In search of myself

(Impulsive post. I am sure I'll be embarrassed when I read it after a few days/weeks/years) :-)

We change. In many ways. We change as a friend, as a son/daughter, as a significant other and in many other ways. Whether the change is for good or not, is something that’s unknown. There’s this thing, I miss the old me. How this change occurred is something that’s unknown to me. Was it me, the place, the people, or life as such? I am unable to pinpoint at one thing.

It’s interesting how you can relate to a song, especially with its lyrics, even though the meaning of the lyrics and the reason for you to relate to it needn’t necessarily have a connection or a common premise. I miss the old me, or rather an old part of me. And I don’t think I could have summarized it better than a few lines in this song. However narcissistic this might sound, considering the old me was a part of me, in fact my better half, is what I’ve come to believe. Running away from myself is something that’s probably happened.

thalaivaa sugama sugama? un thanimai sugama sugama?
How is your solitude doing?

sirumai kandu thavitthen en siragail ondrai muritthen, ottrai chiragil oona paravai etthanai dhooram parappen?
I ended up breaking one of my wings, and how far can I fly with just one wing?

anbae unnai veruththen, en arivai naane eriththen, uravin perumai pirivil kandu uyiril paadhi kuraindhen
I absolutely hated you and in the process burnt my intelligence, I realized the importance of relationships and lost half of my soul.

After all, vaazhkkai or vattam pol mudindha idatthil thodangadha, is surely what one wants, right? :-) (can life not start at an ending point like how a circle does?)

And nothing better than this to ask myself: Unn poigal ellaam sugamaa-aaa?  (Are your lies all fine?)

And does ‘Kuraigal ullathu manitha uravugal puriyadha?’ (aren’t human relationships allowed to be flawed?) answers it all. With respect to I, Me and Myself.

(These lines from Azhage Sugamaa and Anbe Sugamaa, two absolutely wonderful songs from the movie Paarthaale Paravasam. Sung by Sadhana Sargam and Srinivas and composed by A.R.Rahman)

Amma Un Pillai

Naan Kadavul is one of the movies that I might not watch ever in my lifetime, though I want to. Bala's movies are something that I so want to watch, since I know they are quite different from the run-of-the-mill movies. I was kind of scarred by the ending of Sethu (which was the only scene I saw in the movie), skipped Nandha (thanks to the trailers shown by Sun TV), and saw Pithamagan first half featuring Surya and Laila's comedy. I probably would have watched NK, if Ajith starred in it, since I was a loyal Ajith fan till a while ago. Unfortunately that didn't happen and Arya acted in it getting rave reviews.

The Maestro reworked on a few of his earlier scores and created magic with his music in this movie. One of the songs that will linger on in your mind for a long time is this song 'Amma Unn Pillai.'

This song starts with a gruffy Lata-Mangeshkar-kind-voice, and sails smoothly only to unravel that Sadhana Sargam is singing this song. Reworked from one of his songs in the early 80's Ilayaraja makes it very contemporary and probably apt for the movie.

The violin piece before the first charanam is a classic composition, and the interlude before the second charanam reminds you of the really good 1980's music. The interlude before the third charanam is something that you would have definitely heard in the movie climaxes, but the way the Maestro mixes it into this song is really superb. Hopefully this is picturized on screen well. That way Bala picturized a lot of his songs so very well including: Malaiyil Vethanai in Sethu, Mun Paniya in Nandha and Elangathu in Pithamagan.

One of the very few songs with three charanams these days had wonderful lines like --- 'Vidhi enum Ezhuthellam Vizhi neeril Azhiyum Or Neram,' and 'Jenmangalil Paavam Pen Jenmame, Bandhangal Endru Sonnal Thunbangale.' The latter one is true!

