SOTD #678: adi neelach chElai from vasantha azhaippugaL

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Song of the Day: adi neelach chElai from vasantha azhaippugaL.

http://www.dhool.com/sotd2/678.html

- Udhaya continues with his Malaysia Vasudevan songs in the themmangu series:

Song: adi neelach chElai
Movie: Vasantha AzhaippugaL
MD: T. Rajendar
Singers: Malaysia Vasudevan, S.Janaki

TR got some huge hits from MV in “Koodayila Karuvaadu” and “Pookkalai Parikkaathinga” (SG/TR collaboration right?). But this somewhat lesser known song is my favorite of the combo. It’s a shame they didn’t hook up more often, for they both have an affection for mad rhythm and tasty themmAngu. This is an unabashed themmAngu joy ride with surprises all over. You have a long pallavi and then short bursts of charanam (if you can call it that) quickly followed by a sudden parade of sounds. Thus goes the tune as if the composer is playing hide and seek with our expectations. The rhythmic slap you hear when MV halts at “ennammaa naanam” and continues with a naughty “idhu endha ooru mELam” the fun the composer and singer are having is palpable. SJ, full of teased giggles, provides a good complement to MV while making a mystery of some of the lyrics.

- vasantha azhaippugaL was one of the earliest films by TR (his second?). There was another PS song in the film, gangai ponguthu kaNgaLOram which had very good lyrics as I vaguely recall.

- Other MV songs in SOTD: http://www.dhool.com/search/sotdsearch. ... 0Vasudevan

[Anniyan]

Udhaya, enna ippadi adichchu thallareenga themmangai. Nice pick. I could also enjoy the Madyamavathi tinge in the song. Btw, there is one more fantastic song in the film by SJ..Devalogam azhaithaalum kaamadhenu kidaithaalum....wonderful orchestration and lovely rendition by SJ. TR is undoubtedly far better than the present day MDs.

[Ramesh.P]

Hi
TR's favourite singer is SPB. He once told that he would have married him if SPB is female. After ORUTHALI RAGAM there was controversy that who scored music for ORUTHALI RAGAM (he associated with AA RAJ in that movie) but TR challenged openly and proved also. His subsequent hits made him most popular director/music composer/writer etc. He scored music for other directors also, one among them is KILIJALGAL.
You should hear SPB song in that movie AZHAGINIL PIRANTHANTHU. Just hear it you will accept TR's statement.
ramesh

[OISG]

TR proved what? Arrangements of OTR and VA will match AA Raj's arrangements in Udhayamagiradhu and thaniyadha dhaagam.

TR did come out with some stunning tunes but none of them matched the class of OTR. The arrangements too picked up only under LV's baton like MEK,UU. Rayil payanangalil had good songs but you have something like a VatRal kuzhambu made by a Sardar. :(

VA was Jeppiyar's last attempt at movies before he decided to move on to more profitable ventures :D

This one certainly falls in the "themmangu" bandwidth, Udaya! This should be some few of MV's songs where he had opened his mouth optimally! SJ and MV and the AA Raj ......good work! But Devalogam by SJ is the best from this movie. Great pick udaya!

TR marrying SPB- nightmare I! ...Seeing Chimbu's face on SPB's shape......that is what i would call mother of all nightmares :D

[Guest]

I think this song was for Chimbu's mother Usha + Raveender in the film :-)

MVD is born themmangu paadagar. Hope Udaya will like this statement :-)

[Saravanan]

Good pick again; great going, Udhaya!

Knew there was something around the corner when I read a word of praise for SJ :D Btw, I didn't find her making a mystery of any of the lyrics; could make out all the words effortlessly.

And sorry for nitpicking- isn't it 'ada neela chElai?'

In a radio interview, TR recalled how a fan asked him why the heroine was wearing a red saree when the lyrics indicate it to be blue. TR said that he realized that he had slipped, but came around with a feeble explanation that the lyrics referred to the blue sky!

vasantha azhaippugaL was released a few months after oru thalai ragam. OTR in May and VA in September, 1980.

