Topic started by On behalf of Sankar (@ 210.186.51.129) on Mon Dec 30 07:11:34 EST 2002.
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Kaaviyathayin Illaya magan
Kadhal Pengalin Perun thalaivan
Paamara jaadiyil thani manidan – naan
Padaippadhanal yen per Iraivan
Naan Manida jaadiyai aati vaipen – avar
Maandu vital adhai paadi vaipen
NAAN NIRANDARAM AANAVAN AZHIVADILAI
ENDA NILAYILUM ENAKKU MARANAM ILLAI
These are the great lines of Kaviyarasu Kannadasan in the movie Ratha Thilakam where he acts in the movie singing these lines. ( Song.. Oru Koopayilae yen kudiyiruppu)
What a visionary he was ? Indeed, he is NIRANDARAMAANAVAN.
I share some of my observations about Kavingyar. I want all the fans of HIM to join this discussion and add more quality material in praise of his great works.
This is the only way we pay tributes to this GENIUS.
a) Raga Gyanam of Kavingyar
In the file ‘ Thiruvarutchelvar’, no one can forget the great song ‘ Mannan Vandhanadi’. This song was penned by Kannadasan and music by legendary KVM and sung by P.Suseela. I do not think we can ever get a better song in the Raga Kalyani in our tamil movies when compared to this song . This song has all the nuances of Kalyani in a capsule form.
In the Charanam, look at these lines,
Viraivinil Nee… Ni
Mana malar Tha .. tha
Thiru Marbaa… Pa
Thamadhama… Ma
Mayil ennai Ka… Ga
Ni.. tha.. Pa.. Ma.. Ga….
The words end in the avorahanam of Kalyani ( descending order of the musical notes)
Similarly, there is one stanza which will have the first letters in the arohanam ( ascending order).. I do not recollect the exact lines..
Sa…
Ri.. ri ga ma pa da ni sa..
Ka.. karunaiyin Thalaiva
Ma.. Madhi migu Mudhalva..
Do we have any such poet today ?
b) Kannadasan’s command over Language
Also, can any one forget the ‘Then’ song in Veera Abhimanu.. This duet is again a KVM song in Raga Sahana by PBS and PS.
Paarthen Rasithen pakkam vara thudithen
Unai then ena naan ninethen – andha
Malai then idhu ena malaithen
What about the ‘voor’ song in the file Oorkkaval.. PBS is the singer
Endha voor endravanae
Irundha voorai chollava
Andha voor neeyum kooda
Arindha voor allava
The great ‘ Kai’ Song ‘ Athhikkai Kaai kaai’ in Balae Paandiya.—About this song, I will dwell in detail subsequently.
c) Kannadasan’s knowledge of Litreature:
(i) There is one tamil poem in ‘Pura Nanooru’, the old tamil literature.
To know the meaning of this poem, you also need to know about the philanthrophist tamil King Paari. He was so noble and kind hearted that on one occasion, when he found a jasmine creeper without a support, he let his chariot as the support for the creeper so that it could grow. His fame and wealth was an eyesore to cheera , choola and Paandya kings and they waged a war against him and killed him. They also want to marry his daughters who were too young and the marriage proposal was stopped by Tamil Sage Avvaiyar.
The poem is written to a situation where, the daughters of Paari, on a full moon day, recalls that their father was with them on the last full moon day and he is now more now and they were grieving for his death.
The poem in chaste tamil starts as
Attrai thingal Auv Vennilavil…
Kannadasan has taken this incidence to write his song
‘Androru Naal Idhe Nilavil
Avar irundar en arugil’ in the film ‘Nadodi ‘ ( wagabond)
(ii) In Kamba Ramayanam, the poem which describes Kaiykeye seeking two boons from Dasaratha starts as
‘Aazhi sooz ulagelam Bharathanae Aaala’ and ends as ‘ Theeyavai yaavinum Sirandha Teeyal’
whereby kambar describes Kaiykeye as the worst of the worst for her act .
