The dream of many Bangaloreans came true when they witnessed a wholesome musical treat from the maestro, Ilayaraja during the 50th Bengaluru Ganesh Utsav. The concert, which started around 7.30 pm, was a three-and-a-half hour non-stop music extravaganza with Ilayaraja at centrestage through out.
The National College grounds was filled with people as the crowd enjoyed sitting on the steps while many stood throughout the show. People could listen to some evergreen Kannada songs along with a few hits from Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films. “I don’t want the arc lights on me. I want to see the audience when I am singing as I have come for them,” said Ilayaraja, who wanted everybody to enjoy the music silently.
“We had practiced for three months before we came here,” he added.
Non-stop applause greeted Ilayaraja’s son Yuvan Shankar as he walked on to the stage and there was an encore demand in the air as he sang one of his father’s collection, Raja Kaiya Vecha Athu Wrong’ga Ponathilla.
The big arrangement of the orchestra consisting of 100 to 135 members seated in a neat row did a fantastic job, which enhanced the atmosphere with Ilayaraja tunes. The maestro was backed by troop of singers which included Vijay Prakash, Haricharan, Priya Himesh, Anuradha Bhat, Mano and Vijay Yesudas. Vijayarakash rendered a popular number Om Shivoham from the Tamil film Nan Kadaval. “Movies come and go but music will always remain in the hearts of people. Irrespective of who is the director, I always wanted to justify my music,” Ilayaraja said.