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If SP Bala is so great , why has Bollywood rejected him?

Topic started by Raju (@ 212.188.176.99) on Thu Nov 1 12:43:49 EST 2001.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

SP bala never sings in hindi...he is not in demand!

Raju!
By the way I am being devils advocate here, I myself am a great fan of SP bala but i would like the listeners reaction to this statement

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Responses:

• Old responses
  
• From: Raghuvaran (@ 212.2.14.241) on: Thu Nov 15 05:36:51 EST 2001
  
  udayakumar (@ 202.88.142.205) ;
  
  Final nail on the coffin, well said.
  
  
• From: Raghuvaran (@ 212.2.14.241) on: Thu Nov 15 05:41:22 EST 2001
  
  If Elvis presley was so great, why has Indian Music Industry rejected him???
  
  
• From: Raghuvaran (@ 212.2.14.241) on: Thu Nov 15 06:42:11 EST 2001
  
  Here this is from ;
  
  
  
  http://www.cybervaanoli.com/artistofthemonth/artistofthemonth.jsp
  
  SPB as he is populary known, was first introduced in telugu films. His first song in tamil was Ayiram Nilave Vaa, for the film Adimai Penn, for MGR. SPB apparently sang the song Iyarkai ennum Ilaya Kanni for the film Saanthi Nilayam, for Gemini Ganesh before this. For long he was not in the forefront of tamil film music, though he was popular in telugu films. With the advent of Ilaiyaraja, SPB's voice too blossomed and he reigned the tamil movie industry for years together. Today, he is unquestionably one of the best known singer in India. He has sung in more than 10 languages and bettered the Guiness Record held by Lata Mangeskar for most number of songs sung - more than 40,000. Even though he is more than 50 yrs of age, his voice seems to be getting better day-by-day! Like his predecessor T M Sounderrajan, who could modulate his voice when he sings for MGR and Sivaji, SPB was able to do it successfully for Kamal and Rajini in their early years. Speaking of Kamal and Rajini, in the mid 70s, the tamil film industry started to groom four of its finest stars who are still - unquestionably - ruling the industry - Kamal, Rajini, Ilayaraj and SPB. Since all the four of them started their mainstream cinema career around the same time, the bond that you can see between SPB and the other three is immense. Any tamil film fan who grew up in late 70s or the 80s - whether he is a Kamal fan or Rajini rasigan or got adopted to the next generation of stars like Prabhu, Karthik, Satyaraj, Vijaya Kanth - will at any given time associate yourself with SPB or more affectionately Balu. Let me have the pleasure of sharing with you all, the SPB who always sings in my mind and most of yours too. Of course, I am not willing to choose a "Top 10" or "Top 100" for an artist who has sung more than 40,000 songs - and I can not. I am just trying to put together few of his songs together here and trying to share my feelings when I first heard it. I am sure some of you, might share the same experience. I was nine when I first heard this song. Probably one the first songs that I remember I liked, the very first time I heard it. Not just becauase of the guitar piece in the song, not because of the catchy tune the song was set on, infact even before any of these shows up, SPB lifts the listeners heart high up in the sky when he starts singing the line "Ilaya nilaa...... Pozhigirathae....... Idhayam varai..... Nanaigiradhae.....". Probably the composer of this piece Isaignyani Ilayaraja was assured of the success of this song when SPB touched the high note in megam in the next line Ula pogum megam kana kanumae vizha kanumae vaanamae. SPB assures the music director a big hit when he inserts a laugh in some of his songs in an appropriate position. I am sure it is music director's idea and concept to have SPB do that, but I feel in this particular instance, it is sheer execution of the laughter that wins accolades. He has done one in this song, in the second charanam, written by Vairamuthu. Mughil inangal alaigirathae mugavarigal tholaindhanavo, mugavarigal thavariathaal azhuthidumo adhu mazhaio? In this azhuthidumo starts with a short laugh to acknowledge the imaginative lyrics written with a good sense of humour. Idhu oru pon maalai pozhuthu, is there anybody who has not murmerred this song even once in their life? I am sure the answer would be a big no. I would be proved wrong, only by a person who has never heard this song. This was one good example of instant hit. Whenever I hear this song in my cassette player or watch it in Oliyum Oliyum, I could visualise SPB walking in the beach and singing this song and could never put Robert Rajasekar in that place - the reel life singer of this song. That much emotion was put in by SPB in rendering this song. Like the Madras Dhoordharsan programme, Whats the good word?, my school friends and I used to play our own version of this game - whats the good song?, whats the good movie? Etc. Once my team mate had to give three clues to me and all he gave me was Kamal, SPB, Disco. Pat came the answer from me and out of excitement I started to sing "Hai everybody wish you a happy new year.........". This is one of those songs where the listener can easily identify that, SPB sings for Kamal. Not because of the lyrics like "enakaaga ekkam ennamma kalathoorin kannamma" or "ek dhuje ke liye engi nee paarthiyae", but for the nice voice modulation that he would have adapted to sing this song specially for Kamal. One of the successful disco beat song for SPB, Ilayaraja combination, this is a must telecast song in Oliyum Oliyum and AIR's Ungal Viruppam, around every new year - I won't be surprised if this trandition is still continuing. If you have not seen the video of this song, here is what I would suggest you to do. Play this song in your audio cassette player or CD Player, sit back, close your eyes and even if you have a little knowledge about Rajnikanth, his manerisms, style and acting, you can start visualising how Rajini would have done in the celluloid screen. This also helps for people like me who have not seen this song's video for a long time. The song I am referring to is "Sinorita, I love you. My sweet heart you love me. ......" - mistakenly credited as "Snow Reeta I love you" in Audio Cassettes and CDs. I am not sure whether to keep up with Rajini's dialogue delivery pace, SPB would have rendered this song in a similar pace. Probably he tried to be on par with Rajini's style and fast manerisms when he rendered the lines "haa haaa hae hae hae poomeththai poaduginra vaasa pushpangal ponn thattil aaduginra poovai ennangal thoovaatho vaasangal thullaatho enangal ae ehaeha aeeee engengo selludhae enn nenjai killudhae angae angangae vaa venum angangal...... " I don't know, it could be just my imagination.
  This is the first part of the 3 part series on our artist of the month. Check here in couple of weeks for the second part of the series
  