The SOTD and SJ's ethereal 'dEvalOgam azhaithaalum' were aired often even in the late 80s. PS's 'gangai ponguthE' is another haunting number.
SPB's 'kitta vaadi aasai puLLa, vekkam yENdi unakku puLLa' is a real jaunty dappankuthu, how much fun he has in 'muthu muthu jaathi mullai ettu naaLa thookkam illa!' I guess TR sang his first song in this film- 'naaLu pOchi varusham pOchi...thandhaanE'.

And Udhaya, S-G didn't have anything to do with the music of pookaLai paRikaatheergaL, though Ganesh appeared on screen for the title song.

Looking forward to the next MV song in the series! Any clues?

[Udhaya]

OISG,

themmAngu series mudinjuthaan varuvingannu nenaichEn, I'm surprised you showed up in appreciation of MV's previous song. And now an MV/TR combo nonetheless, a double whammy in your books, right?

I remember going some memorable rounds with you on TR's lyrics before. Anyway, enjoyed your caustic wit as always. I'm still reeling from the "mother of nightmares" comment.

Amaam, A.A. Raj-ku avvalvu thiramai irundhaa, elumichcha veLichchaththukku (adhaan limelight) yEn varalai?

Saravanaa,

Warning: If SJ fans read the following and run for their Zoloft, I can't be responsible. idhu Saravananukkum enakkum nadakkum izhupaRi imsai!

unakku effortlessly 1939 movie banner kooda gnyAbagam irukkum, pronunciationA kEkkAma pOvum? ennaipOla pAmaranukku MV, PS, SPB mAthiri azhuththam thiruththamA pAdinAthAn pulappadum enna panrathu?
mavanE, long-distance collect call pOttu oru mani nEram pattiyal pOdavaa all the SJ inscrutable lyrics? Only last year I finally realized SJ was singing "thAvani visirigaL" in Andhi Mazhai Pozhigiradhu...indha mAdhiri eththanaiyO irukku, ozhinju pO. manushanA kAmikka unakkum oru kuRai vEnumillaiyA?

[Kupps]

Sara,

sa...paa...saa ezhaa etta? eththana kaata?....ada udhayaava adikkaradhukk kEkkala ungaLukkaaga sruthi sekkarEn. :) idhu veLLi kiLama raathiri illa vyaaLan raathiri thaan adhunaala benefit of the doubt enakku kuduththudunga, this sruthi is musical sruthi only...dont think its anything else :)

Aaaama
Udhaya adhu A.A.Raj udhavi illaama TR-aE ellaam paNNinnarunna reNdu moonu padaththukkapparam elumicha veLichaththukku vandha TR paattu romba puLichchi pOyi "daai dOi dikkiri dOi daai dOi dikkiri dOi kaththiri kOlu" appadeennu En vettanum?

btw indha kaththirikkOlu samaachaaramum unga themmaangu list-la irukkudhaa....irukkaadhunnu nambarEn :)

[KK CANADA]

Really cannot understand what so great about this song. The background music was ok in places where it followed the basics , but when TR tried to do something on his own, it showed a tendency to go totally out of context to the song, in the sense one could observe that the MD was struggling to give a proper finish. I thought of a single-entry problem, in my first CA exam, where I did not know where to begin and how to finish.

We observe a striking difference with the earlier songs like "Ennadi Raakkamma" and "Muthukkulika Varikala". This song is just no where near.

[Ramesh.P]

Hi OISG
TR proved what? Arrangements of OTR and VA will match AA Raj's arrangements in Udhayamagiradhu and thaniyadha dhaagam.

Okay. Where is AA Raj?. I think you are the only man remember him (may be whole universe). TR Proved a lot. That's why you and me are discussing about his songs.

ramesh

[Anniyan]

Udhaya, Saravanan kindal konjam overa theriyalai. And Thaavani visirigalL was very clear that I could, an average tfm rasika, decipher on the first time listening itself.

