BANGALORE: The audio release of the film Drishya was no ordinary event, as music maestro Ilayaraja at the venue. This is the first time that Ilayaraja is working with the Ravichandran - P Vasu combination. The maestro, with his charismatic personality, added grace to the occasion.
Ilayaraja waited in patience and spoke in the end. He said, “I don’t need a reason to accept a film. It all depends on my instinct, which is the instant reply that I get from my mind in response to the script. P Vasu compelled me to score the music for this movie, which is a remake of the Malayalam film Drishyam and I accepted it. People who watch the film will know the difference in recording from the Malayalam film. I don’t know how much I know about music, but I believe that music knows me very well,” he said and went on to add, “I watched the film and I felt Ravichandran has acted very well. I am sure that the Kannada audience will love him and the film.” V Nagendra Prasad has written the lyrics for two of the film’s songs.
Ravichandran says..
“It is a great moment for me to sit beside music maestro Ilayaraja. Most of us grew up listening to his songs. My car never moved without me playing his songs on the stereo. I have copied most of his re-recording tracks. Even if I make the singer listen to my songs, he would probably not know from which re-recording track of his that I took inspiration. He has done everything in music and there is nothing new that we can do.”
“Usually, when we start work, we start by writing ‘Om’ on top. Likewise, when we start music, we start with the name Ilayaraja in mind. He is the Omkara to our music. The moment he enters a place, there is a vibration that I feel. Even today, we see a lot of innocence, sincerity and devotion in him. I still see him the way I saw him at director Sridhar’s house with my father Veerasami when they were composing a song. I was not an actor then. I was probably only getting ready to draw inspiration from his songs,” he laughed.
“I should have gone to learn music from Ilayaraja. I was so fond of him. But fate took me towards Hamsalekha and I started working with him. P Vasu insisted that Ilayaraja be roped in for the film, because more than the songs, re-recording was important for the film and Ilayaraja is a master in that respect. Nobody can get as successful as him.”
Yash says..
Yash, who was a guest at the audio release, said, “I am lucky to be sitting near him. His song in Kannada Jothejotheyalli from Geetha is still my favourite. The song still has a certain freshness. I used to listen to it repeatedly on my way from the shooting location to home. There will be a lot of people who can create songs, but a very few can create music. Ilayaraja is one of them.”
Vasu says..
“I came to the industry at the age of 19 and have done 62 films. Raja sir has done music for more than 30 films of mine and 90 per cent of them were hits. Re-recording is the biggest strength for Drishya and it has come alive only with the genius of Ilayaraja. We are lucky to have done a film with Raja sir. He watched the original movie and agreed to do the re-recording. He once said everyone knows where to place music, but not many know where not to place music.”