Topic started by avvaiyar (@ 203.116.61.132) on Wed Jan 27 02:29:28 EST 1999.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.
I'm a new visitor to this website. I couldn't see anyone discussing about Vani Jayaram's songs.
Let me start this one.(It had been there previously pls. forgive me!)
"Ezhu swarangalukkul ethanai paadal..
Ithaya surangathul ethanai kelvi...
Vaazhum manitharukkul ethanai salanam.."
Wow! Beautiful voice!
VaniJayaram.com - A site that has lots of info and songs of VJ.
Responses:
- Old responses
- From: Saravanan (@ 195.229.241.234)
on: Sun May 4 13:00:02 EDT 2003
Naaz: Idhukellam poi permission kettukkittu : )
Go ahead ! Aayiram kelvigal malarattum!
Don't spare Neel either : ))
- From: Maverick (@ 32.97.182.41)
on: Sun May 4 14:56:30 EDT 2003
Folks
Let me intorduce myself !!! I am VJ's nephew (I guess that it was me that she mentioned to Naaz.) Not from Michigan, though !!! Not sure how she got confused me as from Michigan. I was about to leave to VA when I told about this TFM discussion to her in a function back in chennai. Even tried to reach her last week from VA, but could not speak to her , unfortunately. Just moved to Florida this week and slowly settling here.
Good to know that another interview is coming up !!! Infact, as she said she is not too much of a 'technology' person and keeps track of the cyberworld stuff and the fans' discussion thats happening here, though she was very very much eager and anxious to know more about it. I also gave her the website URL (www.vanijayaram.com) and TFM's URL too. Had a small talk with her about her recent concerts and generally about TFM and ofcourse about the fans too.
I thought of printing out the discussions thats happening here and send it to her when I was in chennai but the trip to Virginia happened sooner than I expected and hence could not do it. Maybe, I should find sometime to take the best of this discussion forum and send it to her by mail.
Anyway, I came across this forum a few years back and was so surprised and happy to see so many true fans of her & TFM discussing and recalling her moments of glory !!!
Kudos !!!
- From: Naaz (@ 24.87.28.203)
on: Sun May 4 15:20:50 EDT 2003
Saravanan/Kaumudi -
Just following the protocol is all. Thanks for the green light, I will edit/cut/paste your questions here in the next little while.
Neel indri Interview illai :-) Without the website this sort of project would be dead in its tracks. I am sure Neel will contribute his thoughts...and I wish (wishfully) that he would do so again in these parts as well...
Maverick -
How nice to make your acquaintance. Please keep VJ posted on the goings-on here as much as you can. The Michigan/Virginia confusion was mine (I checked the letter again - and VJ did say VA - blame my tardiness - not hers!)
Also, do join in whenever you can. Your presence and words can only add to all our knowledge and sharing. Thank you for your message - and keep them coming.
- From: Prabhu (@ 203.124.130.219)
on: Mon May 5 08:25:59 EDT 2003
Friends, I have compiled all sub-threads of this great thread into ONE single html page. You can get it from here
http://www.angelfire.com/tn/justkool/tfm/good.html
Its a huge one(2091 KB so far), happy gnawing to all the bookworms out here :)
- From: Kaumudi (@ 136.142.153.250)
on: Mon May 5 11:44:13 EDT 2003
Maverick
It is nice of you to come over to this thread and to have given VJ the URLs and some encouragement to visit these threads. May be someday we can even have the honour and privilege of having VJ write a few lines in this thread. That would be something!!
- From: Saravanan (@ 195.229.241.232)
on: Mon May 5 12:49:57 EDT 2003
1978- Part 8:
This time around, let us recollect Vani’s songs in 1978 for three different
Music Directors- and each song is a treasured classic.
152.Udalenbaar Uyirenbaar- Puthu Cheruppu Kadikkum- MB Srinivasan
Pudhu Cheruppu Kadikkum was never released- but I have seen the record, and it was
dated 1978- so I am including it as part of the 1978 diary.
