

The Tamil theatre scene was very strong in the 1960s and 1970s. I failed the pre-university course at Vivekananda College in Mylapore. It was the radios in shops and big speakers at public events that brought whatever little music I heard to my ears in those days. I remember that we did not even have a radio in our home in Mylapore until I turned 18. My father was a postman and had to take care of a large family. Were you not interested in music in your younger days? You had no music training until you were well into your thirties. The interview was conducted in Tamil and translated into English. In an interview, the composer talks about his humble beginnings, his early struggles, and his chartbusting work during the 1990s. His scores played a big role in the emergence of actors Ajith and Vijay, with hits such as Kadhal Kottai, Aasai, Nerukku Ner, Vaali, Priyamudan, Ninaithen Vanthai, Kushi helping them establish themselves as the next-generation superstars.īorn in 1950, Deva is often called the “King of Gaana” for bringing the Madras Gaana beat to commercial cinema. In 1996, Deva composed tunes for 36 movies.

The 1990s belonged as much to Deva as it did to Rahman. The theme music was so popular that when Rahman composed for Muthu in 1995, he retained a bit of it for the “Super Star Rajni” signage that appears at the beginning of all of the actor’s movies. While Annamalai’s songs were melodious and peppy, its background music was extraordinary and tailor-made for its hero. Its composer was Devanesan Chockalingam, known popularly as Deva. Its music was as popular, if not more, than Roja’s. That year’s biggest box office hit wasn’t Roja, however, but the Rajinikanth-starer Annamalai. The year 1992 in Tamil cinema is remembered for the emergence of AR Rahman through Mani Ratnam’s Roja. The great music composer MS Viswanathan called him “thenisai thendral”, or the breeze of sweet music.

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