Monday, May 10, 2010

Meeting Ilaiyaraja – Part 1

I met Ilaiyaraja at his residence on 8th May from 8:30 PM to 9:15 PM. Ravishankar, an Infosys friend of mine and someone who knows Ilaiyaraaja, had managed to secure this meeting. Initially the meeting was going to be at the recording studio in the forenoon and then it became a 7:00 PM meeting at his residence before we zeroed at 8:30 PM at his residence.

Once I became aware that this meeting was on a week back, I had started preparing for it diligently. What songs to play, what topics to discuss etc etc. I had created playlists, synched them with my iPod and took a battery-powered iPod player. I had taken a few books about Ilaiyaraaja that I wanted him to autograph. I also took some of my engagement photos (photos on whose background the big IR portrait on my house is visible). I wanted to gift him something and a book on counterpoint was the best that I could think of (Counterpoint http://www.amazon.com/Counterpoint-Polyphonic-Vocal-Sixteenth-Century/dp/048627036X/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273511098&sr=8-5 ). I had also taken a few music-books on English to illustrate the scholasticism with which the western world approached their cultural treasures (http://www.amazon.com/Godel-Escher-Bach-Eternal-Golden/dp/0465026567/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273511147&sr=1-1-spell and http://www.amazon.co.uk/Music-Instinct-Works-Cant-without/dp/1847920888/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273511183&sr=8-1 ). I had wanted to propose a concept of a book on IR’s music and to illustrate that I had taken a book on Madurai http://www.amazon.com/Multiple-Facets-My-Madurai-Illustrated/dp/8188661627/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273511218&sr=8-1 . I had taken 2 copies of a very rare CD, Ilaiyaraja’s classics played by Mandolin Srinivas.

Armed with all these I thought I was well prepared to meet Ilaiyaraja, when just before leaving for my meeting, my daughter Krithi threw a tantrum. She said I shouldn’t go anywhere or I take her too with me. It was beginning to get late already and I was desperately trying to convince her. She reluctanctly agrees to let me go. We started driving towards the direction of IR's house, with Ravi's broad hints that it is near T Nagar, Raghavendra Mutt, Murugesan street. We somehow managed to find his residence from this sketchy memory.

Only upon reaching IR's residence do I realize that in all this last-minute drama with my daughter I had left my laptop bag at the homestay where I was staying with my cousin and nephew(my iPod was inside the laptop bag). I was almost shell-shocked, that all my preparation was coming to this. But I consoled myself saying atleast I will get a photo-opportunity with IR, while waiting at IR's residence's gate. Then Ravi and I watched an Innova go inside his residence. It was IR that went past us and he SMSed Ravi asking us to coming in. He was dressed in his characteristic white dhothi white kurtha. I quickly bent and touched his feet to receive his blessings. He blessed me and I took all the books/CDs that I had brought with me and placed them on the coffee-table. He quickly mentioned that he had a slightly frozen shoulder and that he was supposed to go to the hospital and wondered if I’d be able to drive him to the hospital, since his driver was on leave. I thought wow, this was terrific. Firstly I get to drive IR, secondly I get to make him sit in my vehicle, and thirdly I have a good collection of CDs in my vehicle (to cover my laptop goof-up). Just when I was about to pick my books/CDs he said we could leave them there since we were anyway going to return to his house. Wow. Wow.

So I took the wheel and IR and Ravi sat on the middle row. Ravi was wondering how to break the ice when I decided to adopt a high-risk-high-payoff gambling strategy with IR. I had a collection of songs on my CD which was titled “Women in turmoil”. All these songs were featured in a rhetorical context when a women is seeking pleasure outside of the socially-sanctioned modes. A safer strategy would have been to go for his really popular numbers agni/sindhu/Janani Janani, but I was afraid he might think I’m the regular run-of-a-mill fan. With my high-risk strategy I was afraid he might think I am some sort of a perverted mind, but fortunately for me, he understood the principle behind my playlist rather than its premise. I hope the readers of this blog will also extend me a similar courtsey.

I told IR that I had selected a few songs from his vast repertoire, songs that fitted this situation and told him how he had avoided falling into a formulaic trap. I illustrated that by playing 5 songs each of which are different ragams and bearing a different treatment. The first song in my playlist features Lakshmi and Prabhu. In this movie Lakshmi is a widow and Prabhu in a drunken stupor mistakes Lakshmi for his lover Radha. Lakshmi doesn’t discourage Prabhu when he makes his advances. It is for this context that IR chooses Sivaranjani to portray Lakshmi’s emotions. Listen to the 2nd interlude when IR whips up the conflicts faced by the Lakshmi character using musical imagery.

