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History of Item Girls in Tamil Cinema

A commercial movie has to have everything. Just like a complete south Indian meal that must have everything right from sambhar, rasam, curd and the desserts, not to forget the favorite of many, the kara kozhambu. A meal is not complete without any of these and so is the commercial cinema. Unless there is action, comedy, romance, sentiments and glamour, a film doesn't qualify to be called a commercial potboiler. There might be people who say that commercial cinema is just trash and that 'good' cinema should be provided to the people. Well, we do not mean to pull down this so called 'good' cinema but one must remember and understand that making pure commercial entertainers requires a lot of skill and is an art in itself. All the elements have to be finely mixed in the right proportion to give a product that does not appear too sedate or too crude. In short, it must please the sense without hurting the sensitivities. Of all the elements of commercial cinema, glamour is perhaps the most subtle to handle. As we have said once before, the line between glamour and obscenity is a very thin one and can be easily blurred. Even the most skilled of directors has to be very careful in handling this part of his/her movie.

There was a time in Tamil cinema when most of the heroine characters were akin to ice maidens - they would never as much as look at the face of a man other than their husband, brother or father. They would get up early in the morning, have a bath, light the lamp, worship the Gods and wake their husband with a cup of coffee. It was indeed impossible to infuse glamour into such a setting. But then someone had a brainwave, this idea has not been officially credited to anyone and no records exist as to where this idea originated from. The idea was simple: if the heroine can't provide the glamour, bring in someone else who can; and the vamp or the item girl was born and the rest, as they say, is history. We will take you through the lanes these item girls have traveled.

The first known item girl was T.R.Rajakumari; though glamour was non-existent during her era, she was still considered sexy by the prevailing standards of that time. And for a while there were no big names that gained popularity, till three voluptuous ladies popped up from nowhere to daze the fans. They were Jyothilakshmi, Jaya malini, and Anuradha. Their existence was known to be the period in Tamil cinema when the item girl was just as important as the main cast. They were primarily in the movies for an item song or as a side kick to the dreaded villains. The famous trio's legacy got passed on to another trio of 'Silk' Smitha, 'Disco' Shanthi and Kuyili who went on to become as famous or if not more than the lead heroines of those days. Here again, the primary responsibility of these girls were the item numbers. Even the big directors had to relent to include one such number in their otherwise realistic movies, whether it dealt with the relationship between a man and a girl suffering from amnesia (Moondram Pirai) or a turbulent story about an ordinary man rising to become Nayagan of the population. There was no escaping the item girl till the early nineties when a change came around.

Suddenly there were no item girls but the glamour quotient never dipped. This was when the leading ladies decided that they had had enough of hiding in the shadows of the vamps. The then glamour goddess Kushboo, the spicy pair of Roja and Meena and the steaming red hot Rambha and Nagma saw to it that the silver screen is devoid of item girls. Glamour had become the heroine's responsibility and anyone who was not willing to carry on the trend was shown the door or relegated to the odd one or two movies. Vamps were no longer required in Tamil cinema, nor were the item numbers considered important.

Then a leading heroine of the times, Gauthami did the unthinkable (at that time), an item song. Remember the sensational 'Chiku Bukku' from Gentleman, the song opened the floodgates, making it no longer unacceptable for a heroine to do item numbers. Most of the lead ladies followed suit and even tasted considerable success. A new trend started to emerge. There were still no traces of item girls; however lead heroines started doing item numbers.

The trend of leading ladies handling the glamour department and doing the occasional item number passed on safely to the hands of Simran and later Jyothika. Still there were no signs of the item girls.

Now things seem to be coming full circle. Yes, Namitha and Malavika have emerged as strong item girls, enjoying a huge fan base and contributing to the commercial success of their movies.

With the 'leading' ladies of Kollywood (Asin, Trisha and Shriya) reportedly refusing all offers given to them for item songs, the offered sum running up to many crores, producers are taking off to Mumbai in search of item girls. Mumaith Khan & 'seena thana' fame Ragasiya seem to be some of their latest discoveries. So after having survived many years in a camouflaged alter ego, the item girls are coming back in their true form. Like it or hate it, commercial cinema and item girls go hand in hand.

The best 20 item girls of Tamil Cinema

The collection we have here is a first of its kind: a line-up of all those gorgeous women who have set the thermometer soaring with their high-voltage glam show on South screen, this decade. These are the ones we lovingly refer to as "Item girls".

