Read the full article on Film Companion, here: https://www.filmcompanion.in/happy-76th-ilaiyaraaja-and-yes-just-be-yourself-interview/
We should really, really stop expecting celebrities to conform to our notions of “good behaviour”.
In the sixteen-plus years I have been writing about cinema, one thing has remained constant. Whenever I have run into (either casually or for the purposes of an interview) someone who’s worked with Ilayaraja, I’ve asked them about the maestro. On record, no one will say much, but “off record”, the beans will start to spill. One director (not the one you are thinking of) told me about the time he took a walk with the composer in the mid-1980s, and he was startled when Ilayaraja sweepingly declared, “Like there was a Bach era and a Mozart era, this will be known as the Ilayaraja era.” The director, who is not usually given to self-praise, said he was startled. “How can someone say something like this?”
Continued at the link above.
Copyright ©2019 Film Companion.
Baradwaj Rangan 
Anuja Chandramouli
May 29, 2019
Oh man! This article, these words… it is exactly what I needed to read in life. I am so sick and fed up of folks clambering onto their moral high horses, pretending they are perfect paragons of virtue and feeling free to judge and condemn those who don’t measure up to their hypocritical, limited notions of good conduct. Also the sheer intolerance of the extremely woke is a major cause for concern.
With regard to the Cinema Express interview, I take no issue with the language he used regarding the 96 thing. Or the tone for that matter. He merely asserted strongly that a musician would do well to create an original score to recreate an era instead of taking a shortcut and using another’s work. How this came to be construed as an attack on the movie and director I’ll never know…(actually I do know, nowadays if we don’t outrage over every single thing from ideological differences to the proper etiquette with regard to letting loose a fart, the day feels wasted). It’s perfectly clear he felt strongly about the issue and in the heat of the moment, his statement was aggressively worded. Big. Fat. Deal. So what if he used a word like ‘impotent’ to make a point about the incompetence of those who don’t have the same impossible artistic standards he himself has and his scorn or those who won’t even try? Nearly all of us swear like sailors when piqued and use language that is not mommy approved during heated arguments so it is kind of ridiculous to take up arms against the maestro over his sublime confidence in his own genius.
I am really glad BR stressed that art is always greater than the artist. IT IS and we need concern ourselves only with art and spare the artist our petty judgement. Before we start hurling stones at anybody we need to remember that without exception, we all live in glass houses.
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Lakshmi
May 29, 2019
“Or listen to ‘Paataale Buthi Sonnaar’, from Karagattakaran, which he wrote the lyrics for. That’s his autobiography. That’s who he is.”
More on that song, from this piece:
sometimes songs give you that aha! moment after years. One of Ilayaraja’s most successful soundtracks, Karagattakaran, was released in the late eighties, and the song that I almost always glossed over was the one sung by the maestro himself, Paattaale buthi sonnaar. It’s as smoothly constructed a composition as any of his, but given that he was singing it (like he did so many songs of the era), I’d forward quickly to Maanguyile poonguyile or (my personal favourite) Indha maan. But a few months ago, I was walking to the post office listening to this album and this song came on, and I literally stopped in my tracks. Perhaps it’s the fact that Ilayaraja is no longer in favour and this lends a special poignancy to the lyrics that talk of appeasing numerous fans through his songs (as long as they want him to), or perhaps it’s that he no longer sings the title song of every goddamn movie and therefore that fatigue factor is no longer there and we’re free to listen to just the moving music – but my eyes misted up that instant, and as if an eclipse had cleared, I saw for the first time the luminous beauty of the song. And – talk about time – it only took me twenty years.
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kattrathuramil
May 29, 2019
going by this article Louis CK should not be boycotted. he should continue to pursue his ART
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Aadhy
May 29, 2019
I don’t understand this. If one has to form an opinion about Ilayaraja or any other artist only through their art, what is the point of interviews then? Isn’t their art sufficient?
Good Interviews inevitably reveal an amount of personality of the interviewee/celebrity even when the questions are directly mostly at the celebrity’s work. Beyond a point one doesn’t really care about how the art is created, because you know the answer by then – Great art just happens, and is very difficult to explain. The cinema express one was a good interview. It was fascinating to hear Raja talk about his insecurities in his early days. At the same time, his superiority complex and disdain for other composers is disgraceful. These are two contrasting different opinions I had from the same interview. Others will have their own opinions about him from the interview. And I don’t see why we shouldn’t express them. Celebrities ain’t above us. They have enjoyed adoration, they sure can take some criticism too.
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chvs Chaitanya
May 29, 2019
@Anuja Chandramouli. Its not about the language he used, its about his lack of understanding of the reason for using the songs in the film…our lives are connected with his songs..and when some director wants to make a film where the protagonist’s important moments are connected with the songs of the era and he decides to use the popular song of that era, where is the question of ‘taking a shortcut and using another’s work’??…the songs were not used as back ground score…they are used to give a realistic touch to the era..so that we can relate with them… soo many Hollywood movies does that ..Whatever advice he gave about using one’s own music to recreate the era is fine, but this advice does not belong to the context of 96…
AND going by your comments nobody should criticize anyone..we should not criticize salman khan, SIMBU, etc etc…
There cannot be one rule for others and one rule for Ilayaraja…When any person(artist or whatever) makes these types of comments…we need to question his lack of understanding…but that does not mean that I will stop listening to ilayaraja..his music is part of my life. but I disagree with his comments..USING OLD SONG IS NOT TAKING SHORTCUT, IT DEPENDS ON HOW YOU ARE USING AND WHY YOU ARE USING IT..
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chvs Chaitanya
May 29, 2019
@Aaadhy….100% agreed
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Aadhy
May 29, 2019
‘There cannot be one rule for others and one rule for Ilayaraja’
Exactly. By the logic of ‘art is greater than the artist’, we shouldn’t have called out Radha Ravi or the terrific Marimuthu from Pariyerum Perumal who had horrific things to say about #metoo, or the great K.J.Yesudoss for his insights about women who wear jeans.
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Vazhipokkan
May 29, 2019
“Complexes” – be it inferiority, superiority or just being balanced, are what makes humans human. Why do we pass value judgement on these? Somebody has a complex because it satisfies a need for them – it sometimes even let’s them live a sane life. With Ilayaraja, one knows where he is coming from. He clearly had/ has a superior hold on music – and that translates into his words. As long as he is honest about it, I think that’s just fine. There have been others in the film industry who carry a false humility, talk of exalted values of love/ peace etc. You can clearly see what they really mean. When you are not even able to stick to truth and reality – why talk of love/ peace?
Guess it has become fashionable to diss Ilayaraja’s personality and then claim that you love/ like his music.
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Reuben
May 29, 2019
In another recent interview, he said (in an almost accusatory tone) that Mani Ratnam has never mentioned anywhere about how he had helped him for his first Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi by charging much less than his market fee at that time.
In fact Mani has mentioned about this in your book Conversations…
Not withstanding the above incorrect accusation by Ilayaraja, he comes across as a guy who needs constant validation about his greatness even though he says he does not care about what other people think about him.
That is a greater hypocrisy than what others have done by privately condemning and publicly praising Ilayaraja.
His desperate need for this validation was on display when he almost chided A R Rahman for not saying how many films he has worked with him and suggesting that ARR was actually blessed to have worked so many films with him.
That to me is pathetic no matter even if you are a maestro
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Ravi K
May 29, 2019
kattrathuramil wrote: “going by this article Louis CK should not be boycotted. he should continue to pursue his ART”
You’re comparing apples and oranges. Being opinionated or even arrogant might be unpleasant, but it’s not on the same level as harassment or assault. Accepting Raaja’s lack of humility does not mean we have to accept much worse behavior from people like Louis CK, Vairamuthu, etc.
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Fiji Suva
May 30, 2019
I was reminded of this article by Ed Smith about cricketers and why their autobiographies may not be the best place to understand their work.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/739653.html
It has the the quote by poet Edward Thomas,
“Most lives of poets stand to their work as a block of unhewn marble stands to the statue finished and unveiled… We read their lives after their poetry and we forget them. It is by their poetry that they survive.”
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Shankar
May 30, 2019
Nobody is perfect! And as BR says, we should not expect that from IR or any other musician. But even here, what frustrates me the lack of balance in opinions. I’m not saying one should always be balanced in writing about things (ideal, but not practical since it’s one’s POV usually), but it’s far too easy to demonize a person who until now, has been so reluctant to speak with media. You only hear the other side, but not from the man himself, be it the royalty issue or his brother! I’m not saying this as an IR fan. And I’m not agreeing with what he said in the interview either. But his bane has been his lack of filter or PR skills…but that is who he is. For every director or collaborator that has a “back story”, there are a number of unheard stories that also show who this man is. View Sangili Murugan’s straight talk interview here, especially towards the end:
The fact that IR did Adharvam for free, for Dennis Joseph, might be unknown to many. There are so many tales of young (and seasoned) directors, musicians, and singers who have benefited enormously from this man. Why is that not included to give a more rounded perspective of the man? A certain friend of mine who is (and family is as well) in the film industry, has a number of uncharitable things to say, about almost every top actor or composer in the industry today. So, nobody is perfect…and I, for one, don’t let all that affect how I judge people (except if it involves bodily harm/abuse etc., in their personal lives). But, I expect some balance in putting out opinions and views on this man, especially from someone as level headed as BR!
PS: This is the paragraph that got me really riled up…again, why only outrages…where is the balance?
“I am not his family (who may outrage about how little time Ilayaraja gave them). I am not a director who has worked with him (who may outrage about, say, how Ilayaraja didn’t listen to their brief and did his own thing). I am not a lyricist who’s been spurned by him (who may outrage about a loss of a chunk of a career). I am not a beloved singer who was hauled up for a royalties issue (who may outrage about the behaviour of someone he thought a friend)”
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naveendreamer
May 30, 2019
Hi BR,
The problem arises because we tend to mix up the person with his or her work. A person is NOT his/her work.
a) You say “But that’s why Great Men are so fascinating, with all their complications and contradictions.”
