Arangetram (1973 film)

Arangetram
Poster
Directed by	K. Balachander
Written by	K. Balachander
Produced by	N. Selvaraj J. Duraisamy V. Govindarajan
Starring	Prameela
Cinematography	B. S. Lokanath
Edited by	N. R. Kittu
Music by	V. Kumar
Production company	Kalakendra Films
Release date	9 February 1973 (1973-02-09)
Running time	152 minutes[1]
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Arangetram (pronounced [aɾaŋɡeːʈram] transl. Debut performance) is a 1973 Indian Tamil-language drama film written and directed by K. Balachander. The film stars Prameela, leading an ensemble cast that includes S. V. Subbaiah, Sivakumar, Sasikumar, Kamal Haasan, M. N. Rajam, Sundari Bai and Senthamarai. It revolves around a young woman who takes to prostitution to support her conservative but poor family.

Arangetram marked Kamal Haasan's first adult role, while Prameela, Jayachitra and Jayasudha made their acting debut in Tamil with this film. V. Kumar composed the music for the film, which was the last Balachander film he worked on. Cinematography was handled by B. S. Lokanath, and editing by N. R. Kittu.

Arangetram was released on 9 February 1973. Though it had carried hard hitting messages and very bold scenes and was controversial at the time of its release, the film became a commercial success. It was remade in Telugu as Jeevitha Rangam (1974), and in Hindi as Aaina (1977) by Balachander himself.