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Sivaji on Viswanathan, Ilayaraaja & AR Rahman

Topic started by NOV (@ 202.184.134.10) on Tue May 19 07:27:43 EDT 1998.
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

Guys - I know with a title such as this, many people would come rushing in. I couldn't resist it. :-)))

Sivaji was recently interviewed by Filmfare magazine. I have only extracted parts relevant to TFM.

Your comments please!


Can you compare music of yesteryears and now?

What music? Now all you have is rhythm. Thum, thum, thum is not music.

Are you talking about AR Rahman's music?

I am not talking about him in particular. But yes, he's the only one who has made a name for himself internationally. His name is a major advantage. People in the Gulf and Muscat talk about him. There are other good music directors around but they haven't made it to the international level.

Why couldn't MS Viswanathan get international recognition?

Because he was a Viswanathan. (Laughs). The name has a lot to do with it. So MS Viswanathan, Ilaiyaraja became famous only locally, because their names are South Indian.
I am Sivaji Ganesan. Many think I am a Maharashtrian. In Mumbai, even Bal Thackeray thinks I am a Maharashtrian. In Bangalore too, they have the same opinion. On one occasion every shooting was stopped in Mumbai, except mine. Because they felt I was Sivaji Rao! When the Sivaji statue in Mumbai was installed, I met half the expenses. When a dam collapsed in Maharashtra, I paid 11 lakhs to the then Chief Minister YB Chavan. So everybody there thinks I am a Maharashtrian. But I was born in Tanjore. What I'm trying to point out is that in the final analysis, the name counts.

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Responses:

• Old responses
  
• From: udhaya (@ 205.218.142.217) on: Thu May 21 18:17:30 EDT 1998
  
  Sreeni,
  There are other ARR fans like raja m, srikanth and others who are probably sick of discussing ARR and IR. I'm relatively new and hence may have my motor going on full tilt.
  I got no problems with Dev since he clarified his position. Perhaps I overreacted to his message, but I hate to be misunderstood. I have no problems with people hating me for something I actually said. Guys, there are some amazingly informed discussions in the Archives regarding almost all topics currently discussed, but especially about ARR/IR. If you thought I was hot go check these pages out, the guys in these pages are verbal volcanoes.
  
  
• From: raja m (@ ww-ti02.proxy.aol.com) on: Thu May 21 19:33:51 EDT 1998
  
  Udhaya:
  
  :)))
  
  
  
• From: whts_there_in_the_name (@ 195.63.95.203) on: Mon May 25 08:09:44 EDT 1998
  
  Well...
  I feel tht there is a bit of truth in Shivaji
  Ganesan's word. Nowadays, ur talent alone doesnt
  take u to the top. ur name/look and feel (?)/
  ur marketting skill/ur friendship with other
  big shots... something of this sort is needed to sell ur skill. Even, ARR quoated in his interviews that his new hair-style is one of the conditions laid down by Sony for Vantemaatram album. wht do u say for this?
  
  -wtitn.
  
  to myself: kuttaya-kuzhapparan pErvazhi'nnu
  neeyE kuzhambi pOttiyEda mundam!..look at ur
  name...doesn't it conflict?
  
  
• From: srinivas (@ 203.120.90.44) on: Thu May 28 00:29:55 EDT 1998
  
  I think AR' songs Are mainly tune catchy with lyrics taking a back seat, if there is one. So it is easy to use them for film in any language whereas in MSV or to a large extent IR days, lyrics also had a good share in the song and they could not transcend the borders very much.
  
  Also the budget for films are very excessive today and the film are produced at multi languages where the actors/actresses and music score must be appealing to all sections. Thus tunes take a prominent role than lyrics and there lies AR's strength.
  
  As to the names while there is some validity in what Sivaji says it is the media and publicity that matters. Spice girls are not muslims and if you ask many, they may not able to name the individual girls. Popularity of theirs and many more lie in media handlings. Westerners are adept at it, North Indians have some capabilities while South Indians have a long way to go ! A distraction - Rajini's stature to turn the political masses was more a media hype than reality.
  
  
• From: Sathiya Keerthi (@ synergy.nus.edu.sg) on: Sat Jun 13 23:36:37 EDT 1998
  
  Looks like Sivaji Ganesan decided to open his
  mouth wide-out this year. Recently there was a
  grand function in Singapore to honour his great
  achievements in acting. People like KB, BR, VM,
  SowcarG, SDevi, Deva, Hariharan, AnuSriram...
  all showed-up. At the end of the function, in his
  speech, here is one of the things that he said:
  
  vairamE, muththE! nee mattum kaNNadhaasanukku munbu
  piRandhirundhaal kaNNadhaasanai minjiyiruppaay!
  ippOdhum kuRaindhu vidavillai. avarai jeyiththuk
  koNdudhaan irukkiRaay.
  
