Continued from part 6

Part 7

Change is a difficult thing to accept. The idea, that one has to do away with whatever was comfortable and working till then and embrace a new paradigm, whose present is uncertain and whose future is not set yet, is not quite comforting. The inevitable question "why new" that one has to find a satisfactory answer for while embarking on this new path, would spring up unexpected, surprising and immensely satisfying results, if persevered intensely and in the right direction. And this question is much more relevant in creative fields, where the fade-away factors and the half-lives of whatever just arrived on the scene are as rapid as they are unforgiving. It can be said categorically that film music followed a particular set pattern composing of the regular <i>pallavi</i>, an optional <i>anupallavi</i>, followed the two or three charaNams, spaced apart by interludes. The interludes either followed the rAgam that the pallavi ended on or segued into a different one for the purpose of handing it off to the following charaNam. The primary function of the interlude was being a bridge. Similarly the lead music ("ettugaDa") was supposed to be a very brief introduction of the song to follow without drawing too much attention to itself. The pattern was set long ago and was pretty much adhered to right from the advent of music in films till not so long ago, until this new voice came along and started questioning this very structure. Why does the lead music have to be brief, why do the interludes have to play second fiddle to remaining parts of the song, why do words alone have to dictate the mood and tone of the song, why can't the choice of instruments and the orchestration bridge the gap between the mind and the heart? The new voice that started out being a distinct one transformed into a force that changed the very course of film music -Illayaraja

The sounds of steps jogging along lingers for a few seconds, followed by a brief cordial greet conversation by the joggers. The steps continue to along. A distant voice tries to jump start the song by letting out a flat yell stuffing in a couple of notes. The joggers heartily laugh at his and as the laughs die down, an acoustic guitar strums gently establishing the rhythm before giving into the song "paruvamaa chilipi parugu teeyaku, parugulO pantaalu pOvaku" (mouna geetam). A full couple of minutes go by with all the different sounds of footsteps, conversations, throaty yells, and the beautiful intro, each taking its own sweet time to establish the mood the song before the lyrical part of the song screams into life. Similarly, observe the song "mounamaelanOyI" from sAgara sangamam. The serenity of the full moon on a summer night, the tranquility of a mild breeze blowing across the face, the welcome silence of the moment captured in that beautiful lead-in music melting into the "alaapana" of S.Janaki defines Illayaraja's approach. Flouting all the existing norms and rules that have shackled the structure of the song till that point of time, Illayaraja's experiments and contributions finally put these two pieces, the intro and the interludes, on the same pedastal as the rest of the pieces. During much of late 70s when film music was undergoing a lot of upheaval into reinventing itself completely in a commercial mould, thanks to all the western influences, Illayaraja lent his baton to create the perfect fusion of the two kinds of philosophies, sounding western beats in eastern mould and eastern melodies in westerns patterns.

Balu's association with Illayaraja is illustrious and rewarding. Up until the 80s when Illayaraja was just a break away music director, trying to find his niche among the rest of the budding and struggling music directors, he was constantly experimenting with the form, creating some memorable tunes in the process. During that period, Balu had the privilege of lending his voice to both telugu counterparts and the tamil originals, bringing Illayaraja closer to the telugu audience as much as he endeared him to the tamil populace. <i>vayasu pilichindi (a bilingual), manmadha leela, mouna geetam, erra gulaabi, tik tik tik </i> to name a few. <i>"kuSalamaenaa kurradaana nee hrudayamu Saantinchenaa", "ilaagae ilaagae saraagamaaDitae vayyaaram ee yavvanam ooyaloogitae", "chelimi lO valapu raagam valapulO madhura bhaavam", "O naTana mayoori vayyaari" </i> and such which were a hallmark of his music during the late 70s, amply reflected his prowess in a variety of genres, while constantly demonstrating his need to bring a different sound that bore his stamp all over. Just like Madan Mohan's fierce loyatly to Mohd. Rafi and Lata, O.P. Nayyar's constant promotion of Asha Bhosle, Illayaraja stuck to Balu and S.Janaki for a majority of songs throught his formative years and his undivided attention to them brought out some remarkable duets that remain high points in all their careers. Once the telugu field accepted Illayaraja as one of thier own, giving him the opportunities as any native music director, started an era that could undoubtedly be classified as Illayaraja's best and in the same vein Balu's best too.

"maaTae raani chinna daani kaLLu palikae oosulu" (O paapaa laali)- Balu's truly breathless song, "guTToo maTToo choosi puTToo macchanu choosi, takkuna paTTaeyaali nakkanu tOkkaeyaali, porapaDi parulaku doraka", chugged along Balu in a break-neck speed, "paapa eeDu gOla, paaTa paeru jOla, oogutOndi baala, yavvanaala gOla" crooned Balu at his basest best, "sarigaa vedikitae saradaa dorakaka tappadurO, jatalO atikitae jarigae choravika cheppakurO" ribbed Balu at his mimicking best, "sangeetamlO maaTalaaDaDam, maaTalanae sangutulu chaeyaDam, sangatulanae sadgatulanukonaDam sarigaa telusukonnaa eenaaDu" rapped Balu in a classical style. In the classical forum (or the semi- variant of it, which loosely passes off as pure classical in movies), that would remain as the benchmark and yardstick for awarding validity and respectability to the singer, Illayaraja and Balu's forays are equally commendable. "naTaraaju nayanaalu deevinchagaa, naayOga phalamaina, neejeeva dhanamaina naaTya sudhaanidhi arpinchanaa" (aalaapana), "nAda vinOdamae naaTya vilaasamu parama sukhamu padamu" (sAgara sangamam), "keeravAni, chilakala kolikirO paaDavaemae, valapulae telupagaa" (anvaeshaNa) and many such more. The melodies had their place, the fast beats had their time, the classicals were given their due, the folk songs had their say, the commercial ventures found enough weightage, all in all, irrespective of the brand of music, the combination of Illayaraja and Balu covered the different facets of telugu film music leaving their indelible marks along the way. And in between, there always remained some more space for trying out something new. Illayaraja's cause furthered Balu's innate talent, Balu's ability championed Illayaraja's musical movement. Quid pro quo and the telugu film music is forever indebted to it.

(continued in part 8)

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