I think Kannadesan must have been inspired by these lines and in the movie ‘ Karnan’, there is a song by SG, Tirchy Lokanathan, PBS, TMS which is penned to the situation of Karnan performing pooja to his father Suryan ( the Sun God). There the stanza
Mannavar porulgalai Kai kondu…. Ends with ‘ VARUMAIKKU VARUMAIYAI VAITHTHOR MAAMANNAN VAZHGAVE…VAZGHA VAZGHA.
Here, he used two negatives ‘ Varumaikku Varumai’ to elate Karnan’s noble charity that there was no poverty because of his abundant charity.
Also, I feel vairamuthu must have been inspired by Kannadasan’s lines that he had sai ‘ maanatthin Maanathai vaangi vittan’ in the song ‘Poo Malai Vaangi Vanthan’ in Sindhu Bhairavi.
(iii) In one of the Sirappu Then Kinnam ( remember the yester years in Radio… Chennai Vaanoli Nilayam !!), Kannadasan himself had said that he wrote the song
Thookkamum Kankalai Thazuvattume
Amaithiyum Nenjinil Nilavattume
Since he was inspired by the lines of shakesphere in ‘Macbeth’
(iii) The famous song in ‘Vaazhkai Padagu’
‘ Neetru varai nee yaroo naan yaroo
Indru mudhal nee vaero naan vaero’
Is based on the ‘Pura Naanooru’ padal
‘ Yanum neeyum yaaraa giyaro
yendaiym numadiyum evan kollo
Sembulap peyar neer pola
Anbudai Nenjangal Tham Kalandaduvae’
(iv).. One Sanga kaala illakkiya padal was the inspiration for Kavingyar to write the famous song in “Balae Paandiya’ – ‘ Atthikkai Kai Kai’
One newly wed bride is separated from her husband since he need to be in the battle field shortly after the wedding. On the full moon day, the lady, is thinking about her husband and feeling lonely without him on a romantic night. She requests moon ‘ I am always remembering him but not sure about how he feels.. Already I am sore without him… you also do not add to my suffering with your full radiance.. instead of glowing here, you shower your moon light on the direction where my husband is so that he also gets romantic mood and gets back to me’
This is what the song
‘Athikkaai kaai kaai
Aalangai Vennilavae’
Athikkai is fig. Also it means glow in that direction ( thikku in tamil means direction / side).
What a great song.. full of name of various vegetables. At the same time, has got a different meaning in chaste tamil.
d) Ability to convey his message through his songs.
(i) Kavingyar came out of Congress but had great admiration for Kamaraj. He wanted to convey his respect and desire for an ever lasting association with Kamaraj. Hence
‘Andha sivagami maganidam sedhi solladi – yennai
serum naal parka solladi’
came in the movie ‘Pattanathil Bhoodam’. In the movie , the song was set as it to praise Lord Muruga..
Kamaraj’s Mother’s name is Sivagami !!
(ii) Similarly
Nalandana … Nalandana…
Udalum Ullamum Nalandana..
Nalam Pera vendum nee Yendru
Naalum Yen Nenjil Ninaivundu
Ilai marai kaai pol porul kondu
Yevarum ariyaamal sol indru….
Was written in ‘Thillana Moganaambal’ for as the meeting song between Sivaji and Padmini after sivaji’s injury.
But, this song is actually written with C.N. Annadurai in mind when he was ailing in the hospital and kavingyar was away from him .
One more great song by KVM in the raag Sivaranjani.
WILL WE EVER GET BACK A KAVINGYAR LIKE KANNADASAN ??
Responses:
- Old responses
- From: R. Mahendra Raj (@ 203.106.163.158)
on: Mon Mar 24 05:31:14 EST 2003
Thanks a lot Ram for your compliments. I had been toying with this idea too and with God's grace and our kaviarasar's spirit I hope to have this realised soon. But the info I have on kaviarasar is only 'a tip of the iceberg' so to speak figuratively. There are still many out there who hold valuable info and maybe they can be invited to partake so that it could benefit the millions of Tamils globally. Does'nt his lines "naan nirantharamaanavan azhivathillai entha nilayilum enakku maranamillai" ('Oru Koppyaliae En Kudiiruppu') ring a bell? After so many decades of writing this song and at this stage of all things digital and electronic kaviarasar still lives perpetually in the hearts and minds of both the older and younger generations alike throughout the world.