ON MBS:
M.B. Srinivasan had gone to Lakshadweep islands to train a youth choir there,
when he suffered a massive heart attack and passed away on 9th March 1988. I was
studying for my +2 exams, when I read of his demise. In the midst of frantic
last minute revisions, I still mourned his passing away, for many of his songs
had brought me so much joy and many, many hours of listening pleasure. True, he
had composed music for only 8 Tamil films- but he had created some songs of
timeless enchantment in those few films-from the bewitching ‘Thennankeetru
oonjaliley’ to the moving ‘Amma undhan kai valaiyaai’- songs that will live on
to tell the tale of a genius—A great musician, and a great human being, a noble
soul who strove throughout his life to better the lot of his fellow beings,
while all the time creating songs of eternal allure—
Manamadurai Balakrishnan Srinivasan was born in 1925 in Chithoor, where
his father was working as a Lecturer in an Agricultural College. Music was an
integral part of his childhood, as both his parents had great love for it. MBS
grew up in times when the freedom struggle was at its zenith. MBS, though
hailing from an affluent family, was attracted to Communist thoughts and as a
student of Madras Presidency College, joined the Madras Students Organisation(M.S.O.) Along with like-minded enthusiasts like S.Damodaran and Baladhandayudham, MBS was actively involved in garnering student support for
imprisoned freedom fighters and conducting patriotic meetings, where
Bharathiyar’s fiery songs were sung with fervour.
For a while, MBS worked in the office of the Communist Party’s
Parliamentary Committee in Delhi. It was then that he got involved with Indian
People’s Theatre Association (IPTA) and helped in bringing about plays and road
shows highlighting problems faced by people in everyday life. Whilst going about
this, he also got an exposure to musical influences from all corners of the
country. He also formally learned classical music.
It was during this period that MBS met and fell in love with Zahida
Kitchlew, who shared with ardor, the same passion for both music and people’s
causes. Zahida was the daughter of the great nationalist Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew.
(Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew, is mostly remembered today as the one of the
two persons (the other one being Dr.Satyapal) whose arrest, along with the
notorious Rowlatt Act, was the reason the ill-fated Jallianwala Bagh meeting was
held on Baisakhi Day(April 13th) 1919- the meeting that ended with that gruesome
carnage by General Dyer.
Dr. Kitchlew originally hailed from a Brahmin family of Baramulla in
Kashmir. His ancestor, Prakash Ram Kitchlew embraced Islam. Many Kashmiri
Muslims migrated to Amritsar during the famine that struck Kashmir in 1871.
Saifuddin’s grandfather, Ahmed Jo was amongst them. Saifuddin’s father was a
prosperous merchant, trading in pashmina and saffron. Saifuddin studied medicine
at Cambridge and married the daughter of Mian Hafeezullah Manto, a lawyer.
Saifuddin started the Amritsar branch of the All India Muslim League in 1917- at
that time many Congressmen were also members of the Muslim League.
In 1919, Dr. Saifuddin organized a series of meetings to harness public
opinion against the Rowlatt Bills. His cry ‘Na Vakil Na Dalil Na Appeal’ became
a popular refrain against the bill. Gandhiji made him the president of the
Satyagraha Sabha. When Dr.Saifuddin brought about a remarkably united show of
Hindu-Muslim strength on Rama Navami day, April 9th, 1919, he, along with
Dr.Satyapal, was arrested and deported to Dharmashala. The Jallianwala Bagh
meeting was organised as a protest, and in the aftermath of that ghastly
bloodbath, Dr.Saifuddin was named as the first accused in the Amritsar
Conspiracy Case, and sentenced to life imprisonment. However, the overwhelming
public opinion in his favour secured his release.
Dr. Saifuddin was honoured by the Akal Takth in 1924. He became the
President of the Punjab Provincial Congress Committee. He was among the founder
members of the Jamia Milia Islamia. He was awarded the Stalin Peace Prize in
1954.)
In Zahida, MBS found a perfect soul mate and married her- he a Tamil
Aiyangaar and she a Kashmiri Muslim- but what does religion matter, when hearts
unite- Nabigal Quranum, Kannan Geethaiyum oru paadhayail angu sangamam—They
named their son Kabir, after that wonderful poet, who was celebrated alike by both
Hindus and Muslims.
Let us now take a cursory glace at the works of MBS in Tamil films:
1.Kumari Films’ Paathai Theriyuthu Paar- 1960- MBS was among the stalwarts with Communist
leanings who produced this off-beat film, directed by Nimai Ghosh and
starring K.Vijayan, L Vijalakshmi & Sahasaranamam. Songs: Thenankeetru
Oonjaliley (PBS-SJ), Maasil veenaiyum (SJ-AS Mahadevan), Chinna china
mookuthiyaam(TMS), Rasa magan polirundhen(ALR), Azhutha kannerum paalaguma(PS)
and Unnmai oru naal veliyaagum(TL). Lyricists were Communist sympathisers like
Pattukkottai Kalyanasundaram, Jayakanthan and KCS Arunachalam.