  
  
  
  
• From: Raguvaran (@ 64.124.150.140) on: Thu Nov 15 07:30:09 EST 2001
  
  chappaathi chappaathi thaan roti roti thaan
  
  chappaathi chappaathi thaan roti roti thaan
  
  chappaathi chappaathi thaan roti roti thaan
  
  
  Raguvaran@212.2.14.241: That was for all the three parts that you (most certainly) will be posting!!
  
  
• From: L.T.T.E (Srilanka) (@ 208.50.80.71) on: Sat Nov 17 13:59:50 EST 2001
  
  I agree currently SPB is the greatest singer in India today, but one must not forget the great M.rafi & Ghantasala.
  
  How do you know (who ever started this thread), that Bolly wood rejected him, perhaps SPB rejected Bollywood offers, Just beacuse an artists is not accepeted in one industry, it does not make the artist any inferior, Lata sang 5 songs in Tamil, then
  Why did lollywood reject her?, Rafi did not sing any tamil song, his telugu songs were horrible!!, then I can ask why did lollywood reject him?
  
  Do not start stupid thread like this!!!
  
  
• From: Meerakrishna (@ 148.87.19.74) on: Sun Nov 18 02:11:04 EST 2001
  
  But Rafi's kannada song is really good. That was the super hit song and my favourite too. The song is Neenelli Nadeve Doora(pathos).
  
  
• From: The News (@ 65.90.98.9) on: Sun Nov 18 14:42:44 EST 2001
  
  The Hindu,
  
  At a time when Tamil film music has developed its most pronounced Western chord, and singers have a trained twang, S.P. Balasubramaniam still stresses on diction and emotion. After 35 years as the Best Playback Singer, the philanthropist singer wants to hold a full-fledged Carnatic music concert. `The Voice' speaks to Feroze Ahmed. HE ALMOST didn't sing for `Sankara Bharanam'. Not trained in Carnatic music, an apprehensive SPB had asked the music director K.V. Mahadevan to pick someone else. ``The character in the film was a personification of classical music. If something went wrong, people would have blamed me.'' But Pugazhenthi, the assistant music director, was adamant.
  
