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Roja Songs Review

Topic started by raycas (@ 212.186.40.21) on Sat Dec 29 10:20:10 EST 2001.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

this is something i always wanted to ask u people. i know it's about something old, but i seem to have missed it when it had been discussed.
so, till a week or so, i had been thinking 'roja' by arr, his first work anno 1992, was a great wall which not even the biggest arr-hater could conquer. i somehow had this impression in mind that everyone had accepted it to be a great masterpiece no one would dare to critice.
and after that, i have read a lot of reviews of other arr-albums, where people like shashi (from rahmanonline.com) have reviewed every single note of each and every song (which i always enjoyed), but now i realize i haven't read such a review about roja. and i would like to.
and the other thing is, in the past week i suddenly read things about 'roja', that the songs were mostly copied and things like that (okay, that one message from this psycho 'member...' i didn't take serious, but now jag also said something similiar). so, now what is the truth?

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Responses:

• Old responses
  
• From: Mr. Observer (@ 64.105.35.206) on: Wed Jan 2 01:13:39 EST 2002
  
  Sam, very good review. Keep it up. Please visit other threads dealing with new albums, esp those of IR and ARR.
  
  
• From: Mr. Observer (@ 64.105.35.206) on: Wed Jan 2 01:13:45 EST 2002
  
  Sam, very good review. Keep it up. Please visit other threads dealing with new albums, esp those of IR and ARR.
  
  
• From: Roja (@ 202.9.167.202) on: Wed Jan 2 02:10:12 EST 2002
  
  Roja
  
  When A. R. Rahman agreed to do the score for Mani
  Ratnam’s Roja in 1992, little did he know that post
  Roja, his thunderous percussions and soothing melodies
  would set the standards for all directors young and
  old to follow. The twenty six year old (at the time)
  director full of new ideas decided that the score for
  Roja would be unlike any ever heard before in
  Bollywood and he made history.
  
  Here was a trained musician with a sound sense of pop,
  classical dance and Electronica. Not from a family of
  musicians and to make his mark like he did was an
  accomplishment in itself. The album had pleasant
  tracks like Chhoti Si Asha, Yeh Hassein Vadiyan, one
  patriotic song in Bharat humko Jaan Se Pyaara Hai and
  two soulful renditions of the title track one by S.P.
  Balasubramaniuim and the other by Hariharan both
  giants in the south music industry.
  
  The track Rukmani Rukmani took care of the mass appeal
  for the album with erstwhile pop sensation Baba Sehgal
  and Shweta Shetty doing the honours. The song also
  highlighted the pronounced use of percussions in
  Indian music a trend that many directors later tried
  to ape with little or no finesse. The whole album
  contained but six complete tracks well produced, well
  arranged without much fan fare or borrowed inspiration
  and is today considered an album that serves as a
  yardstick to measure musical excellence.
  ---------------------
  
  source mantra online
  http://music.mantraonline.com/ourpick/generator.jsp?id=141
  
  
• From: A Very Rare Review (@ 202.9.167.202) on: Wed Jan 2 02:16:22 EST 2002
  
  One of the earliest write ups on ROJA
  
  From The Week dated 10 Jan 1993 article by VINCENT D'SOUZA
  
  Courtesy : Shyam , arr fans e-group
  
  MAGIC AT HIS FINGERTIPS
  His "Little Desires" have catapulted A.R.Rahman into
  the top league
  
  
  Someone called Rahman strolls down the road in crowded
  Lodambakkam to his usual haunt- the roadside tea
  stall. But now, more than his favourite brew, he
  silently enjoys the hum on the lips of most of the
  stall's patrons- porters, autorickshaw drivers and
  even beggars. Chinna Chinna aasai... the hum slowly
  grows to a chorus, as the yoi8ng man slips away
  unnoticed, unrecognised. Meet A.R.Rahman, the 24 year
  old creator of the lilting song for tamil film ROJA,
  Mani Ratnam's latest block buster.
  
  The simple song has been lingering on everybody's
  lips even a 100 days after the film was released. The
  rickshaw puller, the executive, the housewife and the
  giggly teenager sing it to themselves, or join the
  heroine in the darkened theatre as she drenches
  herself in the waterfall. The simplicity of the melody
  is so captivating that like the childhood rhymes, it
  refuses to fade from memory.
  
  A quirk of fate forces the heroine of the film to
  abandon her juvenile dreams and marry another person.
  In the thick of subsequent battle in unfamiliar
  territory to save her husband, she matures far beyond
  her tender years.
  
  It was also a quirk of fate which saw the maturing of
  the young man who put the song on her lips. The sudden
  death of his father pushed Rahman into the thick of
  the battle to sustain the orphaned family. Rahman is
  the only son of the late R.K.Sekar, an assistant music
  director in Malayalam who had a hand in the music of
  the classic CHEMMEEN. " I used to accompany dad to the
  studios and i guess music was in the family, I
  certainly had an ear for it," he says.
  