“Yaarai Kaettu neer dhaan” from En Uyir Kannamma )


Second song on this playlist is one where the female protagonist starts fantasizing on her now deceased husband’s younger brother. This song is from the movie “Netru nee indru naan” featuring Lakshmi and Sivakumar. This movie was produced by Major Sunderrajan and when I mentioned that aspect, IR was quick to point out the movie name correctly. This song is composed in the ragam “Gowri Manohari”. Gowri manohari is a very mangalagaramaana raagam. Remember Paattum naaney from Thiruvilayaadal or Gowri Manohariyai kanden from Mazhalai Pattaalam. To score this complicated song, it is quite amazing that IR should choose Gowri Manohari, but he pulls it off adroitly. The song is “Pon vaanam panneer thoovudhu inneram”. This song is a little less esoteric than the previous one. The lyrics on the song is a give-away. The use of naadhaswaram kind of gives it an overtly mangalagaramaana feeling. The use of naadhaswaram can be explained by the fact that Lakshmi wants Sivakumar as her husband (not just a lover) though he is much-married. In this song IR communicates the innuendos mainly through the accompanying music, chords and bass guitar.

Ponvaanam Panner thoovudhu from "Netru nee indru naan"


The next song on this playlist is based on the ragam Revathi. This is an out and out depressing song. This song is a rhetorical song sung by an unmarried rape-victim, wondering what is the meaning of chastity in her life. IR will absolutely harp on the depressing intervals of Revathi to extract the sadness and rhetoric. The song is “Kanavu ondru thondrudhey” from Oru Odai Nadhiyaagiradhu

“Kanavu ondru thondrudhey” from Oru Odai Nadhiyaagiradhu



The next song on this playlist is one sung by a widow lamenting that her youthful widowed life was an unbearably miserable existence. IR uses Chandrakauns for this situation. He can do some seriously fast-paced compositions when it comes chandrakauns. Listen to the first interlude of “Velli chalangaigal” from Kaadhal Oviyam

Velli chalangaigal from Kaadhal Oviyam


In this song he gives one of his chorus-singers, Raghavendar, father of Harish Raghavendar, a slightly more prominent signing role. Raghavendar is the nattuvanar father of his widowed daughter who is a dancer. Raghavendar acts and sings this part, in which he has to die while singing the tail-piece of the song. The song is “Azhagu malaraada” from “Vaidhegi Kaathirundhaal”

“Azhagu malaraada” from “Vaidhegi Kaathirundhaal”


IR’s prominent usage of strings and an almost chendai-like percussion instrument aptly highlight the emotional context of the song. The song is soulfully rendered by Janaki.Tamil-film-music has a precedence to a similar chandrakauns song, “Maalai pozhudhin mayakkathiley” (apparently an IR favourite)



The next song is one where a beautiful girl is unable to come to terms with the fact that she is married to a naïve village brute. This results in her fantasizing on a more handsome young man and wanting to live a life outside her marriage. The song features “Deepa” and Sivachandran from the movie “Rosappoo ravikkaikaari” and starts “En ullil engo”. The song is a tad too clean for such a transgressional situation and Vani’s style of singing doesn’t help one bit. I think this song still manages an almost careless transgression-angle rather than the intense rebellious or a situationally-thrust frustration from its peer-group.

En ullil engo from Rosappoo ravikkaikaari
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Rest in my next blog.

8 comments:

  1. Hi raghu,
    came in thru sundar's mail,that was a wonderful experience with raja sir,great. you shared with us.can't wait to read rest.cheers,bye.

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  2. I came through your chitthappa"s blog.

    Your writing shows that how you got excited.Edge of the paradise?Nice post.

    I am also a hardcore fan of IR.Have look at my blog about IR in "இளையராஜா” label.

    There are 18 posts in that label.

    http://raviaditya.blogspot.com/search/label/%E0%AE%87%E0%AE%B3%E0%AF%88%E0%AE%AF%E0%AE%B0%E0%AE%BE%E0%AE%9C%E0%AE%BE

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  3. congrads Raghu.... all the very best for the future meetings too

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  4. Congrads Mr. Raghu. Thanks to sundarji.

    Greetings from DEVIYAR ILLAM Tiruppur

    Jothig

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  5. Hi Raghu,
    I can sense the excitement in your draft.I wish I were there to listen to you describing the whole blissful feeling.I am eager to read further on.Do put me out of misery.
    Ashok Hariharan.

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  6. I wish you could have asked some bolder queries to IR like why on earth is he hell bent on using the beaten to death scales kike Keeravani, Mayamaalavagowlai, SindhuBhairavi, Suddhadhanyasi and not trying out many popular ragas like Kambodhi, Behaag, Ataana , Bhairavi etc

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  7. @Karthikeyan: Thanks. Hope you liked the rest of the blogs too.

    @ Ravishankar: Edge of the paradise indeed. Such a memorable experience.

    @ Ashok: hope the remaining sections too were as interesting.

    @ Mathangi: I thought I already asked quite a few bold things for the first meeting: aasai yaarai vittudhu?

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  8. Hello Ragav,

    It was awesome experience to read your blog as if i was the one who accompanied you during your meeting with IR. Your song selection was awesome, i even feel that raja has done many great things for a simple movies, which elucidates his passion for music than for the money and based on his income for that film.

    Hail hail Raja.

    Thanks,
    Magesh, Infosys

    ReplyDelete