2.Kavya Chitra’s Dhaagam-1974- MBS had to wait for 14 years for his next Tamil
film! Again an off-beat venture directed by Babu Nandhankode that starred
Muthuraman,Nandhitha Bose, Rajkokila and Major Sundararajan. Songs were the
thogayara Vaanemngum parithiyin jothi (KJY) followed by Urugidum velaiyilum (SJ)
and Vaanam namadhu thandhai (SJ, Muthuraman & chorus)
3.NVR Pictures’ Pudhu Vellam- 1975- K Vijayan, who became a director with this
film, remembered MBS with gratitude and entrusted him with the film’s music. The
film strred Sivakumar and Kannada Manjula. Songs were Idhu pongi varugindra
pudhu vellam (TMS), Thuli thuli thuli (PS), Naan raja veettu kannukutti(PS) and
Erumai annachi(TMS)
4.Sakthi Cine Arts’ Eduppar Kai Pillai-1975- The film starred Jaishankar,
Srikanth, Bhanumathi, VA Nirmala and others. Songs were Azhagu rani kathai
ithu(PS), Kiss me son -Kanna perumaan aalapirandhaan(Bhanumathi), Meet my son
-vanavaasm poyirundhu(Bhanumathi) and Ponnum mayangum poovum vanangum (KJY,PS)
5.NVR Pictures’ Madhana Maaligai- 1976-directed, again, by K Vijayan. The film
starred Sivakumar, Srikanth, Alka, Manorama and others. The songs were Yeriyiley
oru Kashmir Roja (KJY,PS), Oru Chinna paravai(SPB), Aaasaiyo suvaiyaanathu (PS),
Under the mango tree (Usha Uthup) ,Valathu kaalai eduthu vechu vaangadi (VJ &
chorus) and Paraparapara pattampoochi (PS & chorus)
6.John Abraham’s Agragarathil Kazhuthai-1977. The film had no songs, but had
background music by MBS, who also acted as the chief protagonist, along with
Krishnaraj, Swathi, Raman. Savitri and Veeraraghavan. The screenplay was by
Koothuppattarai Muthusami. The fact that this film is considered a landmark in
the history of Indian Cinema is evident from the fact that the film was screened
in a retrospective of Indian Films in the Locarno Film Festival in August 2002.
(the other Tamil films to find similar honour were Thanneer Thanneer, Iruvar and
Kandukkonden Kandukkonden)
7.Rajaram Theatres’ Pudhu Cheruppu Kadikkum- I don’t think the film was ever
released, but I have seen the record of the songs-it was dated 1978. The songs
were Sithirappoo selai (SPB) and Udalenbaar uyirenbaar (VJ).
8.Nijangal-1982. The film starred Menaka, Anandi, Kuladeivam Rajagopal and
others.The songs were Amma undhan kai valaiyaai-VJ, Un kaadhodu kaadhoru seithi
sonnaal (SPB,SPS) and Namma Indhiya dhesam kooda (TMS & chorus)
I know it seems incredible- but that is the total count of the Tamil films that
came his way! A paltry 8- and that includes a film that had no songs and another
that was never released! Can you believe that a genius who created a miracle
like ‘Thennankeetru Oonjaliley’ had to wait for 14 years for his next film? But
then, our Tamil Film Industry has been a hotbed of malicious propaganda, cunning
machinations, deep-seated intrigue, rampant favouritism, and has always looked
with suspicion at change of any kind.
But the same destiny which closed the door of tfm for MBS, threw wide open for
him the portals of Malayalam films, and there MBS found enchanting avenues to
create his kind of music. Internationally acclaimed filmmakers like
KG George, MT Vasudevan Nair, Adoor Goplakrishnan and Aravindan came to MBS
repeatedly to set music for their films. MBS bagged four times the Kerala
Government Award for the best Music Director. It was MBS who, in 1961, gave KJ
Yesudas his first ever film song, (a short verse by Narayana Guru) in the film
Kalpadukal. Jayachandran got the State award for the song ‘Ragam Sriragam’,
composed by MBS for the film Bandhanam.