  Instinctively he turned to the recording studios
  after dropping out of eleventh class. This time it was
  not to listen but to work in jam sessions. From studio
  jam sessions he quickly graduated to composing
  jingles. IN 1987, he was recruited by Viji Manuel,
  music director Ilayaraja's main keyboard player. That
  was his initiation to keyboards and synthesizers and
  computer music programming. " I was literally pushed
  into this field and forced tolearn the art of computer
  music programming," Rahman says, lovingly fingering
  his beloved Roland keyboard.
  
  Work with M.K.Arjun in Malayalam and with Raj-koti,
  the telugu team, and a stint in kannada films, found
  him where he belonged - the world of film music. The
  Telugu film industry doyens loved the way his fingers
  danced over the synthesizer and coaxed magic out of
  it. " People like them and Mani Ratnam are able to
  appreciate off-beat music. Thats why its been great
  working with them," says Rahman.
  
  But somehow, except for his music group colleagues
  and friends in the recording studios, nobody really
  vibed with Rahman. Or spoke his language. And that is
  why, even after the songs of ROJA became a hit, he
  preferred the confines of his unpretentious house, the
  facade of his new, fully computerised recording studio
  - PANCHATHAN RECORD INN.
  
  But that didnt prevent the paparazzi from going to
  town with wild speculations of how Rahman's
  computeriserd music wizardry would swamp the reigning
  maestro Illayaraja out of business. From the gossip
  columns, one got the impression that Rahman was a
  cocky upstart who held his comtemporaries ion
  contempt.
  
  Meeting him at his home, one cannot miss the hurt in
  his eyes. A hurt and an apprehension that his sudden
  fame would be his undoing. It makes his mother shield
  him with a protective arm. Rahman does not like being
  compared to Ilayaraja whom hge holds in high esteem.
  
  Talk of his tune in ROJA and he is all humility.
  "Nothing really," shrugs the chubby faced youngster in
  a loose green shirt and rolled up trousers. "I
  composed the tune and practised ot ans then put on the
  switchboard. It was my grounding in electronics that
  helped."
  
  You can get nothing further from him. BUt he is
  willing to talk at length about how he has absorbed
  all kinds of music- rap, jazz, fusion, the wailers and
  Bob Marley. And a little but of it all has come across
  in ROJA.
  
  Rahman has played jam with US based double electric
  violin maestro L.Shankar and his orchestra. He played
  the Roland for MAdras pdp group NEMESIS AVENUE. "Its
  fun working with guys like Rahman," says NEMESIS
  AVENUE's Sudhin Prabhakar.
  
  Rahman's yuppie image is deceptive. He is a deeply
  religious person. His "PANCHATHAN" is strewn with
  Islamic icons and symbols. Phil Collins and the
  cresent moon and star have pride of place. He wears a
  chain with an inscribed locket. Ask him the reasin for
  his success anbd he will lift his hands sporting Urdu
  inscribed rings heavenwards. It is believed
  K.Balachander who produced ROJA rechristened Dilip as
  Rahman, just before the film was released.
  
  The kid who bought a Roland for Rs.1000 at Burma
  Bazaar (madras's smuggled goods market) has come a
  long way. But he is modest avout his success. Says
  Rahman: "Already so much has been made of my
  computerised studio that it has become embarrassing
  for me." He can no longer hop on stage to play for
  rock concerts with Nemesis Avenue. If he plays in
  public now, he will have to think up something new,
  something different.
  
  He is missing the fun and all that jazz of the pop
  music scene. But he also knows that there ius nothing
  like big apple of film music. Especially since he's
  taken a large sized bite out of it. "Just look at the
  reach of film music. Lakhs of people casn listen to or
  sing film songs. As they did with Roja," he says.
  
  The ROJA album has yielded record sales for Lahari
  Music Company. And Rahman's work has increased. So,
  composing jingles is out. His last jingles were for
  thr Allwyn and Prudent ads.
  
  He is presently working on Suresh Menon's (actress
  Revathi's husband) film PUDHIYA MUGAM and on Mani
  Ratnam's THIRUDA, THIRUDA. With his obvious western
  music leanings, it might be a little difficult for
  Rahman to score typical Tamil Film Music. "IN the long
  run, we'll have to see if Rahman can get to the core
  of Tamil isai(music). Like Ilayaraja had done in
  Thevar Magan," says Viji Manuel, adding,"but that
  dosent detract from his talent."
  
  Meanwhile, people all over the south continue to hum
  CHINNA CHINNA AASAI...(little, little desires). "It
  feels great to see thwat just a siongle song of yours
  is sung by a rickshawpuller as well as an executive.
  What more would you want?"Rahman asks. Sounds right.
  
  
  
  
• From: selva (@ ) on: Wed Jan 9 18:50:19 EST 2002
  
  Deva captured the market than Rahman - so he is the best MD in India - hi hi hiii....!!!
  
  
• From: nemana sreekanth (@ ) on: Sun Feb 17 00:18:24 EST 2002
  
  Rahman according to me is a genius...........i can understand the depth in the music becuase iam also u can say a small level poet.............he brings out the emotions in so depth..............which u can only feel but cant describe.......it's like the beauty of the Taj which is simply ineffable........this feat is however not possible in a day or two it's the work of years of sincere approach and dedication to the work..........i wish him all the best
  
  

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