OISG, you are right. A A Raj's arrangement for OTR, TR could not even dream of. His Poovey nee......yaar solli (again MV/SJ) or Manajalum maalaiyum varumo (Thaniyaadha dhaagam and Udhayamagiradhu resply) speak volumes of his creative brilliance. But TR's Nalamo ena naan kaetten is a haunting melody sung by VJ (without AARaj? but with LV?).

The question why AAR could not make it big is not warranted from tfm lovers like us that we all know it is sheer luck in films that would matter most... Budhiyulla manidhar ellam vettri kaanbadhillai...vettri pettra manidhar.... how true is this when one thinks of AAR and ARR!

OISG, btw, VA was not the last attempt of Jeppiaar. He produced Panimalar, Nalladhai naadu kaetkum, Marupatta konangaL all by S-G and Unnai vida maattaen with MSV.

[Udhaya]

Kupps,

If TR should be judged by dikkiri doi, then we should only judge IR by "lovenna lovvu mannennai stovvu" and ARR by "vaadi saathukkudi". Selective perception can drown anyone.

Nenjil Oru Raagam, Rayil Payanangalil, KiLinjalgaL, Ragam ThEdum Pallavi, are enough to garner him a place in TFM history. That's just my opinion. If he managed all this by using others' talents, then he should be running a melody corporation as the CEO for he's able to get unique work out of these assistants who can't seem to feed themselves on their own. Anyway, I'll leave these speculative scenarios at this. Enjoy what you like. I sure do.

Anniyan,

Saravanan and I are pretty tight. I wouldn't take such liberties with someone I don't know well. So don't worry. Regarding SJ, I have no vested interest in dissing someone arbitrarily. I'm too old for those games. This is out of the frustration of not being able to enjoy numerous songs. Most people find their way into a song through music or the voice. I approach a song through its lyrics. If that fails me, odds are the song will too. When she sings slowly or in mid-tempo I can get it, otherwise, I honestly can't understand many words she sings. When she goes high it sounds (to me of course, I don't channel others' experiences) alternately like a train's sudden break or live coverage from a welder's convention. I can't lie to agree with everyone else. My experience is my truth. Now don't everyone go get offended. I'm sure she's a graceful person, donates to charities, feeds the homeless and all that noble stuff. And technically top notch in every category. But when she sings, I rarely will be listening.

[Guest]

udhaya,
"AA raj en velichathukku varalai?"
Cant believe it is YOU who said this!

Uncelebrated, unsung singers, MD's-nu ellorukkum thread aarambichavarache neer! Neengala ippadi sonnenga? Idhai Nambave mudiyallaye!

Adhe tone-la
Sivaji Raja avvalavu thiramaisaalina avar en mun-medaikku varalai?(front-stage).
V.Kumar avaalavu periya 'dal'-na(paruppu) , avar en MSV alavukko, KVM alavukko pugazh peralai?

Dhinaa-vellaam MD-yaa irukkarache, namma Srikanth devarajan en innum widespread exposure illama irukkaar?


Ivvalavu dhooram povaanen?
Pazhani bharathi, yuga bharathi, vividh bharathi ellaam famous lyricists-aa irukkarache, Udhaya enn blog-kavignar-aa ve irukkar?

Any offence is unintended. I am sure you didnt mean that question , seriously!

Raj

[Udhaya]

Raj,

I appreciate unsung talents. I don't consider AA Raj a talent. To say he was behind TR's success is just hypothesis one that's proven wrong by TR's continued success and prolific work. oththukkalainnaa naan adampidichu azhap pOrathillai. You're welcome to your conclusions.

V.Kumar had a stellar career. I wouldn't lump him with AAR.

Why am I only a blog writer? Because I'm not as talented as other stellar writers out there ivvalavuthaana? Sollikkunga, enna vandhadhu ippo. At least I'm not saying that my lack of success is because I ghost wrote for someone else or someone else stole my thunder. My lack of any success is because of my limited initiative and talent. But this doesn't in any way mean that I should embrace AAR or SJ does it?