  He felt there was lot of drama to be performed in the songs and only SPB could deliver. ``I took a lot of effort for the film. Time and luck were on my side.'' He won his first National Award for Best Playback Singer for the film in 1979. It almost turned out to be a curse. ``After `Sankara Bharanam' everyone thought I could sing any song, but it was not so. There were many occasions where I could not do justice to the songs.'' For someone who sings classical in films - ``actually light or semi classical'' - like he was born for it, SPB does not consider himself an exponent of Carnatic music.
  He's not ready for a full- fledged concert yet, he says. ``If I seriously concentrate for a year or two I will be able to do a stage concert. I have to religiously train at least three days a week. Though not as busy as earlier, I am finding it very difficult to find time.'' His call-sheets may not be cluttered anymore, but the SPB of the future will be sitting cross-legged on stage. ``There are no second thoughts about it... I will definitely hold a Carnatic concert.'' ``But you can't learn just three or four keertanas and hold a concert. You should be able to innovate and that should be the capacity of the singer on stage.
  
  My intention is to be a regular singer like anyone else.'' That, from someone who's won six National Awards and the Padma Shri this year. From a singer whose repertoire ranges from Indian folk to Western, Carnatic to Hindustani. His 1995 National Award was for a Kannada film, `Gaana Yogi Panchashari Gavai' (GYPG), with a classical Hindustani base. ``I sang four songs in GYPG of which two - `Umang Gumand' and `Gaana Vidhya Bahut Katin Hai' - were really `katin' for me. The songs were in the Gharana of Dharwad style. I took six months running away from the film.'' He had about 15 years in the industry and a reputation for his soulful renditions when he was called to `audition' for `Ek Duje Ke Liye', which fetched him his second National Award in 1981. ``The composers, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, were not comfortable with me to start with.
  
  But Balachander explained that the character portrayed by Kamal Hassan comes from the South and does not speak Hindi well. I knew the movie would be a success but never thought it would fetch me a National Award. Actually, I was surprised I didn't get a Filmfare Award for it. Kishoreji got it that year.''
  
  Though not a keen awards gatherer, who preferred taking things as they came, he had his share of disappointments. ``The only time I was very sure of an award and didn't get it was for `Annamaya', a Telugu movie.'' It still rankles him strong.
  
  Was he surprised by `Minsara Kanavu', his last National Award in 1996? ``I was surprised. I was surprised. Because my most favourite song in the film was `Vennilave Vennilave'. During the recording the music composer A.R. Rahman and director Rajiv Menon were insistent on a lazy crooning style like you just got up from bed. A labouriously lazy way of singing. It was not easy and I took quite some time to get into the groove for the song.'' The one sore note in his 35-year career comes from `Mayuri'.
  
  SPB had done the score for the original Telugu film. The Hindi version was done by Laxmikant-Pyarelal but the title song, which won the Swami Haridas Award for Best Classical Song, was recorded by SPB. ``As its composer, I should have taken the award but L-P took the award.'' SPB has scored music for more than 50 films despite a ``lack of formal training''. But he had a simple technique: ``I would sing the songs and my assistants would write the notations. I had excellent assistants.'' But the present day music scene is not for him. ``I won't fit into it. I don't have any knowledge of Western music. My strains will be more on Hindustani or Classical mix. It should have beautiful situations and poignant lyrics. That is my definition of a film song.'' He never tried to become a singer, never dreamt of becoming one. ``I was a thin, tiny lad and my voice had just attained puberty then (late 60s). It just happened. When I go back 20-25 years I don't know how I could give such beautiful dimensions to my songs. I still wonder... I don't have the answers
  
  
• From: Raghuvaran (@ 212.2.14.241) on: Fri Nov 23 11:27:28 EST 2001
  
  Any body !!!
  
  Any body know a song called "kanne radha,....", it is a romantic melody by SPB, do you know which film it is from, if so do you know who is acting in the film???
  
  thanks
  
  

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