Read the full article on Film Companion, here: https://www.filmcompanion.in/kamal-haasan-ilaiyaraaja-album-greatest-baradwaj-rangan
Given the number of fabulous scores the maestro has crafted for the actor, here’s an attempt to settle on one being above all others.
From the first film they worked on (16 Vayathinile, in 1977), the Kamal Haasan-Ilaiyaraaja collaboration is one for the ages. While it is true that the maestro showed zero partiality in doling out his riches — the worst movies with no-name heroes would often end up with timeless songs — the Kamal films are something of a treasure trove. And when I heard about Ungal Naan, the Ilaiyaraaja concert centered on #Kamal60 (if you count the actor’s career) or #Kamal 65 (if you count his age) — a foolhardy question descended on me. Which is the best Kamal-Ilaiyaraaja movie score?
For the purposes of this foolhardy exercise, I set myself some rules. (1) I am going to assume that it is indeed possible to arrive at one score being better than the others. (2) I am going to ignore the many great background scores (Guna, Moondram Pirai, etc.) and just look at what we old-timers got in the form of cassettes and on the radio, i.e. just the songs.
Continued at the link above.
Copyright ©2019 Film Companion.
Baradwaj Rangan 
Madan
November 18, 2019
Brilliant description, especially the part about the second interlude of Andhi Mazhai was so spot on. He has a kind of chromatic piano run right at the beginning of the interlude as if to signal this is going to be something else. I miss these progressive/avant garde tendencies in his mid/late 80s work which is also great nevertheless. In fact, my pick for Kamal-IR would be Punnagai Mannan.
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Sushila Ravindranath
November 18, 2019
Super .
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shaviswa
November 18, 2019
Loved this piece BR. And now you have made me want to listen to Rajapaarvai songs on loop!! Will do this right from this evening drive back home 🙂
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Sudhir Rajasekaran
November 18, 2019
Brought the movie back into visuals.. .. Without YouTube. Wonderful write up
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Shankar
November 18, 2019
Baddy, I agree with you that this is indeed a very difficult exercise. I’m okay with the subjective criteria you established to arrive at a POV, since one does need to put some guardrails to arrive at some conclusion. And no disagreements with your final choice too, coupled with the magnificent background score (https://youtu.be/Las9VjuXGvs).
That said, I’ll take another subjective view, just for fun. We know Kamal is involved in all aspects of the film, including the music. But if we were to look at the so called masala films of Kamal, that he did for commercial reasons, there are quite a few that really hit jackpot, purely propelled by the music. So, this is not a best music exercise, but a despite-average-film-commercial-hit exercise. Of course, Punnagai Mannan, Vikram, Satya, all had superb scores but equally important contributions from others including Kamal, for them to be big hits…though I’d wager to say Punnagai Mannan was as massive a hit, due to the music. If one was at an impressionable age around that time, as I was, the music really took off like a storm and was a precursor to Agni Natchathiram becoming a mega hit with synthesized music. So leaving those films aside, I’m coming to the likes of Thoogathey Thambi Thoongathey, Enakkul Oruvan, Singaravelan etc., each of which had some magnificent songs…Vaanam keezhe, Megam kottatum, Ennai enna seyya, Pottu vaitha kadhal thittam etc. Even a Kalaignan had Enthan nenjil!
So, I would say the distinction for taking an average/bad Kamal film and helping it become a mega hit, purely due to Ilayaraja’s music, has to go to Sakalakala Vallavan! Nethu rathiri, Nila kayuthu….and especially Elamai Idho Idho reverberate to this day!
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shaviswa
November 18, 2019
How come you missed Sagara Sangamam/Salangai Oli? That movie probably has one of the best scores by Raja for Kamal.
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apala
November 18, 2019
BR -sir, brilliant narration of your thought process to arriving at the greatest album of the duo! Enjoyed it thoroughly. Thanks!
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bart
November 19, 2019
It was just over this weekend, we were playing some random playlist of Ilaiyaraja songs from 80s and I stopped at “Vaanile Thenila” from “Kaaki Sattai”. I started lecturing on what a great mood influencer and cheer inducer this song was, how great the album as a whole was, IR’s brilliance in that decade and so on and on.. I still remember the Rs.10 cassette that had “Udhaya Geetham” on side A and this movie on side B.