Silk Smitha

Vijayalakshmi Vadlapati, known popularly as Silk Smitha, was an Indian film artiste who worked predominantly in the South Indian languages.

Jyothi Lakshmi

Jyothi Lakshmi is popular Tamil film item dancer who worked predominantly in the South Indian languages.

Vichitra

Vichitra is popular Tamil film item dancer who worked predominantly in the South Indian languages.

Anuradha

Anuradha is popular Tamil film item dancer who worked predominantly in the South Indian languages.

Shakeela

Shakeela is an Tamil and Malayalam actress who has appeared mostly in softcore and B movies. She mostly acted in film industries of Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi, and Kannada languages. She started out as an actor in B-grade movies in the early 1990s. Later she moved to Chennai seeking a career in South Indian film industry. Shakeela debuted through the Tamil soft porn movie, 'Playgirls' at the age of 20 as a supporting actress.

Namitha

Presenting the monolith of oomph! The most sought-after starlet in South Indian cinema. The reigning queen of glam. Namitha Mukesh Vankawala.

Namitha debuted as an actress in the Telugu film, 'Sontham', and followed it up with lead roles in 'Gemini', 'Oka Raju Oka Rani' and 'Oka Radha Iddaru Krishnula Pelli'. Though she played the girl-next-door roles in these films, her sultriness was evident.

She has starred in over 30 South Indian films. Her ventures into Kollywood has immensely enhanced her fan following. She was well received by Kannada and Malayalam audiences as well.

Arguably, Namitha has now become a national glam icon. In the last few years, hers has been one of the most searched names on all popular Internet search engines.

Her forthcoming releases include 'Simha' and 'Desadrohi' in Telugu and 'Hoo' in Kannada.

Mumaith Khan

One of Tollywood's most wanted performers, Mumaith's daredevil erotica has ensured her a place equal to that of South Cinema's top heroines.

Mumaith Khan has starred in over two dozen Telugu/Tamil films, doing dancing cameos in most of them.

Although she did a very popular 'item' song in the film, 'Chatrapathi', her rise to fame was with the hit song, "Ippatikinka...", from the super hit film, 'Pokiri' (2006).

Mumaith also played the lead role in 'Mysamma IPS', 'Punnami Nagu', 'Mangatayaaru Tiffin Center' and 'Bhookailas'.

Her latest appearance on Tollywood screen was in the blockbuster 'Magadheera'. Mummaith's Tamil and Kannada forays have also been successful.

Bhuvaneshwari

One of South Indian cinema's prized possessions, ever since her debut in 2003, Bhuvaneshwari has been setting the screen aflame with her sizzling hot glam shows.

Her stunning cameos in Tollywood, Sandalwood and Kollywood were instantly applauded by the viewers.

Bhuvaneshwari has acted in over 50 films; her noted movies include 'Nagaram' and 'Kurkure' in Telugu, and 'Sema Ragalai' and 'Pinchu Manasu' in Tamil.

This hot item-girl-turned-actress has also done roles with shades of grey.

Bhuwaneshwari would be playing substantial roles in 'Gaali' and 'Sravya', scheduled to release this year.

Abhinayasri

This leading model-cum-actress has managed to win her own gang of fans. Abhinayasri debuted in Malayalam and then moved up to Telugu.

With the super hit song, "Aa ante Amalapuram", Abhinayasri made a strong impact as an item dancer.

She has starred in over 20 films, mostly seen gyrating to dance numbers or in roles that needed liberal glam-show.

Abhinayasri has, of late, shown a desire to move into serious cinema.

The future definitely looks very promising for this actress from Kerala, as she is widening her base to Tamil and Kannada films.

Asha Saini

This pretty actress from Mumbai has managed to garner her share of fanfare and meaty film offers, ever since her debut in 2000.

Asha has acted in over nine films in this decade, mostly playing second fiddle to the lead actresses. However, all nine of her performances were noticed.

Audiences loved her in 'Narasimha Naidu', for her courageous portrayal of an ultra-modern, new age actress and item girl.

Her latest release has been 'Michael Madana Kama Raju', co-starring Prabhu Deva and Srikanth. Though the film did only average business at the B.O., Asha was noticed for her performance.

Farzana

Farzana has created quite a niche for herself as a "guest-appearance" performer, particularly in roles that demanded her dancing skills.

