Thoughts on Onaayum Aatukuttiyum...

What can I say about Mysskin. He, according to me is one of the most promising directors around. Anjathey is one of my favorite films. Ever. His way of narrating a scene/story is absolutely unique and that makes him in my eyes the Anurag Kashyap of the south. And Mysskin is back with vengeance in Onayum Aatukuttiyum. The Mysskin who presents his own eccentric visual style in an audience pleasing package. Not the Mugamoodi Mysskin. To be honest, I thought Mugamoodi was a disaster. It had its moments, but overall I felt it was flat and tried too hard to entertain.

I will need to watch the movie a few more times to really get the feel of it, but here are some initial observations/thoughts.

Like Tarantino's car bonnet shots or Mani's slow motion songs, Myskin too has these trademark pet fetishes which he uses in all his movies. They are all there in OA. Karuppu Kannadis, Handicapped(Blind) characters, the loner protagonists, the "single-handedly-killing-5-armed-enemies" heroism, the gratitious violence (though, slightly toned down), etc.

Naming the protagonist Chandran when the villain is named Wolf is surely not random. During the full moon, the wolf usually becomes a were wolf. But here, in the presence of Chandran the wolf is more like a lamb. Typical Mysskin.

Ilayaraja's BGM. No words. Particularly the train station scene. Mind blowing stuff.

Some of the tamil movies this year have been unbelievably good. Soodhu Kavvum, Neram, etc. But Onayum Aatukuttiyum blows them all out of contention. This is one of the best tamil movies I have seen since Hey Ram. The level of depth in scene setting, BGM, allegories, motifs, will need multiple viewings to decipher completely.

3 of a kind...

We all know the genius of Ilayaraja. We know he can make brilliant music.  This post is not just about the musical genius of the man. That's well known. This post is an analysis about how he is able to adapt his genius musical skill and apply it to various situations in film music. It is about adaptability. His prowess on Kalyani, Natabhairavi, Keeravani, etc is well known. There are countless songs on every situation imaginable in those ragams. I am choosing a different ragam/set of ragams to illustrate his genius in this regard. To customize the ragam for specific situations and song-feel is one thing, but the ease with which Raaja maintains the strict ordering and ethos of the ragam whilst customizing has to be admired.

The songs I have chosen to demonstrate his genius are based on the ragam Hamsanadham/Shudh Sarang/Saaranga Thaarangini. All 3 ragams are very close to each other musically and there is lot of conjecture on which of the songs is set in which ragam. Technically they are not the same Raagam, but for the purposes of the post I am taking some creative liberty. :)

The first situation is a quintessential 'Mike' Mohan Romantic duet. The song is Thendral Vanthu Ennai Thodum from the movie Thendrale Ennai Thodu.

Ilayaraja was the champion of the Hamsanadham/Shudh Saarang/Saaranga Tharangini cause in tamil film music. There had been a few like this MSV-TKR gem from Karnan but it was Raaja who started getting lots of songs out based on this Raga(s) during his creative peak (Pretty much all of 1980s). One of his first forays in this ragam is Thendral vandhu ennai thodum. The notes of Hamsanadam are given out explicitly right away in the form of the prelude guitar notes. The Pallavi is a breath of fresh air in the voices of S Janaki and KJY. Smooth and breezy. Immensely likeable.
The 1st interlude starts of with a violin piece and quickly transitions to veenai and ends with a brilliant flute piece. The ascending violins at 'Maarbil saayum bodhu' is another brilliant touch.
As with most Raaja songs, the piece de resistance comes in the 2nd interlude :
Starts off simple enough with a layer of flutes over a layer of violins. Suddenly the flutes are replaced with voice with both male and female voices singing the same notes off-key with respect to each other. The cherry on top of the awesomeness that is this interlude is the ending violin piece with the perfect landing note for the 2nd charanam. Pure Wizardry.

This is Raaja using H/ST/SS to great effect in a conventional romantic duet. Now let's look at another situation.

