மலர்ந்தும் மலராதவை #22

Saravanan Natarajan writes:

மலர்ந்தும் மலராதவை #22:

பூந்தென்றல் காற்றாக.... பூஞ்சோலை வண்டாக....

Here is another obscure song from an unreleased movie- this is one among the many that I discovered in a heap of dusty records lying forgotten was at the audio center in North Madras- Remember I had mentioned sometime earlier about this recording center that was tucked cunningly in a busy junction of a labyrinth of alleys in the Seven Wells area of North Madras? I had come to know of it from my college friend Satya who hailed from the area. And almost akin to a budding Dada, he knew the confusing maze of lanes and by-lanes like the palm of his hand. The son of the center’s owner was his close friend. It was Satya who escorted me to the center on all the 3 occasions I went there, and instructed his friend to humor my whims.

I found this EP record of a movie ‘மணம் மாறாத மல்லிகை’ (Ananda Vinayakar Films). The name seemed vaguely familiar, though the images of MGC. Sukumar and Vanithasri on the jacket were not encouraging. The year of manufacture of the record was mentioned as 1981. The producers of the movie were Malaysia S. Anandan & M.N. Ethiraj. The director’s name was mentioned as S. Vasan.

The music was credited to R. Ramanujam, the talented younger brother of R. Parthasarathi. I was truly intrigued now, for I was in awe of Ramanujam’s works, in particular the haunting ‘பொன்னென்பதோ பூவென்பதோ’ (அன்னப்பறவை) and 'சிரித்தாய், அந்தச்சிரிப்பில் ஒரு மோகம்’ (ஆனந்தபைரவி). The songs- their very structure and the scintillating arrangements revealed that this was no ordinary composer at work. In a ruminative moment, Vani Jairam who sang the stupendous ‘தமிழ் வேந்தன் பாண்டியனின் அங்கம்’ (ஆனந்தபைரவி) remarked to me - ‘Ramanujam sir is a perfect example of an underutilized genius!’ Ramanujam seems to have worked for some more obscure movies such as கைதியின் தீர்ப்பு, அனுக்கிரகம் and புத்தம் புது நாயகன், all of which were never released. Of course, he was more successful in the non-film arena- his devotional albums remain extremely popular. He passed away some years back.

The record of ‘மணம் மாறாத மல்லிகை’ had just 2 songs- one on either side:

1. பல்லவி நான் பாட- Vani Jairam- Lyrics by Poovai Senguttuvan
2. பூந்தென்றல் காற்றாக- P. Susheela & Malaysia Sarangapani- Lyrics by Muthulingam

It was the second song that struck me with a jolt of vague familiarity… I tried to hum the opening lines….it was like straining to place a face in a crowd…I requested the young attendant to play the record. And as Susheela’s humming serenaded the caressing prelude, I suddenly found the colours appearing, as it were, on a faded sepia-toned picture….

* * * * *

It was the Summer of ’83. The new term had hardly commenced when all schools in Madras were shut for an indefinite period to express solidarity with the Sri Lankan Tamils. Apart from reading and hanging out with the neighborhood friends, the radio was my constant companion all day long. And while I would dutifully tune into Vividh Bharathi’s Then Kinnam, my liking was more towards Radio Ceylon’s தமிழ் சேவை இரண்டு which was valiantly continuing its broadcasts, albeit with sudden, unexplained silent intervals… I loved the programs for they brought to my attention obscure songs seldom or almost never aired by Vividh Bharathi- ‘அடடா இது தான் சுகமோ’, ‘நினைவிலே மனைவியென்று’, ‘மலர்மஞ்சங்கள் மகரந்தங்கள்’, ‘இந்த வெண்ணிலா ஈரமானது’, ‘சிரிச்சா கொல்லிமலக் குயிலு’, ‘மார்கழிப் பார்வை பார்க்கவா’, ‘வானில் வாழும் தேவதை’...