Ideally you should say “Men who produce great work are so fascinating…”.
b) Again you write “You want to know the real Ilayaraja? Listen to (his works)…”.
Here, too , you are suggesting the person is his work.
I disagree.
I’d call Van Gogh, a great artist, Einstein, a great scientist etc. I wouldn’t call them great beings.
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umamaheswarans
May 30, 2019
Ironically 96 had the most original and innovative soundtrack by a young music director in recent times. I feel sorry for Govind vasantha. At the same there is nothing wrong with Illayaraja’s POV, which is create something new instead of taking an easy way out. I don’t think he even caught the interviewer mentioning 96. Most probably he is not even aware of that movie. His comment should be taken in broader context instead of a particular movie. I think the outrage is mostly due to linking his opinion to 96. But thats not his intention.
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Heisenberg
May 30, 2019
I dont think ilayarajaa’s comments have to be attributed to 96, as he hasn’t seen the movie and his comments were in general context of using his music as bgm. To be fair to 96, the movie did not use his songs as substitute for its original songs/bgm, but as running motif for the heroines liking for S.janaki and songs in those era.
With that being said ilaiyaraaja has right to be angry for usage of his songs for almost every movie that released this past decade (it’s in decline this past few years). Two examples that come to my mind. 1.”Siru ponmani” seuence from Subramaniapuram – Almost the entire song was used in 2 separate scenes in the movie instead of an original composition. 2. Pallavi Anu Pallavi bgm in Sarvam (Yuvan’s music).. That bgm just keeps popping up initially whenever Trisha appears in movie. Even in recently released Super deluxe some ilaiyraaja songs like Andhiyila vaanam seemed out of place
To use some song or bgm to represent a timeline is different from using it as substitute for original music. He has lashed out everybody for doing that and I believe that includes his own son Yuvan.
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brangan
May 30, 2019
Shankar: You have completely misunderstood what I said there. Konjam nidhaanama padichu paaru.
Ravi K: Thanks, yes, apples and oranges.
Naveendreamer: I thought I implied that by using upper-case in Great Men, i.e. like how we have books like ‘The Lives of Great Men’. But yes, I agree. It’s about the men who produce or do great thing — not necessarily about the men themselves being great.
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Anuja Chandramouli
May 30, 2019
Chvs Chaitanya: Sudhir mentioned in the interview that Ilayaraja doesn’t watch too many movies now and hence hadn’t even seen 96. Hence IR’s response to the use of his songs in 96 was not directed at the film or it’s makers but rather the bigger issue of folks feeling free to use his tracks without so much as a by your leave. He has spoken about it in the past too and it is obvious it is a pet peeve, and that explains the slight edge to his tone. So it was not about understanding the reason people use his music in their films but rather about the fact that many do so without permission and to compound the crime of intellectual theft they make IR out to be the bad guy. It has made him unpopular but I sympathize because folks like to enjoy art without paying for it whereas they wouldn’t expect free treatment or any other professional service.
And I didn’t say nobody should criticize anyone as such. Its just that we don’t have to be so generous with criticism just because we can. None of us like being judged or criticized so why do the same to others especially celebs? Why hold up celebs to higher standards of good conduct than we do ourselves? And of course some acts deserve criticism but by limiting ourselves to merely criticizing others without ever bothering to be constructive or pro -active it seems to me that we do just enough to feel self – righteous without actually being useful. Just saying…
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Ananth
May 30, 2019
Surprise ! surprise! He admits to his arrogant behaviour in this interview..watch from 8:38 mins
Yeah, how I wish IR, Kamal, Vairamuthu didn’t have a bad side of their persona..would help love them unapologetically
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Heisenberg
May 30, 2019
//His desperate need for this validation was on display when he almost chided A R Rahman for not saying how many films he has worked with him and suggesting that ARR was actually blessed to have worked so many films with him.//
@Reuben – I partially agree with you, but looking at it from ilaiyaraaja’s viewpoint. Until very recently, I have never heard AR.Rahman speak about his collaboration with ilaiyaraaja or even generally about his music/era. In 90s, it seemed like IR and ARR existed in parallel worlds, both not even acknowledging the other’s existence. While ilaiyaraaja has always chided musicians who came after him, but he always spoke with great respect about his predecessors. To my knowledge ARR never did that during his golden years (90s) except occasional mention of MSV. I speculate that’s what makes IR speak something like “You worked with me for over 500 films, and you are the one who has to say that out.”
Same with Mani Ratnam. From ilaiyaraaja’s words, he saw his talent and did music for free in his films and recommended him to lot of producers while Mani ratnam was still struggling to establish his name. A decade later Mani Ratnam breaks a phenomenal collaboration and brings in an exceptional new comer and establishes a new legendary combo ARR-Mani-Vairamuthu (IR’s nemesis). It’s no wonder IR looks at it with animosity or assumes they plotted his downfall and utters some unflattering words about them.
I am not sure, but probably ilaiyaraaja 75 was when Mani and IR finally met after their partnership broke. Regardless of the animosity I still think IR has great respect for Mani Ratnam’s work.
P.S. I never felt Mani Ratnam had any grudge against IR and the animosity always came from other side
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Arjun
May 30, 2019
IR’s words were tasteless and classless. I really wish he would stop these college tours and interviews and go gently into the sunset. It’s not a question of “just being himself”. These days, the more he talks, the more it diminishes the mystery and aura of the man and his creations. I’m happy that he has at least (presumably) patched up with SPB.
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chvs Chaitanya
May 30, 2019
@ANUJA CHANDRAMOULI- “IT IS and we need concern ourselves only with art and spare the artist our petty judgement. Before we start hurling stones at anybody we need to remember that without exception, we all live in glass houses.”…i just reacted to this comment.. As AAdhy mentioned in his comment, if we can express our views on ART, why cant we express our views on Artist?? when the Artist is expressing his views on other Artists…If an old song is used, it does not always mean that the music director is lacking talent…When Ilayaraja declares that music directors use old song because they are unable to recreate it…then one should question his understanding…..i am not talking about the people who criticize for the sake of doing it…i am just talking in this cinema express video context….When an artist comes out and gives his view…we can express our views on his views…It is just a normal thing…
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Odiyan Hater
May 30, 2019
@Ananth:
Yeah, how I wish IR, Kamal, Vairamuthu didn’t have a bad side of their persona..would help love them unapologetically
What is Kamal’s bad side?
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Vivek
May 30, 2019
Gotta agree with BR and Anuja here (and Shankar).
Just for perspective: Somewhere in their late thirties, the average human being starts getting crankier and opinionated as they grow older. I have seen in my family how people cannot stop talking about how great they were to their family members and how they never felt appreciated. The “judgements” flow endlessly – be that the next generation or their peers. Its human to be that way. IR is, without doubt a genius, and if he wants to rant a bit about his “subject matter expertise”, so be it. I used to think about IR the same way, meaning why couldn’t he be the person I wanted him to be? And this article is a great leveler, in that sense.
About ARR, we all know he has always been a man of few words – even so, I remember him saying in an interview that IR was the musician that proved to him that genius need not come with drugs and other bad habits, and he respected him always for that.
And on that note, let’s give ARR the time.. let’s see how his thoughts have evolved when he is 76.. 😉 I want to be proven wrong..
You know who goes overboard in giving credit to other artists? Hans Zimmer from Hollywood. I sometimes think he overdoes it (a product of marketing I guess) but the man can certainly make his co-artists and directors feel warm, at least onstage or during interviews!
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Vivek
May 30, 2019
Correction: I meant to agree with Ravi K (and NOT Shankar)..
@Shankar: no offense! 🙂
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Madan
May 30, 2019
I have yet to get to the interview though I gathered there WAS an interview and that it has, as per the usual, lit a fire. Well, Ilayaraja lights a fire in five minutes with a few strokes of his baton the way few others have. Why would he not do that with his words? 😛 Except not the way you want.
I more or less agree with your thoughts, BR. Except that I would say that it doesn’t even matter if people want to react to his personality. Let them and it’s kind of hard not to because he’s so polarising a figure. Though whenever he is NOT analysing music, he is mostly polarising in a negative way. But so what? If people want to get so offended by his words that they can’t listen to his music, it’s their loss.
Me, my objections to the things he says are legion. Forget the lack of humility part. Ilayaraja is an avid proponent of pseudoscience, superstition and his religious views too may not be palatable for many (a brief glimpse appeared when he pooh poohed the Christian claim of resurrection and asserted that Ramana Maharishi’s was the only true resurrection). It isn’t even a question of political correctness. I see zero value add in Ilayaraja the legendary composer talking about Ramana Maharishi and comparing Christ unfavourably to him.
But somehow when I am listening to these songs, these thoughts do not occur to my mind. It’s instant gratification. As you have said in different words before, even his worst detractors could never say he was a talentless jerk or something to that effect. His work by itself always evoked respect and attempts at skewering it like that only rural beats guy are in any case so disingenuous and blatantly untrue that they fall flat. That’s the only thing that matters at the end of the day. Whatever kind of person Ilayaraja may be, his genius as a composer is undeniable for the most part.
Coming, though, to his lofty claim about the 80s, I happen to have consumed a lot of Western rock and pop music from that period apart from Tamil and Hindi music as well. I really do not think calling the 80s the Ilayaraja era is too much of a stretch because there was very little going on in the 80s otherwise that was great on a consistent basis. King Crimson started the decade brilliantly but fizzled out. Holdsworth made too few albums and was in any case too abstract for most palates. The uber influential Michael Jackson made just two albums in that decade. And biggest selling album ever Thriller might be, but musically it is no match for Ilayaraja and its brightest moment ironically arrived via Quincy Jones’ arrangements for Babe Be Mine (speaking of which, if you get triggered by Raja, boy, you should hear Quincy!). The best stuff in the 80s was brewing underground, mostly in metal but that had too narrow a scope again to be compared with the vast canvas of Ilayaraja. And those guys turned to Michael Kamen the moment they needed to arrange anything remotely orchestral.