Not a typical song of Sadhana, this needed a lot of emphasis on the words, which she has not mis-pronounced the words, which is good (including the hard 'zh' in 'Vidhi enum Ezhuthellam Vizhi neeril Azhiyum Or Neram' ). Though she gets a little screechy in the high pitches, she maintains the sober tone of the song. I would'nt call it her best rendition, but it surely is one rendition, she will definitely be proud of. From a gruffy voice in the first line to a sweeter voice in the charanams, she sails through the songs very well. And she definitely puts in a lot of emotions into this song.

In a time of really past paced songs with non-sensical or non-decipherable lyrics this is sure to stand out :)

My favorite singers and their songs in Indian film music - Part I

Till early 2000, I paid no attention to the music credits of an album/movie. I really didn't realize the importance of the singers contribution to the song. This could partially be because of my lack of exposure to music apart from Ilayaraja songs which (until then) featured the usual SPB, KJY, S. Janaki and Chitra. A.R. Rahman did introduce new singers in every album of his, but as I said I was not exposed too much to his songs.

Alaipayuthey's music in March/April 2000 made a big difference to my ears. The Bru coffee commercial with 'Snehidhane' in the backdrop made me wonder who sung this song. It surely was not Chitra, Sujatha, Kavitha Krishnamoorthi, Nithyashree or Harini (the ones that sung a lot of songs then). It surely was a North Indian singer, but not Alka Yagnik. I got the cassette of Alaipayuthey along with Kandukonden (both of them musical wonders) and went over the cover and it was a singer named Sadhana Sargam. I was like - 'Have I heard her before?, Why hasn't she been singing too many songs?.' Right after that I saw she had Konjum Mainakkale in Kandukonden. I started liking her a lot after 'Anbae Idhu Nijamthana' - which was a totally overlooked song in the album Rhythm. The instrumentation in the song is near perfect.
It was then that I started following the singers and I can proudly say - I can recognise most of the singers in songs (atleast until 2005 or 2006, now there are lot new singers).

Sadhana Sargam - She was, is and shall remain one of my favorite singers in Indian music. Her tamil pronunciation may have not be good during her initial years, but for a North Indian - she surely sings better off now with the subtleties in zh, la, and La these days. And probably, I didn't really understand the lyrics of the songs. She won a national award for rendering a Tamil song 'Pattu Solli', I felt it was not her best and definitely had better songs before that and after that. A few of her songs (actually many of them) which are my favorites (in no specific order) can be found at the end of this blog (I removed it from here since it was a tad too long list :P ):

In most of the songs, Sadhana was accompanied by Hariharan, who happens to be another of my favorite singers. Hariharan, introduced to the regular people like me by A.R.Rahman in Roja is probably one singer who does a lot of improvisations on stage and never will his rendition on stage sound like the actual one. With a crispy voice, he had gems like Pachai Nirame (Alaipayuthey), Vennilave, Poi Solla Koodathu Kaadali (Run), Uyire (Bombay), Ay Hairathey (Guru), Thottal Poo Malarum (New), Irava Pagala (Poovellam Kaettupar), Kandukonden, Nila Kaigiradhu (Indira), Nahin Samne (Taal), Yamuna Theeram (Anand) and many more. I was lucky enough to watch him perform live in Phoenix and also had a picture taken with him.

In 2002, I awaited for the movie that stirred up emotions - Kannathil Muthamittal. The title track sung by Chinmayi and Jayachandran was simply spectacular, and the versatile Chinmayi found a fan in me. Her song for the TV soap - Anbulla Snehithiye is probably one of the very few title tracks of soaps that was remembered for its softness and sereneness (as opposed to the loud ones). Chinmayi has evolved as a successful film singer, RJ, TV anchor, dubbing artiste apart from the classical singer and dancer she originally is. A few of her songs that are my favorites - Tere Bina (Guru), I Miss you da (Sakkarakatti), Oru Nanban Irundhal (Ennake 20 Unakku 18), Santipomma (E20U18), Oru Deivam Thantha (Kannathil), Sahana Saaral (Sivaji), En Uyir Thozhiye (Kangalal Kaidhu Sei), Enna Ithu (Nala Damayanthi), Enadhuyirae (Bheema). As a dubbing artiste she did a real good job in Jillunu Oru Kadhal, amongst many others. She also was a good anchor on the show Airtel Super singer.

