SOTD #920: Oraayiram naadagam from sumathi en sundhari

[PS_fan]

PS Fan, SPB has already got that award :-). Its there in the link you gave. I'd much rather have PS a KJY awardee than calling her Lata of the south. Not that thats fine individually. But it is the lesser of the two evils :-)

Greater or lesser, an evil is an evil. Okay, now that we are at it, here's one more point. I was quite surprised when PS made a statement that P Leela should have been given an award in the name of KJY.

http://www.hindu.com/2001/05/15/stories/0415404y.htm

Goodness gracious! P Leela has sung even with Yesudas' father and started her career in 1948. She stands so shorter than KJY! The quality and versatility of P Leela's voice is above description. A suggestion that P Leela be awarded in the name of Yesudas is something quite weird.

That brings me to my next point. Much as we criticize the awful attitude of the Northies, are we again forgetting that three fingers point to us as well? For instance, I wonder how much of a discussion or celebration there was, on online forums dealing with South Indian music, when none other than P Leela was awarded the Padmabhushan in 2006. Or for that matter when the venerable D K Pattammal was awarded the Padmavibhushan in 1999 (okay, maybe music forums were not so popular 9 years ago). If we are after praising only one or two artistes and dumping all the rest, why blame people from the North? I wonder sometimes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padma_Bhushan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Padma_Vibhushan

BTW, the points I have raised are questions. I don't mean anything against any one.

[iravupaadagan]

Padma Bhushan P Suseela felicitated

I agree with KJY that PS should not be called Latha of South. PS is PS. Nobody can hold a candle to PS. But when KJY raises these issues and puts himself on a pedestal, he does not seem to realize that three fingers are pointing to him as well.

Do you think it is justifiable to give KJY award to the likes of Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey and above all P Susheela? What does KJY have to say about this? Has he protested against these issues ever? Asha and Manna Dey are senior to KJY in the field by around 20 years. PS is senior to KJY by around 10 years in the music field. One more issue: how about giving KJY award to SPB? SPB has achieved as much if not more than KJY.

Reference link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaralaya_Yesudas_Award

As stated in the reference link provided by PS_fan, "Swaralaya Yesudas award (or usually referred to as Yesudas Award) is a prestigious award for music artists in recognition to their outstanding performance. The award is instituted jointly by Swaralaya, an organization that promotes music and Kairali Channel, based at Trivandrum, India. Awards have been given annually since 2000".

This award is named after K.J. Yesudas, but he does not pick the winner of the award, nor does he pay for the award. This award is similar to the Lata Mangeshkar award, given out by the State Government of Madhya Pradesh "for outstanding contribution in the field of music". Ironically, the winner of the first ever Lata Mangeshkar award was K.J. Yesudas!!! Obviously, Lata Mangeshkar did not pick the winner that year :)

None of the winners of the award so far felt the same way as PS_fan did. In fact, Manna Dey sang several of his Hindi hits and his "maanasa mynE varoo..." from the Malayalam film "chemmeen" after accepting the award.

Yesudas had every right to say what he said at the function to honour P. Susheela. He is not always "politically correct", but he tells it like how he feels it!

In the early days of Yesudas' venture into Hindi films, Lata Mangeshkar told an interviewer that his voice was very sweet, but his Hindi pronunciation was not that great. Yesudas' response was that his Hindi pronunciation was much better than Lata Mangeshkar's Malayalam pronunciation!!!

[PS_fan]

Padma Bhushan P Suseela felicitated

I agree with KJY that PS should not be called Latha of South. PS is PS. Nobody can hold a candle to PS. But when KJY raises these issues and puts himself on a pedestal, he does not seem to realize that three fingers are pointing to him as well.

Do you think it is justifiable to give KJY award to the likes of Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey and above all P Susheela? What does KJY have to say about this? Has he protested against these issues ever? Asha and Manna Dey are senior to KJY in the field by around 20 years. PS is senior to KJY by around 10 years in the music field. One more issue: how about giving KJY award to SPB? SPB has achieved as much if not more than KJY.

