Poets and Pancakes (Asokamitran)

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Gemini Studios was a film-producing organisation in Chennai. It was set up in 1940 and became one of the most influential studios in early Indian film-making.

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S.S. Vasan founded Gemini Studios. He was also the editor of the Tamil weekly Ananda Vikatan and was called The Boss at the studio.

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The author cut newspaper clippings on many subjects and filed them. Many of the clippings had to be written out by hand. Though the work looked minor, it made the author well-informed.

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The work involved reading and sorting news on many subjects, so the author had wide general knowledge. This is a good example of how even a small job can lead to broad learning.

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Pancake was the brand name of the make-up material bought by Gemini Studios in truck-loads. It was used heavily in the make-up department for film shooting.

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The make-up room had incandescent lights placed around mirrors like a hair-cutting salon. The strong lights created a fiery, uncomfortable feeling for those who had make-up applied there.

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The make-up department had workers from different regions and communities, including Bengali, Maharashtrian, Kannadiga, Andhra, Madras Christian, Anglo-Burmese, and Tamil backgrounds. This shows diver…

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The make-up department followed a strict hierarchy. The chief make-up man handled the chief actors and actresses, assistants handled lower-ranked actors, and the office boy made up the crowd players.