Speaking of Super Singer, the three judges on the show - Unnikrishnan, Sujatha Mohan and Sreenivas have been my favorite singers at some point of time. Unnikrishnan had gems in Ennavale (Kadalan - his very first song), Narumughaye (Iruvar), Kuliruthu (Taj Mahal), Sudum Nilavu (Thambi), Verenna (Minnale), Poovukkul (Jeans), Kaatre En Vaasal (Rhythm), Thirakadha (En Swaasa Katre), O Vennila (Kadhal Desam), Thendrale (Kadhal Desam), Veesum Katrukku (Ullasam), Nejodu Kalanthidu (Kadhal Konden).

Srinivas - the melody breaker 'Netru Munniravil Unnil' in Snehidhane is probably the only male singer with such a soft voice who made it big by singing select songs that provided justice to him and the song. His 'Mangalyam thanthunanena' will probably have taught most people (including me) the unforgettable wedding sthotram. 'Kaisi Hai Yeh Rut' from Dil Chahta Hai is one of the unforgettable melodies in Hindi cinema. Add Azhage Sugama (Paarthale Paravasam), Ennai Panthada (Ullam Ketkume), Kadhal Solvadhu (Badri), Chotta Chotta (Taj Mahal), Alangatti Mazhai (Thenali) to the list of my favorite songs. His one minute song - Mouname Unnidam from Mozhi was a good one and and fitted well in the movie too. The fast-paced Asathura in E20U18 was yet another song by this soft-spoken singer.

Sujatha mesmerized everyone in Netru Illada Maatram from Pudhya Mugham. Re-discovered by A.R.Rahman in Pudhu Vellai Mazhai (Roja), Sujatha was an integral part of many good albums that came out in the late 90's and early 2000's. Poo Pookkum Osai (Minsara Kanavu), Athisayam (Jeans), En Veettu Thottathil (Gentleman), Nejodu Kalanthidu (Kadhal Konden), Aasai Aasai (Dhool), Ishq Bina (Taal), Paadava (Little John), are few of my favorite songs of this ever-smiling singer whose daughter is beginning to make waves in the music world.

To be continued.... with many other singers and their songs.

Sadhana Sargam favorites:

Vennilave (Chanda Re) - Minsara Kanavu (Sapnay)
Chudithar Anindhu - Poovellam Kaettupar
Snehidhane (Chupke Se) - Alaipayuthey (Saathiya)
Anbae Idhu - Rhythm
Anbae Sugama and Azhage Sugama - Paarthale Paravasam
Dil Mera Ek Tara - 16 December
Pehla Nasha - Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander
Akkam Pakkam - Kireedam
Swaasame - Thenali
Amma Un Pillai - Naan Kadavul
Udhaya Udhaya Ularaile - Udhaya
Naina Neer Bahai, Piya Ho, Aayo Re - Water
Poo Vaasam - Anbe Sivam
Merke Merke - Kanda Naal Mudhal
Ragasiyamai and Un Perai Sonnale - Dum Dum Dum
Aao Naa - Kyun Ho Gaya Naa
Kitni Baatein - Lakshya
Kuch Naa Kaho - Kuch Naa Kaho
Gup Chup Baatein - Love You Hamesha (unreleased)
Ahista Ahista - Swades
Pani Katre - Run
Manmadhanae - Manmadhan
Kaadu Thiranthe - Vasool Raja MBBS
Kadhal Vandhadhum - Poovellam Un Vaasam
Kadhal Vettukili - Parasuram
Enadhuyire - Bheema
Kalaiyil Dhinamum - New
Thigu Thigu - Ah Aah

And I guess this list got a little too long :) .

