Neethane Enthan Pon Vasantham.

No video but a million plus hits:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZcyAaoHJpE


The budweiser song

Until it switches to synth (purely for kuRumbu's sake by rAsA IMHO) , what a lovely orch!

கொஞ்சம் ஒவரோன்னு தோணினாலும் சொல்லியே ஆகணும் :

நீ.எ.பொ.வ. ஆனானப்பட்ட ராசாவுக்கே ஒரு மைல் கல் தான்! 

அதிலிருந்து ஒரு...ம்ம்ம்...க்ளாசிக்:

ஒரு குறிப்பிடத்தக்க ஏமாற்றம் :

லண்டனில் இருந்து ஆர்க்கெஸ்ட்ராவெல்லாம் வந்தப்போ, சௌஹானை வுட்டுட்டு சாரதியை மேடையில் பாட வைத்தது
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ev662deBX8



இந்த அம்மணி ராசா இசையில் இன்னும் நிறையப்பாடணும் - ஒரு வேளை இது நிறைவேறாத ஆசையாய்ப் போகுமோ என்னமோ

மெக்சிகோ: வெள்ளிக்கிழமை ஆஃபீஸ் கேண்டீன் கிடையாதாம். 

நடந்து அருகிலுள்ள புதிய பளபள மாலில் மதிய உணவு.

மூணு குட்டிக்குட்டி சீஸ் கேசிடியாவும் பச்சை நிற சுறுசுறு சால்சா தொட்டு மூணே நிமிடத்தில் உள்ளே. 

இதமாக மாம்பழச்சாறு உள்ளே போய் நிறைய...ஆஹா, கூட வந்த ரெண்டு பெரும் இன்னும் சூப்பே முடிக்கவில்லை. (ஐயோ பாவம் என் கிட்ட மாட்டிக்கிட்டாங்க)

அடுத்த இருபது நிமிடங்கள் ராச இசை அறிமுகப்படலம்

ஆயிரம் படம், ஐயாயிரம் பாட்டு, பின்னணி இசை என்றெல்லாம் சொன்னதும் "ஆ" வென்று கண்களை விரித்தார்கள். 

ஐ-சி-எம், டபிள்யு-சி-எம், கலப்பிசை, ஜீனியஸ், பட்டிக்காட்டில் தொடக்கம், சிம்பனி ஆர்க்கஸ்ட்ரா, தனித்தன்மை என்று அனுபவித்துப் பேச அவர்கள் சாப்பிட்டு முடித்தவுடன் ஐ-போனில் ராசா பெயரை தட்டச்ச வைத்து எடுத்துக் கொண்டார்கள்.

பெங்களூர் என்றால் உடனே கடைக்குப்போய் நீ.எ.பொ.வ. ஒளித்தட்டு கிட்டுமா என்று பார்க்கலாம். இங்கே எப்படி?

யூட்யூப் லிங்க் தருவதாக வாக்களித்த பின் கொஞ்சம் நடந்து ஐஸ்க்ரீம் சாப்பிட்டு...

ஆஹா என்ன ஒரு வெள்ளிக்கிழமை!

@app - not only we have common tastes in music .. but also with food :-) cheese quesadilla is the first mexican dish I learned to make. Sunidhi Chauhan is a "power" female singer, it looks like. We need more of that "orchestral rock" from IR. I think post-NEPV IR should be termed "IR 2.0" :-)

kiru sir

Nerd shared a youtube on twitter where Gautham had a lecture / discussion in IIT. 

He mentions his troubles post-NEPV (with movie not doing very well, producer taking him to court / filing police case etc). 

One of the points he mentions there is the sharp remark the producer made during their fight (about Gautam originally ad-ing ARR and then switching to IR.)

And Gautham wonders - "will somebody have a problem with me working with IR"  

Well, solely from TFM PoV, perhaps this was one of the best things that happened in many many years!

நன்றி கவுதம்!

