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As a Lyrics Writer, Has IR done a good Job?

Topic started by Venkat (@ 65.92.160.216) on Sat Jun 22 20:46:14 EDT 2002.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

Let us try to look at the final result. What is the impact IR has as a Lyrics writer. If he cannot do so well, when there are other Lyrics writer whose job is only doing, why he has to compete with them. Why not just settle down with their lyrics and produce good music.

What is your opinion?

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Responses:

• From: magix (@ 203.199.248.125) on: Sun Jun 23 00:44:42 EDT 2002
  
  IR writes lyrix??!!?????
  
  
• From: S (@ 128.107.253.42) on: Sun Jun 23 04:06:01 EDT 2002
  
  I thot nadOdi thenral lyrics were simple and good.
  I never found his lyrics vague or algorthmic...Of course, he's not in the leagues of KD and VM, but definitely better than these pazhani barathis and na.kAmarasans...
  
  Magix,
  Raja is a good fotographer and writer too, in case u didn't know.
  
  
• From: magix (@ 203.199.231.133) on: Sun Jun 23 11:56:33 EDT 2002
  
  another potential TR! :) hey jus kiddin!
  
  does he plan to direct??
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Mon Jun 24 01:46:02 EDT 2002
  
  Raja is not a BAD lyricst, thats what we can say :-),
  
  His best works IMO are Nadodith thendRal songs, Two songs in Azhagi, 'MaRaththa vechchavan thaNNi ooththuvaan' from paNakkaaran and 'Ithayam oru koovil' from Idhayak Kovil.
  
  
• From: Vijay Venkatram J (@ 203.195.200.2) on: Mon Jun 24 07:35:01 EDT 2002
  
  Dear Friends,
  
  I am out here to say that Raaja is a very good lyricist. He is not so simple a lyricist as some people think and He is a really complex thinker. But the complexity of His thinking comes out as simple words. That is His greatness.
  
  Before explaining, I will just try to list out many songs which people don't know are written by Him:
  
  1) All songs in Nadodi Thendral
  2) All songs in Kaadhal Saadhi
  3) Azhagi - Pattusolli, Un Kuthama, Oliyile
  4) Hey Ram - Isaiyil Thodangudhamma
  5) All songs in Ramanamaalai
  6) Ilaiyaraajavin Geethanjali - Nee Sankari
  7) Jingidi Jingidi Unakku - Juru Sishyan
  8) Paattaale - Karagaattakkaran
  9) Kotti Kidakkudhu - Theerthakkaraiyinile
  10)Ennai Oruvan - Kumbakkarai Thangayya
  11)All songs in Aalappirandhavan
  12)Maratha Vachavan & Ullukkulla in Panakkaran
  
  Many more to follow!
  
  Come here to relish the Maestro:
  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ilaiyaraaja
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Mon Jun 24 08:23:10 EDT 2002
  
  Vijay,
  
  >>>> He is a really complex thinker. But the complexity of His thinking comes out as simple words.
  
  I agree to your first statement - it is pretty clear when you read books by IR, he really is a person thinking 'out of the box' (box = world here :-),
  
  But is he able to express them with simple words that paamararkaL like us can understand ? I doubt it, Each Book of IR takes more than double the time that I would normally require and when it comes to film songs, I don't think he has made any big achievement than the couple of songs our friends mentioned, telling that he is better than pazhanibharathy is a real insult to the young poet I believe.
  
  NOM to IR here, After all, its not his business.
  
  Once Pazhanibharathy told this in one of his interviews - IR knows now to motivate a lyricst and get the best out of him ... isn't that enough ?
  
  IR believes in sitting with the lyricst for two three hours before finalising on a song's lyrics - than just passing the tune cassette to them and use whatever they write ... He makes sure that singers pronounce tamil the way it should be and when he sings, he is making sure that no body can find even a small fault in his pronounciation ... I feel thats enough thamizh sevai that we can expect from IR :-)
  