Music still rejuvenates

An addendum to an earlier post about musical rejuvenation, or call it a sequel. The quality of Indian film music has mostly seen a downward trend these days, with most movies having soulless music, but there are a few movies with really good music. I list a few songs which I think are a class apart from the run-of-the-mill stuff.

A classical composition in Reethigowla raagam - Kangal Irandal from the movie Subramaniyapuram, is a sure shot on the list. Apparently the movie is refreshing too, so is its music. Two new singers with a classical background have made a big difference to this song. Takes you back to the good old feel of 1980’s (not that I know how it was!)

‘Ada – The way of life’ is a a long-delayed project of A. R. Rahman, and I feel it is the album of the decade with the class of songs varying over a decade. ‘Meherbaan’ by the Mozart of Chennai is a classic, and Gum Sum, a simple number is my next favorite.

The audio release of Ada was on the same day as that of Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, I guess only Rahman can give two albums with different themes at the same time. Ada is a long-term classic, while Jaane Tu is an instant classic. One shouldn’t compare the two albums ever.

While I have written a lot of not-so-good things about the song Marudhaani in Sakkarakatti, this song along with all the other songs in the movie is my favorite. I miss you da is the best one, (even though people have mixed opinion about it) followed by Taxi, Chinnamma, and Elay. I am sure, I will have my girlfriend sing ‘I miss you da’ in the same cute way, or better – even cuter.

The title track of U, Me Aur Hum by Shreya Ghoshal and also by Vishal is one more of the good stuff in recent times, and surely suited the tempo of the movie as well.

The Konjum Mainakkale of 2008, ‘Mukundha Mukundha’ is something that made me wonder if Himesh Reshamiya had actually composed the song. A good devotional song sung by one of my favorites Sadhana Sargam, had a bad rendition on-screen with an over-acting Asin. A good work by HR, the lyricist and the singer too. Only if she had not sung Varam thaa as Varam dhaa, (at times I felt it would become Verandah :) ).

While all the songs in Jodhaa Akbar had good music, my favorite is In Lamhon Ke Daaman Mein. Flawlessly rendered by Sonu Nigam and Madhushree, it indeed is a definite addition to the top romantic melodies of all time. And one more good thing about the movie is that all songs were picturized well in the movie (Hrithik in the state of trance in Khwaja Mere Khwaja was ……..)

Minnal Koothadum from Polladhavan is a good one too, with Bombay Jayshree giving her best again.

I also heard the songs from Dhaam Dhoom and Saroja, and am beginning to like a few. But not enough times as Sakkarakatti or Ada or Jaane Tu, to write about it.

As usual, ARR songs form a major chunk in this list. Plus, I am back to the habit of writing long blogs. Wonder who reads them though :)

Mahima Naach 2007

With two of my favorite singers coming to perform in AZ, it was another concert that I would crave to attend. Plus an added bouns was that one of my friends Shilpa Sangam was performing a couple of dances for the songs. I just expected it to be an ordinary fare with few people turning up and the concert not being too entertaining, since the singers were either fairly new or not too popular to gather a big enough crowd like how Hariharan’s or SPB’s concerts do. But I was mistaken. The crowd was definitely less compared to the other concerts that I have been to. But, I would say it was a 4-hour stint that I would love to experience again and again. The entire atmosphere was filled with claps and whistles, and never have I seen it in close quarters like this for a music concert. Plus the dances were all very well choreographed and pretty lively. It never got repetitive. If at all there was monotony, I would say it was the number of Tamil songs that were sung. Agreed it was a predominantly Tamil crowd, but there were others too, and there should have been emphasis on other language songs too. However, I cannot complain, since I knew almost all songs and I was happy that I saw my favorite singers singing them, just for me! :)

It began with a medley (recorded) from Dhoom II and Jhoom Barabar Jhoom to introduce the Naach dance troupe.

Ganga started off with “Yeh Mera Dil” from the movie Don(new one). She was pretty good in this one and sounded fresh.