This is just to make the point one more time that Ilayaraja is not great just by Indian standards. I can say without any bias that his all round, multi faceted skills would put many greats of rock and pop music to shame and while jazz or classical dudes can match or surpass them, they don’t specialise in writing ear candy that catches on and enchants millions of listeners which he did. The only area in which his work in the 80s was lacking was the recording quality, but not his compositional skill. In that sense, I would say even after all the lofty adulation he has received, he is still underrated. Because the praise he gets is too vague and unfocused. He is not just a great treasure of Tamil Nadu. In the world of light music, there have been very few forces as potent as Ilayaraja and fewer still who could compose ear candy that was seminal purely from an art innovation point of view. He is on par with the Beatles in that regard imo.
One last note. Fed mostly keeps his mouth zipped cuz Nike. He occasionally lets on like that infamous lucky shot barb directed at Djokovic and we get to see the big champion ego that takes losing badly, which he goes to great lengths to cover. Back before tennis got so commercial, McEnroe, Connors and Becker all let their mouth run. So supposing you wouldn’t watch them because of that? Man, how lame would that be!
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Madan
May 30, 2019
“These days, the more he talks, the more it diminishes the mystery and aura of the man and his creations.” – In some ways, it intensifies the mystery. Like, ivangalukka ivlo talent? 😛
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Vivek
May 30, 2019
And, Happy Birthday to IR! we can argue all we want, but the great man deserves the wishes too.. 🙂
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sai16vicky
May 30, 2019
In my broader field (academia), the general saying goes that — “if someone is too good, they can afford to be a jerk”. IR (with his recent comments) has just reiterated the fact that he is a jerk. We might go endlessly debating on “art being different from artist, etc.” but this kind of behavior sets a bad precedent for the upcoming artists.
IR’s music has had such a monumental impact on Tamil (even Indian) cinema that many composers and even filmmakers consider it to be their holy grail. His personality would convince them that it is ok to be a jerk if they are good. Now, you might ask why they should take anything from him apart from his music?
Sadly, that’s not how humans work. Subconsciously, we tend to emulate our role models (our parents for example). Is it that hard to be nice and civil? Like seriously!
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Vazhipokkan
May 30, 2019
People have the balls to say what IR should/ should not do (see comments above “go gently into the sunset”) – because he doesn’t confirm to their world view? Wow. Simply wow.
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Sutheesh Kumar
May 31, 2019
“Raaja, Raajaadi Raajan Inda Raaja
Kooja, Thookaade Veru Engum Kooja
Netru Illai Naalai Illai
Eppovum Naan Raaja
Netru Illai Naalai Illai
Eppovum Naan Raaja
Kottai Illai Kodiyum Illai
Appovum Naan Raaja
Raaja”
That’s hubris right there or is it megalomania?
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Sutheesh Kumar
May 31, 2019
About the modesty debate I don’t understand why we expect people of monumental achievements to be humble and modest, while the majority of underachievers and no-gooders has the immodesty and arrogance to judge them.
If one cannot even take pride in one’s own hard earned achievements because of the fear of how others will perceive or judge you, now that’s a sad state of affairs is what I will say.
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Arjun
May 31, 2019
“People have the balls to say what IR should/ should not do (see comments above “go gently into the sunset”) – because he doesn’t confirm to their world view? Wow. Simply wow.”
I am only expressing my angst as an ardent fan about the way he runs his mouth these days. It’s cringeworthy. It’s not just this one instance btw. A few months back, to a young college girl who asked what it was like to write a symphony his annoyed petulant reply was “naa sonna adhu purinjukkira pakkuvam unakku irukka?” Comments like these and the silly Jesus resurrection thing Madan pointed out do cause disillusionment among a section of fans. I don’t wish him to be embroiled in one pointless controversy after other. That was the spirit of my comment.
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Arjun
May 31, 2019
About the modesty part, I’ve never had an issue with his lack of it, in fact I’ve consistently, on various forums, championed his right to be arrogant and find the absence of fake humility refreshing and honest.
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Madan
May 31, 2019
Vivek: I think Rahman is just a different person from IR. He is city bred and naturally has a filter that IR doesn’t. Plus he is shy and soft spoken by nature. So I doubt he is ever going to get as cranky as IR. IR was considered a hard nut to crack even in the 80s.
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Madan
May 31, 2019
sai16vicky: Conceptually, I agree with you that Ilayaraja ought to set a good example for his peers and especially for impressionable youngsters.
Unfortunately, the art world is very complicated. For one, it attracts a disproportionate share of eccentrics. The ones with poor people skills often turn out to be brilliant in their chosen art. This may be simply because they look at the world differently from us. It follows that their conversation then is likely to diverge from ‘normal’ patterns. And for a creative person, every moment is precious and when the time has to be devoted to something other than their art, they feel it a waste of time. Remember how Santosh Narayanan gently insisted that he would rather spend time composing than giving interviews. He is not being arrogant nor playing hard to get. He is just talking like a creative.
Now, the other aspect is evaluation of art is highly unpredictable. This is particularly so in music because, and I won’t mince words here, a large section of the audience for music is tone deaf. They enjoy the sound of music very much without being particular about the grammar of music. So you have a scenario where terrible singers like Atif or Justin Bieber (on a worldwide scale!) mint money while talented singers struggle just to get by. This assymetry must, I am sure, be very frustrating for those musicians who do have ability and know they have it but can’t do anything about the level of audience appreciation. From Ilayaraja’s perch, if he finds Harris Jayaraj to be a mediocre hack, he is not even wrong. It is just that we are told we have to be politically correct and avoid such statements. But to what end? As somebody who, unlike us, has plenty of skin in the game, Ilayaraja is within his rights to question why Tamil music has descended from the safe hands of great composers to more mediocre ones.
One last aspect here is in India we don’t know how to deal with iconoclasts generally and especially in the arts. This is also why our art meanders into stagnation after a while. So when iconoclasts do come along, we don’t like their bold opinions and to hear them challenge the reigning conventional wisdoms. But they wouldn’t be so brilliant and original if they weren’t so bold. The West does not have this problem. They are used to great artists also having enormous egos and while this fact is never concealed, it also doesn’t interfere with their judgement of the artist’s work itself. I know of exactly one iconoclastic guitarist, the aforementioned Holdsworth, who was so humble as to question the accolades he received from dazed fellow guitarists. Appropriately enough, he died a pauper while the gigantic prick that is Malmsteen is extremely successful. It seems like being a prick improves chances of success in art!
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Shankar
May 31, 2019
“I think Rahman is just a different person from IR. He is city bred and naturally has a filter that IR doesn’t. Plus he is shy and soft spoken by nature. So I doubt he is ever going to get as cranky as IR. IR was considered a hard nut to crack even in the 80s.”
@Madan, you should hear what my industry friend has to say or as BR put it “spill the beans”! The external filter just hides all their shenanigans they display in their professional and personal life….and I say this for most artists, not just ARR!
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Madan
May 31, 2019
Shankar : To be clear, I am talking about ARR as he appears in public. I doubt he is ever going to drop his guard and start being outspoken and flamboyant because he has cultivated his image very carefully. That said, yes, I tend to trust unfiltered people, people who do not pause too long before answering or within a sentence, a bit more, in terms of how likely it is to be a reflection of their true self. If they are quick on the uptake, it indicates that they are not particularly bothered about how their words will be construed.
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sai16vicky
June 1, 2019
@Madan: Your last point is spot on. I think dealing with these iconoclasts has a cultural angle too. In the West (from what I’ve observed), people do go crazy about artists but it’s only a phase — say late teens to early twenties. After a point, they tend to grow out of it and start appreciating the art more (sidestepping the artists’ personality). On the other hand, in India, the focus on the artist never seems to end. I mean, look at Rajinikanth or Kamal Hassan — they are dawning into their seventies and people are still interested in their lives (be it personal/political).
However, I must admit one thing. When I listen to the man’s music, none of this even remotely bothers me. Be it the string-based prelude of ‘Manjal Veyyil Malayitta Poove’ (or) the hymns of Soundarya Lahiri leading to ‘Nadhiyil Aadum Poovanam’ (or) the melancholy-lullaby ‘Karpoora Bommai Ondru’, the man is a stunning genius. We had never seen one like him. We might never see one like him.
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Karthik
June 1, 2019
What bothered me in the interview (and some of Ilayaraja’s recent public conversations) is not that he is unfiltered or not pc enough, but more that his comments & views seem to reflect deep resentment. It’s one thing to proclaim your own superiority, which I dont think would bother people that much, but its another thing to diss someone with such causticity. In recent years, he has repeatedly indicated, verbally or otherwise, that he didn’t receive his due. Even in the recent IR 75 event— at the end of what was really a Maha Kumbh Mela conducted for Him, his comment to ARR was that ARR did not acknowledge having played in over 500 films for him. For someone so accomplished, so celebrated, so worshipped, this is really a strange aspect of his personality. He knew his music would define an era, but probably wasn’t quite prepared for it to be followed by another musicians era and then another. Or maybe its deep discontentment that has spurred him to climb uncharted heights. Either way, I’d rather an artist be honest than modest.
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e221
June 1, 2019
At first, I was very much upset and even angered by Ilayarajas comments and BR’s take on it. But on just thinking little deep, I can see what BR is trying to say here? How many of us can say that we never used offensive language against anyone in our life? If anyone criticizes ilayaraja that he was very offensive in his opinion, then I should ask them “So are you saying you have never expressed profanity ever in your life?”. It’s a natural human tendency to use strong offensive language when they really want to make a point on things that they strongly believe. Its kind of hypocritical when the entire society along with social media has become the most toxic form with each and every individual taking an offensive stand against anyone who is different from them and here we are judging a character of a musician Who has every right to express himself in whatever way he feels. People talking about Ilayaraja should have the guts to call out on people who are more powerful and being toxic at the same time.