More on kaviarasar's generosity.
When of his assistants was arrested by police for suspected smuggling of liquor kaviarasar desperately contacted all his friends for cash to bail him out but to no avail. When everything else fails in such desperate situations he will quietly withdraw to his bed contemplating as to the next course of action. During such times he had the habit of fumbling with his gold neck chain while staring blankly at the ceiling above. This time the very gold chain he used to fumble came in 'handy'. He asked one of his assistants to pawn it for Rs 500 (the cost of the bail) and post the bail. His argument - the chain is nothing compared to the needs of a friend in dire straits. The actual cost of the chain was more than 10 times the price of the bail. The hocked item was never redeemed at all later! Typical of him!
Kaviarasar was once invited to preside over a poetry reading session in a college. Prior to going to the rostrum one of the novice student poets struck an instant friendship with kaviarasar at the back of the stage. Kaviarasar asked the student for his pre-written poem and after making a cursory glance over it put it in his own shirt pocket. Subsequently he wrote out one and asked the student to recite it on stage. The student was more than happy and he agreed to the request.
When this student's time came up for rendition, of course, he read out what kaviarasar had written for him thinking that it will win him a prize. But the applause he received was barely audible and he was truly disappointed. When kaviarasar took the mike he read out the student's poem passing it off as his own. The applause this time took some time to die off!
In his concluding speech kaviarasar exposed the truth to the audience. He drove home the point that this world is full of illusions where it only reckons face value leaving all the unsung heroes behind. He made his point with jest. Does'nt this incident strike a semblance to Tharumi of 'Thiruvilayaadal'?!
Another poetry incident.
Kaviarasar was a lover of dogs and he had one as a pet named Caesar. One day some undesirable elements hacked Caesar to death and dumped it outside his compound. Kaviarasar broke down upon seeing the lifeless body of his pet and was truly depressed for three days continously without having any appetite for meals even.
Earlier he had committed to write a poem for a literary function and the organisers came to his house to remind him of this. With Caesar's death still fresh in his mind he jotted the poem "En Arumai Caesar" (My Beloved Caesar). At the function the organisers and the audience received this poem very well - all the while thinking that kaviarasar wrote about Julius Caesar! Both Caesar and Julius Caesar were victims of brutal deaths and kaviarasar intelligently (although depressed) wrote it in such a way that it will be virtually difficult to know the actual background. Such was his love for dogs and especially Caesar. So he has written for animals too!
That also reminds me of a reader asking kaviarasar how the term "ungrateful dogs" came about in the Tamil language since dogs are known to be faithful to their masters.
Kaviarasar replied him that the apparent characteristcs of a dog is its gratitude and if it fails to show this then it should be rightly called 'ungrateful dog' hence this term.
In the same breath and in jest kaviarasar also said that Tamilians can be equated with dogs for no dog will allow another into its territory. Tamils are not only territory conscious but also will chase out any intruders who come to share their prosperity!
Kaviarasar was known to convert even the most serious subject into humour with his wit.
More later folks!
- From: R. Mahendra Raj (@ 211.24.0.55)
on: Mon Mar 24 09:53:00 EST 2003
In the early part of 1981 (the year kaviarasar died) MS Visvanathan was down in Malaysia and was scheduled to appear for a live tv interview with anchorman V. Poobalan, another die-hard fan of kaviarasar. Towards the end of the interview Poobalan purposefully asked MSV as to why of late Kannadhasan was writing trash songs. This question irritated MSV and he was quick enough to shoot the answer straightaway. He said that it was not Kannadhasan's fault but it was the producers who insisted on such trash. He further reminded that music directors like him may have faced the drought sometimes but not Kannadhasan as his mind is a perpetual fountain, always flowing with fresh lyrics. Poobalan and the Malaysian Kannadhasan fans were only too happy with this reaffirmative statement from MSV. But one must see MSV's emotion at that time to see how he reacted to Poobalan's question which was intentionally aimed to get something out of MSV!