And this song ‘பூந்தென்றல் காற்றாக’ was part of that precious pantheon….Those endless days of the Summer of ’83 came alive with startling clarity in that afternoon of the 90s in a dusty audio center in Seven Wells….

Needless to say, I got both the songs recorded….

* * * * * *

Sometime in 2002, I discovered the channel called ‘Raj Digital Plus’, and I got to see many obscure movies and discovered so many hidden songs. One weekend afternoon, I watched a movie titled ‘அவள் ஒரு கவரிமான்’ (Kalaiselvi Arts) with MGC. Sukumar & Vanithasri playing the lead roles. The titles referred to R. Ramanujam as the Music Director, with a rider- The movie also included a song ‘வெள்ளி நிலா வானத்தில’ sung by Malaysia Vasudevan and composed by Malaysia Anandan.

Set in a rustic milieu, the proceedings were lackluster and predictable. The performances of Sukumar and Vanithasri (in a double role) were far from convincing. However, what made it memorable for me was the appearance of the 2 songs that I had recorded from the 'மணம் மாறாத மல்லிகை’ record- I could perceive that the movie’s name and the banner had changed, for reasons unknown. However, even the change of name from ‘மனம் மாறாத மல்லிகை’ to ‘அவள் ஒரு கவரிமான்’ did not seem to have changed the fortunes of the project…The movie remained unreleased to be only shown many years later on Raj Digital Plus, and I was perhaps among the very few who had the fortitude to watch it….

* * * * * *

However, my efforts to elicit some information of Malaysia Sarangapani, the co-singer of P. Susheela in the ‘பூந்தென்றல் காற்றாக’ song were futile. Even the World Wide Web could not throw up any significant details.

In 2014, I got to travel again to Malaysia, this time on work. Late one evening I presented myself excitedly at the ancient ‘Colombia Films’ in KL and gave the young lady attendant my latest wish-list. However, the redoubtable Mrs. Thomas had passed on, and no one there could give me any information on Malaysia Sarangapani or his songs. And as I traveled to Penang the next day, I was filled with disappointment at this final failure in my search for information on Sarangapani.

Final failure, did I say? The Gods must have been benign that day. For when I returned to my hotel room in Penang after the day’s work, I switched on the TV and was watching a local Tamil channel. Call it a most providential, incredible co-incidence, or an act God, the channel was doing a repeat telecast of a series on forgotten Tamil achievers of Malaysia, and the person featured in that day’s episode was none other than the elusive singer Sarangapani!

Sarangapani appeared on screen himself and spoke about his life and times. He looked weary and aged; however, as he spoke of his earlier hey days, his eyes lit up with happiness. I grabbed a pen and jotted on the hotel stationery whatever I could of all that he said, even as I was moved by the account of misfortunes that befell this humble singer. Here is a summary of what I jotted down and some details that I could get from the net:

* * * * * *

Sarangapani was born to Vaithyalingam and Kannamma on 5 January 1942 at Banting, Selangor in Malaysia. His was a large family – he was 10th among 18 siblings. He gave up his schooling at an early age and was content to spend his time tending to the family's cows, taking them to the meadows for grazing, cleaning the cowsheds and selling the milk. All the while, the little Sara used to sing to the cows the songs that he heard on the radio. The songs of MKT and PUC were his favourite. As he grew older, he sang the songs of A.M. Raja and later P.B. Srinivas. In later years, it was PBS who held Sara in his sway with his tender timber and romantic ballads.

Meanwhile, Sara’s family fell upon hard times. They had to sell whatever they possessed, including Sara’s prized cows, in Banting and moved on to Klang. Here Sara found it difficult to get any employment as he was not educated. He even worked as a porter lifting heavy loads to earn a living. He started playing football as a pastime and was so good at it that he even represented the state in a few matches.

His elder brother Shanmugam and sister Lakshmidevi had learned music formally and Sara learned from them whenever he could. Shanmugam formed a light music troupe called ‘Vinnoli’ and Sara became one of the singers in the troupe. Another brother Krishnaswami was the Mandolin player in the troupe. Sara became famous for his rendering of PBS songs all over Malaysia. The brothers traveled long distances by cycle and performed in concerts.