Unnikrishnan sang his popular “Roja Roja” from Kadhalar Dhinam, which had inputs from Ganga too.

My favorite Sadhana Sargam sang her ever-refreshing “Pehla Nasha” in the same spirits as sung 15 years ago. Unni Krishnan accompanied her on this one. It was a great duet. Sadhana made a mention that it was the first time she was pairing with Unni for a concert and a song. Sadhna Sargam then sung her popular track “Saath Samunder” from Vishwathma – a foot-tapping number. She ended the song with “Le Gayee” from Dil to Pagal Hai.

This was followed by a dance for Dola re Dola re from Devdas. This was played from a CD probably. My friend danced for this one.

Another of my favorites Karthik, (the man behind “Ale Ale” and “Maya Maya”) came to the stage. He mentioned it was his first tour to the US and he was getting nervous and would sing one song and then begin talking. The song he sung was apt for him, “Shakthi Kodu” from Baba, and it gave him enough Shakthi to engage us till the very end of the concert. He then sung his song form Run – “Theradi Veethiyil”. He made it pretty interactive with the inputs from the crowd itself. He sings ‘Theradi Veethiyil Devathai Vandhaal’ and the crowd would complete the line. This went on and we all thoroughly enjoyed it.

Unni Krishnan and Ganga sung the classic “Narumughaiye” from Iruvar. Ganga couldn’t match upto Bombay Jayshree’s rendition though. There was a Bharathnatyam dance with this song.

A person by name Prabhu, commonly called Bay Area SPB sang the Telugu version of “Vaaji Vaaji Sivaji” from Sivaji. Ganga accompanied him on this one. What Karthik calls his “fluke” Malayalam song is “Akale” from the movie by the same name and he sung this next.

My favorite song “Konjum Mainakale” from Kandukonden Kandukonden was rendered next by Sadhana Sargam pretty well and as I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, she has improved a lot in her Tamil rendition. She flawed though, in singing – En Peyarai Solliye Kuyilgal Koovattum as En Peyarai Solliye Paruvam Marattum, which still made sense, I guess.

Ganga sang the song “Barso Re” from Guru, and my friend danced for this one too.

This was followed by “Maro Maro” from Boys(Telugu), sung by Unnikrishnan, Ganga and Karthik, who said he had to be pardoned if he introduced his own lyrics to his Telugu rendition. The dance for this one deserves a special mention since the dancers had a chair on which they stood and danced at times.

Karthik then sung the current favorite “Karu Karu Vizhigalal” from Pachaikili Muthucharam. This had a good dance too.

Ganga then sang “Maargazhi Thingal” from Sangamam and Unnikrrishnan later joined in for this song. The song ended with a long “alaap” by Unnikrishnan which was really good.

Bay area SPB and Ganga sang Sivaji title song “Ballelakka”, next followed by an excellent rendition of “Banno Rani” from 1947:Earth by Sadhana Sargam. The sole Kannada song in the concert was by Bay area SPB and was Thai Thai Bangari a song of Dr. Rajkumar.

“Boom Boom”, a peppy number from Boys was brought alive by Karthik and Sadhana Sargam. Karthik did a good job with this one, and for once I got the right pronunciation of the lyrics of this song, otherwise butchered by Adnan Sami(I don’t blame him either). This had an interesting dance too.

Being a die-hard fan of the Hariharan-Sadhana pair, I felt pretty happy to listen to the rendition of “Chanda Re” from Sapnay, (aka Vennilave in Minsara Kanavu), by Unni Krishnan and Sadhana Sargam. It is one of Sadhana’s best songs and will remain to be.

The first song, a national-award winning one, something that brought him to film playback singing – “Ennavale” from Kadhalan was Unnikrishnan’s next.

Karthik then acknowledged Harris Jayaraj that he gave him some of his best songs and sang “Oru Maalai Ila Veyil Neram” from Ghajini.

