, film actor, producer, musician, singer. He was not only a great actor but excellent musician. He was a renowned singer of his times, and had sung many songs. He was one of the pioneers of Kannada Cinema...

, U. R. Jeevarathnam, N. C. Vasanthakokilam, T. R. Rajakumari

T. R. Rajakumari

Thanjavur Ranganayaki Rajayee , popularly known by her screen name T. R. Rajakumari was a Tamil film actress, Carnatic singer and dancer. She has been called the first "dream girl" of Tamil cinema.-Early life:...

 and T. S. Balaiah. It was directed by Sundar Rao Nadkarni

Sundar Rao Nadkarni

Sundar Rao Nadkarni was an Indian film actor, editor, cinematographer and director. He was the director of the record-creating Tamil film Haridas.- Early life :...

.

Pre-production

Valmiki was one ot the eleven movies announced with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar

M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar

Mayavaram Krishnamurthy Thyagaraja Bhagavathar , also called M.K.T., was a Tamil film actor, producer and Carnatic music singer. He is considered to be one of the most successful Tamil film actors ever....

 as the lead before his arrest in the Lakshmikanthan Murder Case

Lakshmikanthan Murder Case

The Lakshmikanthan murder case was a high-profile criminal trial which was conducted in the then Madras Presidency between November 1944 and April 1947. The cause of the trial was the murder of C. N. Lakshmikanthan, a Tamil film journalist with a hoary past. Lakshmikanthan was stabbed in Vepery,...

. Sundar Rao Nadkarni commenced shooting in 1944 with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, but following his arrest, all the scenes had to be re-shot with Honnappa Bhagavathar

Honnappa Bhagavathar

Honappa Bhagavatar/C. Honnappa Bhagavathar , was a Kannada - Tamil theater artist, film actor, producer, musician, singer. He was not only a great actor but excellent musician. He was a renowned singer of his times, and had sung many songs. He was one of the pioneers of Kannada Cinema...

 whom Nadkarni cast in his stead.

Plot

The film was based on the story of the Hindu sage Valmiki

Valmiki

Valmiki is celebrated as the poet harbinger in Sanskrit literature. He is the author of the epic Ramayana, based on the attribution in the text of the epic itself. He is revered as the Adi Kavi, which means First Poet, for he discovered the first śloka i.e...

 (played by Honnappa Bhagavathar) who starts as a bandit and eventually undergoes spiritual transformation into a religious mendicant. Valmiki falls in love with a princess (played by Jeevarathnam) who is kidnapped by the villain (played by T. S. Balaiah).

Post-production

The film was fairly successful and remembered for its music. Honnappa Bhagavathar cemented his place as a star performer in the absence of Thyagaraja Bhagavathar.