  NagaS
  
  
• From: kiru (@ 192.138.150.227) on: Mon Jun 24 11:23:29 EDT 2002
  
  NagaS, you still haven't contradicted Vijay's point.The thinking/logic behind the songs is complex the words are still simple. I am sure you were rereading his books mainly to understand his logic, right ? IR is into hindu philosophies, which are very complex. Scores of saints/siddhars have tried to work on it and in the process probably added to the complexity (with contradicting philosophies).
  I think 'nilA athu vAnathu melE ' in nayagan was also penned by IR. If you go past the pallavi you will see lots of interesting ideas being related.
  I am of the opinion that IR cares about the 'karuththu' of the song more than the words. So even if there are some cliched mAnE , thEnE etc as long as the song has some new thing to say he has let it go past him to the audience. This is very similar to his compositional style - the instruments/arrangements are the same but if it has some new music ideas it goes out of the recording room.
  Considering, that not many people analyse/listen so seriously, many IR songs have been very underappreciated.
  
  
• From: Sundar (@ 216.40.48.20) on: Mon Jun 24 12:11:47 EDT 2002
  
  Who wrote the song 'Rajaa Raajathi Rajan in the Raja' from Agni Natchatiram? Is it IR?
  
  
• From: sabesan (@ 172.162.150.84) on: Mon Jun 24 12:16:15 EDT 2002
  
  Verum kaaali Perungayaaa Dabbaa, Adhil Vasanaai Ballama thaan irukku - was this by IR ?
  
  
• From: Venki (@ 216.115.36.65) on: Mon Jun 24 13:28:16 EDT 2002
  
  Thanks for the list Vijay, I've always seen IR as a decent Lyricist. In many songs of his I see him atleast in par with VM and Vaalee if not KD.
  
  
  
• From: Dude (@ 161.142.100.86) on: Mon Jun 24 19:55:41 EDT 2002
  
  Muahahahahahahahahahahahaha
  
  
• From: Mahesh (@ 65.184.6.229) on: Mon Jun 24 22:29:16 EDT 2002
  
  I saw someone mentioning Naa Kamarasan. He was a great lyricist. There is always a rumor that he was not lifted up properly by Kannadasan who was his guru. Have you all listened to "Chittukku chella chittukku..." ? This is one of the best "Pathos" song I have heard.
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Tue Jun 25 00:43:37 EDT 2002
  
  Venky,
  
  >>>> In many songs of his I see him atleast in par with VM and Vaalee if not KD.
  
  Opinions differ, But this one I believe is too much ... will you agree if I place SPB as a MD at par with IR or ARR or MSV ? Same is my reaction when I hear this ... I don't mean to say SPB was a bad MD, not as good as the greats who did / are doing it for fulltime.
  
  IR was a decent lyricst, that I agree, but he was only a part time kavinjar ... may be tendulkar got 105 wickets in ODIs, but I wont' say he is better than kumble ... just because he is my fav. batsman !
  
  NagaS
  
  
• From: maradhi (@ 210.214.5.250) on: Tue Jun 25 01:01:52 EDT 2002
  
  `alai meedhu vilayadum ilandhendrale' (kadhal kavidhai) is another decent song penned by Raja...
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Tue Jun 25 01:37:59 EDT 2002
  
  maradhi,
  
  was it by IR ? I thought it was by Agathiyan,
  
  'KaNNammaa kaathal ennum kavithai solladi' (from VaNNaVaNNap PookkaL) is another good IR number I forgot ! He has tried to use Bharathiyar kind of lyrics for TFM in which he succeeded !!!
  
  NagaS
  
  
• From: maradhi (@ 210.214.4.171) on: Tue Jun 25 08:47:14 EDT 2002
  
  Yes, NagaS, that's what the cassette inlay card said:-) All other songs are by Agathiyan.
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Tue Jun 25 11:21:05 EDT 2002
  
  Thanks maradhi,
  
  One unrelated request when talking about 'VaNNaVaNNap PokkaL' ... anywhere in the net I can get the MP3 Version of the KJY song 'ILa nenjee vaa' ?
  
  Thanks in advance for the response ...
  
  NagaS
  
  
• From: vel (@ 202.88.152.159) on: Fri Jun 28 09:44:52 EDT 2002
  
  Nice thread....[(tough to find 'em these days
  :-).]
  
  Just listen to raajavin ramanmaalai (devotional cassette on ramana maharishi), and the lyrics are stunning...no pretensions, no heavy words, but what a spell he casts with the words & music & tune...Man, awesome !!!! Just listen to 'vinnor thozhum thiruvannamalai dhanai, ennida punniyame'..what a dream start, note the words he has selected. The lyrics are high class, in all the songs.
  
