Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri

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Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri is a 1977 Tamil drama directed by S. P. Muthuraman, with a screenplay by Panchu Arunachalam. It’s based on a Maharishi novel and stars Sivakumar, Rajinikanth, and Sumithra. The film is notable for pairing Rajinikanth with Sivakumar in opposite kinds of roles: Rajinikanth as a positive lead and Sivakumar as an antihero. It was released on 2 September 1977 and runs for about 146 minutes.

Plot
Two roommates in Nagercoil, Sampath and Nagaraj, run a garment shop. Sampath is honest and loves a woman named Raji, who dies in an accident. After a tough period, Nagaraj steals a suitcase of black money from a man named Muthu, who dies on the way. Muthu’s sister Bhuvana seeks answers about the money, and Nagaraj pretends to fall for her. Bhuvana becomes pregnant, and to protect her, Sampath marries her, while Nagaraj marries a wealthy businesswoman, Manohari. Sampath and Bhuvana share a platonic marriage while Nagaraj’s greed grows. Nagaraj becomes impotent and wants to adopt Bhuvana’s child to gain control, but Sampath intervenes to save the child. Later, Sampath dies from heart trouble caused by years of smoking and drinking, and Bhuvana decides to live as his widow.

Production and reception
This film marked the first collaboration between Rajinikanth and director S. P. Muthuraman. It was shot in black-and-white to cut costs, and Rajinikanth was trained in Tamil for his role. The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja, with lyrics by Panchu Arunachalam. The movie was a commercial success and won Filmfare Awards for Best Tamil Film and Best Tamil Director for Muthuraman. Rajinikanth’s performance won a Best Supporting Actor award as well. The film helped shift Rajinikanth toward more positive hero roles in his career.