Sara was the first Malaysian Tamil to appear and sing on RTM (Radio Televisyen Malaysia). He sang a composition of Nagaswami Bhagavathar on the historic occasion.

Sara's closest friend was another aspiring singer called Vasudevan. The two young men would share with each other their joys and disappointments, their dreams and aspirations. At one stage, Sara and Vasu planned to sail to Madras to try their luck in playback singing. However, it was around the same time that Sara’s mother passed away. As all his elder siblings were married, Sara had to take upon himself the responsibility of bringing up his younger siblings. Hence, he had to give up his plan of traveling to Madras.

Vasudevan got an opportunity to go to Madras along with the producer of the Malaysian Tamil film ரத்தப்பேய். Sara saw his friend off with a heavy heart and over the years, watched with pride when across the seas, Malaysia Vasudevan gradually became one of the leading playback singers of Tamil Cinema.

Meanwhile sometime in 1973, Sara was approached by music producers Aziz Wok and Daud Hamzah with an interesting offer, to render the Malay song ‘Hitam manis’ that was popularized by R. Azmi in the 50s. At the time, it was very rare for a Tamil singer to sing Malay songs. However, the ever-enterprising Sara took it as a challenge and learned the nuances of the song. This version of Sara’s became took the airwaves of Malaysia by storm and Sara was flooded with opportunities to sing in Malay albums. He was also singing in public and private events. He continued to be an integral part of the RTM orchestra as well.

It was when things seemed to be looking up for Sara that fate dealt a cruel blow. Late one night in 1974 when he was returning home after work, he was attacked by an inebriated gang of robbers. He fought with them courageously, but his right wrist was severed. He was rushed to hospital; while the doctors could reattach his wrist, he lost two fingers. This gruesome incident left him scarred physically and emotionally.

It was then that Sara was named as the recipient of the prestigious Sri Angkasa Award; he was moved when the award was given to him personally while he was still convalescing in his hospital bed. With new found grit, Sara learned to use his left hand for all his needs and was soon back to doing what he loved and lived for …singing.

And sometime in 1980, out of the blue, Sara got a prized opportunity; an opportunity that he had thought had passed him by forever- to sing for a Tamil Movie. A multi-talented Homeopathy doctor from Malaysia called Anandan was engaged in producing a Tamil movie ‘மணம் மாறாத மல்லிகை’ in Madras. He spoke to R. Ramanujam who was composing the songs and got Sara to render a duet in the movie. Sara was thrilled to receive the summons- he traveled to Madras excitedly with renewed dreams of making it big in Kodambakkam.

Sara was filled with reverence for Ramanujam’s talents. He was awe-struck in the presence of the great P. Susheela who was his co-singer for the duet 'பூந்தென்றல் காற்றாக’. What a glorious moment! Sara's singing won the appreciation of everyone and he hoped that it would be the stepping stone to further opportunities in playback singing. However, much to his disappointment, the movie was never released and the song was soon forgotten.

Sara continues to sing and teach music in Malaysia. He has coached generations of Malaysian singers, including his sister Jayanthi and the famous Mohandas, and helped them to get opportunities to sing on RTM and in live concerts. He remains single- Though he received many marriage proposals when he was young, Sara refused them all as he wanted to ensure that all his younger siblings were well-settled.

The program showed a silhouette of a lone Sara looking out at the sea…How appropriate, I thought with sorrow, for much like how the relentless waves play with the shore, fate has always played a capricious game of hide and seek with Sara….

Let us, today, think of this humble singer in a distant land…He will most probably remain unaware of our thoughts and wishes, but wouldn’t that make them all the more precious?

Let us also celebrate that exquisite moment when Malaysia Sarangapani made his only tryst with Tamil Film Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWeXqcbJeyQ&feature=youtu.be

Discussion at:
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