MBS gave his best to all his films- be it any language. The first film in Baduga
language-Kala Thapitha Pailu had memorable music by MBS.
MBS was the pioneer in Radio jingles- Many of the jingles heard in the early 70s
were composed by him.
MBS was not content to rest his laurels in film music. Through music, he wanted
to inspire in children the qualities of patriotism and National Integration. The
beginning was made when he trained 25 students to sing 6 songs of Bharathiar for
the Ilaya Bharatham programme of AIR in August, 1970. Under his guidance, the
Bharathi Ilaignar Isaikkuzhu was started in 1971, which blossomed into the
Madras Youth Choir in 1973. MBS was instrumental in setting up such choirs in
many parts of India. Songs of Bharathiar, Bharathidasan, Tagore and Iqbal, when sung by hundreds of children in one voice, evoked rare emotional fervour in the listeners.
MBS loved children- most of his serndisai programmes were by children from the
Corporation schools and children from the slums. MBD headed the Madras Youth
Choir right from its inception up to his death in 1988. After his demise, Zahida
took over the responsibility with enthusiasm. Zahida passed way on 23rd October, 2002.
MBS was honoured with the Award for Creative Music by the Sangeet Natak Akademi
in 1986.
He galvanised the Cine Music technicians to form a Union and demand prompt
payments and fixed wages. He was instrumental in the formation of the Indian
Performing Right Society Ltd (IPRS) to give Copyright protection to Music
Directors and lyricists.
MBS has left behind a rich legacy. Today performing artistes in every nook and
corner of the world remember him with gratitude- Subha Harinath, who teaches and
gives concerts in Australia, Sundar who works with top composers in North
America, Karthika Ganesan, who is a ‘Naatiya Kalanidhi’ in Sri Lanka, Kaveri
Sridhar, who formed the Bangalore Youth Choir—these are just a few from the
thousands of artistes whose lives MBS has touched in one way or the other.
Even on the fateful day, when MBS left for his heavenly abode, he was engaged in training a Youth Choir in a remote island of Lakshadweep- Urugidum velaiyilum nalla oli thandha mezhugu thiri—
Some day, as you are driving along the rural pockets of Tamil Nadu, as you pass a hamlet, you may feebly hear for some fleeting seconds, a few lines from ‘Yeriyiley oru Kashmir Roja’ from a radio in a tea-shop, like "Violets by a mossy stone half hidden from the eye” and you will feel the presence of MBS--
Laal Salaam, Comrade!
ON THE FILM:
Rajaram Theatres’ Pudhu Cheruppu Kadikkum was based on a short story by Jayakanthan. The story was written in 1971, and came out as part of a collection of short stories, published by Meenakshi Puthaga Nilayam, Madurai.
The story revolves around three characters- Nandagopal, Girija and Vatsala. Nandagopal enjoys his bachelorhood till he is 30 years old. He harbours bitter memories of his father physically torturing his mother day after day, and thus he develops an aversion towards marriage. He meets Girija, who works as a sales girl and also does various odd jobs to eke out a meager living. He is attracted to her cheerful disposition and caring ways. One day, when seeing her hungry state, he treats her to a square meal and buys groceries for her. She suggests that he move in with her, and pay her whatever he was paying his mess. He readily falls in with the scheme, and their friendship assumes new dimensions. He tells her of his mother’s constant demands that he get married. Girija encourages him to take the step. He tells her of his cousin Vatsala who is very pretty. Girija masks her disappointment, and congratulates him on his decision. When the wedding day looms near, she suggests that he move out, as it would not be appropriate for them to share the same roof any more. There is a hint of tears in her eyes as she tells this--
Nandagopal finds marital life not at all what he had bargained for. Vatsala and he rarely see eye to eye, and arguments, unpleasantness and humiliations become a daily affair. One night, after some bitter exchanges, he suddenly remembers wistfully his carefree days with Girija. He takes a sudden decision to pay her a visit, even at that unearthly hour. Girija is surprised at his sudden visit, but gives him a warm welcome. To her eager queries on his married life, he responds by listing the complaints he had against Vatsala, and adds that he is suffering for the callous way in which he had treated Girija—