  
  It seems there were many who felt very uncomfortable
  with this comment. Later, during dinner some
  approached SivajiG and asked him: enna Sir,
  neenga Vairamuththuvai Kannadhasanudan oppittup
  pEsiyadhu saridhaanaa? To this, the great
  actor answered: naan enna poyyaa sonnEn? avan
  senjittu irukkiRadhaiththaanE sonnEn. ena manasil
  irukkiRadhaiththaan sonnEn.
  
  Folks, what do you think about SivajiG's comment?
  
  
• From: Nithin (@ nc.pr.mcs.net) on: Sun Jun 14 01:45:33 EDT 1998
  
  I think Sivaji once in a while get very melodramatic. It is not surprising. However, elevating Vairamuthu by comparing with Kannadasan is depressing. Kannadasan had people skills whereas Vairamuthu needs those skills to be acceptable among composers. If Sivaji thinks that Vairamuthu could have succeeded in MSV's time, I really doubt that, since Vairamuthu has that arrogance and self-exaltation about him that anyone could have felt intimidated. Even Sivaji may have set VM aside and encouraged someone else. Which is what, Illaiyaraja has done.
  
  
• From: Udhaya (@ karthi4.globalcenter.net) on: Sun Jun 14 02:52:54 EDT 1998
  
  Sivaji has always been a perfect example of a genius in his field who is utterly clueless in every other aspect of life. This incident is a crowning example.
  
  
• From: Udhaya (@ karthi4.globalcenter.net) on: Sun Jun 14 02:53:24 EDT 1998
  
  Sivaji has always been a perfect example of a genius in his field who is utterly clueless in every other aspect of life. This incident is a crowning example of that truth.
  
  
• From: raja m (@ ww-tp02.proxy.aol.com) on: Sun Jun 14 08:06:20 EDT 1998
  
  Sivaji started losing all his marbles long time back. I never cared for his acting no Overacting anyway.
  
  
• From: pg (@ client-116-143.bellatlantic.net) on: Sun Jun 14 08:57:06 EDT 1998
  
  Sivaji has gone senile. That's all.
  
  When SPB says that Viswanathan Ramamoorthy have done all that's there is to be done in TFM, I am beginning to have doubts about him as well.
  
  
• From: Viswa (@ webgate5.mot.com) on: Mon Jun 15 01:02:59 EDT 1998
  
  Well, Kannadasan and Vairamuthu lived in different eras, with a small period of overlap. (They both worked in "MooNRAm piRai"). Their styles of lyrics have been very different. My personal feeling has been that Kannadasan's songs had a bit of soumyam , that I don't seem to find in VM's verses. But there is one thing I fail to see - why do people need to make comparisons between artistes ? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I keep seeing that people have a strong tendency to compare IR and MSV, IR and ARR, Kannadasan and VM, Rajini and Kamal, SPB and TMS, and so on.
  
  My question is, why can't we accept them as artistes in their own right, with their own styles and talents, instead of trying to draw comparisons, and getting into futile arguments ? Of course, we could have personal favourites, but how does that deny someone else his due merit ? As I keep hearing these days, why do we miss the point that : "mAtRAn thoTTathu malligaikkum maNam uNdu" ?!
  
  
• From: Udhaya (@ 205.218.142.217) on: Mon Jun 15 14:52:04 EDT 1998
  
  Amen, Viswa. I agree 100%. But when the only new threads keep coming up with comparisons, one is forced to contribute within the confines of the topic. I don't quite like the taste of all the flagrant threads, but I need to chew on something and thus end up furthering the regression.
  
