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Making up for others
 It is not merely those on the stage who contribute to the success of a
drama but also those backstage. Read on to find out how important the role of a make-up man is!
R Padmanbhan, fortunate to be associated with drama is a make-up man by profession. He has been associated with this profession for more than 50 years. Born at Needamangalam ,in south Tamil Nadu, he is 73 years old. He also handles the trade of
costumes, backdrop and other items needed for a drama company.
He started his profession at Tirukkarugavur, in
Thanjavur district, at the age of 21. Padmanabhan got his first opportunity to do make-up for nagaswara vidwan Subramaniam who was playing
Draupathi.
Padmanbhan has also done make-up for
Sivaji Ganesan for 'Kaviyin Kanavu', a drama staged by Mayiladuthurai Sakthi Nataka Sabha. That was the time Sivaji got a chance to debut in the
'Parasakthi'.
Padmanabhan also has the credit of doing make-up for yesteryear actor A A N Kittu, when he was working for actor
Thangavelu.
He takes the credit for putting up sets and doing up DMK chief and former chief minister M Karunanidhi for his drama 'Nachu Koppai'. He put up sets for the same drama which was re-named as
'Santha'.
 Padmanabhan worked in
Kumbakonam Vani Vilasa Sabha for 25 years and his work was praised by one and all. He has also been putting make-up for artistes during the Bhagavatha Mela, conducted for the past 50 years at Melatur, in Thanjavur district.
Speaking about the profession, Padmanabhan said, "Make-up cannot be learnt in a school or learnt by just listening to a teacher. I usually first check whether the person would be suitable for the character he/she is playing before putting on the make-up. For the
Mahabharata drama, I would check the artistes for Duryodana,
Bheema and other characters, to see if they would be suitable for the role. This is one aspect of my work which people praise me for."
He adds that as far as drama is concerned, dramas of Sankaradas Swamigal were a hit. Today, performing a drama is expensive and many people do not enter this field.
The make-up man has a plea to the state government: Please help more poor artistes.
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