There’s this nostalgia or resonance factor too which plays a lot over these choices. Just as MSV is superior to IR for many of the older generation, the IR songs in 80s rank better than his 90s or later perhaps for some of us and so on. So the choice will vary accordingly. The theme music of Punnagai Mannan from the point where the flute starts till the end, which runs for around 2 mins alone kindles so many memories and sometimes tears my eyes when heard after a gap. There is no single truth in this search. I would say, to each his/her gem. This combination is one of the treasure troves..
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Madan
November 19, 2019
Bart: It isn’t even nostalgia when it comes to IR. I am not an 80s kid and I prefer his 80s work if I had to choose, like most IR fans. And there’s no reason not to unless you buy into fan narratives and all. Like maybe an obsessive Tendulkar fan will claim the period when Sachin bounced back from his mid noughties slump is his golden epoch because it’s a vindication of sorts for keeping the faith, while the rest of us will simply rate the 90s as his best years.
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Enigma
November 19, 2019
Thanks BR for a great piece. Ah, 80s and early 90s nostalgia – I went back on a trip down the memory lane. Kamal’s 80 movies may have been largely rubbish, but those Kamal-Raja combo songs, they were simply the best. Each and every song listed in your piece, they were gems. As I am typing, ‘Vaanile thaenila’ is playing inside my head in a continuous loop. What an amazing number (and equally ridiculous video)! Those three songs from ‘Tik Tik Tik’, simply brilliant. I also love ‘Endhan Kannil ezh ullangangal’ from ‘Guru’ – that creates a great mood. From their later collaborations, I love ‘ Endhan Nenjil’ from ‘Kalaignan’.
@ Madan, I agree, ‘Punnagai Mannan’ should be the best Kamal – Raja album from the 80s. Though I have a soft spot for ‘Kaaki Sattai’, that damn ‘vaanilae thaenila’ – just can’t get it out of my head.
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Enigma
November 19, 2019
Sorry, couldn’t help adding this. Was watching ‘Andhi Mazhai’ and some of the ‘Tik Tik Tik’ videos on Youtube. How hot does Madhavi look – she also looks so ‘modern’, as in unlike most of the 80s stars, she would fit in perfectly with the current lot. I was too young to notice back then, but my jaw hit the floor when I saw that ‘Andhi Mazhai’ video recently.
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V
November 19, 2019
Yesss…
I read the first few paragraphs and was wondering how you could omit Raja Parvai, only to be delightfully surprised to see it named as the best album.
I watched the film on Youtube recently and despite the bad picture quality, its production values and aesthetics shone through.
I discovered vizhiyorathu kanavu only then. Andhi mazhai and Azhagu were always on my playlist, but this very sad “sad” song which could evoke so much emotion (esp the female voice) was a revelation. Just googled to learn that it was sung by Uma Ramanan (I was thinking it was by Sunandha).
Good choice for the best album title.
But as another commenter mentioned, paatukagave odina Kamal padam was Punnagai Mannan. The film had a lot of bad-press with Revathy quitting (without dubbing) due to her marriage, Political issue due to Srilankan Tamils vs Sinhalese portrayal, the dubious kissing scene (where apparently Rekha had no clue & it was Kamal’s improvisation), the tragic climax, the vaan-megham – oho megham vandhadho similarities etc.
Still it made money thanks to the album which was out of this world with almost 8-9 very popular songs. That was probably the first time Raja did not follow the 2-charanam format (Vaan Megham)? The uber popular theme music and 1-2-3-4 dance theme sounded fresh and novel. The violin dance was well publicized, so was Mama-vuku kudumaa. Eventually it was Enna Saththam that emerged top.
Raja-paattai by Raja for Kamal!
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shaviswa
November 19, 2019
@Enigma it is one of Tamil film wonders why she was not in more films. Madhavi was a beautiful actress and had good screen presence too. Somehow she was billed as not lucky enough (some of her movies were duds and they immediately billed the heroine as unlucky) and she soon started playing second fiddle like in Kaaki Sattai. And then disappeared.
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brangan
November 19, 2019
V: The singer is BS Sasirekha.