Unnikrishnan and Ganga sang a song from the Tamil movie Dhil – “Un Samayal Araiyil” which apparently got him and Sujatha the best playback singers award from the Tamilnadu government.

Next was the one I was waiting for. Seven years ago, I first ever heard it with the Bru ads on the television. Also, the crowd cheered “Snehidhane” and Sadhana Sargam said ‘Woh hi aa raha hain’. Karthik began with the ‘Netru Munniravil Unnil’ and I felt simply out of the world. Sadhana Sargam began with “Chupke Se”, which disappointed me, since I wanted to listen to the Tamil song. But she didn’t completely disappoint me either. She did have bits of the Tamil song in between. The dance for this was very well choreographed too.

The song with the time-freeze technology in its video, “Ale Ale” from Boys was the next one sung by Karthik and Ganga. Karthik as usual was at his best. He said this song was to be recorded on a day when he had to leave to Singapore with his flight at 1 or 3 am. Apparently the song was not ready even at 7 pm and the recording began at 10 pm. And the lyricist Kapilan and director Shankar wrote bits and pieces of the song and Karthik and ARR would record it in gaps. Finally when he heard the end-product he was pretty happy. This is one of the beautiful songs visually too with the time-freeze technology(frst seen in Matrix).

“Mithwa” from Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna was the next one by Karthik and he said he simply loved this song and this was his first attempt at it. It was a reallt soothing number.

The next song was “Haira Haira Hai Rabba” from Jeans. Unnikrishnan and Karthik came to the audience to see which side of the audience was louder, which was a nice interactive thing. The song was a Telugu/Tamil mix.

Then was a short Medley with “alaaps” by Sadhana Sargam, Unnikrishnan and Karthik followed by a few numbers, Karthik was on the piano initially. Sadhana Sargam sang ‘Udhaya Udhaya Ularalile’ from Udhaya. Unni Krishnan – Katre En Vaasal from Rhythm, Ganga – Malargale from Love Birds, Karthik – Nila Kaagirathu from Indira. Then all of them sung the Kal Ho Na Ho title track, which wasn’t that pleasant to listen with Unni’s classical mix in it.

We thought this was the end of the concert, but it was not.

Next was Karthik’s number ‘Girl Friend’ from Boys. I have never liked this song(atleast in 2003), but after listening to it this time by Karthik himself, I figured out, it is indeed a fun song.
All the four of them then sung the famous ‘Kajra Re’ from Bunty Aur Babli. IT was a fun number, but there was no dance for this one…. wait…. the crowd had already begun to dance to the tune.

Unnikrishnan then rendered Uyirin Uyire from Khakha Khakha. He was out of sync initially and didn’t do a good job with the song.

Finally all the four of them sung – Mustafa Mustafa from Kadhal Desam. Karthik was really good on this one.

It was a refreshing concert for me, and most of the number were the ones on my playlist and it was different to listen to it real-time with the singers singing it. However, I would have preferred more songs form Sadhana Sargam and Karthik duo – they do have ‘Manja Kattu Maina’ and ‘Kadhal Vettukili’(not so popular). Karthik and Sadhana could have sung ‘Aao Naa’ and ‘Azhage Sugama’ pretty effectively too. However I cannot complain since it was indeed a lot of songs in the concert.

I would have loved to meet them backstage and speak to Karthik and Sadhana Sargam. However that didn’t happen. But, there is surely a next time. If Karthik is going to be in the US next for a concert, I would definitely be there. Same with my trip to India, I would want to attend one of his concerts for sure.

These concerts are full of excitement, enthusiasm, good crowd spirit and good entertainment value. I missed the ARR concerts this time, but that will never happen the next time ARR is in the US.

Enadhuyire

An instant blog for a new song! The song is Enadhuyire from the movie Bheema and music is by Harris Jayaraj.