There was another incident involving the late TR Mahalingam, an actor who shone bright during his hey days but slided to almost a noneity. It was kaviarasar who booked him to be the hero for his film 'Maalayitta Mangai'(1958)where he shot to fame again. Thats a different chapter altogether.
The year was 1978 when TR Mahalingam visited Malaysia for a concert. He was booked for a tv interview with anchor V. Poobalan. His health was deterioting and he had to be helped into the studio. During the interview Poobalan took the opportunity, like always, to ask about Kannadhasan and TRM gave him due credit for his second lease of life. The interview was, according to the studio personnel and Poobalan himself, dull and monotonous due to TRM's health.
Just before the time was up for the interview Poobalan asked him to sing a Kannadhasan's song for the benefit of viwers who were anxious to hear him sing. TRM obliged and started to sing the song (you guessed it right!) "Senthamizh theyn mozhiyaal". After singing the pallavi the high pitch of the song began to gain momentum in the following stanzas and he went about singing with his eyes closed. The tv crew was astonished that this frail looking man whose voice was hardly audible during the interview could sing in such a high-pitched voice. The crew head gave silent orders for the standby cameras to roll on and capture the mood of the song from all angles of this 'live performance'. The whole crew stood mesmerised till the song ended. Mind you, other than Poobalan the rest of the crew were from other races who cannot understand Tamil.
Later TRM confided to Poobalan after the live interview that it was Kannadhasan's image that kept him going throughout the song!
- From: R. Mahendra Raj (@ 210.186.0.135)
on: Wed Mar 26 05:24:54 EST 2003
During the mid sixties there were some literary figures who were jealous of kaviarasar and were bent on being overly critical of his works. At one stage he even pleaded with them in the media that should they wish to do post-mortem on his works then they can do so after his death because his heart is soft and cannot bear to being criticised. Like a child's heart!
Nothwithstanding his appeal he took the opportunity to lash out at his critics through a song scene situation in the film 'Enga Paapa'(1966). The situation called for the hero,(Ravichandran) a part-time poet and a graduate, to be physical with his opponents for criticising his poem and at the same time singing an apt song. BR Banthulu called upon kaviarasar to pen this light situation song. This song is unique in the sense that it is a light fight-cum-song scene with the usual dishum-dishum sound even in the song proper. MS Viswanathan did a beautiful job to make this song an unique one.
As usual it gave our kaviarasar an outlet to vent out his emotions against his opponents but with a difference - he had used all types of South Indian physical self-defences vis-a-vis his own literary defence!
The song is reproduced below for the benefit of readers:-
Naan pottaal theriyum podu
Thamizh paattaal adippeyn odu
Intha kavithaiya kurai sollumvore
Intha kaliyaal adippeyn vaada
Nee Kambannai padithavanaada
Illai kaagitham thinnum mooda mooda
Ammannum munnae aayiram paattai
Alli alli veesattumaa
Appothum unakkum puriyaathirunthaal
Solli solli uthaikattumaa
Vallinum mellinum
Nalla idayanum ennum kambai eduthu
Venbaa Arisi ennum vitha vithamaagya saattaithoduthu
Pattanathu Thamizhilil nainaa endraal
Artham enna koorattumaa
Bayilvaan mozhiyil vashthaad endraal
Valam enna kaatattatumaa
Edhugai Mohnai
Un edathilum valathilum kodukkatumaa
Elusi Arisi endru vari variayaaga varaiyuttumaa
That is one song which is my favourite for its uniqueness as well as the song situation.
Of course he had had penned some songs especially to console himself but there were some similar to the above. Amongst them 'My name is Billa' (Billa 1980), 'Naan Pollathavan'(Pollathavan 1981) etc. were written by him and for him.
See you later folks!
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