"Naatha Vinotham 2013 – Rajesh Vaidya, Mahathi and Haricharan in Toronto" - Event Story

On April 6^th in Toronto, Canada, South India’s renowned Veena player and music director Kalaimamani Rajesh Vaidya, accompanied by well-known Kollywood playback singers Haricharan and Mahathi, State Award-winning Bangalore percussionist Arunkumar, and local musical group Mega Tuners proved that you don’t need a stadium to celebrate a love for Tamil music in a truly rocking manner. Organized by Canadian training school Computek College and produced in association with Hartley College Alumni of USA and Canada, Naatha Vinotham was an intimate concert thoroughly enjoyed by the who’s who of the Canadian Tamil community.

In a manner that flowed so smoothly Rajesh Vaidya wowed the crowds with nonstop renditions of Tamil cinema’s greatest tunes, and both Haricharan and Mahathi brought youth and bubbly energy on stage. The crowd was clearly satisfied with the perfectly balanced repertoire, which included wildly enjoyed medley tributes to both Isaignani Illaiyaraja and Isai Puyal AR Rahman. However, the song that seemed to steal the show was a rich rendition of hit “Unnai Kaanamal” from Vishwaroopam. Despite the complexity of the mixes that were being concocted on stage Mahathi and Haricharan constantly engaged with the crowd and received nothing but love back. Well known Super Singer judge Mahathi had only praises for her Toronto fans, gushing that the audience here is “very receptive and very interactive” when speaking with Behindwoods. And like a true rock star, Haricharan, who considered the event “electrifying”, truly connected with his fans while dancing with them off stage, which quickly transformed into a train line led by Mahathi and himself that enveloped the theatre. But above all, the true star of the evening was Rajesh Vaidya himself – a multi-talented celebrity in the South Indian music industry who has had a longstanding association with Toronto audiences, and who plays one of the world’s most ancient Indian instruments in the manner that a legendary rock and roll guitarist “shreds an axe”. His blistering speed may be his signature, but the sheer expression that comes across in his music sets him apart and has earned him the accolades he so greatly deserves. Furthermore, his congeniality, evident in his playfulness and praise for his accompanying musicians on stage, especially his “brother” Arunkumar, whose drum playing had the whole audience in awe, added to the excitement as the crowd appreciated the legendary musician’s personality as well as his performance. When speaking to Behindwoods after the show he very humbly accepted his compliments and promised to return to Toronto often, chuckling when he was told he would sell out all shows even if he visited every month.

The show was a success from start to finish. It was neatly organized and orchestrated, was devoid of any unnecessary diversions from the music, and, overall, strongly proved that Tamil film playback artists will always have a thoroughly appreciative audience in Canada ready to engage in shows of any scope and that sometimes the best musical experiences take place without pomp and circumstance. By the end of the night the crowd could barely wait to leap to a standing ovation, which seemed like the very least that could be done to convey the true musical joy present that night.