Shylock (film) for "Shylock", a Tamil adaptation of Shakespeare's play "The Merchant of Venice". He and his friend Serukalathur Sama directed the film under the name Sama-Ramu. Sama also played the title character. The lyricists were Yaanai Vaidyanatha Iyer, P. S. Sivaramalingam (who acted onscreen as the Duke) and Papanasam Rajagopala Iyer, brother of Papanasam Sivan. S. G. Kasi Iyer, the brother of Tamil theatre actor S. G. Kittappa, was the music director, besides playing Antonio onscreen. Portia was played by T. V. Janakam, and Bassanio by T. S. Santhanam. Shooting took place at Bharat Movietone in Kilpauk. The makers went to
The Merchant of Venice "Il Pecorone" by Giovanni Fiorentino, which was published in Milan in 1558. Elements of the trial scene are also found in "The Orator" by Alexandre Sylvane, published in translation in 1596. The story of the three caskets can be found in "Gesta Romanorum", a collection of tales probably compiled at the end of the 13th century. The date of composition for "The Merchant of Venice" is believed to be between 1596 and 1598. The play was mentioned by Francis Meres in 1598, so it must have been familiar on the stage by that date. The title page of the first