the wings of Crow !! ~ காக்கை சிறகினிலே நந்தலாலா

A great song of Mahakavi Subrahmanya Bharathiyar –– though used in some other movies  too, this one sung by K Jesudoss was a smashing hit, set to the music of LV !?

Lakshminarayana Vaidyanathan, was an acclaimed musicologist, music director and composer,  trained in the classical Carnatic music tradition. Vaidyanathan was born to V. Lakshminarayana, and Seethalakshmi, both accomplished musicians. He was the elder brother of accomplished violinist duo L. Shankar and L. Subramaniam.  He  was known for his use of rare and unknown instruments, subtly mixing sounds from the mandolin, flute and violin with various folk percussion instruments before the advent of present-day technological advances in sound mixing.  He collaborated with C.Ashwath and composed music for many Kannada movies in the name Ashwath-Vaidi. One catchy and enduring composition of his would be, the Opening and Closing Score 'Thaana na nana' of Shankar Nag's Malgudi Days (TV series).

காக்கை சிறகினிலே நந்தலாலா - நின்றன்

கரிய நிறம் தோன்றுதையே நந்தலாலா  ! 

கேட்கும் ஒலியில் எல்லாம் நந்தலாலா - நின்றன்

கீதம் இசைக்குதடா நந்தலாலா  !!

பாரதி ஒரு பன்முகக் கவிஞர். நாட்டுப் பற்று, மொழி்ப் பற்று, சமயப் பற்று  அனைத்தும் அவர்தம் பாடல்களில் சிறப்புற வெளிப்பட்டன.   பாரதியின் கவிதைகளை வாசிப்பது அற்புதமான அனுபவம்     ”இருளிலிருந்து ஒளிக்கு” இட்டுச்செல்லும் உண்மை உணர்வுகள் அவை.  காக்கையையும் நேசிப்பார் உண்டோ !!  காக்கை சிறகின் நிறம் இருள், குழப்பம், அஞ்ஞானம் போன்றவற்றை குறிப்பிடுகிறது. அங்கிருந்து ஒரு பயணம் துவங்குகிறது. 

Ezhavathu Manithan  co-written and directed by K. Hariharan. Inspired by a real-life incident, the film focusing on environmental pollution and exploitation of industrial workers was released in 1982.  At a time, when it was Kamal Rajini, Vijaykanth and the like – the hero was the tall - Raghuvaran and featured  a host of newcomers playing other prominent roles. The film's soundtrack was made up from an album composed by L. Vaidyanathan with the lyrics of Tamil poet Mahakavi  Subramania Bharatiyar. 

The film was critically acclaimed but not much of a commercial hit – won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil and two Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. It was screened at the Indian Panorama of the International Film Festival of India, and in the Soviet Union, where it won the Afro–Asian Solidarity Award. At the 13th Moscow International Film Festival in 1983, the film was nominated for the Golden St. George prize.  The year 1982 marked the birth centenary of the great poet.

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
20.11.2024