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Madan
June 1, 2019
” In the West (from what I’ve observed), people do go crazy about artists but it’s only a phase — say late teens to early twenties. After a point, they tend to grow out of it and start appreciating the art more (sidestepping the artists’ personality). ” – Spot on. In India, people never outgrow their teenage infatuation stage. This does mean there is an element of ageism in the West as once famous artists start to get slotted as pure retro once they grow old (irrespective of the quality of their work) but on the other hand, yes, the way they engage with artists is more realist.
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Madan
June 1, 2019
Karthik: I believe there is an element of discontentment that drove him to these heights. He has made references at times to the inner flame within and said that the day it is extinguished, he will stop composing music. I believe he faced a lot of discouragement (which may or may not have had a casteist or colourist angle) in his early years as a musician working in orchestras and him becoming an ace composer was at least partly to rub his detractors in the nose. Because he said when he came to Chennai he had never imagined he would be a composer. So his aspirations at that time had been limited to just being involved in music.
Coming to his comment in the IR75 interaction, first of all, everything he and Rahman said there felt thoroughly scripted to me to evoke their respective stereotypes and I felt he was simply playing to the gallery. There is an image now that IR will say something irritating and he was deliberately playing to it by calling out Rahman for playing Mandram Vandha differently from the original. In the same light, he was possibly just trying to get across the point that it is very odd for Rahman who, as IR mentioned, worked on many, many films with him, to stay mum about that entire phase. We have seen IR shower accolades on MSV by contrast. Now the blame for this possibly goes both sides for there is nothing to suggest IR similarly encouraged ARR the way MSV did for IR. We do not know if IR called ARR to convey his appreciation for Roja the way MSV did for ARR. IR is essentially very competitive and combative, possibly a baggage from his early years. He is also not politically correct so perhaps he sees the adulation MSV showered on him as justified (because IR did step up the game from MSV) whereas with Rahman he may not have felt that Rahman musically surpassed him. We can agree or disagree with him on this but this, imo, is what explains the frost between the two.
Rahman has responded to the lack of approval from IR by cold shouldering him and offering grudging platitudes of respect often replete with left handed compliments. Having said that, and as a diehard IR fan, I will still say Rahman has gone further than IR did to build bridges. I remember when Thiruvasagam came out, Rahman was interviewed and he heaped superlatives on it. I have never heard IR say something approaching whole hearted praise for Rahman. We can debate the reasons for this till the cows come home, but this possibly explains the dynamic of their relationship.
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e221
June 1, 2019
” have never heard IR say something approaching wholehearted praise for Rahman” – Don’t you think its because IR did not feel that music from ARR is not real music but a creation of new and mesmerizing sounds from a Sound engineer? Roja was a huge hit and one cannot forget the fact that part of its due to the kind of sounds that were played in the songs for the first time. I do have to side with IR on this because ARR did not do anything phenomenal in the current decade or I should say nothing ARR created was not so much of a sensation..Dony you think is that because of the advent of smartphones, people started to hear all kind of new sounds from all over the world instantly and no longer the music from ARR wows them. This decline cannot be simply attributed that someone has passed his prime. I don’t think so. ARR still the same ARR. It’s just that his music/Sounds does not Wow the audience anymore. Let’s be open and honest here. Most of the Tamil songs for the current decade and that includes IR, ARR, and every other musician out there are pretty less than mediocre. This is arguably the worst decade for Tamil cinema music. I cannot remember one song that comes to my head right away..one song. People who say that IR used some old songs for the movie Pithamagan forget the fact that it was a tribute by a sincere student who turned into a maestro for his masters. One cannot say that for any current music directors in the sense that someone like IR needs to churn an extraordinary number of songs and achievements and the bar is so high. IR seems himself as a world-class musician and he simply cannot accept the mediocrity. I don’t see that as an arrogance just a pretty high standard for music.
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Madan
June 1, 2019
“Don’t you think its because IR did not feel that music from ARR is not real music but a creation of new and mesmerizing sounds from a Sound engineer?” – What IR thinks or does not think I don’t know. As I said, it’s less about whether IR is right or wrong about this and more about how this affects their relationship. And ARR cannot be blamed if he felt IR could have been more forthcoming in praising him. It is a point of view IR has and I can say not all musicians, even extremely talented ones, subscribe to it. Mike Portnoy is an incredible drummer, one of the best in the world, and he spares praise for amateurs covering his songs, let alone professionals. IR takes a hard to please posture somewhat like Lata who too not only knows she is the cat’s whiskers but seems insistent on reminding everyone again and again about it. So I can understand the irritation too from some of the audience. Like, “Yeah, we know, we get it.”
Now, whether I personally think Rahman was just about sound engineering. No! I explained this to somebody else this way: if you plotted the styles IR and ARR operated in as a Venn diagram, then you would find that ARR appropriated those genres that IR had not explored so much. For eg, IR may have done basic, speakeasy rap now and then like Vikram or Santhu Pottu but never did full fledged hip hop like Pettai Rap. Rahman was comfortable in rap, Latin (like samba samba), reggae, EDM, all genres that IR at the most only occasionally touched on. So he was very successful in avoiding a head to head comparison with IR in genres like say rural music or film staples like romantic duets with strong Indian melody though he also did all of these adequately enough if not often as well as IR.
If you approach music evaluation purely as an exercise of evaluating the quality of melody and harmony, then yes Rahman cannot get within light years of IR. But that’s not the only way popular music in particular is appreciated and in fact it is rare that it is looked at that way. Rahman knew this very well and was thus able to carve out a space for himself even with IR’s formidable presence.
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Madan
June 1, 2019
I watched the interview, well, at least the version Cinema Express now has up on the net. In their version, they have snipped out that very question and answer. I found the answer itself elsewhere but not the question, so I do not know the context and Raja himself is not making any specific reference to 96. Therefore, if there was no reference to 96 in either the question or answer but people inferred that Raja MUST be referring to that film alone and none other and took offence, that seems a bit silly.
What I find interesting though is this entire controversy, whether warranted or manufactured, shut up any discussion on the many other insights he offered in both the lengthy interview with Sudhir Srinivasan as well as the rapid fire session. He said he would rehearse the singers and musicians only up to the point where the song didn’t get familiar for them, where they didn’t feel like they were singing/playing something old and comfortable, because then they would get complacent and their involvement would drop. He felt the involvement was related to how NEW the song felt for them. He also admitted that he knows the way he talks irritates and infuriates his fans but that it is an indispensable part of what defines Ilayaraja too and he cannot break out of it as much as he likes.
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Anu Warrier
June 1, 2019
IR takes a hard to please posture somewhat like Lata who too not only knows she is the cat’s whiskers but seems insistent on reminding everyone again and again about it.
I was thinking of Lata in the context of these comments, but to be honest, she has been very, very appreciative of her own contemporaries (and seniors) like Suraiyya, Geeta Dutt, Asha et al, as well as her juniors such as Alka Yagnik, Kavita Krishnamoorthy, Sunidhi Chouhan and Shreya Ghoshal. There’s pride in her own talent there, sure, and even perhaps the arrogance of stating who she would/could work with or not; but I’ve never seen nor read her diss other music directors/singers.
Even in her issues with MDs and singers – SD Burman, Mohd.Rafi, etc., she’s been pretty evenhanded about the blame. With regard to Rafi (and the royalty controversy), yes, there were egos involved (and she’s never denied she has a strong ego), but she had the warmest regard for him, telling Nasreen Munni Kabir ‘Woh sant aadmi the.’
And despite the personal arrogance – which people seem to accept more from a man than a woman, IMO (no one, for instance, complains about Kishore picking fights with all and sundry; it’s excused as his ‘eccentricity’) – there’s a humility to her craft. (Not saying IR doesn’t have this, by the way. I was only commenting on the Lata reference. I don’t know enough about IR except what I read/hear of him to make any comment on him.)
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Madan
June 1, 2019
Anu Warrier : I could have sworn I have read Lata make the typical today’s singers kinda comment. Which is what prompted me to draw the comparison. I do agree that at least she has been effusive about her contemporaries. For Ilayaraja, there’s seemingly nothing from the point where his era starts. 😛 Then again, he HAS been unbelievably prolific too and wildly innovative. So it’s very hard for me to gauge just how much to blame him for this if at all.
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Anu Warrier
June 2, 2019
Madan, I think she did say something about most of today’s music lacking the melody and even the ‘soul’ of the past, but she’s been pretty much gracious and complimentary about many of the singers and the new talent that is sprouting. She did once say that she felt today’s singers were rather unlucky in that they had no one to guide them – in their heyday, she said, lyricists and even directors would be at recordings to help them with the context. She also said if I remember right (I’m paraphrasing here, bear with me) that young singers should try and understand the character, the context and the story behind the songs, that they need to learn ‘voice acting’.
I think that’s an okay thing to say (not arrogant, I mean) especially if someone is asking her about today’s music and singers.
As for Ilayaraja, I think, at least from his interviews – both recorded and in print – my personal opionion was that I prefer honest arrogance to hypocrisy. But what turns me off him (not his music) is his total ungraciousness and his penchant to come across as someone very, very bitter about others’ successes. Perhaps I’m mistaken – like I said, I don’t know enough.
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Madan
June 3, 2019
@Anu: Raja bitter about others’ successes? IDK I can see why it comes across that way but I have generally come across disillusionment from him regarding the way music is made and consumed today. Which is a normal happenstance for a composer of his age. Him not giving Rahman a single compliment about his music in a long speech at the Cine Musicians Union was a pretty bad look but bitterness? No. And he came across as proud of Rahman’s accomplishments in the IR75 appearance.
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Anu Warrier
June 3, 2019
@Madan, you’re right about his disillusionment. As for the rest, like I said, just my perception – and I could very well be wrong. In any case, his music speaks for itself and one cannot deny the man’s immense talent – or his contribution.