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MANK
November 19, 2019
Man, that’s a swell picture, both IR(particularly) and Kamal looking so young
my knowledge of music is very limited and i am talking purely from the perspective of a lay listener . Andimazhai is a spectacular composition and i love it a lot, but i don;t like any other song from Raajaparvai. I am a big fan of the film and Kamal’s performance and the BGM is spectacular. Now, i know there is a difference between liking something and it’s true worth.But I have to say this, None of the albums IR composed for Kamal has the all-round likability and brilliance, for me, as the two albums that IR created for Mani Rathnam – Agninakshathram and Thalapathy . I like every song in those 2 films and i find each song so wildly inventive and attractive at the same time.You say Meendum meendum from Vikram is a mind-boggling song,and that song is kind of like an esoteric art film for me , Guess, i appreciate the craft , but i find it hard to relate to it. BTw,One Kamal-IR album where i like all the songs, and which IMO is very underrated , is Kalaignan . Kamal plays a sort of rockstar in the film , and IR does a great job of differentiating each stage number, of course the pick of the lot is Dasettan’s magical rendering of “Endhan Nenjil”
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TambiDude
November 19, 2019
@madan: You are right. Only those who have not seen Sachin in 90s would not rate it as his best. After he injured his back in 1999 (that 136 vs Pak in Chennai), he was never the same. In fact he completely curbed some of the shots because of inability. Before 1999 he would simply walk out and thump the ball over the head of the bowler for a six -> not Murali or Warne, but bowlers like Mcgrath.
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V
November 19, 2019
Oh, thanks BR. Sasi Rekha, Jency, Sunanda, Uma Ramanan – I need to find out who has sung what. Confusing.
MANK: Thanks for mentioning Kalaignan – used to hear it on loop when it released (released without much fanfare, if I remember correctly) Kalaignan, Ejaman, Uzhaippali albums went unnoticed thanks to the waves ARR created with Roja, Pudhiya Mugam and Gentleman around that time. Kalaignan and Ejaman were flops, so IRs work did not get its due. Uzhaippali was a hit, but the songs couldnt match up to the rage of Chikku Bukku and Ottagam! Only Endhan Nenjil could somewhat survive amidst the ARR euphoria (Interestingly, Kokkarako Kozhi was promoted as the highlight of the album.)
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Madan
November 19, 2019
“None of the albums IR composed for Kamal has the all-round likability and brilliance, for me, as the two albums that IR created for Mani Rathnam – Agninakshathram and Thalapathy . ” – Not even Punnagai Mannan? It has everything, a beautiful pathos solo, a comedy number, an intense romantic solo, a light romantic duet and a dance number. Oh, and also the fusion workout. And like V said, PM practically ran for its music (and also the star cast). The movie as such was kinda weak. At least three of the films IR worked on for Mani (Mouna Ragam, Agni and Thalapathy) were great as films on top of having perfect soundtracks (and scores). But I guess it’s not IR’s fault (or Kamal’s either) if the movie itself isn’t that good.
I used to have the Kalaignan tape too. It’s good but wouldn’t make the top of my Kamal-IR favourites. I guess I don’t like so much the Huey Lewis-meets-Def Leppard sound IR seemed to have decided on for this movie. Among major starrers, Ejamaan was his strongest soundtrack imo in that period (93-95), with Veera not far behind. Ironically so, because as per R V Udhayakumar, those tunes had been rejected by other directors. My favourite from that period is actually Paatu Padava. The soundtrack has been forgotten with the movie turning out to be a flop but the songs were actually quite popular then, especially Nil Nil Nil. I love how IR balanced the experiments (like Nil Nil and Poongatrile) with his vintage sound on the other tracks like Iniya Gaanam or Vazhi Vidu. The last mentioned has the time tested Fender Rhodes piano with tabla accompaniment but he throws an unexpected modern jazz like intro in the beginning so that nobody can accuse him of resting on his laurels.
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Sutheesh Kumar
November 19, 2019
Paartha Vizhi is so transcendental, i just submit to it’s magnificence. Though not a Kamal film song, Thoogaatha Vizhigal Rendu is absolutely orgasmic. Aural i mean.
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Honest Raj
November 19, 2019
My picks would be Tik Tik Tik (early 80s) and Vetri Vizhaa (late 80s). In terms of background score, IMO, IR hasn’t delivered anything close to Johnny or Thalapathi for a Kamal film. Even at the soundtrack level, I’d anyday prefer Pandiyan, Uzhaippali, Kalaignan, Mannan, Veera, I Love India, or even Magalir Mattum to Thevar Magan.