She gently admonishes him, and explains to him how Vtasala must have felt to leave all that is familiar and dear to her, and come to a strange place and that even the male species may appear strange to her. Girija adds that Nandagopal was ‘experienced’ in the ways of women (in a wry refrence to their living together), and she too was ‘trained’ in the ways of men- but men do not want “trained” wives ! Nandagopal understands the truth. Presently, seeing that her foot is injured, tenderly enquires about it. She replies that she had bought a new pair of slippers, and was suffering from acute ‘shoe bite’ Then come her punch lines “A new pair of slippers necessarily hurts, but would that make anyone go in for an old pair”?!!! She smiles as she says this-----he breaks down—
What a moving, stark story- I believe Jayakanthan had expanded it into full-length evocative black & white film---but could no find no distributors. I can only sigh in helpless frustration, when I realize that Jagan Mohini ran to packed houses in the same year in which a masterpiece like Puthu Cheruppu Kadikkum slept in the cans—
ON THE SONG:
The other song ‘Chithira poo selai—sivandha mugam-siripparambu-muthu chudar meni’ (SPB) is a gem—I hold this song the apotheosis of poetry in film songs- lines like ‘Mukkalum thuni maraithu-nee moolaiyieyl poi nindru—un sokkaiyai idugaiyil naan-sokkaagi, moolai chuvaraagi --munnindru paarenaa---’
ok-ok :-)) we’ll look at VJ’s song now- It is no less in beauty-
Udal enbaar-
enathuyir enbaar-
Kadal enbaar--
un kann enbaar--
Unnamai-
Miga unnmai!
Udal ingey-
athan uyir angae-
Kadal ingey-
karai puralum-
kanneer-
ival kanneer!
Thuyilinile-
nalla kanavu varum-
Thuyil neengi-
antha ninavu varum-
Thuyaram-
Athu thuyaram!
Kaatriniley-
thoodhu vittu-
kanneeril--
madal ezhuthi--
Kaalamalleam kaathiruppaar--
Penngal--
Ivar penngal!
Has the sorrow of a girl whose love has gone unrequited, ever been depicted more poignantly- each line is redolent of this suffering- the suffering that only people who have loved and lost can understand- the wait is endless, futile, yet still she waits—
MBS adds spellbinding sheen to the lyrics by his unobtrusive and masterful use of veenai, flute and violin- each interlude is a short but effective statement
VJ brings to the song a Ghazal like aura- how much hushed pain peeps out in her song- The song becomes a celebration of heart-rending sorrow--
153.Aaana Kaanaa- Sri Kanchi Kamakshi- K.S.Raghunathan
Chitra Productions’ Sri Kanchi Kamakshi was a star-studded mythological
(Muthuraman, Sujatha, Srividya---), directed by KS Goplakrishnan.
In 1954, both KSG and Sridhar submitted their stories to Saravanabhava-Unity
Pictures, who were planning to make a film. Sridhar’s ‘Ethirpaaraathathu’ was
selected over KSG’s ‘Thambi’. However, KSG wrote some songs for
Ethirpaaraathathu (Kaathal vaazhvil naaney & Thinnu paarthu theerpai sollunga).
He continued to assist Sridhar and also wrote a few songs in films in which
Sridhar was involved. Memorable among them are ‘Thunbam soozhum neram’-Amaradeepam and ‘Un azhagai kanniyargal’-Uththama Puththiran.
KSG made his debut as a director in Saradha-1962. The film, with a hitherto
unexplored theme, went on to become a huge success. The success story continued
with Karpagam, Kai Kodutha Deivam, Selvam, Panama Pasama, Chithi--. Though many
of his later films, with ponderous titles like Kulama Gunama and Uyira Manama
were heavily melodramatic in style, ‘Iyakkunar Thilakam’ KSG ranks among the
great filmmakers of Tamil cinema. It was he who introduced KR Vijaya in
Karpagam, directed her 100th film Nathayil Muthu and her 200th film Padikkatha
Pannayar. Similarly, he introduced Jayachitra in Kurathi Magan and directed her
100th film Nayakkarin Magal. KSG was the man behind the story/screenplay of
Padikkatha Medhai (dir: Bhimsingh), but when years later he tried a rehash of
the same theme in AVM’s Per Sollum Pillai (dir: SP Muthuraman), it was rejected
outright by the public. KSG’s last film was Abhavanan’s Kaviya Thalaivan-1992,
starring Vijayakanth.
