Sandow Marudur Marudachalamurthy Ayyavoo Chinnappa Thevar (28 June 1915 – 8 September 1978) was a film producer of Tamil cinema in the mid-1950s through the 1960s and 1970s.
He started "Veera Maruthi Deha Payirchi saalai" with his friends in Ramanathapuram area.
[3] He had started playing small roles in films that were shot in Central Studios, Coimbatore, until he was chosen by Jupiter Pictures[4] for villain role in the 1947 movie Rajakumari with a then relatively unknown lead actor M. G. Ramachandran with whom he formed a deep friendship.
In 1960, he started to record the music for Thaai Sollai Thattadhe and cast Ashokan as the hero.
This ‘agreement’ led to Devar making 16 films with MGR, the last being Nalla Neram in 1972, the Tamil remake of Haathi Mere Saathi.
His brother M. A. Thirumugam was also a successful director was worked predominantly for "Devar Films" production company.
In his later years with MGR getting more and more into active politics, Devar started to make films in the Socio –mythological Genre.
They were films set in modern times with the Central theme that faith and belief in God will solve one's problems.
Rajini worked on the movie Thai Meethu Sathiyam under the Devar Films banner directed by Thevar's son-in-law R. R. Thyagarajan.
Chinnapa Thevar practiced Hindu religion and was an ardent devotee for Lord Muruga.
Once Income Tax officials raided his house and was astonished to find so many Viboothi packets of Murugan temples, but no cash.
The third part is for his old friends who supported him during his early days who collected few thousands and sent him to Madras for film making.
Thevar's body was brought from hospital to his Ramanathapuram, Coimbatore residence and kept for public to pay their last respect.