The 2nd situation is a song from the Mani Ratnam directed Geethanji. The song is Om Namaha. This is a song which conveys Passion mixed with a tinge of sadness. The story is that both the heroine and hero know they have a terminal illness and are going to die soon. But are passionately in love with each other. So there is passion for each other, but pathos because they know they cannot be together for long. The Hero gives into his feelings and expresses his love. The heroine is happy but she still wants to make sure that the hero means what he says. So she asks him again. He says, 'Listen to my heartbeat' and that's the rhythm section of the song. One cannot not be amazed at the simplicity and depth of that choice. Just one word. Genius.
The Pallavi is a simple but engaging one structured as a tonally non-harmonic back and forth between the male and female voices. Unlike most Raaja songs there is minimal instrumentation in this song. A bell here, a violin there, a flute here and there. The Pathos of the tune is brought out beautifully by the flute in the absolutely stunning 2nd interlude. If you notice carefully, the ending notes of the first interlude gives away the tune of the Charanams. That's just Raaja's way of being a little naughty.  :)
Since the orchestration is minimal, the singing has to be top-notch. Even though I am not a huge fan of Mano, he is pretty consistent if not a little nasal in this song. But Janaki just eats him up for breakfast, lunch and dinner with her rendition. Pitch Perfect. She is by the best female playback singer this country has produced. (No offence to Lata or Chitra) The way she stretches the mmmmm in Om!! is so soothing. Knowing Raaja, i would think it was by design. :)
In the video, the hero and heroine's passion for each other takes their breath away. Raaja's music has a similar effect on the listeners as well. :)

So that was Raaja expressing Passion and pathos using ST/H/SS. Let's look at another situation.

The 3rd and last example is a song from a Malayalam movie called Guru. The song's name is Minnaram Maanathu. This is an underrated classic from one of Raaja's best Malayalam albums. Here the situation is the feeling of first love the heroine feels for the hero and the accompanying sudden outpouring of emotion.
Yet again the Ragam is explicitly given out in the opening strains of the song, Sujatha is in brilliant form as she is completely at ease with the tune and scale. Raaja has composed before for such situations. This song comes to mind. Incidentally, It was sung by a 14 year old Sujatha. :)
The 1st interlude flows along predictably until the end where Raaja wields his magic wand and surprises us
with a short burst of flute and some percussion which sets up the rhythm for the 1st charanam. The rhythm beat changes again during the course of the charanam and the charanam ends with no percussion/rhythm. Pure unbridled Genius.
P.S Raaja has done something similar in another malayalam song. This is a song called Ghana Shyama. There are 4 rhythm changes during the course of each verse. In the hands of anyone else, the harmony would go for a toss. To keep the tune together amidst such wild rhythm changes is god-level.

So, there we have it. 3 songs. 3 (almost) different eras. 3 different situations. Same raagam(s) which work perfectly with all 3 situations. What can you say about the talent. No words. Just sit back and admire. :)

Tale of 2 songs...

Ilayaraja has been called many things. God. Greatest composer of all time. Isaignani. He is all that and more. The creative output he has in 4 languages is unparalleled. Here are 2 gems from his Kannada collection. What amazes me about him is his longevity. One song is from a 1981 Dr. Raj movie (Incidentally sung by Rajkumar himself) called Nee Nannu Gellalre and the other is from a 1997 Shivrajkumar (Rajkumar's son) movie called Nammora Mandara Hoove. 2 amazing songs. One for the father and one for the son.

Sometimes you listen to a striking song somewhere (mostly on FM or while having lunch in some hotel) and wonder about the song. Which movie is it from? Who is the singer? Who is the music director? One of those songs is the first song of this post. Jeeva Hoovagidhe. I remember listening to this song once on FM and searching for it online by searching for terms from the lyrics. :P
What.A.Song. It has all the trademark Raaja-isms. Congo drums, Strong bass line, sweeping interludes, catchy tune, brilliant singing by Dr. Raj. Tough to find another sing with so much throw. Just superb.
Listen to the first interlude to understand what I mean. The trademark violins (Pure genius) give way to an acoustic guitar sequence (which reminded me of the interludes from Ilaya Nila) and ends with some sort of a tabla-synthesizer sequence. Bliss.

The next one is a sort of folk-ish number with the usual SPB awesomeness. Halli Lavaniyalli. There is a strong undercurrent of Bass in this song. The first interlude is absolutely divine with the flute beginning, supplemented by a strong bass and some female chorus. The first charanam follows with some vocal to and fro between SPB and the female chorus. Brilliant. Lots of choral work again happens in the 2nd interlude. 2nd charanam has SPB again taking up the "gamagams" with ease and just being his usual self. Raaja gives us a lesson in how to use voices interspersed with instruments to create intricate interludes.

2 songs. 2 different eras. For father and son. 2 absolute classics.

_/\_

P.S Raaja's Kannada repertoire is quite awesome. Geetha IMO is one of his all time best albums.

Raja in the Bay Area

So, the long overdue Bay Area Raja concert finally happened on March 1st (though it ended on Match 2nd :P). As usual, Raja put up a musical spectacle. As he himself said during the concert, he is a musician, not a showman. I could go on and on about the 4.5 hour non-stop musical awesomeness but I am going to pick out only a few highlights from the magical evening.

