Season of Love
It seems like every young person in the 16 – 22 age group in
Tamil Nadu is in love—with someone unacceptable to their parents. They are expressing
their feelings vocally and dramatically, through TV music channels, FM
channels, friends, WhatsApp and other social media.
They are shaking up the very fundamentals of societal
structures and hoary traditions. They are eloping or standing up to opposition;
they are marrying in police stations, registrar offices and temples. Some end
tragically, but a lot of them seem to be thriving, as parents are resigning to
the new order.
Sociologists might talk in terms of social mobility,
aspirations, westernization, urbanization et al. Be that as it may, every time
I call home, I hear one more story. Of clandestine actions, dramatic
proclamations, and cinematic gestures.
And Tamil movies—that bastion of “energetic physicality and frank passions”—supply the voice, plot, lyrics and music for these micro-epics unfolding
in the lives of millions of young people!
Heartbreak Hotel
Where there are relationships, there are heartbreaks. And
Tamil cinema might have just invented an original and engaging standard for
depicting this.
The meme of the heartbroken swain from the wrong side of the
tracks indulging in a booze fest with his bros, lamenting the loss of his fair
lady’s love—the “Soup Song”—is one of the most evocative and
deliciously-full-of-subtext representations of “love failure.”
As far as I can tell, this meme has its roots in Gana songs
that Music Director Deva introduced in the mid ‘90s. His blockbuster hit “Kavalaipadathe
Sagodara” blasted from every street corner for months back then.
Gana is the music of the migrant workers who settled in
North Chennai. These songs have Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and English words and they
talk about life in a city—the markets, streets, alcohol, slums, sex, and festivals.
Here’s an interesting article on the musical genre of Gana: http://www.frontline.in/cover-story/unsung-songs/article6331748.ece
And perhaps this genre represents the realities and emotions
of the urban/semi urban youth like no other. It has definitely taken Tamil
films by storm for the past two decades.
I Like Soup Songs
I like these type of songs because when it comes to
heartbreaks, I find the messy and uninhibited way men go to pieces very heroic.
We women have our hearts broken too. When that happens, we
cry to drown the oceans, leave alone our pillows. We talk the ears off of our
friends. We do all the things that Jennifer Aniston and Katherine Heigl have
demonstrated so fabulously in all those chick flicks. Then we move on.
But men. Ah men! How spectacularly they grieve! How palpable
and seemingly indomitable their pain seems to be! How long lasting their love
for the one that got away is! How deep their depression is—how bottomless their
wine cups are! How the contours of their inner world seem to alter irredeemably,
even when they ostensibly get on to other relationships!
Their heartache is the stuff of poems, novels, movies, art—classic
and timeless. Only men can love in the time of Cholera and make it epic.
And the Soup Songs capture this mood admirably.
The Top 5 List
Dhanush is the undisputed poster boy for this genre. He
looks the part. He can act. He can dance. He is funny. And for all that
anorexic looks, he dominates the screen when he comes on it. So let me start the
list with that viral sensation that made him world famous.
1 – Why this Kolaveri Di?
I had liked this song even when it became viral in 2012 and
we heard it in every form that could be rendered in. I liked the slow beat, tongue-in-cheek
lyrics, and use of the pipe instrument (nadaswaram) as a main accompaniment. It’s
strange that I never looked up the video until today. I like the video too—it is
quintessentially Dhanush. I also love the re-creation of the beach scene. Don’t
miss the discreet brand placement!
2 – Vanganna Vankkanganna
Vijay is indisputably a star. He can make you forget how
illogical some of his film plots are, how fluffy—you walk out of the theatre feeling
you’ve got your full money’s worth of entertainment. And boy he can dance! In
this song, he sings too! A real toe-tapping slow number. The lyrics warn his
bros about the perils of love—he claims when quarter (250 ml of alcohol) mixes
with water, it makes him a fount of wisdom.
3 – Othakadai Othakadai Machan
There are several things going for this song. First, D.
Imman—the most interesting music composer Tamil has now. The music here is a
great fusion of Tamil folk and Mariachi genres. Then I like the colours,
choreography and cinematography—top notch! The lyrics are great too. Hope you
enjoy this as much as I do!
4 – Pray Pannuven
Vijay Sethupathy is probably one of his kind—a sort of indie
actor, working within the commercial framework and gaining a lot of success
too. Here’s an example of what makes him stand apart. This song works within
the genre of the soup song, but breaks through with the lyrics that are modern,
edgy and funny. He is praying for his girlfriend to be kept awake through the
night by mosquitoes; that college boys should call her aunty; that all her girlfriends should turn into ghosts and boyfriends should become gay!
5 – Adiye Adiye Ivale
There is an indescribable charm about this song featuring
Jayam Ravi. I like the way he cries in a frank and uninhibited way. The lyrics
as usual are nice—he calls his lady love a monster that he is unable to forget.
It also features the Chennai night life, or the underbelly of it. Ravi is cute.
The other reason is of course music by D. Imman. There is another jazz
number in the same movie, but that’s for another post.
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