Whatever may or may not have been his motivations in doing so, GVM should be praised for unearthing a new dimension of Raja.  By that, I am NOT saying he taught Raja to do this or that but he simply gave him the canvas to express himself in a way he hadn't in a long time.  A year back when NEPV was still a bit fresh in the minds of fans, I felt IR fans were grudging in giving GVM any credit in the matter.  But  IR himself said to GVM, "Nobody has asked me to do something like this in a long time."  Rather than look at IR through the jaded stereotype of rural king or as a master of live instruments, GVM invested in IR the genius, the innovator and that is why NEPV was possible.

crimson king wrote:Whatever may or may not have been his motivations in doing so, GVM should be praised for unearthing a new dimension of Raja.  By that, I am NOT saying he taught Raja to do this or that but he simply gave him the canvas to express himself in a way he hadn't in a long time.  A year back when NEPV was still a bit fresh in the minds of fans, I felt IR fans were grudging in giving GVM any credit in the matter.  But  IR himself said to GVM, "Nobody has asked me to do something like this in a long time."  Rather than look at IR through the jaded stereotype of rural king or as a master of live instruments, GVM invested in IR the genius, the innovator and that is why NEPV was possible.

 Totally agree. This is exactly what I mean that at times, there is that small role of the director too... in getting out of the best of Raaja. Most of the time, Raaja doesn't need a director if he really wants to give a fantastic song/score. But at times, a good director or a director with a strong sense of what exactly he is looking for (at that point in time)... can get Raaja head in a particular direction to produce something very different.

Yes, I also appreciate and am thankful to Gautham for putting his faith in IR whole-heartedly and enabling him. All that attention and adulation he showered on IR might also have cheered and inspired the maestro. It is highly admirable for a Director who has given hits with Rahman and Harris to go IR for a youth subject. IR succeeded impressively and Gautam can take credit for being part of a milestone in tamil film music history (yes, if not acknowledged already the current young population will wake up to this, just like I woke up to MSV in later years).

there is that small role of the director too... in getting out of the best of Raaja

as big a role a parrot has in picking up a card from a stack  

directors getting any credit for the music always been my pet peeve. yes we can pat GVM for getting Sony in the fold and having an extravagant audio launch and for giving him a budget to employ top notch musicians but what could possibly GVM would have done to get Raaja head in a particular direction/produce something different? there was nothing
in the script which Raaja hasn't encountered before or challenging to be nudged into producing this exquisite OST, am not grudging, honestly lost on
GVM or any directors/their fans who raise his/their collar on pushing the Raaja's envelope when a absolute simpleton like Nassar who by his own 
admission had no role in the process of music creation has 2 crackerjack albums with Raaja in his resume.

P.S that parrot story was narrated by Raaja when he was posed with similar q

Whilst mentioning parrot stories, why don't you also cite what Raja said to veteran directors at the NEPV audio launch, admonishing them for not doing what he had always told them to do and which he claimed GVM did, to just let him be independent creatively?  In very corporate lingo, GVM basically debriefed him better than most other directors, which is why he could get such a spectacular album out of IR.  IR may be able to produce musical genius on the tap, but directors have to also embrace it instead of trying to fit his music to safe stereotypes.

why don't you also cite what Raja said to veteran directors at the NEPV audio launch, admonishing them for not doing what he had always told them to do and which he claimed GVM did

that had to be taken with a grain of salt given the tv edits, was at the launch whatever Raaja said
on GVM were pertaining to tributes/pains GVM took to get the live orchestra given the time constraints,
if anything patently refused to talk about songs and left it to listeners to be the judge.
looking back Raaja did go overboard on GVM praise but I wouldn't call that admonishing the veteran directors
more on 'adhangam' territory, given BaluM presence how could he admonish him. 

In very corporate lingo, GVM basically debriefed him better than most other directors, which is why he could get such a spectacular album out of IR

how much ever flowery language GVM might have used to brief him, @ EOD the song sequences were good ol rice batter
which Raaja would have been fed zillion times by each of the veterans directors at the audio launch.