Reference link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaralaya_Yesudas_Award

As stated in the reference link provided by PS_fan, "Swaralaya Yesudas award (or usually referred to as Yesudas Award) is a prestigious award for music artists in recognition to their outstanding performance. The award is instituted jointly by Swaralaya, an organization that promotes music and Kairali Channel, based at Trivandrum, India. Awards have been given annually since 2000".

This award is named after K.J. Yesudas, but he does not pick the winner of the award, nor does he pay for the award. This award is similar to the Lata Mangeshkar award, given out by the State Government of Madhya Pradesh "for outstanding contribution in the field of music". Ironically, the winner of the first ever Lata Mangeshkar award was K.J. Yesudas!!! Obviously, Lata Mangeshkar did not pick the winner that year :)

None of the winners of the award so far felt the same way as PS_fan did. In fact, Manna Dey sang several of his Hindi hits and his "maanasa mynE varoo..." from the Malayalam film "chemmeen" after accepting the award.

Yesudas had every right to say what he said at the function to honour P. Susheela. He is not always "politically correct", but he tells it like how he feels it!

Of course, he had the right to say what he did :-). This is India and it's freedom of speech, and nobody will sue him for what he said (definitely not me :-)). And in fact, I even agree with him that PS is PS.

But what I wish to point out is the double standards involved in his actions or speech. KJY did not call PS as LM of the south, and KJY did not give an award in his own name to Manna Dey or SPB or Asha. But he has criticized the former and ignored the latter (conveniently). Both acts (that of giving one equally accomplished contemporary an award/title in the name of the other) are equally right or equally wrong.

Of course the winners of any of these awards may not protest (Heck, even PS has admitted that she idolizes LM and sings many of LMs old songs at functions), but they may just be politically correct. That doesn't mean that they agree with what's going on :-).

[iravupaadagan]

Padma Bhushan P Suseela felicitated

I agree with KJY that PS should not be called Latha of South. PS is PS. Nobody can hold a candle to PS. But when KJY raises these issues and puts himself on a pedestal, he does not seem to realize that three fingers are pointing to him as well.

Do you think it is justifiable to give KJY award to the likes of Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey and above all P Susheela? What does KJY have to say about this? Has he protested against these issues ever? Asha and Manna Dey are senior to KJY in the field by around 20 years. PS is senior to KJY by around 10 years in the music field. One more issue: how about giving KJY award to SPB? SPB has achieved as much if not more than KJY.

Reference link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaralaya_Yesudas_Award

As stated in the reference link provided by PS_fan, "Swaralaya Yesudas award (or usually referred to as Yesudas Award) is a prestigious award for music artists in recognition to their outstanding performance. The award is instituted jointly by Swaralaya, an organization that promotes music and Kairali Channel, based at Trivandrum, India. Awards have been given annually since 2000".

This award is named after K.J. Yesudas, but he does not pick the winner of the award, nor does he pay for the award. This award is similar to the Lata Mangeshkar award, given out by the State Government of Madhya Pradesh "for outstanding contribution in the field of music". Ironically, the winner of the first ever Lata Mangeshkar award was K.J. Yesudas!!! Obviously, Lata Mangeshkar did not pick the winner that year :)

None of the winners of the award so far felt the same way as PS_fan did. In fact, Manna Dey sang several of his Hindi hits and his "maanasa mynE varoo..." from the Malayalam film "chemmeen" after accepting the award.

Yesudas had every right to say what he said at the function to honour P. Susheela. He is not always "politically correct", but he tells it like how he feels it!

Of course, he had the right to say what he did :-). This is India and it's freedom of speech, and nobody will sue him for what he said (definitely not me :-)). And in fact, I even agree with him that PS is PS.

But what I wish to point out is the double standards involved in his actions or speech. KJY did not call PS as LM of the south, and KJY did not give an award in his own name to Manna Dey or SPB or Asha. But he has criticized the former and ignored the latter (conveniently). Both acts (that of giving one equally accomplished contemporary an award/title in the name of the other) are equally right or equally wrong.