Sivaji Raja left an indelible mark in the one great opportunity he got. AARaj (adhu neengaLo oru vElai? ivvalavu sooda irukkingalE) didn't for me. If he did for you, I'm happy for you. thArALamA nominate his songs for SOTD. I don't begrudge him any exposure. My comment about his not achieving limelight is for OISG's comment. We tussle for fun. We've done it before. I respect OISG's views, his writing, and knowledge. But I differ in some issues. idhai nakkalaa sonnaa unga thookkam kettu pOchchunnaa I'm sorry.

Don't let your happiness and peace of mind depend on my aggreeing with you. You will be hot and bothered for very long that way.

[Guest]

udhaya, i am not A A Raj :-)

anyway, i dont intend to hold a candle for him :-).
My point was that you are the last person I would have expected to put down someone because he didnt achieve visible success.
Given that you take trouble to evaluate a person on his work rather than his fame or exposure(which is obvious from your contributions here), I thought it a bit incongrous that YOU chose to condemn AA Raj ,initially, not on his (as per your perception) lack of talent - but on his lack of success.

Also, I dont mean to put down your talent. I am a great fan of your prose(English) and read PREDICATE regularly. I am not much of a poetry person to comment on your poetry but my point was it is very normal for great talent to languish in the sidelines while lesser lights bask in glory. For example, I hold Srikanth in far greater esteem than I reserve for people like Dhina or D Iman.


I dont have any problems with your views on AA Raj or TR, though it SEEMS like TR benefitted with LV and others orchestrating for him. Saravanan has said that, so I believe that unquestioningly :-). It is just that I didnt expect from you that kind of put-downer based on the level of success of a person .
Hope that clarifies things.

[Guest]

//Digression
Anniyan, even "Deva logam azhaithaalum" is a good Madhyamavathi Credit goes to TR for showing variety in these 2 songs despite using the same scale. "Indira Logathu sundari" from UUsha is yet another different Madhyamavathi from TR's repertoire

[mythila]

The previous guest was me
- mythila

[Udhaya]

Raj,
Again, that AAR reference was a nakkal comment to OISG for his popular theory about AAR/TR compositions. I don’t use smiley icons and such in my posts because, I believe language should be self-evident and in cases where it isn’t, readers need to perceive and detect the right tone of the message (just like I had hoped my elumicha veLichcham usage would’ve highlighted the lighter vein of the post). I believe reading is a participatory event. This is another one of my personal quirks if you will.

So, taking that comment out of context and scrutinizing it like an editor will blow it out of proportion. I put out disclaimers for my post to Saravanan because I know SJ is like a kuladeivam for many out there. Didn’t feel the need to do that for the AAR comment, because, man I’m tired of having to prove over and over what my intention is with every post. After several months of interaction with the same folks, I expect some leeway. But I never get it.

Anyway, I’m all for opening up the Arts for as many participants as possible and championing the underdog. But this AAR issue is a different one. TFM has long cherished rumors of foul play and illegitimate claims to ownership. None of these is substantiated. We each believe what we think seems credible to us.

I’ve heard the following:

—PudhuppAdagan music was done by LV and not Dhaanu the producer.

This rumor I was inclined to believe because Dhaanu is a financier without any noticeable musical talent that was evident before or after this movie.

—Bagyaraj MDed movies were actually done by Shankar Ganesh.

This rumor was also one I believed because I don’t see where and how Bagyaraj got his sudden musical knowledge.

—ARR’s strength was actually Pravin Mani and Harris Jeyaraj. After their departure he has lost it.

This rumor had me going for a while because I heard it right when Baba was released (and thought highly of PM’s Little John). I was almost convinced of it upon hearing the Baba soundtrack. But then I heard ARR’s subsequent soundtracks which made me feel ashamed for even considering such a rumor.

—HJ stole his music from ARR.

This rumor was believable initially because the sounds were so close. But after Kaakka Kaakka I denounced this as just a rumor.