And at regular intervals, KSG came out with mythologicals. His first foray in
that area was Aadhi Parasakthi-1971, which was a runaway hit. Dasavatharam-1976
didn’t do too well. But Kanchi Kamakshi, which followed in the wake of K
Shankar’s Varuvaan Vadivelan did good business. Another film in this genre by
KSG was Deviyin Thiruvilayaadal-1982.
KSG loved to experiment with different Music Directors- KVM and MSV-TKR (and
later MSV) of course, gave some excellent songs in KSG films. Others included G
Ramanathan (Deivathin Deivam), V Dakshinamoorthi (Jeeva Naadi- story/screenplay:
KSG), Kunnakkudi Vaidhyanathan (Vaazhayadi Vaazhai), S Rajeswara Rao
(Dasavatharam), S-G (Many, many films), IR (Yugadharmam, Padikkatha Pannaiyar) ,
Sidhartha(Kaviya Thalaivan) and KS Raghunathan (Kanchi Kamakshi)
I don’t know much about KS Raghunathan or HMV Raghu, as he is popularly known.
But I have listened to some of his non-film works. Many of the Ramakrishna Math
releases had music by KSR. Sample these ones: The Bhajan Series by Rajkumar
Bharathi and Vani Jairam, Geetha Chanting series by Rajkumar Bharathi, Bhakthi
Malar series by Jayachandran & Vani Jairam, Bhajans and Stotras by Swami
Purushothamananda. Other KSR albums include Soundarya Lahiri by MLV, Sai Geetha
Mala by Dr. Hiramalini Seshadri and Bharathiyar songs by Unnikrishnan. KSR is
held in high regard as a technical expert as well- Recently, when Media Dreams
wanted to digitally remaster some rare vintage works of great exponents from the
original Grundig spool tapes, KSR’s assistance was sought for this highly
specialized job.
Other songs in Sri Kanchi Kamakshi include Vedhathin uchiyil-TMS, Manmadhan kai
karumbu-Seergazhi Govindarajan and Aadhi sakthi naarani- Seergazhi Govindarajan,
TL Maharajan and SC Krishnan.
The situation of this song is nothing novel- a dumb child gains the power of
speech by the infinite grace of Kamakshi Amman, and starts uttering the
alphabets, and the worshippers who have gathered in the shrine watch on in
awestruck trance--
Sorry, guys, I tried typing these syllables in English- but it proved too much
for a Tamil scholar like me : )) Some of the sounds like the 2nd, 8th, 16th and
17th consonants- I was flabbergasted wondering how to type them in English- Oh,
well –you all know your uyir-mei ezhuthu - so let me skip the lyrics(!) this time.
Minimum instrumental accompaniments- Need I say that VJ does a splendid essay-
the sing-song uttering of the alphabets, each line is so enchanting, and how
effortlessly she scales some high points, many times in an accelerated tempo,
with some breathless passages, all the time keeping in tact the clarity of each
syllable- that is a matter of ceaseless wonder. The peak-finish leaves a
lingering taste--- I dazedly wonder if ANY other singer could have carried off
this song, so effortlessly, and so enchantingly--
An enthralling Tamil lesson by Vani teacher! Thank you Ma’am!
154.Thamizh vendhan Pandiyanin angam- Ananda Bhairavi- R.Ramanujam
Sri Vidya’s Ananda Bhairavi starred Ravichandran, KR Vijaya, Jayadevi and S
Varalakshmi. I have not seen the film- so no clue about the proceedings.
Rangasami Ramanujam is the younger brother of Rangasami Parthasarathy (of
Oriental Records fame). Before settling in the U.S. and embarking on a
flourishing business in marketing music, Parthasarathy had composed memorable
music for films like Magadhalanaattu Mary, Kalyana Mandapam, Avan Piththana,
Paalmanam and Kalyana Oorvalam.
Ramanujam was born the last of five children and grew in a household where music
was loved and nurtured. Unfortunately, he could not be as successful as his
illustrious brother. Ananda Bhairavi was his first film, and he gave a brilliant
account of himself. His next film was Annapparavai-1980. Annapparavai had that
spellbinding SPB solo-‘Ponnenbatho poovenbatho’. MV’s ‘Gopala-yen sir’ became an instant hit. SJ’s ‘Aadi padhinettu’ was another catchy number.