Of course the winners of any of these awards may not protest (Heck, even PS has admitted that she idolizes LM and sings many of LMs old songs at functions), but they may just be politically correct. That doesn't mean that they agree with what's going on :-).

Facts:

*K.J. Yesudas objected to P. Suseela being referred to as the Lata Mangkeshkar of South India.

*PS_fan objected to "the double standards involved in his [KJY's] actions", because he did not object to "an award in his own name" being given to "Manna Dey or SPB or Asha". According to PS_fan, "Both acts (that of giving one equally accomplished contemporary an award/title in the name of the other) are equally right or equally wrong".

*Swaralaya/Yesudas award is a national award instituted by Swaralaya to honour musicians for their outstanding contribution to Indian music. The award is named after Yesudas because of his outstanding achievements in world music. He has won the Padmashri and Padmabhushan awards, 7 national awards for being the best male singer in Indian cinema, literally hundreds of other Indian awards and titles for movie songs and classical singing, and the UNESCO award for outstanding achievement in music and peace. He does not pick the winners of the Swaralaya award.

*Yesudas did not object to P. Suseela being given an award in the name of Lata Mangeshkar, but he objcted to P. Suseela being called the Lata Mangeshkar of South India.

*I do not remember anyone calling "Manna Dey or SPB or Asha" the K.J. Yesudas of Bengal, Bollywood or Andhra.

*If someone had referred to them as the K.J. Yesudas of "whatever or wherever" and KJY had not objected to it, he could be accused of having "double standards".

I wonder what PS_fan's definition of "double standards" is!!

[gopal]

If it is any consolation seven of the forty or so Bharat Ratna awards went to Tamils. North Indians were complaining about it and somebody neutral wrote an article justifying the awards highlighting the contributions of those seven.

[SGRK]

why don't they do that to sadhana sarghams and shreya ghoshals ( more for the former and quite a bit for the later!)

I agree that pronounciations should be worked upon. And it is possible to pronounce words properly even if one is not fluent in the language.

But singers (or anyone for that matter) should not be picked on for not being able to speak a language fluently. Looks like Shreya does not speak hindi very well. Please watch the screen awards video below. I just loved the way she gave it back good to that obnoxious MC (or whatever those announcers are called) who ridiculed her hindi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iueLKeXP ... re=related

Shreya, I love you. You go girl.

[Ragapravaham Sundar]

Saravanan,

Popular veena artiste and a good friend and mine Revathy Krishna who presents concerts with good film songs and I met PS yesterday at her residence in Chennai. Though I have met her earlier, this meeting was very momentous to me. We were there by 7 pm and how nice, there were no other guests or VIPs there. We were waiting in her office room and in another ten minutes PS entered with a warm smile.

PS was surprised to know that RK was playing film songs in veena and enquired about the sruti alignments for playing film songs in veena and when the conversation between RK and PS with RK praising PS for many of her songs and so on was going on, my mind was filled with PS songs and her voice in the 1950s in thaaye idhu nyayama, ennaippol pennallavo, puriyaadha inbham, chinna arumbhu malarum, chinnanchiru kannmalar, etc. and when she looked at me in between I mentioned her Yaar paiyan melody thandhai yaaro thaayum yaaro (MD T S Chalapathy Rao) ...I sang the full pallavi and told her that whenever I listen to this song when PS says 'thoonguda' when the pallavi ends in jaalakkaaraa thoonguda in that song, I would also fall asleep, she paused for a while ....padathula Savitri paaduvaanga...but when RK mentioned about Thamizh engal uyiraanadhu from Poompuhar, she asked..naana paadinaen andha paattu...(!).