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Karthik
June 3, 2019
@Madan: first of all, everything he and Rahman said there felt thoroughly scripted to me to evoke their respective stereotypes
Actually Madan, I felt the opposite, the bit with Rahman where he just whipped his little phone and started playing on it and the subsequent banter between him and IR, was one of two unscripted moments in the show– the other being Kamal Haasan giving IR a hug and kiss on stage; rare instance where Kamal’s actions & words seemed unadulterated and unscripted.
I agree with you about IR’s challenges entering the industry and how that might have influenced his approach and attitude.
I also agree with Anu that he does seem bitter about his contemporaries’ accomplishments– and this bitterness becomes quite conspicuous when it comes to ARR who arguably defined the music era that followed his. ARR literally replaced him in Roja (with speculations abound on that not being too rosy), and subsequently went on to be the go to composer in Tamil Cinema, and it happened fairly quickly, and to add to that ARR had grown under his tutelage. So some negativity is par for the course, but that it has persisted for a couple of decades and you add to that his recent feud with SPB, his comments on MR not acknowledging his generosity, and now his comments on 96, I find it hard to simply slot those into a “lack of sophistication or filter”. I’d actually speculate that his showing pride for ARR in IR75 was him being out of character.
To be completely fair, the man’s 75 and, even if his astounding music and equally astounding memory belie his age, one has to make way for the grumpiness that comes with.
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Arjun
June 3, 2019
https://www.timesnownews.com/entertainment/south-gossip/article/watch-ilayaraja-gets-enraged-with-a-security-personnel-on-stage-video-goes-viral/430343
Plus I also heard that the show started very late, organizers had not arranged sufficient drinking water and when someone got up to buy water bottles, he admonished the audience saying he has been on stage for 4 hours, “en isaiyaal vaazhigirirgal, thaneer illaamal irukka mudiyadhu”. This is getting painful to watch. Again i hope that for his own sake he stops appearing in public and go into graceful retirement like the great Yesudas or MSV before him.
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Arjun
June 4, 2019
“I also agree with Anu that he does seem bitter about his contemporaries’ accomplishments– and this bitterness becomes quite conspicuous when it comes to ARR who arguably defined the music era that followed his.”
Ditto. There is clearly an unease between them. Perhaps this is due to the fact that ARR found his creativity being stifled during his time with IR. He was little more than an assistant to Viji Manuel and simply had to play what was given to him. In other words, he doesn’t think his time with IR helped him grow creatively, although it almost certainly provided him musical education. IR these days seems to think that anyone and everyone should at all times acknowledge their debt (as he perceives it) to him. As I said, there is a disturbing megalomaniac trend to his utterances these days. And disdain towards his own fans see
https://tamil.asianetnews.com/video/cinema/ilayaraja-angry-on-stage-video–psikfi
Hope he realizes neither he nor his music is indispensable.
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Madan
June 4, 2019
Karthik: I will again ask for a quote where he specifically mentioned the film 96 while criticising the use of his music in films. I ask because Cinema Express has edited that segment out of their uploads. But if there is nowhere where he mentioned 96, I don’t think he should be blamed for it. As for SPB, IR is entitled to claim his royalty. That wasn’t about bitterness, that was about business. Pl note IR has never gone public about the dispute even though SPB has on a couple of occasions.
Regarding Rahman, though he replaced him in Roja, he did not eat into a lot of IR’s market – because it was so large. Even when Rahman got quite a few assignments for 93 following his Roja breakthrough, Raja still dominated the market easily that year in terms of number of films. The issue was some erstwhile collaborators switching to Deva. If IR holds a grudge against them for doing THAT, it is probably justified. I don’t think anybody would seriously argue switching from IR to Deva was in pursuit of higher musical quality. Further, as I mentioned earlier in the thread, many in the IR camp had had a long run of success like Karthik/Prabhu and started delivering a series of flops.
If IR does have bitterness towards Rahman, I have never heard him express it, like directly question why Rahman receives the adulation he gets. If anything, Rahman is the only one of the composers who succeeded Raja towards whom Raja manages to be halfway respectful towards. You don’t want to see how he talks to MM Kreem for instance. Once somebody told him MMK had a desire to sing for IR and IR called MMK on stage and started teaching him a tune. Live audition. And he then sang a very difficult phrase at which MMK folded his hands and said thank you very much, I can’t sing this. Adhavdhu, ennaku paadarthukku thaguthi vennum, adhu unkitta illai. It would surprise no one that this interaction greatly upset his Telugu fans.
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Madan
June 4, 2019
“he admonished the audience saying he has been on stage for 4 hours, “en isaiyaal vaazhigirirgal, thaneer illaamal irukka mudiyadhu”. ” – Oh dear, oh dear! I think we can safely close the discussion with the conclusion that he has gone completely senile and maybe borderline insane.
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Anu Warrier
June 4, 2019
@ Arjun: That link: I’ll echo Madan. Oh dear, oh dear…
Sorry, I don’t care what a great artiste he was/is. This goes beyond an arrogance about his immeasurable talent. I cannot fathom anyone who would put a poor security guard on the spot like that. I understand his ire about people sitting in more expensive seats, though. I still don’t think like his treatment of the security chap.)
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E221
June 4, 2019
Ellam mudinja pochu!!! Hemanatha Bhagavaraiye..minji vitaraiya gnadesikan..
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Heisenberg
June 4, 2019
Unfortunate that IR has been freuenting news articles for all the wrong reasons. It was painful to watch him humiliate an innocent security guard infront of thousands of people. If you watch the video carefully, mano makes a uick silent gesture, asking him to fall at IR’s feet to defuse the situation. This scene followed by IR’s rant saying things like en isaiyal vazhgireergal was totally bizarre. This is beyond his usual self centred views. To treat a totally powerless guy with such disrespect is inhuman.
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B.Krishnakumar
June 4, 2019
Nice post Rangan. Illayaraja made his statement (or attitude) via his song in Nizhalgal in 1980. The situation was perfect. An aspiring music director getting a big break was the situation and the Chandrasekar (the artist who plays the music director role in the movie) composes the song “Madai Thirdandhu aadum”. There is a line in this song which goes: “புது ராகம் படைப்பதாலே நானும் இறைவனே
விரலிலும் குரலிலும் ஸ்வரங்களின் நாட்டியம்
அமைத்தேன் நான்”
That to me was was a big statement which epitomizes Illayaraja & his attitude.
Cheers
B.Krishnakumar
(Big time Raja fan)
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TambiDude
June 4, 2019
“I have never heard IR say something approaching whole hearted praise for Rahman. We can debate the reasons for this till the cows come home, but this possibly explains the dynamic of their relationship.”
There is an interview of IR by Gautham Menon (around the time of release of NEP).
The interview was more in form of tete-e-tete. Towards the end, when asked by GM to comment on modern music, IR laughed it out of answering it as if he will not dignify it by answering.
How great he is a composer is only matched by how much an ahole he is as a person.
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Madan
June 5, 2019
@Tambidude: I will have to revisit that as I don’t remember that segment of the interview. That said, IR has kinda made the discussion irrelevant by conclusively proving what a dick he can be. Look, I don’t think there is anything wrong per se with being jealous or begrudging other musicians of praise. In the sense that while it is not at all admirable, it is a human tendency and if he doesn’t like to appreciate peers, so be it. It’s not mandatory. But if he cannot even be nice – in the broadest and most lenient sense of the word -to a security guard doing his job, he is not a nice person, end of.
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Arjun
June 5, 2019
“The interview was more in form of tete-e-tete. Towards the end, when asked by GM to comment on modern music, IR laughed it out of answering it as if he will not dignify it by answering.”
He has been quite consistent on that and I’ve never had a problem with it. It’s entirely possible that by his own lofty standards, only the compositions of masters move him. He might not have praised contemporary MDs but I’ve heard him remark to Raajesh Vaidhya for example that he is a fan of his. Devi Sri Prasad and even Anirudh has said IR has encouraged them. I’m only pained by his recent public interactions. The incident in the Chennai concert two days back is particularly painful.
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a@bcd.com
June 5, 2019
I have seen BR wax eloquent about Rajni’s humility and all that..before. I had even pointed that out. If you are willing to ignore IR’s arrogance and look at only his art, then why are you writing about Rajni’s humility? Just evaluate his work. Ditto with Rahman and his ‘humble’ self.
In fact stop doing interviews altogether. An artist always shines through his work, so why bother interviewing them (and in the process stoking their ego?) I don’t even know if they are being honest in those filmcompanion interviews or if they are just firming up their media persona
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vijay
June 5, 2019
IR has always been a bundle of contradictions. I remember him mentioning that rather than spending time doing a live concert or interacting with the press he would rather compose 10 fresh soundtracks in that time. And in these past few years he has been doing nothing but churning out live concerts at a frequency more than even that of Rahman. I wonder why none of these press guys ask him that? Watched a very bland interview of IR by Sudhir Srinivasan, a Hindu columnist.
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vijay
June 5, 2019
“Even in the recent IR 75 event— at the end of what was really a Maha Kumbh Mela conducted for Him, his comment to ARR was that ARR did not acknowledge having played in over 500 films for him. For someone so accomplished, so celebrated, so worshipped, this is really a strange aspect of his personality. ”
Not to mention that IR was also factually wrong here. 500 films not possible, unless Rahman had played for every single film of his from annakili to Anjali. He was with IR for 4 or 5 years at most, and that is less than 250 films, even assuming he played in every single film of IR during that period. He actually left after 1986.And wasn’t there before 1980,
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vijay
June 5, 2019
“Being opinionated or even arrogant might be unpleasant, but it’s not on the same level as harassment or assault. ”
RaviK, but what if it affected his work? In the sense he fell out with a few talented singers/lyricists/directors? Through a friend, I know a singer(popular in TV reality shows as judge) who walked out IR’s studio with these words to IR ” you maybe a great music director, but the words you use to chide your collaborators doesn’t add to your allure and is flat out wrong..” He dint sing for IR after that, of course.