Debuting in Tamil cinema before foraying into Tollywood, Farzana has been an instant hit on the Glam circuit.

Her notable Telugu movies include 'Bommana Brother Chandana Sisters'and 'Seema Sastry'.

Farzana's much-hyped 'Kuberulu' (2008) was, however, a flop.

Farzana is now widening base to Kollywood and Sandalwood.

Bipasha Basu

Bipasha Basu is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi language films. She has also worked in Telugu, Bengali and Tamil language films. She had a successful modeling career before venturing into films.

Mallika Sherawat

Mallika Sherawat is an Indian actress who appears mainly in Bollywood films. Known for her bold onscreen attitude, Sherawat has been frequently featured in the media as a sex symbol.

Yana Gupta

Yana has been one actress who has consistently topped the charts with her item numbers, be it in Bollywood, Kollywood or Tollywood.

From being an international model to Bollywood item girl to Tollywood hot dancer, Yana has done it all, and loves to set the screen on fire!

Though her presence in South cinema has been sporadic, she has left a mark with each and every movie of hers.

Right from her thumping song in 'Aparichitudu' to the svelte performance in 'Gharshana' to her most recent number from 'Shankardada Zindabad', Yana has kept her fans and audiences screaming for more.

Kim Sharma

Making it to this edition of glam queens is none other than Kim Sharma, the femme fatale from Mumbai. Though her appearances in South cinema have been few, her popularity is intact.

Kim's rise to fame was with the chart buster, "Musuku Veyaddu..." from 'Khadgam'. The scorching dance number became a huge hit with the front-benchers.

Her item numbers in 'Alai' (Tamil) and 'Khadgam' were great hits.

After a lull, Kim bounced back with her item song from the blockbuster, 'Magadheera'.

Kim detonated another glam-bomb in 'Anjaneyulu'. Fans are anxiously waiting for her next release, titiled 'Yagam'.

Sona Heiden

Sona Heiden is an Indian film actress. She was Miss South India in 2002. She became famous for her best item songs in Kollywood movies. She has appeared in the Tamil film, Kuselan in 2008.

Sonia Agarwal

Sonia Agarwal is an actress and model. Having predominantly acted in Tamil films, she is probably best known for her performances as Divya.

Kousha

Not many would know that this current heartthrob of the Telugu film industry actually started off as an extra-dancer.

'Manmadhudu' gave Kousha the lucky break, and she has ever since been one of the hottest bods on South Indian screen.

Her acts in 'Premaya Namaha', 'Utsaham' and 'Dhill' have won her a great fan following.

Good performances in movies such as 'Athili Sathi Babu', 'Mantra', 'Kuberulu' and 'Raaraju' were applauded by both fans and critics.

Kousha can very well be said to be one of the boldest glam spectacles ever on South Indian screen. Brave wardrobe choices and norm-defying scenes have ensured her a top position on the B.O. charts.

Reema Sen

Be it Bollywood, Kollywood, Tollywood or Sandalwood, Reema Sen is omnipresent.

Reema made her Telugu debut with the teen drama, 'Chitram' (2000). Her debut in Tamil was with the super hit 'Minnale' (2000).

Reema's career graph shot upwards after she did a few item numbers in South Indian films, the most notable ones being in 'Dhool' (Tamil) and 'Anji' (Telugu).

Her popular Tollywood number, "Haisa Lakka..." (with Ravi Teja), became very popular.

Her latest release in Tamil, 'Aayirathil Oruvan', has done reasonably well at the B.O.

Mumtaz

Another hottie from the south who has boogie-woogied to stardom, this decade, is Mumtaz. Having started off in Tamil, Mumtaz forayed into Tollywood with the super hit Pawan Kalyan starrer, 'Khushi'.

Her other noteworthy performances in Telugu were from 'Rojapoolu' and 'Preminchanu Ninne'.

While Telugu film buffs await her return to Tollywood, the super-hot Mumtaz is busy with a number of projects, in Kollywood.

Her famous item numbers include the ones in 'Ezumalai', 'Devathayi Kanden', and 'Azhagana Natkal'. Apart from glam cameos, Mumtaz has also played substantial roles in hit Tamil films such as 'Maha Nadigan', 'Aei', and 'London'.

Her latest release, 'Rajathi Raja', saw her playing the lead role opposite Lawrence. Fans across south are awaiting her next release, 'Maila' (Tamil).