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shaviswa
November 19, 2019
@Madan I distinctly remember Paattu Paadava album. I used to love the songs and I got a cassette with me to college (this was 1995 if I remember). By then the flavour was ARR and when the guys at the hostel heard this, they were like meh. I remember one guy even saying that Ilaiyaraja has lost his ability and his last hit was Ejamaan which was 1993.
The way ARR stormed into people’s listening traits is just amazing. It was like an overnight transformation and people just stopped listening to Raja. That was also the reason why producers and directors dropped him and went with either Rahman or some other new name.
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Enigma
November 20, 2019
@shaviswa, yes Madhavi was such a beauty, especially during the early 80s phase (Thillu Mullu, Rajapaarvai, Tik Tik Tik). And as you mention, great screen presence and a fantastic actress too. She kind of faded off in the mid 80s and was last seen in ‘Viduthalai’ I think. The Ambikas and the Radhas, not to mention Sridevi too, were no match to her sense of style and sex appeal.
@V, I think ‘Ejaman’ soundtrack did quite well in that 93-94 period. I remember ‘Aalappol’ was such a big hit back then. Even after Rehman’s big entry with ‘Roja’, Raja’s albums during that phase did very well. His ‘Atma’, ‘Ejaman’, ‘Kalaignan’ and ‘Veera’ albums had some great numbers. It was probably around ’95 that Raja’s popularity started taking a hit. I can’t think of any nice numbers apart from ‘Thendral Vanthu’. There was this album called ‘Friends’, sometime around 2001, which was pretty good.
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pirhaksar
November 20, 2019
I am a late 80s and early 90s kid, so I guess I do not quite identify with the whole nostalgia of KH-IR combo expressed here. If I have to pick a KH-IR album would be Sagara Sangamam (Salangai Oli). I second everything MANK says above. My take is very similar. As prolific as the maestro was IR (mind boggling to say the least), my favorite albums by miles would be the 2 MR films – Thalapathy any day as the best IR album followed by Agni Natchathiram. Just my personal taste/opinion.
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shaviswa
November 20, 2019
@Madan There was Kadhalikka Neramillai in between. Sathi Leelavathi and of course that biggie Hey Ram
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Madan
November 20, 2019
Enigma : The A list projects seemed to dry up from 95 onwards. Kamal became ‘sandharba sulnallavadi’ and Rajni moved out of the Raja camp. Karthik and Prabhu were wiped out by a series of mega flops. Karthik’s lone hit in this period, Ullathai Allitha, was scored by Sirpi. Ramki /Parthiban/Murali slipped to B grade. IR did get a bunch of Vijay projects but he seemed to be trying to give an updated sound on these albums, with the result that the songs weren’t so memorable. He did have a rural revival again in the noughties through the Bala /Thangarbachan films. And Kamal got right back in the fray for Virumaandi.
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Madan
November 20, 2019
Tambi Dude: Yes, the transition was swift and drastic. As you imply, even the post-Roja albums of Raja that were hits were not considered hip. When you compare that with the MSV-IR transition, MSV had hits, albeit sporadically, deep into Raja’s reign. I think there was a less of a culture clash in the MSV IR transition whereas with IR and Rahman, people felt compelled (and apparently still do) to pick a side because they are so different. I didn’t at the time but maybe only because I was a kid and just absorbed all music like a sponge. Including stuff I later came to dislike intensely like Kumar Sanu and Celine Dion.
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Enigma
November 20, 2019
@Madan, oh yes, completely forgot ‘Virumandi’ and ‘Hey Ram’. These came much later, had some amazing numbers. I don’t seem to remember any of Raja’s post 95 works, apart from these two, Friends and Thendral vandhu. And why the Celine Dion hate dude. I like some of her 90s work, new day has come, it’s all coming back to me and of course, my heart will go on. Haha.
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MANK
November 20, 2019
The A list projects seemed to dry up from 95 onwards. Kamal became ‘sandharba sulnallavadi’ and Rajni moved out of the Raja camp. Karthik and Prabhu were wiped out by a series of mega flops
From Guna onwards, Kamal stopped having full fledged song situations in his productions as well. He was into more serious films.Songs were used as part of a situation, more or less in patches. Kuruthipunal didn’t even have songs. The was no scope for a Vanithavani or meendum meendum sort of fantasy numbers anymore , except for the rare outside productions, like,singaravelan. A few short songs like Isayil thodanguthama plus a terrific Background score was the norm IR always came through for him , whether its Hey Ram or Virumandi. And Rajni cut down on his work, doing one film in 2 years , may be 3, so that one film would go to the hottest music director in town , which was Rahman.