Well, we should give some credit to the directors for their taste in tunes. Also, they might have a hand in vetoing some silly lyrics (which is the bane of many IR songs). MR, BR, BhagyaRaj or Sridhar have all had good songs in their movies whether it was IR the MD or not. So by deductive logic they have a hand in it. NEPV was different story, I think. Here is a young Director who has had quite a bit of success of with other top MDs and comes to IR. IR will have to provide top notch music but not necessarily in the same mould. But IR seems to have a pre-monition about certain things. Even while doing NEPV he seems to have speculated - " lets see how long will this association last" or some thing to that effect. That is pretty eerie. GVM ran into troubles with the movie/producer etc and I am not sure he is going to associate with IR in the future.

taste in tunes

 yam pretty sure they would have had no freakin clue on how the song 
would etch out from a tune given 99% of the directors Raaja got to work with were musical illiterates,
this is exactly as in parrot picking up a card.
Packiaraj rejected 'Putham puthu Kalai' tune, an act of impiety, we could dig similar impious stories
on other directors you had listed/

I do not mean to get argumentative (as I know the prowess of our man) but "taste" is some thing anybody could have - music illiterate or literate. That is why when things become a hit even IR is excited (because what he produced is "music" not just another permutation/combination ie. a sequence of notes which a majority of the human population consider pleasant and emotionally meaningful .. can be termed as music). Interestingly, maestro's tunes are difficult to judge. Putham pudu kaalai is surely one example where the orchestration lifts the tune to the heavens.

Wizzy wrote:

why don't you also cite what Raja said to veteran directors at the NEPV audio launch, admonishing them for not doing what he had always told them to do and which he claimed GVM did

that had to be taken with a grain of salt given the tv edits, was at the launch whatever Raaja said
on GVM were pertaining to tributes/pains GVM took to get the live orchestra given the time constraints,
if anything patently refused to talk about songs and left it to listeners to be the judge.
looking back Raaja did go overboard on GVM praise but I wouldn't call that admonishing the veteran directors
more on 'adhangam' territory, given BaluM presence how could he admonish him. 

In very corporate lingo, GVM basically debriefed him better than most other directors, which is why he could get such a spectacular album out of IR

how much ever flowery language GVM might have used to brief him, @ EOD the song sequences were good ol rice batter
which Raaja would have been fed zillion times by each of the veterans directors at the audio launch.

I knew this would be your line of argument and my question is, so in that case, why not also take the parrot story with a pinch of salt as IR just indulging himself as he likes to once in a while?  Isn't it because that story suits your own views and is more convenient to cite?  And no, IR was in fact talking about the freedom GVM gave him to compose and it was P Vasu who praised GVM's efforts in organising the music launch in such a grand way.  

As for musical knowledge or lack thereof, we don't know much about the other directors but it is clear that GVM is a huge IR fan and that may itself have made him hesitate for a long time to approach him (fans dread the moment when their idols turn out all out human in unsavoury ways).  We cannot rule out that this may have made his approach different and perhaps it also explains his tolerance for Raja's experimentation.  No other GVM movie has music this involved and heavy; the only light song that works is Ennodu Vaa Vaa.  It is debatable whether the music suited the tone of this film either and I did read a few reviews which said it didn't.  But GVM just went along for the ride anyway.  He made IR cut a music album more than a typical Tamil music soundtrack.

Well, I remember GVM was on record saying that he had to rethink the climax after hearing saRRu munbu (too heavy). And I was a bit disappointed when he mentioned Ennodu vaa vaa is his favorite !!!. As you allude, another challenge for IR these days is that the subjects are not that heavy and the kind of stuff he does is much better with serious subjects. This is the reason he has to seek out celtic beats etc to give light melodies, rock for agony etc. To some extent he is lightening stuff as much as he can but that is the nature of classical music whether indian or western.

why not also take the parrot story with a pinch of salt as IR just indulging himself as he likes to once in a while?

