The book Alliyaambalkkadavu is VR Sudheesh’s paean to romance in Malayalam film songs over the last six decades
VR Sudheesh is on song. He relates every moment, every emotion with music, especially with film songs that he grew up listening to. That is the reason why this wordsmith enjoys writing about songs and musicians. He began with a column ‘Aathmagaanam’, in a Malayalam daily, in which he drew parallels between his personal experiences and film songs. Later, his article on romantic songs that appeared in a magazine was published as a book, Pranayachandrakantham (Olive Publications). Now available on the stands is a new version of that book, Alliyaambalkkadavu .
“The publisher (DC Books) wanted me to explore the film music of Kerala over the last six decades, to coincide with the diamond jubilee of the state of Kerala. So I reworked my old book, adding more songs and works of musicians,” says Sudheesh, a faculty member at Sree Narayana College, Chelannur, Kozhikode.
All about music
He can’t remember when and how music became a part of his being. “I always wanted to be a singer. My father was a strong influence. Songs, both film songs and drama songs, made my world. The popular singers I listened to were my teachers. It was through songs that I even learnt the language,” he says.
Sudheesh avers that there was a time when writing about film songs was looked down upon.
“P Bhaskaran once said that songs are like flowers that bloom in paddy fields. They bring joy to our eyes, but wither away after a time only to bloom again. There was a time when those who wrote about film songs were ridiculed; they were referred to as Kodambakkathe Kavi ! Stung by the criticism, I ensured that my writing was backed by research,” he says.
He believes that romance cannot be kept out of our film songs. “I equate song and music with romance,” he says.
The book looks into some of the evergreen romantic songs in Malayalam. It isn’t just a listing of the songs, instead he goes deep into the lyrics of the songs, the composition, the rendition and even the picturisation. His observations are also reflective of the times when the songs were released.
Through the numbers he looks at the various moods and hues of love – the passion, longing, separation, imagery and so on.
The focus is on stalwarts such as Vayalar Ramavarma, Bhaskaran and ONV Kurup. “What came handy was my doctoral thesis. My research topic was the representation of images and symbols of Kerala in the songs of Vayalar, ONV and Bhaskaran. One of the chapters is about how Malayalis express romance through songs and that research helped me when I wrote about 101 romantic numbers in my previous book,” he says.
Unbeatable trio
He avers that the three lyricists are different from each other and cannot be compared. “Bhaskaran’s verses have an abundance of images intrinsic to Kerala. There is a simplicity and homeliness in the terms he use. Vayalar is different in that he is highly philosophical. He creates a world of fantasy and one can find influences of Kalidasa in Vayalar’s works. If Vayalar used terms such as ‘Sanyasini’ or ‘Chakravarthini’ or ‘Thapaswini’, Bhaskaran wrote ‘Priyamullaval’ or ‘Pranasakhi’. Meanwhile ONV was more like a college lecturer, there was a certain scholarly element in the words he used. Then there is Sreekumaran Thampy who brought in a new music idiom that was more visual, without imitating any of these three,” he explains.
Sudheesh begins the book with the song Kaayalarikathu valayerinjappo... from Neelakkuyil , the song, which he insists that every lover of the 50s might have sung for his beloved. “When the film was released in 1954, it is said that the viewers sang along when the song was played on screen.”
Sudheesh makes special note of female singers. “It was in P Leela’s voice that Devarajan master found the perfect voice for a typical Malayali woman. When I listen to some songs sung by P Susheela and S Janaki for K Raghavan, Baburaj and Chidambaranath, I feel that the singers capture the essence of the language and culture.”
Immortal melodies
A lot of popular songs have been mentioned in the book, which were not listed in Pranayachandrankantham . “I deliberately avoided those songs because much has been written about them. But I chose to include them in the new book.” He says that if the magic of Thamasamenthe Varuvan (Bhargavinilayam) was in the fine blend of writing, music, singing and picturisation, Anjanakkannezhuthi (Thacholi Othenan) is the best example of a composer’s ability to write evocative verses ( bhavageetham ) in Malayalam. “Bhaskaran brought in a charm and sweetness to that song that even leading Vadakkanpattu writers couldn’t achieve till then.”
He lavishes praise on Brahmanandan, Baburaj, P Jayachandran, Kozhikode Abdul Khader, and Raghunath Seth (who composed for just one film, Aarnanyakam ). “The magic is still there in Jayachandran’s voice. Recently I heard him sing at an event and the way he improvises is amazing. The songs sound new and fresh,” he says.
Sudheesh has an explanation for concluding the book with the song Pinneyum from Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu , a melodic number from Vidyasagar-Gireesh Puthenchery team. “Gireesh was a close friend and I wanted to wind up the book with him. It is also true that I no longer find present-day songs as appealing as the old ones. They seem to have become mere showpieces in movies. Yesteryear singers were lucky that they could sing songs with meaningful lyrics set to tune by artistes who understood the soul of the lyrics.”
Published - April 13, 2017 10:15 am IST
