Music is an integral part of Tamil films since yore. They formed an important element in the narrative by serving two purposes. They projected the mood of the screenplay – duets for romance, sad songs for pathos, melodrama etc. They also acted as a focus of action or point of connection in thriller movies. One can think of innumerable movies where the song in the climax had all the dazzling action. Therefore, it would be interesting to note the evolution of music in Tamil cinema.

Songs in movies is a rather unique phenomenon to Indian films. One does not have songs within films in English (read Hollywood) films. In certain other languages especially Arabic and Baltic, there are musical interludes, but not in our format. The use of songs within films can be traced to the strong musical tradition in the performing arts of the respective cultures. Our society is undoubtedly rich in this aspect. As films were extensions of other forms of art, music also forayed into movies. In fact, the early films had more than twenty songs. Also, the primary source of music was from talented musicians either classical or folk. Cinema was a nascent medium and classical music combined well with the storylines of that era. P.U. Chinnappa, Ponnappa Bhagavathar, M. L. Vasanthakumari, N.C. Vasanthakokilam, M.K. Thiagaraja Bhagavathar, K.B. Sundarambal, T.R. Mahalingam, G. Varalakshmi, Bhanumathi etc. – the list is quite impressive. The singularly striking aspect of these singers is that they were all versatile and trained as full-fledged classical musicians. The richness of tone and range of performance was impressive in these artistes. In those laidback years, even people who did not have formal exposure to classical music could appreciate the film songs based on classical tunes. The lyrics also played a major role in popularizing the songs. In the next generation of singers like Trichy Lokanathan, A.M. Raja or T.M. Sounderrajan, the lack of formal training was never exposed in their rendition of songs. Tunes by MSV or K.V. Mahadevan had a strong classical base, but tailored to popular tastes. But the dignity of the genre was never lowered.

And then, Ilayaraja happened. This rustic genius had a burning musical sensibility which defied stereotypes. He started off as the king of folksy tunes. But, as his repertoire grew, he innovated and graduated to making music of all genres. He became a true phenomenon. But then his music also had a strong underpinning of classical elements. After Ilayaraja, there have been A.R. Rahman, Vidyasagar, Bharadwaj, Deva, Srikanth Deva, Devi sriprasad and many others. Only the first three can mix classical and popular elements in the right proportion. It could largely be attributed to the intuitiveness of their creative process.

How important is classical music to cinema? We must acknowledge that music in any form is universal and classical and non-classical categories share a symbiotic relationship. Hence, classical music cannot be fossilized. It is an evolving tradition and that is the secret of its vibrancy. The format of presentation could differ and change with the call of our times, but the essentials are the same. Classical music stands for rigor, discipline and innovativeness. Those trained in classical music can adapt easily and give better performance in playback singing. This explains the plethora of young trained musicians storming the industry right now. Nithyasree Mahadevan, Bombay Jayashree, Sudha Raghunathan, Mahati, Madhumitha etc. are some of the heavyweight names who are adept at both classical and cinema music.

The augurs are well for the future of the film music industry. There is unanimity that classical music can bring richness to the songs. Therefore, composers are taking their musical journey in search of their roots. Classical music is no more considered elusive and exclusive. Instead it has become easily accessible to all types of listeners, thanks to the popularity of film songs.