Guna Sundari

<p>Ugra Senan is the king of Dhara Nagaram. He has three daughters, Rupasundari, Hemasundari, and Gunasundari. Gunasundari is the young- Their mother dies when Gunasundari is born. Ugra Senan brings up the three girls with the utmost care. After the girls are grown up, one day during a chat between father and daughters, the two older daughters declare that the father is the most important person in a girl’s life. However, Gunasundari differs from them and says that the husband is the most important person in a girl’s life. Father Ugra Senan becomes displeased and angry at Gunasundari. He marries off the two older daughters to their cousins. But to teach Gunasundari a lesson, he marries her off to an aged pauper with a physical deformity. After the wedding, the king learns that the pauper is actually a young prince but suffers from a curse. The king orders Gunasundari and her husband to leave his kingdom. They then live in a hut outside the kingdom. The king becomes ill. The native physicians say his illness can be cured only with a rare gem called Mahendra Mani. Gunasundari’s husband goes in search of the gem and succeeds in finding it. He is turned into a bear due to another curse. His two elder brothers-in-law rob the gem from him and give it to the king who is then cured. Gunasundari prays to and regularly. Shiva and Parvati are pleased with her devotion and bless her and her husband. Relieved of his curses, Gunasundari’s husband regains his handsome princely form. The king learns the truth. He recalls Gunasundari and her husband back to the kingdom and crowns them King and Queen. and produced the film under the banner . The film was made in with the title with and Kasturi Siva Rao. The Telugu film was released in 1949. The film is said to be inspired by Shakespeare’s . Music was composed by and lyrics for all songs were penned by . are , , S. C. Krishnan, , , , & Kamala. This Tamil version Gunasundari was a flop. However, the Telugu version was a success and remained a favorite of producer B. Nagi Reddy.</p>