The best composers Ilaiyaraaja Happy Birthday sir

As music maestro Ilaiyaraaja celebrates his 76th birthday on Saturday, I wondered how this one musician has a hold over even the younger generation. I was born almost 15 years after Ilaiyaraaja debuted in the industry, yet I love his music as much as my mother who was born in the late 60s.

His music is magical and can transport you anywhere. I might not have watched all the films that he composed music for, but I have made it a point of listen to his music because it is not just an additional prop for a film but it has a life of its own. For instance, the song ‘Thendral vandhu theendumbothu enna vannamo, manasula (what is the colour you see in your mind at the touch of breeze)’ is a song that is in my playlist even today, so is ‘Nee partha parvaikku oru nandri (I am thankful for the way you glanced at me)’. And I cannot imagine not listening to them in the future. So what spell has he cast on us? To answer this question, I went where I usually take my questions to — Quora. Not surprisingly, I found multiple threads about the maestro.

All of them referred to one thing — Ilaiyaraaja’s music simply had a connect with its audience. Heartbreak, new love, friendship, there was a song for any given scenario and all of them would move your heart. Ilaiyaraaja’s music is the best way to destress after a busy day, or beat your Monday blues. Monsoon is the best season to listen to some of his songs, like the ones in Rajinikanth-starrer Johnny, Thalapathi, and Kamal Haasan’s Thevar Magan. 2018 is a special year for the composer, as in January, the maestro of Madras was awarded the Padma Vibushan for his achievement in the field of music and movies. Though he deserved this recognition much earlier, Ilaiyaraaja gracefully accepted the same. He will also be working with his sons Yuvan Shankar Raja and Karthik Raja together for the first time in his career.