Sri.M.S.Viswanathan
( MSV) as he was popularly called and known is no more. Even though death has
snatched him away from us, he will continue to live in our hearts, for ages and
generations to come. He was a legendary figure who strode the film music world
like a colossus for nearly 4 decades. The evergreen melodies shelled out by the
triumvirate Kavignar Kannadasan, Sri. M.S.Viswanathan and Sri.T.M.Soundararajan
(TMS) can never, ever get erased from people’s mind and memory transcending
generation gap. The meaningful content of Kannadasan’s lyrics, the melodious
rendition of the same by TMS, under MSV’s enticing musical attunement have not
only to be relished, but also to be cherished by the younger generations, who
are unfortunately attracted and swayed by noisy, jarring, meaningless numbers,
which are neither mellifluous nor mirthful. Having heard both, I can vouch on
this point with confidence. Mention should be made about the innumerable duet
numbers sung by the elite pair TMS and P.Susheela, which still make heads sway
in awe and admiration.
That
he was able to churn out repeated hits for MGR, Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan
and an array of other heroes, aided by
the soulful rendition by veterans like TMS, P.B.Srinivas, S.P.Balasubramaniam
et al., is an acknowledged fact. People used to see their films over and over
again at cinema halls ( when cassettes and CDs have not made a foray into the
music world ), just for the sake of listening to the songs, stand testimony to
MSVs prowess. In his glittering career he had produced innumerable magnum opus,
which will stand the test of time. Mellisai Mannar was Nallisai Mannar too.
From
a humble beginning he rose to the pinnacles of glory in his avocation, but yet
remained a simpleton, both in stature and composure, till the very end. A rare quality that is hard to witness today, where
pomp and opulence rule the roost. It can
be said for sure that almost all present day music composers, directors,
lyricists have MSVs cascading influence on them, signaling his repertoire and
multifaceted talent. Under his tutelage playback singers like
S.P.Balasubramaniam, Yesudas, Jayachandran, S.Janaki, Vani Jayaram, L.R.Easwari
and a host of others rose to popularity, as he was a stepping stone for all who
came in contact with him.
MSVs
songs came very handy for yesteryear mothers’ ( and fathers’ too, including me
) as effective lullaby to put their children to sleep and believe me
friends, they slept within no time on
hearing his melodious notes.
MSV
has been declared out in mortal innings which as an act of nature is inevitable
in life, but he will remain a Chiranjeevi amongst the hundreds of thousands of
his fans, spread across the globe.
Adieu.
Rest in Peace Maestro.
--------
P.S.
– The Government of India earned the ignominy of not conferring any Padma Awards
to Sri.MSV, recognizing his glorious career and invaluable contribution to the
film industry. Of course it can be said
with certainty that the loss is not MSVs. It only exposes the hypocritical, insipid
attitude of the bureaucracy in identifying and honouring genuine, valuable talent.
* Written
on 15-7-2015..
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