PS expressed her wish to present a full programme with RK with her voice and veena in a unique programme to be organised in a grandiose scale. Both I and RK were thrilled and looking at her with amazement, at
this unexpected gesture from a person of PS stature and whom we adore and admire, she continued...kandippa TMS adhula participate pannanum, appuram orchestra roma nalla irukkanum, illainna TMSukku kovam vandhudum, enna vaasikkaraanga ivangannu sollittu keezha irangiduvaaru...we were dumb-struck.

And before leaving, I gave a neat print-out of this Kuyilukku kireedam and read out the lines...
...‘I have no words to say….’ stammered a delighted Suseela (Sun News). Well, that may be, but we sure have plenty to say …. For who else is more deserving of this coveted civilian honour than this unassuming nightingale who has been a treasured companion for generations of fans, the ageless voice that has lulled us to sleep with the songs that throbbed with the warmth of motherhood, encouraged us to pursue our hopes and ambitions with words of affection and faith, wiped our tears of failure and disappointment with solicitous songs of consolation and care, coaxed us to soar on flights of delicious fantasy with verses soaked in romance and love, mirrored the angst that follows thereafter with empathetic lines of longing and loss, instilled the confidence to build our lives again with prophesies of a better morrow, escorted us across the threshold of marital bliss with auspicious lines of blessing, and watched amusedly as we discovered the miracle of parenthood with songs that reflect the related pride and joys… verily, laden with her mellifluous bounty, Suseela laces the rim of the circle of roles that life enjoins us to don….. Far from being an inaccessible celebrity, Suseela has lived each day, each moment of our lives alongside us, with her alluring songs as constant alter egos that laugh, cry, hope, rue, love, hate…in short, live… with us, inside us…

her eyes widened and said...ada romba nalla irukkey. We were there for nearly about an hour and left but her awe-inspiring presence and her unassuming demeanour still linger.... puriyaadha inbham!..

[Udhaya]

Great going, Sundar. I'm glad this writeup reached PS. That veenai/PS concert sounds intriguing. Hope it happens soon.

[Saravanan]

Sundar, I have no words to express my happiness! Thank you!

[Anniyan]

MGR Award:

PS has been conferred the MGR Award instituted by the MGR Kazhagam for this year. While presenting the award, G K Vasan had complimented PS to be 100% deserving for this award and that we could not think of old film music without PS, Kannadasan and MSV.

How he could forget TMS!!!

The other recipient of this award along with PS is Film News Anandan. Most deserving!

[mythila]

"Orayiram" easily sits among the top 10 of MSV's and P.Susheela's repertoire . Susheela's "asura akaara saadhagam" is evident and this song is a good drill for any aspiring singer . MSV seems to have used similar template tune as "venniraadai"'s "ammamma kaatru vandhu aadai thottu modum".
Scintillating vintage songs like these giving me a respite from too much of ARR's SDM. Dilli-6 which is all over the place

[mythila]

When I read Saravanan's description of Jayalalitha savouring the sylvan tea garden sorroundings and listen to Susheela singing the lines
"theyilaiyin thalai thadavi sellum iLankaathu" , a chill does cross my spine
:)
My next fav song in "Sumathi en sundari" is "kalyana sandhaiyile" with PS's sparkling , infectiously joyous vocals and Jayalalitha's nimble footwork . Madam JJ was so endearing that any guy could go weak kneed

[PS_fan]

Padma Bhushan P Suseela felicitated

I agree with KJY that PS should not be called Latha of South. PS is PS. Nobody can hold a candle to PS. But when KJY raises these issues and puts himself on a pedestal, he does not seem to realize that three fingers are pointing to him as well.

Do you think it is justifiable to give KJY award to the likes of Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey and above all P Susheela? What does KJY have to say about this? Has he protested against these issues ever? Asha and Manna Dey are senior to KJY in the field by around 20 years. PS is senior to KJY by around 10 years in the music field. One more issue: how about giving KJY award to SPB? SPB has achieved as much if not more than KJY.