A few posts above somebody pointed to how Mano instructed the guard to quickly fall at IR’s feet. It’s a technique that has served Mano well since the mid-80s, for he was a passable singer at best who could survive because he swallowed all self-esteem and let the archanais slide by. Unfortunately it also meant that for fans like me, we lost out on the opportunity to listen to better singers sing all those hits. Art took a hit. Same with lyricists as well. They had to take IR’s first line and then develop the song many times. what if they turned around and dictated the tune of the first line of a song to IR and asked him to complete it? After all, some, like Vaali, were more than capable of doing that as they were musically knowledgeable too. But then they were survivors and swallowed their pride.
So it makes it sometimes more difficult to separate IR’s personality from his work, because it did affect his work at least to some extent, in the end. . This is why I do not completely agree with this “forget the guy, listen to his art” type arguments. If 80s was his era according to him, then 60s was MSV’s era and 90s was Rahman’s era. All of them needed the industry, PR and a bunch of willing collaborators to execute their creations and get it on films. Mozart/Bach needed all these probably much less.
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Sutheesh Kumar
June 5, 2019
About AR’s humility, I remember watching a live interview on TV after he landed in India after after the Oscar win.
The interviewer asked him if he’s also going to get the Grammy for India, to which he replied: You think I’m a courier to you to bring whatever you wish?.
P. S: Isn’t Grammy musically more important that Oscars? I always see AR’s Oscars mentioned than his Grammys everywhere.
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TambiDude
June 6, 2019
“He was with IR for 4 or 5 years at most, and that is less than 250 films, even assuming he played in every single film of IR during that period. He actually left after 1986.And wasn’t there before 1980,”
ARR’s first movie for IR was MooduPani (1980) and their last movie was Vellaikaran (1989).
I know Moodu Pani was his 100th movie. And Anjali (1990) his 500th movie. So mathematically impossible. Typical Indian exaggeration. Like MSV has composed 1000 movies (SPB a big contributor to this gas).
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JohnP
June 6, 2019
I must disagree BR, respectfully . It’s not his music ( and by extension his contribution )we are dissing , it is his crass public statements .These have been proffered in a ( litany of ) public interview(s) , most listeners would find then bereft of class ; so why hold back on our conclusion that he’s being a grand p$%#k ? A talented one , but one nonetheless .
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Madan
June 6, 2019
vijay: It is true that IR made bad decisions w.r.t singers and it is possible that arrogance may have led to these decisions. But you have to consider by the same token that without self belief bordering and/or crossing over into arrogance, he would not have taken the many outrageous risks that he did and gone where neither anybody did nor did anybody dream was possible. An ideal Ilayaraja package where he is just as innovative but also well behaved would be great but unfortunately doesn’t exist.
Sutheesh Kumar: Musically yes Grammys are more important though, really, neither are particularly important. Music is distributed differently abroad vis a vis films (whereas in India films dominate music also). So Oscars only cater to film soundtracks and Grammys to pop. Some of the greatest rock musicians never received a Grammy so it’s not a biggie. I don’t understand India’s obsession with either award. I find even the best picture Oscar resonating less and less with the audience compared to the past. It’s great that Rahman won it but it’s not the be all end all.
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Madan
June 6, 2019
vijay: Adding further to the theme of arrogance, there have been many, many artists who have been conceited. And I would LOVE to establish a plausible correlation between arrogance and a fall from grace commercially but it doesn’t exist. Barbra Streisand is plenty conceited but still held up as a sort of gold standard of pop singing. The only difference I see is in India we are very touchy about celebrities sounding arrogant whereas in America they don’t care either way.
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Jai
June 6, 2019
Madan: Excellent point about most geniuses/prodigies having a vast amount of self belief, crossing over into arrogance. I think this is true not just of IR but indeed of most other great people– ‘great’ in the sense of gifted/talented/tremendous achievers. First off, we need to distinguish between “great” people and “good” people. As far as creative geniuses go, the intersection set between these two adjectives seems somewhat slim. 🙂
It’s just that some of them manage to conceal the hubris better than others; and indeed many mellow with age and life experiences.
Prime example– Federer. 🙂 BR, a small exception I would like to take in the article which I otherwise loved. When you say “It’s a result of what I like to call Roger Federer-isation of celebrity, which has become the dominant mode of engagement and judgment. Federer is not just a genius. He’s also nice……..” This ‘ultra niceness’ is only kind of true of Federer himself recently– of the Federer circa 2016/17 and onwards, perhaps. When his GOAT credentials have been pretty much burnished beyond challenge.
But if you see his interviews/post match conferences from about 2007-2013 or thereabouts, (when this ‘Roger Federer-isation’ had already been media fuelled as the dominant mode of judgement), Federer himself was actually nowhere close to his “ultra nice” image. There were sour grapes comments, peevish set downs and extremely left handed ‘compliments’–which he doled out especially to Djokovic and Murray, but even to Nadal. So it all really depends on the narrative which the media chooses to run with, and what fans choose to believe or to ignore.
Anyway, it should be fine to admire someone for excellence in their craft, without expecting them to necessarily be the gold standard for behaviour. Of course, when ill mannered churlishness crosses bounds (like it appeared in that video of IR’s conduct with the unfortunate security guard), then it deserves to be called out. An example (not strictly comparable in scale of poor behaviour or backlash of course), would be how Margaret Court is being justifiably called out for her deplorably bigoted and homophobic views—her record in GS titles notwithstanding.
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Arjun
June 7, 2019
@Jai and Madan: Well expressed. The quest for the “model genius” is an illusory one, particularly in the arts, but also in other fields. Also correctly observed regarding Federer of the noughties. I indeed recall him often being brusque and dismissive in post match interviews. Tendulkar is a more appropriate example of a “nice” sporting genius.
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Madan
June 7, 2019
The interesting thing is Fed has a good reputation in the locker room. Supposed to be accessible to upcoming players as well. Sort of like BJK, he has taken on the mantle of being a brand ambassador of his sport so I see where BR is coming from, notwithstanding the odd flippant zinger from Fed in press appearances.
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Jai
June 7, 2019
@ Madan: Yes, Fed has certainly matured into a worthy ambassador and elder statesman of the sport. No doubts there. However, his being accessible to upcoming players, his being gracious, composed and philosophic in defeat as well as in victory– that has actually happened only more recently.
A few years back, when his pre-eminence was being challenged first by Nadal, then by Djokovic and (to a lesser degree) by Murray, there was considerable friction (well documented)– especially between him and Djokovic. Nadal used to take the high road (?) at times, ignoring (or pretending not to understand) Fed’s broad hints devaluing Nadal’s victories.
His petulant comments weren’t really all that one off either, to be frank. Fed has had an unfortunate habit of peevishly running down both Nadal’s and Djokovic’s victories over him. 2008 Wimby, 2009 Australian, 2011 USO all come to mind– and there have been others, too.
I’m not saying this was wrong, per se. Being a great champion and such a talented player, no doubt Fed hated to lose. His losses must have stuck in his craw, and that must have been a definite part of the motivation that has spurred him on to add 3 more GS titles in ’17-18 and 4 consecutive H2H victories against Nadal in that period.
But I would also submit, that the media driven hype about him being the consummate gent was hyperbole, at least in the 2007–2013 period or thereabouts. And this branding was rather unnecessary too– Fed was such a supremely gifted player and a joy to watch. Why was it needed at all to make him (inaccurately) seem he had a halo around his head and an angelic pair of wings fluttering? We come back to the same point– a genius in their craft can be admired simply because they are supremely talented. The added virtue signalling about them being “good people” is unnecessary– and worse, can actually cause disappointment when the portrayals are not entirely based on facts.
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Madan
June 7, 2019
Jai: True that the gentlemanly image was to an extent hyperbole though it is equally true that compared to McEnroe or Connors or even Agassi and Becker, he is polite and to the manner born. It ties in with his Rolex sponsorship too. I think Federer is genuinely a sort of jolly extrovert so he can smile at you even while plotting your assassination. 😀 At the same time, he hates losing and this comes through in his barbs. And that’s not something the other two, especially Nadal, are above. Until recently, any Nadal loss to an underdog was attributable to hitherto undisclosed injuries.
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Jai
June 7, 2019
@ Madan: That’s true.
Smiling while plotting the opponent’s assassination- good one! 🙂 I think that was also said in the late 90s about the other Swiss– the original Swiss Miss, Martina Hingis. 🙂
Wrt your last sentence above, I was grinning as I remembered how the sentence typically goes. “Was good match no……certainly he played fantastic. I donna like talking about injuries no….but is true wasn’t at my best level…” 😉 🙂
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Madan
June 9, 2019
Apropos nothing specifically but on the Jaya max Raja playlist program today, aalana naal muthala (kadhal kavithai) came on and I did a double take. THIS was Raja? I remembered the song immediately as one of those annoying earworms from the 90s but didn’t realise it was him. Right after, they played Gaana karunguyile (Sethu) and Otha Ruba Tharen. Similar. Both huge hits from back in the day but hardly mentioned anymore as songs exemplifying 90s Raja. Safe to say that the mid to late 90s phase was a period when he delivered forgotbusters? Songs that were big hits back then but which haven’t necessarily aged well. I would put Indha bussdhan PTC in the same category. Mannakkum Santhaname is borderline but has a good melody and rescued by good vocals as well.
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sai16vicky
June 10, 2019
@Madan: Oh, nineties has some of my favorite Raja numbers. The overture of ‘Veetla Visheshanga’, ‘Enthan nenjil neengadha thendral needhana’, ‘Konji konji alaigal oda’, ‘Anbae nee enna’ and finally, a song that I hear almost every day — ‘pottu vaitha oru vatta nila’. If it’s nineties, people automatically start thinking of Rahman. Raja in that phase is nearly forgotten today.