I wouldn't, because a)it was a written reply on weekly magazine's q&a and b) it is very much consistent with his philosophy of doing things and it has much more of a 
credence than say stuff he utters on a spur @ audio launches or a movie promotion/premier(which he never indulges in) but you get rough idea on what I'm hinting at. lets us 
not waste precious little bytes on what Pee. Vasu says/does.


let me breaking it down even further,GVM might have had greater say in things when working with keyboard MDs whose philosophy is kuttumuyarchi/vishwaroopa vetri
where in at every single stage of music production say adding a layer of music MDs would seek GVM's opionion and every song is a project
in progress until the CD dye is cast so they go back/forth whilst in Raaja's way of doing things, after GVM gives his brief and then
selects a tune(from his infinite wisdom)there endeth his part in the process. sometimes he might have a say in choice of singers but thats that. 
no wonder these keyboard MDs rarely go out of their cocoons of combos or their output just crumbles when
the combo breaks case in point HJ/U1 
 
unlike keyboard MDs Raaja doesn't have a neatly sorted digital tune library/bank wherein he could select which ones to give to whom hence
there is no question of Raaja playing favorites or having a 'soft corner' for any director/hero/production house/. 
this should explain a director like 
Kalanjiyam landing up with a tune like 'Meetatha Oru Veenai', any other MD would have saved it for a bad day in office or for a bigger production/director/hero
to gain some traction 

we can sugercoat GVM's efforts in the OST as giving freedom/experimentation/showing light/changing direction/pushing the envelope but EOD NEPV was just
yet another day in the office for Raaja and as GVM himself alludes he was a mere spectator in that process.

"taste" is some thing anybody could have - music illiterate or literate.

exactly so that isn't a trait/skill to boast of and 
I cited that 'putham pudhu kalai' example to point out the folly of giving any credit to director's taste in selecting/rejecting tunes.
RV Udhayakumar cutting a album from the bread crumbs of rejected tunes should quell any further doubts.

That is why when things become a hit even IR is excited (because what he produced is "music" not just another permutation/combination ie. a sequence of notes 

which a majority of the human population consider pleasant and emotionally meaningful .. can be termed as music)

on the contrary I find Raaja remarkably confident on his tune's hittability, that should explain 80s directors
spinning a movie around his tunes.

This is one of my favorite topics, so please allow me to ramble.

The key point here is the freedom. I mean not the freedom in going with the tunes Raaja creates without a question being asked. But the freedom in allowing to use the orchestra of his choice. And the freedom to give him a pool of money to employ a number of foreign musicians. And that is very critical because you can't take a 108 piece orchestra and just write notes for keyboard/synthesizer. And by Raaja's own admission he did spend 12 days [when he usually takes only 3 incl tunes and notes] to finish the score.

Now GVM may not have anything to do with the tunes Raaja came up with [may be he rejected some, but tunes/melodies are not NEPV's USP] or the notes Raaja choose to write, but if not for the 'freedom' we wouldn't have gotten a NEPV from him. We should be forever indebted to GVM for that.

Another example is Azhagarsamiyun Kuthirai. One can clearly see a stark difference in the orchestration between the songs and the BGM. Raaja wasn't provided with the budget that he would have liked for the songs, so they aren't anything 'special', predominantly synth driven but the foreign players he used in the background score resulted in layered orchestration. Just playing the title score in my mind gives me goosebumps.

And finally not too much can be said about a director choosing 'nice' tunes. Adding to Wizz's example of BR rejecting PuthamPuthukkaalai, Raaja himself mentioned about how Mahendran was bold enough to accept & visualize how a 'boring' melody of Paruvame could turn into a monster of a song with all the backing orchestration. And Mani saar almost rejected 'oru poongaavanam'.

Bottomline - As long as Raaja is given the freedom and the funds, a director's role is unimportant. Especially when the film is totally uninspiring.

PS: GVM's favorite song is Kaattrai Konjam and not Ennodu Vaa Vaa.

