HEART TOUCHING TAMIL FILM SONGS

M.S. RAJESWARI

    From childhood days I had listened keenly a popular voice in film songs from the radio in my home and out of home, I listened at one Sangeetha Sabha near Tirunelveli junction, since my school was nearby the sabha. I was very much in love with the childish, husky voice and thoroughly enjoyed the lyrics for the songs “Sundelikum sundelikum thirumanamam” followed by “ Meyew meyaw poonaikutti”, “kakka kakka mai konduva”, “chittukuruvi chittukuruvi sethi theriuma”, kozhi oru koottilae”, “Poo poova paranthu pogum pattupoochi akka”. 
NATURE IS THE THEME     One cannot deny that all these songs were written about nature, either a bird, animal or insect. During those days, I was at the age of 8 to 10, when we had enjoyed the films at the touring talkies in my native village, an hour before the film show, the same songs were spread in the air.
 CINEMA MAGAZINE   

     Later I had read in the tamil cine magazines like “Pesum Padam”, a famous and pioneer magazine of Thiru Nagi Reddy, the songs in a child artist voice were of M.S. Rajeswari.  I had got inspired and knew that she rendered many songs consists of solos and duets in addition to the child voice.  Her more than forty years travel as a playback singer in the Tamil film industry was the real treasure in film music. 

KAMAL HAASAN'S FIRST SONG

     She was the singer for the song Ammaavum neeye Appaavum neeye in Kalathur Kannamma, in which the first song for Kamal Haasan.  She sang under music composers of the R. Sudharsanam, K.V. Mahadevan, Ramanathan, Naushad, Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy, M. S. Viswanathan, T. K. Ramamoorthy,  Vedha and Iliayaraaja.  

DUET SONGS 

     She sang innumerable duet songs with male playback singers  A.M.Rajah, A.L.Ragavan T.M.S, Seerkazhi,  S.M.Rajah, A.L.Ragavan, V.N.Sundaram and  Tirichi Loganathan.  With female singers she  sang were Jamuna Rani, P. Suseela,  L.R.Eswari, A.P.Komala, K.S.Chithra,  Swarnalatha, Rathinamala and Radha  Jeyalakhmi.  She sang for Tamil, Malayalam,  Telugu, and Kannada language films. She had  recorded more than 500 songs in the four  languages.

JAMUNA RANI

Another my favourite singer who had renewed magnetic voice in the Tamil film industry, was Jamuna Rani.  Jamuna Rani started singing in Telugu movie when she was at the age of seven. From 1955, she sang for the movie Gulebakavali followed by several films in several languages. After a long break she came back to Tamil movie “Nayagan” during 1987 and with M. S. Rajeswari she sang “ Naan sirithal Deepavali”. 

EVERGREEN SINGER

The hit songs of Jamuna Rani include “Yaaradi Nee Mohini” in Uthama Puthiran (1958)
Sollattuma sollattuma in Thai Pirandhal Vazhi Pirakkum (1958), Kunguma Poove Konjum Puraave in Maragadham (1959) Pattondru Ketten in the film Pasamalar (1961) Santhu Pottu Thala Thalanga in Sivagangai Seemai (1959), Seidhi ketto seidhi Ketto in Ethir Neechal (1968) Punnagai Mannan Poovizhi Kannan in Iru Kodugal (1969)

  

She sang more than 6000 songs in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Sinhala languages.