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Honest Raj
June 10, 2019
Madan: Safe to say that the mid to late 90s phase was a period when he delivered forgotbusters?
The Tamil film music during that period was dominated by neither Raja nor Rahman – the real star was Deva. I think Raja’s downfall started right after Veera. During this phase, he was a part of many forgettable films (Kadhalukku Mariyathai was an exception though).
Until very recently, I did not know “Yela Azhagamma” (Tirunelveli) was his composition. And, I thought Veetla Vishehanga was scored by Bhagyaraj. 🙂
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Madan
June 10, 2019
@sai16vicky: I love those songs too. I am talking about his mid and late 90s phase. And he had great songs in this phase too. But those weren’t the ones which became hits. Hence there seems to be a perception that he was no longer commercially successful in this period. But Otha Ruba, Aalaana Naal Muthala, Gana Karunguyile from this period were all hits, just not considered memorable today. At the time Otha Ruba came on, it wouldn’t get off TV channel playlists, got irritating lol.
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Madan
June 10, 2019
You can see this pattern in Veetla Visheshangal also. PTC was a big hit but it’s Konjam Sangeetham/Poonguyil Rendu that are remembered today. Then, Ulle Veliye delivered another hit in Kallathanamaga but it’s Sakkarakatti that’s considered a classic now. Enthan Nenjil survived this trend but at that time, it felt like TV stations were not accepting Raja’s melody numbers so much anymore. The trend reversed again by early noughties.
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Jayram
June 10, 2019
Enthan Nenjil is a favorite of my 90s Raja playlist. I love how Raja uses Nalinakanthi to bring a dreamy love sequence. KJY too excels in modulating his voice to fit Kamal during the beginning of the pallavi and transitions back to the Pallavi. It’s only when he goes to the higher notes that one can tell it’s clearly KJY.
Can anyone identify who sang the alapana? Was it TVG or Raja himself?
(Fun experiment I conducted: I lowered the sruti of Enthan Nenjil and discovered that KJY’s voice fits Mammootty more and I could clearly visualize Mammootty in the song.)
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pirhaksar
June 11, 2019
I agree with comments about Federer. As great a player as he is, GOAT in my book, he is the sorest of losers. I have seen so many interviews and comments of his that are less than charitable to his rivals and the smug attitude comes across. The Fed fanboys, especially the bandwagon ones who have no idea or respect for tennis history are the worst hooligans the sport has seen. I remember watching the 2015 US open finals live in the stadium, the disrespect and abuse Djoker had to cope from these dingbats was deplorable. I started supporting Djoker on principle from that day on! I sure hope one of Nadal or Djoker surpasses 20 majors if for anything to shut these clowns up for good.
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Madan
June 11, 2019
pirahksar: Oh yeah, USO 2015 was the worst. Hated that. Unlike you, I didn’t shift allegiances as that is not Fed’s fault. I have simply expanded them. I have rather got greedy and want to see one or more of them get past Serena and finish on 24. Now THAT is one case where I find both the player and the fans obnoxious and stopped being one altogether. USO 18 was the last straw.
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pirhaksar
June 11, 2019
Madan: I was a Pete Sampras fan growing up. So, I never rooted or was a fan of Federer for obvious reasons. For a long time in the 2000s I was not really a fan of anyone, hoping someone would stop Federer from going past Sampras. Wishing thinking!! Of course, over time learned to respect and grudgingly acknowledge the genius and artistry of Federer. He simply is divinity in motion, the elegance, the shot making and the effortlessness is simply breathtaking. No wonder people love him and his style. Nadal and Djoker will never get that admiration even if they go past him, that is a truth they will have to live with. Bottomline, there was no question of shifting allegiances since I was never a fan. So in that match, I was pretty neutral and was looking forward to enjoy the precision of Djoker vs the artistry of Federer. It was also my first match live at Arthur Ashe and I was lucky to get great seats very close to the action. The behavior upset me so much that I decided I will support Djoker from there on.
I know that is being a bit childish, but heck that is the only thing I can do which is in my control i.e. who I support! Last year at the ATP finals, Sascha Zverev was almost on the verge of tears during the post match interview. I also know Fed is not to blame for this.
However, I do expect someone of the stature of Federer (given his annoinment as a saint and classy gentleman by the media and fans alike) to say something about the rowdy behavior of his fans. Surely if he puts out a statement they would listen, no? There is a difference between rooting for Federer and whistling and jeering the second serve of his opponent. Maybe I am expecting too much, maybe Federer uses that to his own advantage but I just wish he said something about it. Even Kohli of all people, asked the Indian fans to stfu y’day as they booed Smith relentlessly.
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Madan
June 11, 2019
pirhaksar: I remember a match where similarly the player tried to quieten down the audience which was booing her opponent. The player was Seles, her opponent was Graf. And Seles lost a close USO final. So while that kind of behaviour is admirable, it doesn’t help at all in an individual sport. The player should focus only and only on his or her game. Even a slight lapse of focus can be fatal. Cricket is different because it has long breaks and at a time only the striker, bowler, keeper and close in fielders need top most concentration. So I won’t hold it against Fed for not telling the crowd to stop and he was very respectful towards Djokovic at the presentation so that was a metaphorical slap on the crowd’s face.
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pirhaksar
June 11, 2019
Perhaps, but I strongly think if the shoe were on the other foot, Federer will himself moan and the fanboys and media will go to town about the injustice and lack of decorum of the great sport of tennis! I also did not mean during the match as that could also backfire, but more like a post match general statement that tennis deserves better and he expects better from his fans. I admit it is just wishful thinking on my part. These top tier athletes will use whatever little subtle gamesmanship they can conjure up to unnerve the opponent and score pyschological points. (within the rules of course).
Aside, funnily enough I have observed that the Djoker actually gets going with the crowd against him. It is almost as if he wants to show them, almost enjoys being the villain (although I feel he wants the same level of adulation that Fed gets globally but will never get it). I have also noticed that when he breaks a racket or two and screams some choice serbian gaali at himself and his box, he moves a couple of gears up. Almost the Hulk…
In any case, Fed, Nadal and Djoker have pushed each other to unimaginable heights and they are still not done. What an era this is. Poor Murray in another era he could have had 7 or 8 slams easily.
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Madan
June 11, 2019
@pirhaksar : Funny, here I am as a Fed fan (and I am not alone in saying this) criticising that USO crowd and you build up a complete hypothetical to bash Fed for something he has not even done. I would suggest that perhaps you should step back from the need you have invested in to see someone stop Fed (funny I am a Sampras fan too). Fed’s rivals have their own flaws too. I would rather not lay into them because I admire all three for producing an unprecedented era in tennis. When they are done, it will be the end of history for tennis.
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Jai
June 11, 2019
@ Madan, Pirhaskar: Fascinating discussion and I just couldn’t resist joining in. 🙂 Sorry, this comment is going to be a rather long one, but wanted to cover several points which came to mind.
Am predominantly a Nadal fan, though I completely agree that the Big 3 are all supremely gifted and Great champions, and have spurred each other on to ever greater heights. To think that each of them has sailed past Laver & Borg’s and then Emerson’s and then Sampras’ GS records, while at the same time contending against each other while doing so! That’s so mind boggling, this truly is Tennis’ golden age and we never will quite see anything like it again.
One thing I’d like to add here is that like @pirhaskar said, I’ve certainly started rooting for Djoko even more after seeing the sheer volume of bile that is heaped on him needlessly. He’s unjustifiably been cut out as the villain of piece so many times, it’s getting ridiculous now.
Madan, agree with you that this vitriol is not really Fed’s fault. At most, one could say that Fed was found wanting in being gracious in defeat for several years in between. However, the conduct of several Fed fans (no means all, but a sizeable section), is very, very disappointing indeed. The media also plays a less-than-constructive role in perpetuating stereotypes and bias.
Just one example from this French Open. As a Nadal fan, I must say I was relieved he had to face Thiem rather than Djokovic in the final (though I definitely get a sense Nadal would have won anyway). But I was completely taken aback by the sheer venom being heaped on Djokovic in social media, as well unsubstantiated rumours being bandied about even on Live TV channel commentary!
This ridiculous notion that he left the Roland Garros grounds before any decision had been taken on his SF match suspension (owing weather), was such a canard, it was really evil in the way it was designed and let loose. Jim Courier, despite being otherwise a good commentator, set the cat amongst the pigeons by claiming he had ‘heard’ from ‘some of his American colleagues’, that Djoko had been ‘seen leaving the grounds in a car’. Though he went on to repeatedly assert that he was not saying Djoko forced the tournament directors’ hands, the damage of that gossip was done.
Despite repeated clarifications from the Tournament Director that the match suspension decision was made by them considering the weather forecast, and communicated to both players at the same time (which was also substantiated by both Thiem and his coach Nicolas Massu), the sheer volume of rumours being bandied about blaming Djokovic continued. This was just deplorable. I mean, Barbara Schett came on Live TV and baldly repeated this lie in her commentary, further inflaming the situation.
Madan, I think we all have to agree that there is no way this kind of rumour machine would ever be inflicted on Federer. I don’t want to go down the route of hypotheticals, but really, there is less chance of a snowflake in the Sahara, than the media taking this kind of a stance with Fed. And that is a bias we have to acknowledge, IMHO.
I mean, we had people now again raking up that Wimbledon 2018 SF Djoko-Nadal match to rehash their stance that Djoko (in their words), ‘was a cheat’. As a Nadal fan, I’m sad he lost that Wimbledon match, but let’s be clear, no one was cheating. It was a match of very high caliber; and it just so happened that the rules then prevailing, made it very clear that if the earlier part of the match had been played under the roof, then both players had to agree to play with the roof open when the match resumed. Djokovic did not agree, because playing indoors suited him. Nadal agreed, because an outdoor environment suited him. At worst, it could be said both players ticked the option which favoured them. Not ‘cheating’ by any means.
