Does modern day Tamil music make a mockery of art?

Most of us in the college, at least those in the boys hostel of CEG have this debate: who is better-AR Rahman or Ilayaraja. I have been an AR Rahman fan for 15 years, right from the day I heard his album-‘Roja’. I still vividly remember my English teacher Mr. Balu (one of the best teachers who have taught me till now) explaining the meaning of ‘child prodigy’ in my 8th grade and the examples he gave for child prodigies were Sachin and AR Rahman. Undoubtedly AR Rahman has revolutionized Indian music and taken it to greater echelons. When people from richer sections of the society alone could enjoy that western style of music with all that rocking effect, treble and bass, this man took such music to the masses with all that high precision computer effects, the first of the kind in Tamil films or to an extent say even Indian Films (I ain’t that technical when it comes to music-the point I want to make is the way AR Rahman differed from others in 90s).


Over the years, what has happened is that most music directors have followed the Rahman route. But the sad story is that the all these modern day music directors have given more importance to the sound effects and computerization of music but miserably failed when it comes to the lyrics. They have a name for this kinda music: they call it so live and happening music.


In one such Rahman Vs Ilayaraja debate, one of my friends asked a very pertinent question regarding the Tamil songs which we often hear –“machan, apart from the latest flicks, whose play list do we generally hear when we are free da is it Ilayaraja or AR Rahman?” If I were to answer this question honestly I would say that I hear to Ilayaraja’s music more than that of AR Rahman’s because most songs I hear these days are the Rahman type in modern cinema and for some variety I go for Ilayaraja or for that matter any old song (PB Srinivas rocks). But Rahman’s songs are really good when it comes to lyrics, just that since more of the modern day songs are like that of ARR (general style) I prefer Ilayaraja jus for a change.

I tried to analyze why people (especially me, these days) tend to hear Ilayaraja’s music more than that of the modern day music directors. When you hear a song like “Dailamo dailamo….kaleleeekku raathiiri meee kaathaleeiiiii” what happens is that you (not me!) prolly tend to like that song initially when the album hits the market. What happens eventually? You forget that there was such a song in a matter of month or two. What I personally feel is that the most important attribute of a song that makes it evergreen is the lyrics and the music of course.


Music is an art. I feel that art becomes an art only when it is intellectually stimulating. Here by intellectual I don’t mean calculus or relativity but something more bigger, something that relieves your stress, or something which makes you feel comfortable, something which sets your mind in action without you really knowing that you have kindled your thought process, something which only be felt and perceived and can’t be put in words. When you hear songs like “Nallathor Veenai Seithen” or Thirthakaraiyinile therku moolaiyil…” or “Irandu manam vendum” or “Thoongathe thambi” or “Yeh jo des he tera, swades…”or say even a romance song like “Kamban yemanthan” or “kabhi kabhi mere dil me” or “Ehsaan tera hoga”, you get that feel good factor which I tried to explain.


These songs represent a wide gamut of philosophy, values based, romance.. but the common factor which all of them share is simply superb lyrics apart from some brilliant music. I ain’t trying to say that the film songs these days don’t have good lyrics. Some certainly have, but it is only a few in number…When it comes to AR Rahman, I‘d say that, this man is brilliant in all his albums, be it music or lyrics or digital effects or whatever. But in the current scenario since most directors try to imitate the way Rahman did that too with crappy lyrics, I feel whenever I hear such music I don’t get that feel good factor. In turn we people feel that old songs are better. The modern day Tamil film songs don’t represent good art; rather they are core-commercial. Music Directors want to make some fast moolah so they give some numbers like “appadi podu…” How many of us will hear that song after 10 months? But still we turn our ears to songs like “En mel vizhuntha pani thuliyee, ithanai nalai”, “pachai nirame” or “Netru illatha matram(sad version rocks! “Ilaigal veeznhtalumee kilaiyil thuli ullathu…iravu theernthalume innum nilavullathu…pathi uyir poana pothum meethi vazhvullathu…”). So I would say that as long as you have good meaningful and thought provoking lyrics, you can beam that song to be evergreen. From the reigns of GN Balasubramaniam to G. Ramanthan to Ghandasala to MS Viswanathan to Ilayaraja to AR Rahman lyrics was given importance but now, its mere mockery of art……Hope things get better.(Exceptions are always there…)