Another thing to note is that,in the early 90’s, IR had become comfortable(and repetitive) with a certain kind of sound and tune ,especially for the rustic songs , which he was loathe to change. Chinna thambi, kizhakku vasal onwards; chinna gounder , ejaman , the songs sound very similar. Poovoma Oorgolam,, oru nalum, aracha chandanam..aalapol,… they all sound like continuation of the same song. So when an Uslampatti penkutty came along, its natural for the listeners to be stunned. Or the other more rustic rustic songs composed by Rahman in Kizhakku cheemayile or Uzhavan, they just dont sound anything like what they have heard before, which is the reason why the transition , as you say was very swift and drastic.
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Madan
November 20, 2019
Enigma : I find her songs cheesy as hell. And that’s without that slightly lispy accent. In Western, I tend to like either the classic genres like rock, folk, blues, soul or the more recent directions like alternative rock or trip hop. 80s pop, which is what Celine’s work is a carryover of, is not my thing.
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Madan
November 20, 2019
MANK: Comfortable and repetitive. Yes. This in essence is the point I had made in my write up on the Raja Rahman transition, which of course the diehard fans didn’t appreciate (to put it mildly).
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Enigma
November 20, 2019
@Madan, fair enough. I am a lay listener, don’t know much about music and can’t distinguish one genre from another. Just that used to like Celine Dixon’s work back then like I enjoy listening to Ellie Goulding and Halsey now.
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TambiDude
November 20, 2019
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Balu
November 21, 2019
Was the sudden transition from Raja to Rehman city centric or B/C centers too? I spent all my summer holidays as a kid in my parent’s village and vaguely recollect the Raja’s albums listed above as being super popular in every tea “kadai” – Ejaman, Kizhakku Vasal, Chinna Gounder etc. In fact they were so repetitive that I probably remember few lyrics even if I haven’t listened to these songs for 10+ years.
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Madan
November 21, 2019
This out in the last couple of days. First single of the Mysskin-directed Pyscho. I am floored he is able to produce something like this even so late in his career.
If I had to evaluate purely based off my ‘needs’ as a Raja fan, I preferred the interludes on Tholi Paruvam (Abbayitho Ammayi) but I am impressed by his effort to adapt to the flavours of today’s music while retaining more than enough signatures of his trademark style.
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Ravi K
November 22, 2019
MANK wrote: “Another thing to note is that,in the early 90’s, IR had become comfortable(and repetitive) with a certain kind of sound and tune ,especially for the rustic songs , which he was loathe to change. Chinna thambi, kizhakku vasal onwards; chinna gounder , ejaman , the songs sound very similar. Poovoma Oorgolam,, oru nalum, aracha chandanam..aalapol,… they all sound like continuation of the same song.”
I have a soft spot for some of these songs, even if they do sound the same and aren’t IR’s most exciting work. Seems like in the early 90s Tamil films were mostly straightforwardly village-based, so there wasn’t much scope for the more urbane sounds of, say, the “Mic Mohan” films, or the innovative music IR composed for Mani Ratnam.
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KS
November 22, 2019
My favorite of IR-Kamal combo as a single is “Vanam Thottu pona” from Thevar Magan and as an album, Virumandi.
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MANK
November 25, 2019
My next in #60yearsofKamal is on Gunaa
Undoubtedly the greatest Kamal-IR collaboration and here’s why
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MANK
November 26, 2019
I am surprised nobody commented on the Gunaa piece. for or against 🙂
i expected the film to have some fans around here
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Madan
November 27, 2019
MANK: Thanks for the heads up. Missed it. Will read.
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Srinivas R
November 27, 2019
MANK – Wonderfully written, about both Guna and Virumandi. For me, Guna was a film that attempted too many things and honestly except IR’s music, nothing much sticks. Kamal really needed someone to cut out his excesses in writing and acting, is my layman view of many of his movies. Though it is never dismissable, it leaves the viewer confused about what the movie is about.
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Madan
November 27, 2019
MANK: Seconding what Srinivas R said, wonderful write up. Yes, Guna is indeed less than the sum of the parts. Somewhere, something doesn’t really come together. Best of the IR-Kamal collaborations? Hmm, don’t know about that. The music IS brilliant throughout, the score as well as the soundtrack, but, as you say, the movie doesn’t necessarily feed IR with tailormade slots to go all out over. He has to work within the constraints of the movie, which he does brilliantly (again) but this also means the only real earworm is Kanmani Anbodu.