@ Wizzy   Nobody is saying GVM helped IR compose the songs.  I don't think we really need to go over this again and again; it is an established fact that IR is an accomplished composer and doesn't need anybody's help.  But the fact is ultimately the director decides where he wants to put songs in the film and for what situations, so on and so forth.  Whether we like it or not, the director does play a role (negatively, it could be argued) by constraining IR's scope and laying down parameters.  As IR himself has said multiple no. of times, his first priority is to satisfy the director and then to satisfy himself (which, presumably, he does by indulging himself some creative licence, Oru Poongavanam being a good example of how he tried to make a typical film situation interesting for himself).  The ability or lack thereof to do so also depends on the director's confidence and understanding of the role of music in a film.  To build on Nerd's point, GVM specifically asked for, in his words, "a new sound, something different from what we've been hearing so far."  This kind of thinking itself is anathema to the way directors typically work in TF because they always want something that sounds like something else that became a hit (recall Selvamani saying he asked for a song like Mehbooba Mehbooba and getting Aatama instead, Kamal also did this and was given Puthu Maapilaiku).  It was further GVM who said why not London instead of Budapest.  I do believe the result of that is reflected in the awesome recording quality of the soundtrack, which certainly has no precedent as far as Raja soundtracks go.  There may have been albums before with a clear sound, yes, but none as full and beefy as NEPV.  But production and recording IS a big part of creating a new sound so GVM seems to have known what he was doing there.  

An unnecessary disclaimer here, I am no GVM fan.  I thought Vettaiyaadu Vilayadu was alright and Kaaka Kaaka got progressively boring, never bothered to watch any of his other films.  It's not for me.  But credit where due.  In GVM's words, "I thought I’d get whatever I like and see if the world likes it".  He took a big risk and sadly, it seems, paid a heavy price for it.

CK/Nerd, have already credited GVM for the money purse/kalam by getting musicians but
my only nitpick is on giving GVM any credit on rediscovering Raaja or the 'Raaja genre'
as he puts it. 

Bottomline - As long as Raaja is given the freedom and the funds, a director's role is unimportant. Especially when the film is totally uninspiring.

concur on director's role but iffy about clubbing funds/freedom then we would boxing him/music as some sort of a highbrow,
I need my daily synth fix:noteeth: best analogy would be Fefsi Vijayan's Thirupathu laddu wrt Raaja
opening his gates for all and sundry just that NEPV would be his 'Kalyana laddu'

Oh, no disagreement there.  Again, we just have to parse musical contribution from production/financial.  I think we are all just saying GVM at least invested faith and money in this massive experiment of Raja's.  It would not be possible to so beautifully articulate this so called Raja genre without such a lavish orchestra and top notch recording.  GVM believed in that idea maybe because he's a fan, just like us.  Maybe dreams do come true in the film world even if there are undesirable consequences later on for the dreamer.

Nerd wrote:

Bottomline - As long as Raaja is given the freedom and the funds, a director's role is unimportant. Especially when the film is totally uninspiring.

PS: GVM's favorite song is Kaattrai Konjam and not Ennodu Vaa Vaa.

Almost agree on your bottomline :-) I think it is the respect (big budget) and the opportunity to write for a big orchestra excites IR. Otherwise, some thing like Avathaaram needs to happen. I still want to give some credit to the directors (but we can agree to disagree). 
Anyways, thanks for the correction on GVM's favorite . feeling much better :-)

i think this rudramma devi along with sriramarajyam is giving run for NEPV.. places it easily beats NEPV to ground..

Some of the conspiracy that can happen in the film industry against IR - thus scaring people to sign him up

It contended that as per the agreement, the film was to be shot abroad and A R Rahman proposed as the music director but Menon engaged Ilayaraja and the entire film shooting was done within the country. Hence, it did not do well.

Even a novice knows that the majority of movies (esp. in the last decade) that had ARR music did miserably at BO  


(Same goes with "foreign shooting" )