It continues to amaze me that several Fed fans (and regrettably, some fellow Nadal fans as well) continue to invoke this against Djokovic, while at the same time wilfully ignoring Fed’s own request to close the roof in AO final 2018 (against Cilic). In fact, Fed’s request was made when only one of the 2 essential weather related criteria the tournament had set to close the roof, had been met. In other words, Fed’s request did not have to be acceded to, per tournament rules (The AO match director chose to accede to it despite Cilic stating he preferred the roof to be open)— again, not Fed’s fault, but the AO tournament director’s. It is, however, rather rich to have this background and then criticise another player for invoking a tournament rule which favored him.
Bottom line is, whether we are individually a fan of Nadal, or Djokovic, or Federer– all 3 have lifted the game (and each other’s careers), to greater heights. We don’t have that many years left to soak in the spectacle of their genius and steely willpower. It should be, at least now, OK to root for one’s favourite without having to pour vitriol on his chief rivals.
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Jai
June 11, 2019
Apropos my previous comment, sorry @ pirhaksar, have misspelt your name as pirhaskar. My bad. 🙂
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Madan
June 11, 2019
Jai: I fully agree that there are many Fed fans out there who spew vitriol on Nadal or Djokovic. But the roots of this are in turn in many fans of the latter two constantly downplaying Fed’s achievements as the product of a weak era. This is in spite of him beating Djokovic and Nadal respectively en route to his 2012 Wimbledon and 2017 Australian Open titles in spite of being the much older player. What he did at Wimbledon would be like Laver beating prime Borg at Wimbledon. That doesn’t happen. Heck an aging Becker could not match prime Sampras. Again, by no means are all fans of these two players so biased as to deny his greatness but very many are. So we can play we didn’t start the fire all day with this. It is best to ignore the fanboys and appreciate the greatness of all three. To further allow one’s impressions of a player to be informed by the obnoxiousness of his fanboys is very misplaced (not saying you did). I do root for Djokovic when he is not up against Fed for two reasons though. One, I love his early and on the rise style (which is why I only respect Nadal as opposed to loving his style of play) and two, the anti Serb bias of the media is barely concealed and disgusting to behold. I can vouchsafe that had either Fed or Rafa won four slams in a row, the media and the respective fan base would STILL be taking about. The silence when Djokovic achieved this feat in 2015-16 was deafening.
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Jai
June 11, 2019
Madan : Well put and I agree with you. I too find the (comparative) lack of media attention on the ‘Novak slam’, to be reflective of a rather deep rooted anti Serb bias.
Anyway, was fun having this discussion and you sound very much like a person I would really like to watch a tightly fought Fedal/ Djokodal/ DjokoFed 5 setter with. 😊
Cheers.
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Madan
June 12, 2019
Jai: Feeling is mutual. I am sure you would have enjoyed Nadalovic last year at Wimbledon. The best match of last year and one of the best, if not the, of their rivalry. The way Nadal played in the fourth set was incredible to say the least.
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Shankar
June 24, 2019
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Madan
June 24, 2019
I do not recognise the person giving this talk though his face looks familiar to me. Unfortunately for him, the whole thing was captured on camera. I say unfortunately because I would have appreciated him playing that footage first before making a biased editorialisation of it. Here is the clip:
It is not at all clear from this that he said that, “En isaiyaladhane vaazhndundhurkel” line ONLY in the context of this improper seating fiasco. He seems to have got generally irritated and the security person moving around in a corner of the stage was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In any event:
He should have been gracious to the security person who was only carrying out orders. Having come from a humble background, in particular, Raja should have been mindful of the poor chap’s position instead of embarrassing him on stage. Wouldn’t have taken him much to say, “Unmela thappu illai” whilst lashing out at whomsoever asked for water. Which by the way is not a big deal and he should properly be irritated with the organisers than expecting people to remain thirsty and parched for hours, which is an inhuman expectation to have, even if he is superman enough to carry it out at his age.
Which brings me to that infamous line. Sorry, nothing justifies making a statement like that. Yes, there may be audience members who say they cannot live without Raja’s music. That does not mean he should appropriate that sentiment himself and say, “You cannot live without my music”. That is, however you spin it, the height of narcissism. More fitting from the mouths of scoundrel politicians than a musician. I haven’t heard even the most arrogant dudes in rock ever go this far. Because they all know they are asking for it. But this is India and idolisation and personality cult are so strong here that there are still going to be IR fans who will defend even this statement.
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Arjun
June 25, 2019
Nailed it, Madan. This incident will remain a stain upon his character, however much some of his hardcore fans may try to justify it.
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Shankar
July 16, 2019
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Shankar
July 16, 2019
It’s so easy to demonize this man, taking a sliver of video and blowing it out of context. His lack of PR skills only compounds it. Sure, this may come across as defending him, but folks have also made it a habit to demonize his fans! Anyways… I’m not supporting what he said in this concert. But if you’ve been to his live shows, it’s usually 4 hours long with zero breaks, they just go one song to another and with no set pieces or costume changes, it means you get 30-35 songs with Raja standing and performing through it all. He doesn’t like interruptions either by his band or fans….it’s just about music. In this case, besides the irritation of people occupying the wrong seats, it’s clear he perceived the band asking for water and the security guard as interruptions in the show and the comments to the audience in the vein of being sorry to make them wait as a result of it. Is he eccentric, sure I’ll say yes and he is getting older too. But it was frankly shocking to read the comments of folks who claim to know him, but make such absurd, sweeping judgements on his character without a nary of understanding! There is a huge list of folks who made their careers and lives due to this one man! To sweep all that away is gross injustice to the man, even forgetting all the contributions he has made to music. As I said, some balanced perspective is much needed!
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Madan
July 16, 2019
Shankar : If you categorise rightfully criticising something Ilayaraja himself said, and indisputably, on video, as demonising, then that says more about your defensiveness towards the criticism than whether it is actually demonising him. I don’t think anybody said he is a devil incarnate. But it was said that what he said to the audience and how he handled the security guard was unacceptable. If you find the context as mitigating, that he was standing for four hours etc, that’s your prerogative. The late BB King also toured into his 80s and I don’t remember that he asked permission to insult the audience because he was old and found it difficult to play. He wouldn’t dare to, that would have been his last show. Nobody is forcing Raja to host these shows and if he has run into financial problems in spite of all the wealth amassed from scoring for so many films, that is, well, his problem. The point is he agreed of his own free will to host these shows and when he turns up grumpy and cranky at him, it’s not a good look.
But I want to explore this more. Initially, I found the message I was getting from die hard Raja fans confusing. On the one hand, I was told it doesn’t matter if he is or isn’t humble because it’s his music that matters. Something I agree with to this day. At the same time, I found them eager to also defend him against criticism of something he may have said or done. Well, if you don’t care about his personality, why are you so concerned then about anything that you apprehend may taint it?
I later came to realize this was just an extension of the cult of personality in South cinema. Where every big name is a dhalapathi or a thalaivar. No seriously, I have seen rahman fans refer to him as thalaivar. Up here in tinseltown, whatever appreciation film personalities get is purely for their art and nothing more. Humble background, humble appearance, humble statements etc is not a factor. By the same token, we are indifferent if some entertainer’s reputation is besmirched because it is not our business. When SRK walked his children onto the grass of the Wankhede stadium, he was roundly criticised and rightly so. And that’s how it should be.
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Shankar
July 17, 2019
Madan, all I was asking for is some balanced perspective, not trying to defend anything. Also, if you do read the earlier comments, he was being portrayed as devil incarnate (in your words). I don’t believe Raja is complaining about standing for 4 hours. In the days of performers making a quick entry and exit playing for couple of hours, he is an exception who is all about music. Perhaps you misunderstood what I was saying. Secondly, it is these kind of sweeping statements that I find amusing…about Raja’s financial problems, mindset of all Raja fans, as though there aren’t folks with their own thoughts and opinions!
PS: One other thing….there has been a growing trend on this blog with folks getting personal in the past few years which is quite distressing for old timers like me. I know you are not usually like this, but your response borders on this behavior. I’m done with this topic, Madan…let’s move on.
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Madan
July 17, 2019
Shankar: I would very much like to move on. However, if you say I have made a personal attack here, then I need to respond.
This is always the problem when you make a generalised attack at all and sundry. Nobody knows then who it’s intended for everybody can take it to imply themselves. If you had a problem with specific comments, you should have mentioned them so the concerned person may respond if they so wish. All I have done is to respond with a generalisation of my own about diehard Raja fans. Don’t like it? Can’t be helped.
Further, don’t throw other hardworking artists under the bus to defend Raja. I have attended at least three shows that extended to three/three and a half hours with not a nasty word about the audience from the performer (s) and with no drop in intensity right till the end.
But I question the very premise of denigrating two hours as quick entry and exit. What’s wrong with two hours? It’s a lot of music. It’s a double CD worth of music. Most rock bands do 90 minute sets. Nice and tight, nobody need overstay their welcome. I really do think four hours is too much music. Nobody has asked Raja to do four hour sets. It’s his choice, again. Lastly, unlike these other artists who are signing /playing an instrument on most of the songs in their set, Raja only sings a few songs and most of the time, his role is supervisory. So perhaps the quick entry and exit artists you speak of may be working harder than you give them credit for.
This isn’t hard, sorry. I am a fan of Raja the artist, not the person. I have no personal debt to Raja. And I don’t think any other Raja fan has the right to impose such an obligation on me or anybody else. You want to worship at his altar? Go full speed ahead. Just let us be.
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Shankar
July 17, 2019
Madan, glad you are happy that you got the last word! Everything you assume (again) about me is wrong….but there’s no point trying to state a case when it falls on belligerent, deaf ears. Let’s move on…
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Sidtha
April 15, 2021
Awesome Baradwaj! Arrogance should become part of our culture. His next generation musicians should follow him.
NB: I know you may not publish this, but I don’t care.
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