• As with most (or all? not sure) Raja concerts, he got off the mark with a thumping cover drive in the form of the divine Janani Janani. There is something about his voice and this song. Magical. He also sang Swargame Vandhalum Endralum and Thenpandi Cheemaiyile. His rendition of Idhayam Oru Kovil was one of the high-points of the show. His voice is so sincere. Beautiful. :)
• SPB got a splendid Tendulkar-esque reception from the crowd. I am not sure if I heard right, but he said something about how fans have been asking him and Raja to do a concert together and finally it has happened. 
• Hariharan's entry was also met with warm applause and lots of hooting and whistling. He started off with the Hey Ram classic Isayil Thodangudhama. Super choice of song. 
• Chitra entered the stage to a standing ovation from the crowd. 6 National awards. By her own estimate, over 1000 songs sung for Ilayaraja (Not sure about this). Absolute Legend. She started off with the Agni Natchathiram hit Ninnukori and sang many songs with SPB and Mano. I was surprised that there were no songs from Sindhu Bhairavi. I was expecting at least one.  
• I thought the night belonged to the SPB and Raja combination. Started off with the Telugu classic Mounamelanoyi (Mounamana Neram in Tamil) then went on to the telugu version of Maasi Maasam. Then came one of the highlights of the evening : Ilamai enum Poongatru. One of Raja's greatest songs. Just when you thought it couldn't get any better, Chitra joins him to belt out the Telugu version of Unnal Mudiyum Thambi's Ithazhil Kathai Ezhuthum. Amazing. After a small breather, the SPB-Raja awesomeness continued with some of their best Telugu songs. Really liked this one : Keeravani. The awesomeness continued with the full version of Sundari Kannal and fittingly ended with a spirited rendition of Sagara Sangama/Salagai Oli's Thakita. The SPB-Raja combo never fails. :)
• Another highlight of the evening was the Jugalbandhi of Hindolam songs. These songs were all sung back to back and were sung in such a way that 1 song nicely linked to the other. Raja started off with Naan thedum sevanthi Poo and then Hariharan took over with Azhagu Malar aada. SPB then continued with Naanaga Naanillai thaaye and then ended with Ananda Then Kaaatru. Neat. 
• Last but not the least, the Acapella. Naan Porandhu Vandhadhu. Beautifully done.

A Raja concert is a must-see for all Raja fans. Didn't look at my watch even once during the 4.5 hours. I just thought Yuvan and Karthik could have been used better. Maybe a song or 2 from Neethane En Ponvasantham would have been nice. But there is only so much you can do in 4.5 hours. :D 

Thoughts on Kadal

So, Kadal was watched. Here are some thoughts. Spoilers Ahead!!!

• Liked the movie. Mani is back after the disastrous Ravanan. Typical Mani movie with characters who are neither totally white nor totally black. (Though Arjun's character seems to be a full blown villain, Mani provides a final twist where it seems he has a little bit of humanity left in him)
• Mani always seems to work with good writers. First Sujatha, now Jeyamohan. You can see the difference between the movies where he has collaborated with other writers and the ones which he has written himself. You can see the subtle influences in the screenplay. Ex : Sujatha's touch in Ayutha Ezhuthu, Kannathil Muthamittal.
• The character development could have been done much better. This was one of the issues I had with Thalapathi as well. The grounds on which Mamooty and Rajini become such good friends was never adequately explained (IMO). Here, the friendship and the reason for the fall-out between Arvind Swamy and Arjun is sloppily handled. Maybe he could have done away with the totally unnecessary and bizzarely shot Adiye (Totally love the song btw) and put in a few more scenes in the seminary.
• There are lots of subtle references to the theme of the scene and movie as a whole through the use of props, character names, costumes, etc. When Arjun goes to visit Arvind Swamy in jail, he wears all black and Aravind swamy is wearing jail all whites. Good vs Evil. Black vs White. Another example is the heroine's name. Beatrice. In Dante's divine comedy, Beatrice guides Dante through heaven. Kind of what the heroine does in the movie. The heroine is almost wholly dressed in white. Again alluding to the fact that she is an angel-like figure. Well played.
• Gautam Karthik is pretty good. But I would say this is more of a Arjun and Aravind Swamy movie. Arjun is great as the villain and Arvind Swamy puts in a good performance as the idealistic priest. Thulasi just smiles and smiles like there is no tomorrow. Not at all surprised Samantha said no to the role. :P Probably Mani's worst written female character. Slightly surprising because all his female leads have always had very well written roles.

