First among the equals - S Janaki, who sang the best in rAsA music!

Today I got up to this song and it is continuously running in my mind from then on. I don’t know why. Such is the power of Maestro’s music. He gets to your subconscious mind easily without your permission. Neither could I work, nor could I concentrate on anything else. I am not myself. The tune goes everywhere it intended to go, but never loses focus. Just like a kite, it races straight, swivels, rotates, slows down, angles itself, makes a deep cut depending on the breeze and wind and the way it is handled, but always in Maestro’s tight-control.

The situation of this song is very unique and interesting. A man is in his dream. He is dreaming about a girl who is singing this song. Even though it is his dream, the girl is singing about her dreams, her desire, may be about him. A dream inside a dream! Till that dream, it was just another girl for him, but when he realizes and recalls his dream, he may have just found his girl.

Outstanding lyrics by Panchu Arunachalam. Beautiful imagination! If there is any singer who can do justice to this composition, it can be none other S Janaki. A thoroughly divine voice and singing. She brings the nature in front of us in her singing. We can feel the chill breeze over her when she is singing. She brings the youth and naughtiness in her singing. She brings the innocence in her singing. Most of all she brings life into the song. As Sivakumar (in Maestro’s voice) tells to Rajiv (K J Yesudas) in Urangaatha Ninaivugal, 'if you sing this song as per my expectation, the girl will be at your feet'. Same way, if any girl sings this song like how SJ sang, the boy will be at her feet.

KuyilE kavikkuyilE...
yaar varavai thEdugiraai
manasukkuL aasai vaikka mannan vandhaanaa
KuyilE kavikkuyilE...
yaarai yeNNi paadukiraai
uravukku arththam solla kaNNan vandhaanaa (2)(kuyilE)

iLamai sadhiraadum thOttam
kaayum kaniyaanadhE...
inimai suvai kaaNum uLLam
thanimai uravaadudhE...
jaadai sonnadhu yen kaNgaLE...
vaadai koNdadhu yen nenjamE...
kuyilE avarai varach cholladi
idhan mOhanam paadidum peNmai...adhaichcholladi..(kuyilE)

paruva sezhippinilE
paniyil nanaindha malar
sirikkum sirippennavO
ninaikkum ninaippennavO
mella...mella... angam yengum thuLLa thuLLa
aLLikkoLLa yennai vella idhudhaanE nEram
arththam solla kaNNan vandhaanaa
idhai moovanam kaattidum mullai yenachcholladi (kuyilE)

yennai aatkoNda thaagam
yendrum oru raagamE...
indru naan koNda vEgam
yendrum unakkaagavE...
vaazhvil minnal pOl vandhadhu
yaarO yevarO yaar kaNdadhu
kuyilE therindhaal varachcholladi
oru thEnmalar vaadudhu yendru nee solladi… (kuyilE)

Hear the tune. There is not a single second we don’t love this song. There is not a single second if anything is out of place. After Maestro starts the pallavi higher, he brings it down beautifully in anu-pallavi. After this, we are into totally different world when she starts the charanam; iLamai sathiraadum thOttam again higher followed by kaayum kaniyaanadhE dipping it slightly lower, how sweet to hear this. Then the fifth line; jaadai sonnathu en kaNgaLE. When she sings kuyilE avarai varacholladi, I thought that is the last line of charanam. Maestro then springs a surprise by throwing that additional line which takes the sweetness quotient way higher; idhan mOhanam paadidum peNmai adhaichcholladi. I also tend to think this last line is almost a pallavi line. As if Maestro tuned the pallavi line as the last line of charanam. This is what I call a complex tune and structuring yet so simple and easy to ears. A brilliant AbhEri raagam, which gives us a breath of fresh air to this raagam and also bringing out its essence like a ‘amirtham’.

I can’t express Maestro’s virtuosity here. Truly an unbelievable composition. What a genius this man is! I do not want to talk about Maestro’s orchestration skills, especially the flute, will leave it to experience it again and again. I want to talk about the sweetness of the song endlessly, but I am continuously lost on words. If you ask my favorite S Janaki’s songs, I would rate this one as at the top. It’s so magical, that I don’t want to come out of this dream, do you?

When the world is running around catchy starting phrases in a song, which lasts only for few seconds, ignoring the aspect that the song lasts for 4-5 minutes, here comes a composition which not only lasts for 4 minutes when listening, the reverberation lasts in us for a life time and more. When the world is going gaga over 'over-processed' loud rhythm beats and soul-less melodies, here comes a melody which shakes us forever. When the world is blindly behind monotonous mood in music for all emotions, here comes our Maestro painting depression in all of us as depicted in this visual poetry. When the audience are robbed of having a glimpse of a scene for hardly a second (due to abrupt editing and cuts), here comes a director who is in no haste, provides ample time for the audience to grasp the scenario, mood and emotions, not even in color, but just in black and white. When world is hyping mediocre chopped lines, here comes our lyricist who brings the depressed women in front of us through these memorable lines. Last but not the least, when the world is giving highest honors for undeserving ones, here comes our lady who was even neglected by our own people, but rightly found by a genius, who gave this deserved honor and accolade through this composition. Whether she justified this honor?