  
• From: Sathiya Keerthi (@ panorama.nus.edu.sg) on: Mon Jun 15 21:06:19 EDT 1998
  
  Viswa and Udhay:
  
  I feel comparison is a good thing provided we go
  into various aspects in detail. We should not
  simply say: I think x is the best over all time,
  unbeatable etc. Instead, if we can patiently go
  into specific aspects and compare, that'll be
  really nice. For example, what is wrong in asking
  a specific question such as: kaadhal paadalgaL
  ezhudhuvadhil siRandhavar Kannadhasan-aa, Vaali-yaa,
  illai Vairamuthu-vaa? However, I agree with
  you: if the comparison topic becomes flagrant then
  sanity goes out of the window. Such a thing typically
  happens only when comparing MDs. But, I think it
  is possible to compare lyricists on various themes.
  I think we have done that reasonably well in the
  past. The main reason I mentioned Sivaji's comment
  was the following. It is not SivajiG alone who
  feels that way about Kannadhasan vs VM,
  but there are many others too. In
  a recent book on TFM lyricists, the author,
  Dr. Kalyanasundaram mentions that, in movies like
  'Tik Tik Tik' and 'Raja Parvai', both Kannadhasan
  and VM wrote songs, but only those by VM came out
  as big winners; he further says that it was
  unfortunate that Kannadhasan passed away early..
  had he been alive, he would have acknowledged that
  VM was equally good.. in that process people
  would have given the real respect that VM is
  really due. It certainly would be nice, therefore,
  to take one aspect at a time and compare the
  creations of Kannadhasan and VM. But I don't know
  whether we have the matter, time and energy for that!
  
  
• From: dr tc mark-andoo (@ ) on: Sun May 30 14:15:52 EDT 2004
  
  shivaji was a melodramatic actor..impressed the tamil semi-illetrate audiences. most tamil films fall in this category as most tamils are sadly.
  kannadhasan can never be replaced.
  listen to vairamuthu..the same words reappear like a semi- illetrate- eg. swasakatre. like as if he had just picked up the word from a sanskrit dictionary and got fascinated by it!
  
  
• From: F e r r a r i (@ 202.56.254.13) on: Sun May 30 14:24:20 EDT 2004
  
  Kannan from sydney.
  
  any comments?
  
  
• From: SK (@ 66.57.14.197) on: Sun May 30 22:05:50 EDT 2004
  
  'Sivaji" yaip paRRiyO, "kaNnadAsan'aip paRRiyO kuRaivAgap pEsa yArukkum..repeat... yArukkum ingE thaguthi kidaiyAdhu!
  pugazhOdu vAzhndhAn!
  pugazhOdu maRaindhAn!
  
  This thread's topic is very valid; so also Sivaji's comments on having a Tamil name as a disadvantage in getting world recognition.
  
  nooRRukku nooRu uNmai!!
  
  
  
• From: C~P (@ 61.95.159.19) on: Mon May 31 01:34:41 EDT 2004
  
  Oho..enakku world recognition kidaikka vaaippu irukku, sandhosham :-D
  
  
• From: SK (@ 66.57.14.197) on: Mon May 31 10:45:31 EDT 2004
  
  kaNdippaa! adhaan yERkenavE kidaichchaachchE!!
  You are already world famous, C~P!!
  
  
• From: Aswathama (@ 68.57.194.224) on: Mon May 31 12:00:02 EDT 2004
  
  Sk just leave the ARRphiles blabber never reply to them they talk without nerves in their tongue..AE/Yuva has become big failure so Atta Kadichu, Mattai Kadichu Ipo nambla pola Manushanai kadikka Vaarungo..Just ignore..When New film is released I will tackle them ..
  
  
• From: curses (@ 203.101.39.184) on: Mon May 31 12:16:36 EDT 2004
  
  Jealous lil toadstool, arent u? :)
  
  
• From: C~P (@ 61.95.159.19) on: Mon May 31 12:19:44 EDT 2004
  
  SK,
  newtfmpage dhaan en world-nu ippadi sutti kaatareengaley! :-D
  And now you also know something else. Sammandhamey illama paeththarthukku sila paer alayaraanga. Namma ennavo pesikittu irukkom, ivaru ennavo sollikittu irukkaru. ARRphiles-ku tongues-la nerves illa, silla ARRphobes-ku tongue-y ozhunga illa.
  
  
• From: SK (@ 66.57.14.197) on: Mon May 31 18:57:13 EDT 2004
  
  Sorry if I have offended you and thanks if yoyu are complimenting!!
  
  "I am not talking about ARR in particular. But yes, he's the only one who has made a name for himself internationally. His name is a major advantage. People in the Gulf and Muscat talk about him. There are other good music directors around but they haven't made it to the international level."
  
  It speaks volumes!!
  
  
• From: paran (@ 203.123.16.130) on: Tue Jun 1 01:14:06 EDT 2004
  
  ha ha ha...
  uweek...
  
  gulp gulp gulp
  uweeeeek!!
  
  
• From: C~P (@ 61.2.224.208) on: Tue Jun 1 15:19:52 EDT 2004
  
  Paran,
  Eththana maasam? :-)
  
  

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