The Mani Instinct

My last blogpost was on ARR's birthday. :D This year too I start off with a ARR post.
Mani and AR Rahman have been my favourite artists ever since I started to understand art. So it is only fitting that I write a blogpost about the both of them. Also its ARR's birthday today and I put a Mani Ratnam movie marathon last week since I just graduated and had a lot of free time. So I thought what can I write about? What is left to write about Mani and ARR. The evergreen combo. The combo which has delivered hit after hit starting with Roja and continuing with Kadal. What motivates ARR to make such path-breaking music for Mani? I mean when you listen to both Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Kadal, you can feel the gulf. JTHJ seems to be hastily put together wheras Kadal seems lovingly made. ARR has made lots of awesome songs for lots of movies. Why do we remember his Mani Ratnam ones most fondly? Is there something more to it? Maybe its the picturization, maybe its how Mani writes the songs into the script, maybe Mani is like MSD, inspires the whole team to perform better. It could be any of these things. You could call it the Mani instinct like the Raghavan instinct ;)
I personally feel its the picturization. Mani Ratnam shoots his songs brilliantly. So, here is a list of some of the best shot Mani-ARR songs.

1. Chinna chinna Aasai : The song which catapulted ARR to superstardom. There is a shot of the rising sun in the beginning of the song. Maybe Mani knew even then that a legend was rising. Simple tune, with limited instruments. It was a marked departure from the Raaja era which had sweeping symphonies and intricate interludes. The childlike innocence and dreams of the heroine were captured beautifully by Mani and expressed superbly by Vairamuthu's lyrics. The tune has a beautiful steady flow, much like the waterfall which is a prominent part of the video. Musically, I especially love the small bits of Veenai in the middle. ARR's genius shines through in small things like that.

2.  Thee thee :  Absolute cracker of a song. Its strange that a action thriller had so many songs. Mani has always had a very aesthetic way of shooting sensual songs. Most of Mani's movies have songs with mildly risque lyrics. But Mani shoots these songs with so much sensitivity that it doesn't seem to be vulgar at all. (Oru Poongavanam, Pani Vizhum Iravu, Kadhal Sadugudu, Humma Humma, Pudhu Vellai Mazhai). The picturization of the song is consistent with the character played by Anu Agarwal. A very outspoken modern city girl who is comfortable with her sexuality, polar opposite to the role played by Heera. Beautifully sung by Caroline and with beautiful flute interludes. Instant classic.
P.S Rasathi is also a splendidly shot song. I guess one of the few acapella songs in tamil. We can see the marked difference in the way it has been shot compared to the free-spirited nature of Thee Thee.


3. Kannai Katti : I think Iruvar is one of Mani's strongest movies. The perfect amalgam of commercial and parallel cinema. Having 2 of the best actors in India at his disposal also helped I guess. Kannai Katti is an absolute bliss to listen to and watch. We see the trademark Mani touches like rain and slow-motion. And Mohan lal does a better MGR than MGR himself. Beautifully shot with tongue in cheek references to the propaganda movies which MGR used to make. Hariharan is an interesting choice by ARR. He is usually used for slow romantic melodies, but ARR decides to use him for an anthemic song which seems tailor-made for SPB. Nevertheless, we got to see the another side of Hariharan. Also, has Aishwarya Rai ever looked better than in Iruvar? I don't think so. :)__


4. Dil Se Re : I think Dil Se is one of Rahman's all time best albums. Every song is a gem. Pity the movie was the weakest of the terrorism trilogy. But the soundtrack and especially Dil Se Re is a winner. Music, Lyrics, Singing, Picturization. Everything just falls in place. The moral dilemma of the heroine is depicted beautifully. There is a scene where SRK says whatever he dislikes about her is what draws him towards her. Excellent writing. This kind of passion intrigues her. She is flattered that there is someone who loves her with so much passion. She wants to be part of something like this but doesn't want betray her fellow comrades. The turmoil in her mind is expressed beautifully by Mani's picturization and Gulzar's lyrics.


5. Evano Oruvan : Pachai Nirame and Kaadhal Sadugudu are the usual suspects in Alaipayuthey. But I will go with Evano Oruvan here. To get the real feel of this song, we need to go back 5 minutes in the movie before the song plays. Months of pent up emotion explodes like a volcano when they hear each other's voice over the phone. Beautiful scene. The song takes forward the emotions of pathos and yearning amazingly well. I love how Shalini just breaks down on seeing Madhavan at the end of the song. Minimalism at its best. No drama. Apparently Mani wanted Alaipayuthey to be a songless movie. Thank God he decided otherwise.

6. Hey Goodbye Nanba : Slow-motion, Minimalism, Young love, Sea, Water, Vairamuthu. Who needs Peru, London, Kashmir when you have the friendly neighbourhood beach. Typical Mani.

There are lot more songs I can write about. The Raaja-Mani combo also has many classics. But that deserves a separate blog post. Another day. :)