No question about it. Just when she starts vaazhkai Odam sella aatril neerOttam illai, she already got all the honors from every heart who listens to her, not just from Maestro. The depression from her (Sripriya) got into us, just from the first phrase itself. If people are calling today's starting phrase as catchy, what do we call this? I'd call emptiness. If you are empty, only then you can fill up your heart and soul as much as you want. If that is just catchy, once your catch it, you are done, as you almost full, just that the catchy phrase makes you completely full. On the other hand the above composition, makes you empty every time you listen and you go on grasping as much you want. If Maestro has tuned this great melody, his job is not over until he selected S Janaki for it, otherwise we will not be talking about it after 35 years. Until he selected S Janaki he could not relieve his burden. Only after S Janaki sang, she transferred her burden to us. Only after we listeners like us listen to the song and share their thoughts, their burden will be relieved. If I said kuyilE kavikkuyilE as her best, I was wrong, until I heard this one. It is such a heavy song carrying subtle emotions.

If the first interlude is dominated by bass flute to give the sober shade, second interlude is dominated by classical violin (in two different pitches) followed by santhoor, acoustic drums ending with flute beautifully expressing the solitude feeling. Visually director Rudraiah arrests us with pure black and white cinematography sketching withered trees (blurred too!) and a solitary branch slowly waving to the wind, as she is adapting to the men driven society. I have not seen anything like this! When SJ sings 'oorengum mEdai raajaakkaL vEsham unmaiyil raajaakkaL illai', we hear a vibraphone passing over us like water in sea passing over our legs, beautifully captured visually. Again when SJ sings, 'ulagaththil peNmai uyarvaagavillai udhavaatha pushpangaL peNgaL, Sripriya is shown alone a dark bedroom with all windows closed, I could see how well the communication established between Maestro and the director. Then when pallavi is repeated, Sripriya is shown in a dark background. Visual poetry at its best!

S Janaki sang her heart out, throwing the expressions at will which is most needed for this ultimate composition. If I would classify Maestro songs based on the best first line tune and lyrics, this one will again top the list, for its immense beauty and the satisfaction it gives. I could not even go to second line and keep on singing the first line again and again. It is that seductive. Once we start exploring its beauty further, again it might take months or years to come back to pallavi again. I could even sense how kaviyarasar would have penned these lines hearing the situation. It must have just flown out of him spontaneously fearing its burden, but what a choice of words and its meaning!.

He brings the 'virakthi' just in three words; 'engO yEdho yaarO'. Genius!
yaarum thEril sella ooril thErum illai
engO yEdhO yaarO...

I don't know which was born first lyrics or tune, but both competing each other for musical poetry and word poetry, while S Janaki is competing for vocal poetry, the director competes for visual poetry making this composition evergreen as none of these four can be taken out and enjoyed separately. Everything is made to fuse in our heart and put deep inside, so that it does not escape from us until our soul escapes our body.

If you don't cry for this song, let me take this golden opportunity to cry for you!

Having spent my whole childhood of 14 years right from my kindergarten to +2 in the same school, I could say the power of church bells and the silence when we enter the church is beyond any worldly comforts and material thirst. I can't forget this day as I still remember we had special prayers at school every year. What a sad day! Excellent song to heal the pain. A melody like never before and never after. Interesting situation. The boy lost his mother and she has another mother to console and take care of him, yet he could not forget his mother. The accompanying veena, mridangam (for this song!) and solo violin (in first interlude) will tear out the heart. The violin gushes (in third interlude) when his mother is about to break-down followed by consoling veena (to console the kid), aha!

On top of it, we have another genius hands.
மேய்ப்பன் இல்லாத மந்தை வழி மாறுதே (SJ's aalapanai after this line has so much motherly affection in it)
மேரி  உன் ஜோதி  கண்டால் விதி மாறுதே
…
காவல் இல்லாத ஜீவன் கண்ணீரிலே 
கரை கண்டிடாத ஓடம் தண்ணீரிலே 
அருள்தரும் திருச்சபை மணியோசை கேட்குமோ மாதா 
...
பிள்ளை பெறாத  பெண்மை தாயானது 
அன்னை இல்லாத மகனை தாலாட்டுது 
கர்த்தரின் கட்டளை நான் என்ன சொல்வது மாதா

S Janaki should be bestowed with all recognitions in the world for singing this song with utmost perfection. Every word gets its re-birth (punarjenmam) when she brings forth the expressions. There are numerous reasons on why Maestro is God when it comes to music, but here is one reason why Maestro is Mother. The word 'maadha' is enough to heal any pain!