Stumble Upon Raaja

You can define yourself a genuine fan or follower of something when you have learnt the art of distinguishing it/ them from the rest. So I feel, your benchmark to become a true Illaiyaraaja follower can be measured by the same postulate! But the challenge is, souls like Raaja are more trend setters than followers. And there are a few successful followers who tempt you to take the bait. So when you hear a good "Raaja - like" song that you have never heard before, the following can happen.

- You take a cautious approach.. You are not fully sure about its origin. Nonetheless you enjoy the song and make it a point to check who is the composer. When you find its not Raaja, you feel happy because you feel vindicated. (Eg: When I heard "Thulli Thulli pogum pennae"); But at the same time you feel sad because you couldn't be so sure yourself to begin with. You are still a boy, you are yet to make that crossover to a mature fan;

- Or You swear to death that, "this is Raaja..!"; Your beliefs are so strong that when you finally find out that its infact not Raaja, you see more red than disappointed. Because you refuse to believe the reality and rue on your wrong judgment at the same time.. because you have to deliberately downgrade the song you liked as it missed out on your definition of a good song, usually only accredited for Raaja's !! (Eg: When I heard songs like, "Oh... Ponmaanguyil Singaramaai", "Oru Kaadhal Enbadhu" for the first time); And actually on subsequent listening in hindsight, they no more seem as attractive as it was !!!

- Or You just know its Raaja. Verifying its authenticity is a mere matter of formality. (For example When I heard "IlaVenil Idhu Vaigasi Maadham" for the first time)

So recently I heard this one from a Talent hunt show - one from the 3rd category. The decent job of replication both by this aspiring singer and the accompanying orchestra didn't make me miss the original flavour for a first time listening.. The prelude was so rich with its whistle flute (like the one from the orchestration piece of "Isai Paadum Thendral"), that I was immediately convinced this is Raaja. Those Guitar strums through out the song and the rhythm arrangements with those variations.. Those out of the world chord sequences (Don't miss the augmentated chords on "Kathakal sollu nee" in first line.. bliss...) The unorthodox turn midway of the stanza's melody touching the chinna Gha and thus exhibiting the heights of innovation on an otherwise major oriented melody... I was dead sure this is Raaja. And I was smiling when the 2nd interlude started.. because I was expecting it to be strings show and sure it was.. that brahmaastra of Raaja, the "String Ensemble", again stamping its authority all over... my moments of self anointing glory.. for having expected the unexpected...

But a bigger boost when you come across such beauties is that, your day is made and you get this unusual satisfaction as if you have done something good yourself just listening to them while in reality the composer has just accomplished the divine task of exuberating his feelings through the listener.. The composition itself is a 20 or 30 or even centuries old is irrelevant, for its these numbers you call timeless...

With Love
Vicky

PS: Later I learnt from a friend that this song, 'Poonkaattinodum' is one of all time classic songs in Kerala from a movie called "Poomukhappadiyil ninneyum kaathu" and I might actually be jailed for tagging this an anonymous song.. I hope I am not alone !!