Ramanujam’s next film was the MGC Sukumar-Vanithasri starrer Aval Oru Kavariman,
which doesn’t seem to have been released. The film had some good songs like
‘Pallavai naan paada’(VJ) and ‘Poonthendral kaatraaga poonjolai vandaaga’(PS,
Jolly Abraham?). Another stillborn film for which Ramanujam wasted his efforts
was Puththampudhunayagan. I have heard that in the aftermath of MGR’s demise,
Ramanujam brought out a cassette on the Puratchi Thalaivar, which did brisk
business.
All the songs in Ananda Bhairavi are truly memorable- ‘Umayavaley Mariyamma,
varam tharuvaai Mariyamma’ in the great S Varalakshmi’s brigha-laden tenor is an
aural treat. And while ‘Sirithaai- andha sirippil oru mogam’ is an all-time
favourite SPB-PS delight, ‘Kodi kodi ennam adhu kondu vandha sondham’ is a
breezy TMS-PS duet.
Let us look at this classical song by Vani:
Thamizh vendhan Pandiyanin angam-
en thalaivanin thirumeni thangam;
Pagaivargal munbu avan singam-
Ennai paarthu vittaal kaadhal pongum-
Ammamma---
Devar kadal kadaintha amudham-
Avan thirumaarbil naan malarum kumudham;
Moovar vaditha thamizh padhigam
Andha mohanan thandha sugam adhigam
Ammamma---
Raathiri pookalukku raja-
En ragasiya thottam kanda roja;
Saathira Geethai sonna Kannan-
Ennai thazhuvugaiyil kaadhal mannan-
Ammamma--
Ennadi naanam endru anaippan-
Naan ethum sonnaal medhuvaai sirippaan!
Thannanthanimaiyiley azhaippan-
Nalla samsaram pola enni nadappaan-
Ammamma---
Aalilai megalaigal aada-
Ponarasilai nadagangal kooda-
Naalu gunangaliley naan vaada-
Adi nayagiyey endravan naada-
Ammamma----
A Bharathanatiyam song, drenched in Sringara Rasa, beautified with exquisite
lyrics---- isn’t that enough for Vani to simply scintillate?! Ramanujam must
have envisaged this song in an inspired moment- the Ragamalika that he has so
imaginatively created is full of surprises at every turn. And the loving way
Vani arranges the trellis of the sancharas in the raga essays of Shanmugapriya
and Sahana around the lyrics (Raathiti pookalukku raja and ennadi naanamendru
anaipaan respectively) is something to cherish.
The song reverberates throughout to the Mirudangam and the anklets. The Venu and
the Veenai herald the arrival of the Vani- and she makes a majestic entry.
Listen to that bashful pride in ‘Ennai paarthuvittaal kaadhal pongum’-Ammamma!.
There are so many untold delicious secrets in Vani’s whispered ‘Andha mohanan
thandha sugam adhigam’! Pray, hark at her prolonged ‘raja’ and ‘roja’- who
wouldn’t be entranced? Ramanujam gives such an enticing bit on the flute after
‘saathira Geethai sonna Kannan’- that we catch a fleeting glimpse of that divine
flautist Himself. The laugh that Vani gives in ‘naan ethum sonnaal medhuvaai
sirippaan’ is filled with amused recollections of the lover’s banter , while the
alaap after ‘Naalu gunangaliley naan vaada’ is another nostalgic moment----
It is when I listen to bejeweled classics like this that I regret my ignorance
of classical music. I feel frustrated that I not able to wholly appreciate the
nuances and subtleties of Vani’s song and consequently unable to do any justice
to its review. It is a gratifying thought, however, that it has never occurred
to this veteran of dignified sangita sampradaya to indulge in the cheap or the
meretricious just to attract the laity.
But then she doesn’t need to. She is able to put across the real thing so
tunefully that it earns her the respect of the Pandits and the awe-filled
admiration of the paamarans (like me : ))
- More to come in 1978------
- From: mythila (@ 137.237.13.20)
on: Mon May 5 13:47:48 EDT 2003
Saravanan, I dunno if there's any telepathi or something like that. Only yesterday, I was thinking about the song 'Chithirapoo selai', sung by SPB. Though , I had felt the song to be a BIG BORE when it used to be played those days, yesterday ,I wanted to hear the song again .
Coming to VJ,again yesterday, I was pondering about this song in KanchiKamakshi, where she has sung in perfect diction and a bell like tonal clarity.
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