This song from Bheema is sung by Sadhna Sargam, Chinnmayee, Sowmya Raoh and Nikhil Matthew(Vijay TV's Super Singer winner). Perhaps the promise of Harris Jeyaraj that he would give an opportunity for the SS winner, to sing in his film is finally made. I guess this is Sadhana Sargam's first song with HJ too.

Begins with Sadhna Sargam's voice then mixes into Chinnmayee's voice and some tabla followed by Nikhil Matthew's voice and Sowmya Raoh. He sounds a little like Naresh Iyer, but I am beginning to take back my words.

It is a pretty slow song, and this is the only one I heard in the album and developed an instant liking for this one. I like the "mmhhmm Tha"..... that the song begins with. And Sadhna Sargam's Tamil has improved greatly these days, as told about the song in Kireedam.

Though the song reminds me of a million other songs, it is still simple and sweet. The songs has a striking resemblance to Mayilirage in the initial stages, Munbe Vaa(esp. the Naan Naana Kaetten Ennai Naane..... is there in this song and one cannot miss that) and Aagaya Sooriyaai. Hope it is picturized well!

Music Rejuvenates!

This summer has been good to me in quite a few fronts. It gave me the time to look for lot of stuff, including good music, both new and old. I found a lot of songs that seem to be quite refreshing. Though they are all not favorites of the masses, they are distinct in their own right. And here is a list of songs that I developed a liking over this summer.

The first one that comes to my mind is Shauk Hai from Guru. The song comes in bits and pieces accompanying the subtleromance between Madhavan and Vidya Balan. Mainly with music from piano, it slowly grows on you. and Sowmya Rao who sung this has definitely put in great effort to get her best out.

Yeh Rishta from Meenaxi is seemingly refreshing both to hear and to see. Never have I seen a desert in such glory, nor have I heard someone who could sing a song as flawless as this one. Reena Bharadwaj, earlier heard in Baba Kichu Tha, is an underrated singer. A. R. Rahman simply does magic with this one again.

Dil Ne Jise Apna Kaha is yet another simple song with light orchestration. The piano interlude in this is simply marvelous. I have no ides who the singers of this one are, but whoever they are, they have done a great job.

Ennuyir Thozhiye from Kangalal Kaidhu Sei is one of ARR's best songs till date. I usually used to skip this song on my playlists, but I heard it one morning and since then I have been listening to it atleast once everyday. Chinmayi is at her best in this one, though she was excellent with Tere Bina and Sahana. I just compare this one with Sahana song from Sivaji. This has beautiful orchestration and her alaaps are too good. Unni Menon as usual is great with his rendition. But, what a tragic waste of good music for the crappy movie.

Nenjae Nenjae from Ratchakan is a great duet with KJ Yesudas and Sadhna Sargam. While Sadhna struggles with her Tamil, this is a gem of a song. I am not too sure what is the background of the song, but I guess it must be in an appropriate position. A simple song, with simple lyrics(simple for me to understand) went unnoticed.

Uppu Kallu from Karupasaamy Kuththagaidharar - I already have a post on this one.

Akkam Pakkam from Kireedam is a new one, but I developed an instant liking to this one. The video is also fine and both Ajith and Trisha look good in this one. Sadhana Sargam has come a long way in Tamil Music and has her pronunciation right in this one. It is a totally sweet song.

Unnai Kandane from Parijatham is a slow one with new singers. I also like the Edho Nadakkudu song from this movie. Not bad music for an apparently watchable movie. A refreshing song, with fresh faces and unseen locales.

Maula Mere Maula from Anwar is a soothing melody from Roopkumar Rathod. The movie was depressing though.

Achchi Lagthi Ho from Kuch Naa Kaho is a great duet with Udit Narayan and Kavita Krishnamurthy. It is distinctly different from the usual duets and has a pretty well-choreographed video too. Aishwarya Rai looks very much different from her usual plastic look.

That was a long list. I am just waiting to get a CD/MP3 player with good speakers and I will be listening to these songs and many more, to glory, rather than on my Dell Laptop.