# Krishnadasi (2000 TV series)

Krishnadasi is an Indian Tamil-language soap opera. It aired on Sun TV from 14 February 2000 to 25 October 2001. The show stars Gemini Ganesan alongside Nalini, Vietnam Veedu Sundaram, Ranjitha, Aravind Akash, and Suja Raghuram. The show was produced by Prabhoo Nepaul. It is based on the novel written by Indra Soundar Rajan. The title track was composed by D. Imman and sung by Nithyasree Mahadevan.
Krishnadasi notably marked the last performance of Gemini Ganesan in a character role. It also marked the re-entry of actress Nalini into the media after a post-marriage 14-year hiatus, the debut of choreographer Raghuram's daughter Suja Raghuram as an actress and choreographer in television.
The title sequence is the first song composed by the music director D. Imman.

## Cast

| Actor | Character Name | Character Description |
| Ranjitha | Krishnaveni | a dasi by birth, Meenatchi's mother and Manonmani's daughter - keeping the information about Meenatchi's father a secret for many years for reasons only known to her. Gowri's best friend. |
| Nalini | Manonmani | a dasi by birth, Krishnaveni's mother and Meenatchi's grandmother. |
| Gemini Ganesan | Bhooshanam Rudramuthi Sastri | Swaminatha Sastri's father, and Gowri's father. |
| Suja Raghuram | Meenaatchi | a dasi by birth, Krishnaveni's daughter and Manonmani's granddaughter. |
| Vietnam Veedu Sundaram | Saama | a procurer. |
| Rajasekhar | Swaminatha Sastri(Deekshitar) | Rudhramurthi Sastri's son - father to six children, five daughters and one son. |
| Vijayalakshmi | Santhanalakshmi | Swaminatha Sastri's wife - mother to six children, five daughters and one son. |
| Aravind Akash- Credited as Arvinder Singh | Sunderesan | Swaminatha Sastri's sixth child and only son. |
| Anju | Lecturer Kalyani | Santhanalaksmi's sister. She became a widow on the same day she got married and remained a widow. |
| "Kalaimamani" Naanjil Nalini | Pachaiamma | village midwife, extorts Manonnmani to safeguard a secret of hers. |
| Menaka | Gayathri | Swaminatha Sastri's fifth child and youngest daughter. |
| Manjari- Credited as Vinothini | Gowri/Gloria(after marriage) | Rudhramurthi Sastri's daughter, married a man from a different religion against the wishes of her family. Krishnaveni's best friend. |
| David Ramesh | David | Gowri's husband, Rudhramurthi Sastri's son-in-law. |
| Raja Ravindra | Muthukumarasaamy | A brother figure to Krishnaveni and her well-wisher. |
| K.Manogar | Godhandam | Swaminatha Sastri's fourth son-in-law. |
| Nagesh | | |
| -- | Visaalaatchi | Swaminatha Sastri's third daughter. |
| Shobana | Sunandha | Swaminatha Sastri's first daughter. Lives in Mumbai. Tries to marry her daughter to her brother Sunderesan. |
| Shanthi Ganesh | Sulochana | Swaminatha Sastri's second daughter. Lives in Delhi. Tries to marry her daughter to her brother Sunderesan. |
| -- | Sowmya | Sugandha's daughter. Tries to marry Sunderesan. |
| -- | Maya | Sulochana's daughter. Tries to marry Sunderesan. |
| -- | Kokila(Koki) | Swaminatha Sastri's fourth daughter. |
| Rindhya | Indrani | Meenaatchi's friend from college. |

## Plot

This serial revolved around the Devadasi practice that prevailed in Tamil Nadu almost a few years after India's independence and how the dasi women are treated by society. The story followed the rivalry between Rudramuthi Sastri, a very powerful Brahman in that village and his family and Manonmani, the dasi of the village and her family in the small hamlet of Kandhanallur on the banks of the river Kaveri.
Manonmani, a dasi comes back to her ancestral village of Kandhanallur with her daughter, Krishnaveni after 15 years of exile from the village where she, her daughter and baby granddaughter, Meenaatchi, were exiled by the village's people. As soon as she arrives, she goes to meet Rudhramoorthi Sastri and his son Saminatha Sastri and vows that she will wreak havoc in their perfect lives like they wrecked hers 15 years ago.
Meanwhile, Saminatha Sastri's son, Sunderesan falls in love with Meenaatchi while they are studying at the college. Krishnaveni never revealed who was Meenatchi's father to anyone for reasons only known to her but Meenaatchi is determined to find out the truth. Pachiamma, the village midwife extorts Manonmani to safeguard a secret known only to them.

## Remake

Krishnadasi was remade in Hindi under the same title, Krishnadasi, starring Shravan Reddy and Sana Amin Sheikh on Colors with significant changes in the story.