  And as vijay mentioned earlier, his lyrics have complex meanings (many a times telling something about his own experience but through the film character's mouth).
  
  
• From: Vijay Venkatram J (@ 61.11.44.246) on: Sat Jun 29 06:17:01 EDT 2002
  
  Well said, Vel!
  
  I would like to quote some more lines from Ramanamaalai to show His word play with Tamil:
  
  In the song, "Kaaranam indri kanneer varum", the pallavai goes as
  
  "Karukkuzhi Vazhi Thannai Adaikkum Vizhi Karuvinil Thiru Vandhu Niraindha Vizhi
  Iru Vizhi Tharum Mozhi Thirandhidum Arul Vazhi"!
  
  The words and the way He pronounces them takes me into a trance! Appappaa, Deiveega Anubavam!
  
  Maestro's Fans Come To:
  
  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ilaiyaraaja
  
  
• From: Venkatesh (@ 212.72.11.66) on: Thu Jul 4 09:19:57 EDT 2002
  
  All songs in the movie 'Aalappirandhavan' was penned by IR - decent songs.
  
  
• From: Venkat (@ 65.92.160.177) on: Thu Jul 11 04:14:26 EDT 2002
  
  Any other new movies for which IR has written lyrics for all songs?
  
  
• From: Kannan (@ 194.201.128.5) on: Thu Jul 11 05:42:30 EDT 2002
  
  NagaS ...>
  
  I happened to have the CD from VVP.. if i can upload the file somewhere then let me know i'll convert it into mp3 and will pass it over....
  
  :) Kannan
  
  
• From: Sriram (@ 65.59.42.107) on: Wed Jul 17 20:03:02 EDT 2002
  
  I think his lyrics was the main reason for his downfall. (Common IR Fans, accept it!!). Most of his songs were just fillers for the music he composed (may be there are few exceptions). Mostly words like "Maane", "Thene", "Kanne", "Naane" can be found and generaly there wont be a continunity in many of his songs. (the first sentence and second will be unrelared).
  
  He is the one first claimed that he wrote half the songs in "Mudal Mariyadhai", and started a row with Vairamuthu and sent him in exile. (until he himself went down with his pride). It is a sad part of great MD, the great IR.
  
  
• From: NagaS (@ 203.195.201.74) on: Thu Jul 18 01:06:00 EDT 2002
  
  kannan,
  
  sorry, I didn't notice your post :-( ... I got VVP song from our friend ram, thanks anyway for your help :-)
  
  Sriram,
  
  IR claimed that he wrote half the songs in mudhal mariyaathai ? DO you have any proof for that ? Frankly, I don't believe it !
  
  NagaS
  
  
• From: Udhaya (@ 64.66.207.30) on: Thu Jul 18 17:05:31 EDT 2002
  
  Mahesh,
  If you're going to say negative things about someone, say them as your opinions. If you heard some gossip, leave it out of here. If you read somewhere, give the proof. Kannadhaasan never stood in anyone's path. He gave rise to Panju Arunachalam. When Panchu tried to take over Kannadhasan's project when Kannadhasan was ill all he did was sigh and write a song about it, "Paalootti valartha Kili". Panju still went on to a distinguised career after turning on his own mentor. Perhaps you're not old enough to know or researched enough to realize, but Aalangudi Somu, Pulamaippiththan, Marudhakaasai, Vaali, and many others worked side by side even in Kannadhaasan's prime and later on when Gangai Amaran and Vairamuthu blossomed, he wished them well. That never happened in VM's or Vaali's reign.
  
  Na.Kamarasan severed ties with IR after IR started dictating starting lines for his songs. I read this in Na.Kamarasan's Kumudham issue (back when Kumudham had guest editors each week). IR apparently asked Kamarasan to continue the song after the first line "Thottukkavaa machaan enna kattikkavaa machchaan". Kamarasan declined the offer and said that they better part as friends and that he didn't want to write songs like those.
  
  Kamaraasan came to fame through his political alliances. Granted he's a much better lyricist than most functioning today (oh maanae maanae, solaip poovil, seer konduvaa, to name a few), but don't post slanders on a great artist like Kannadhaasan who was also a magnanimous soul.
  
  

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