Reference link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaralaya_Yesudas_Award

As stated in the reference link provided by PS_fan, "Swaralaya Yesudas award (or usually referred to as Yesudas Award) is a prestigious award for music artists in recognition to their outstanding performance. The award is instituted jointly by Swaralaya, an organization that promotes music and Kairali Channel, based at Trivandrum, India. Awards have been given annually since 2000".

This award is named after K.J. Yesudas, but he does not pick the winner of the award, nor does he pay for the award. This award is similar to the Lata Mangeshkar award, given out by the State Government of Madhya Pradesh "for outstanding contribution in the field of music". Ironically, the winner of the first ever Lata Mangeshkar award was K.J. Yesudas!!! Obviously, Lata Mangeshkar did not pick the winner that year :)

None of the winners of the award so far felt the same way as PS_fan did. In fact, Manna Dey sang several of his Hindi hits and his "maanasa mynE varoo..." from the Malayalam film "chemmeen" after accepting the award.

Yesudas had every right to say what he said at the function to honour P. Susheela. He is not always "politically correct", but he tells it like how he feels it!

Of course, he had the right to say what he did :-). This is India and it's freedom of speech, and nobody will sue him for what he said (definitely not me :-)). And in fact, I even agree with him that PS is PS.

But what I wish to point out is the double standards involved in his actions or speech. KJY did not call PS as LM of the south, and KJY did not give an award in his own name to Manna Dey or SPB or Asha. But he has criticized the former and ignored the latter (conveniently). Both acts (that of giving one equally accomplished contemporary an award/title in the name of the other) are equally right or equally wrong.

Of course the winners of any of these awards may not protest (Heck, even PS has admitted that she idolizes LM and sings many of LMs old songs at functions), but they may just be politically correct. That doesn't mean that they agree with what's going on :-).

Facts:

*K.J. Yesudas objected to P. Suseela being referred to as the Lata Mangkeshkar of South India.

*PS_fan objected to "the double standards involved in his [KJY's] actions", because he did not object to "an award in his own name" being given to "Manna Dey or SPB or Asha". According to PS_fan, "Both acts (that of giving one equally accomplished contemporary an award/title in the name of the other) are equally right or equally wrong".

*Swaralaya/Yesudas award is a national award instituted by Swaralaya to honour musicians for their outstanding contribution to Indian music. The award is named after Yesudas because of his outstanding achievements in world music. He has won the Padmashri and Padmabhushan awards, 7 national awards for being the best male singer in Indian cinema, literally hundreds of other Indian awards and titles for movie songs and classical singing, and the UNESCO award for outstanding achievement in music and peace. He does not pick the winners of the Swaralaya award.

*Yesudas did not object to P. Suseela being given an award in the name of Lata Mangeshkar, but he objcted to P. Suseela being called the Lata Mangeshkar of South India.

*I do not remember anyone calling "Manna Dey or SPB or Asha" the K.J. Yesudas of Bengal, Bollywood or Andhra.

*If someone had referred to them as the K.J. Yesudas of "whatever or wherever" and KJY had not objected to it, he could be accused of having "double standards".

I wonder what PS_fan's definition of "double standards" is!!

Okay, will you give the A R Rahman award to Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan,
the Ilayaraja award to MSV, or the SPB award to Mohammed Rafi? In the same lines, it is weird to give P Leela or Asha or Manna Dey an award in the name of Yesudas. All these musicians I've mentioned are legends in their own right, but the point is that it's strange (to say the least) to give an award to a senior in the name of a junior (in terms of tenure). Such an act is as out of place as calling someone as "whoever of whatever".
And neither Manna Dey, nor Asha nor P Leela are in need of a KJY award for "recognition" of their contribution to music, because accolades galore have been bestowed on them already.

So when KJY makes a hue and cry of one issue, and is silent on the other, it reflects double standards on his part. If he is really fair, he ought to come out clean. Even if he himself hasn't been involved in choosing the awardees, he can surely declare that it was weird to give Manna Dey an award in the name of Yesudas, remembering that Manna Dey started his career at least 20 years before Yesudas. And he could also perhaps state that an award in his name should be given to up and coming or junior musicians.