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MANK
November 28, 2019
Thanks Srinivas and Madan
As I mentioned in my post, Ilayaraja’s contribution to Guna is aesthetically more important than any other Films. He created great scores for hey Ram and Virumaandi, but those films were so powerful cinematically that they would have worked without Raja’s music, may be a ten or twenty percent less, but this film would have been less than it’s fifty percent without his music, and I am talking about the entire score., Not just the songs. It goes without saying that he composed more high-quality, highly popular songs for his other films
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vijay
December 3, 2019
The psycho song isn’t bad although the tune reminds me of kaadhal rojaave from Roja in a couple of places. But this sets the expectation a bit higher for the other songs now.
Unlike the general perception, I actually thought IR was quite prolific and fresh in the early 90s and more consistent than the mid to late eighties output. Think of this for a moment..In an eight month span or ten at best he had Idhayam, dhalapathi, kizhakku vaasal, Guna, Nadodi thendral, Gopuravassalile, dharmadurai….just off the top of my head. There may be few more. That’s amazing output for somebody who was already 500+ soundtracks old. He would have added a few more to this list easily had he not been let down(or let himself down) by some of the male singers he summoned. This period(1990-94 or so) also had a lot of one-off classics like ennulle ennulle, naan yerikara melirundhu, nalam vaazha, potri paadadi ponne, kaiveenaiyai yendhum, unnai edhir paarthen etc. Not many knew that quite a few of the singers ARR had “introduced” in early 90s like Unni menon, minmini, sujatha, Bombay Jayashree were either intro’ed or employed by IR earlier. But he didn’t stick with them and went back to his tried and tested crew of Mano,(aged)SJ, Arunmozhi and the likes which robbed many a song of its impact. His tunes for those rustic films were fresh and not just extensions of his earlier hits. Even for what must have been a routine heroine exercise song in Veera he came up with pattu poo poo in Chitra’s voice. The nosedive began after 1995 especially in TFM. In malayalam the late 90s were still exciting with guru, kaalapaani, yaathramozhi, kaliyoonjal, Kochu kochu santhoshangal etc. Guru was arguably the soundtrack of the.decade.
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Madan
December 4, 2019
vijay : To me, what changed in the 90s was IR compromising on his aesthetics. Maybe he saw it as changing and not compromising but the balance was lost a little (sometimes a lot). I find the drums entirely loud in songs like Kolakilli or Oru Myna. Don’t get me started on something like Kallathanamaga. The synth tones too began to get grating (second interlude of Oru Myna is another ‘fine’ example). Basically he embraced crass noise much more often in this period. There was also creeping boredom at times as directors made him compose for the same situations again and again. I had addressed this in, um, my first write up for this blog. Apart from the song I had used then, Adho Mega Oorvalam, Hello hello come on from Inizhai Mazhai is another good example (a blatant self plagiarising of Rojapoo Adivanthathu). Between moving away from the classic guitar and Fender Rhodes keyboard sound and these bored, by the numbers songs, he seemed to decline a little from the 80s at the same time as he continued to produce great output for many films. This is the thing with IR. He is brimming with so many song ideas that if you give him lots of films, he will still produce great songs. I believe he can still do it. But because he does fewer films and one in five turns out to be a good soundtrack, it appears as if he has lost his mojo. I don’t think taking more time to compose really works for IR. He just snaps his fingers and writes. Keep him busy and you will get more and better output.
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anonymousviolin20
July 1, 2021
A bit late to this thread, but like a few others said, I would also rate Punnagai Mannan as their best combination.
Hey Ram would definitely be a close second, if for nothing else, the genius behind its conception. Raja making new tunes for already shot scenes, and even matching with the keys Kamal was pressing during the New Paartha Paarvai scenes…wow.
Although…
(unpopular opinion incoming)
I think Hey Ram could be a notch higher if they switched out the singer for Isaiyil Thodanguthamma. I understand that Ajoy Chakrabarty is a celebrated classical singer and all that, but somehow it doesn’t quite gel for me. Could be the diction or maybe just the voice. I saw a video of Hariharan performing it, and now I think that Raja could’ve recorded an alternate version with him on the album too.
Hariharan does go for his typical extra sangathis, but I think his voice is fantastic for this song.
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