The same rationale applies to the AAR/TR rumor. Even if I agree that TR fooled people for 4 soundtracks, how about the rest? Was the industry so foolish to believe a frontman and pay him boatloads when they could hire his assistants?

So what next, did PugahEndhi do all of KVM’s music? Did Shyam or Joseph Krishna do all of MSV’s music? And here’s the whopper, did V.Narasimman do all of IR’s music? I’m sure someone out there believes the above, I don’t.

[Saravanan]

Dear all, please let us not get caught-up with such issues. The themaangu series is going great, and let us enjoy the songs and salute the creators.

First it was the TMS war, then the IR/KJY controversy and now this (I too have unwittingly been a cause for the disturbance this time...my apologies, folks)

Opinions, likes and dislikes are entirely personal. Let us continue to air them without hurting others.

Udhaya, carry on. You're doing a wonderful job!

[Udhaya]

Saravanan,

Noble sentiments, but we'll have trouble living up to that. vAkkuvAtham illAma dhooL yEthu (in my threads anyway)? nee baton-ai eduthukittu OduppA, there's been too much of me in dhooL lately. I'll return to my once a week schedule. amaidhi nilavattum.

U.S. residents,
Happy labor day weekend. Enjoy.

[Anniyan]

Udhaya,
Why should you take the trouble of replying each and every comment that is made about your postings. You are doing a wonderful job and you are very knowledgeable also in tfm. Then why this unnecessary outbursts time and again? Let people form their own opinion about you. If you are firm in your views about an MD or singer try to establish that and don't try to be very apolegetic. Pl understand that comments, replies, rejoinders...there is no end to it.

Saravanan, you have always been very uncontroversial. We all know about you. You need not feel sorry for any thing. You pl continue with you good work.

To my knowledge it was one Sukumar and definitely not S-G the ghost behind Bhagyaraj. And also one Deepak did for Bhagyaraj's Sundara Kaandam. There was a war waging between Bhagyaraj and TR as to who was the ashtavadhaani. Bhagyaraj unnecessarily entered into the music scenario and none of his songs was mentionworthy.

Mythila, Devalogam more resembles Hindustani Megh rather than Madyamavathi. So is Indiralogathu sundari.

[Arun]

Sara
What TR gave as an explanation :
Although the lyrics said 'Neela chelai parakkayile', the heroine was wearing only red saree. When some one asked he said
'' Neela Vaanam, suriyan maraiyum podhu, thanadhu nirathai sivappaga mattri kaatugiradhu. Adhanal than ' Neela chelai parakkayile' endra varigalukku erpa- Neela vannam maraindhu sivappu niram varugiradhu - idhai kaata ve kadhanayagiiku sivappu selaiyil kaatinen'. THough he later said that only when he went to location he realised there was only red saree to the heroine. But I really liked his intelligent way of handling the situation.
Regards
Arun

[Kupps]

Udhaya & Sara,

plz forgive me for not adding smiley after my post. That was intended to kindify some sentiment in jovial way but didnt expect to take serious mood.

Udhaya, carry on. You're doing a wonderful job!

Sara, so you want Udhaya to join you in the "SJ sandai" is it? ;)
Appa sollunga ungaLukku evvaLavu katta :))

[hehehe-walrus]

I'm really really glad that Malaysia Vasu is getting his due after being the perennial punching bag on the internet. Never mind, what the "purists" think.

[Saravanan]

Arun, Thanks for that explanation!

Kupps :D

[Guest]

udhaya, can see your side now. let's drop it. hope this argument is not the reason you are taking a break :-)
raj

[ragothamanr]

A good song - nothing more than that.

It is good that the vEN sandai will be off for sometime as Udhaya is proposing for weekly update. Great!

[vinatha]

It is a sad day .we love you , வாசு. You live in your music . We always celebrate you .
my sympathies to his family .

dhool boys , I miss you very much , especially day like today , I miss Udhaya
love , வினதா.