From timeless classics to marketing tools

Songs are still important in Tamil cinema, but not the way they were

Music has always been an integral part of Kollywood commercial cinema and continues to be so. Nowadays, all major Tamil films follow a particular pattern to market their songs. First, a single track is launched at an untimely hour and it is then made to go viral. Every big film needs a hit number to create hype around it for it to be sold to distributors. Leading producer Kalaipuli Thanu after the audio launch of his Theri , was able to sell the film to distributors on his terms and conditions. Coimbatore-based distributor Cosmo Shivakumar says“The number of songs in commercial films has come down but a big film still needs a catchy number. It helps generate an opening. The audio release of Tamil films is a promotional tool, as the trade gets its first look of the film.”

Explains veteran producer Sathyajyothi Thyagarajan, “My film Thodari, starring Dhanush and directed by Prabhu Solomon, will have a big audio launch on May 8. The music by D. Imman is really good and the visuals are stunning. The hit combo of Prabhu Solomon and Imman has worked big time in the past. Once the distributors watch the songs and trailer, I’m sure the film will be sold out in all areas.”

In Hollywood and to a certain extent, in Bollywood, all major films are shown to the trade weeks before they are out for sale. But in Kollywood, there are no trade shows for star-driven movies before release, and the distributor himself sees the product only after he has purchased the film, and even then, only on the day of its release. Hence, the distributor’s choice of film is based entirely on the songs and the trailer during the audio launch.

How has Tamil music changed? Producer P. L. Thenappan says, “Tamil film music has become merely a tool to create hype around a film’s opening. Today, music directors and lyricists are dime a dozen, and are out to make at least one of their songs a chartbuster. Music is still important in commercial cinema, as it is generally thought that a hit film should have a chartbuster.”

Take, for example, the racy kuthu number ‘Jithu Jilladi’ from Theri . The song was targeted at Vijay fans, and the voice of music director Deva too helped . G. V. Prakash, who composed the song, says, “ Theri is my 50th album and I took a lot of care to see that the music works well with the audience. When the album was launched, ‘Chella Kutti’ and ‘En Jeevan’ were the popular tracks. But after release, thanks to the film’s visuals, ‘Jithu Jilladi’ caught on like wildfire.”

A.R. Rahman’s music in Suriya-starrer

24 has also been slowly climbing the charts. Talking about the movie, Suriya says, “The music of

24 is one of its major highlights. In fact, the film itself took off once Rahman sir heard the narration and came on board. You will love the songs even more when you see the film.”

Another factor today is that there is a clear demarcation on what type of music sells in A, B and C centres. Ashok Parwani of Sony Music says, “. There is a huge difference between music liked by A-centres (urban Chennai and Coimbatore) and B and C-centres spread across Tamil Nadu. Take, for example, our album Rajini Murugan by D. Imman. The song ‘Yennamma ippadi panreengalaema’ worked best in cities, while in the rural B and C-centres, it was the soothing melody ‘Un mele oru kannu’ that became a bigger hit. Even the ringtone market suggests the difference in tastes between the city and rural markets.

Agrees Seenu of S Pictures, “Music What sells best in my area, which has a strong family audience, is the old Ilaiyaraaja style of melodies. Recently, Tharai Thappattai took a decent opening only because of its music. Among the new generation, D. Imman’s songs that have a rustic touch is closest to Isaignani’s music. His Romeo Juliet ran here because of its music.”

Lyricist Madhan Karky says, “Every song today has a target audience. My song ‘Google Google’ from Thuppakki worked best with the urban youth and IT crowd, while ‘Fy, Fy Kalachify’ from Pandiya Naadu was aimed at the rural listeners and it clicked. Rahman sir, however, asks me to enjoy what I’m doing rather than be bothered about target audiences.” It isn’t just Tamil films, of course. Hindi films have also been using music as a promotional tool. Shah Rukh Khan’s latest release, Fan , released with just one peppy number called ‘Jabra fan’, which sort of became an anthem during the promotions of the film. But the song was missing in the film, , in tune with the dark theme of the movie. The good news, however, is that Tamil music continues to be doing well, as the trade is clear that they will not back a project without songs. Every chartbuster produces a new music director, as both youngsters and veterans alike continue to hold sway over the listeners.

The teaser of Rajinikanth’s Kabali is out today (May 1), but grapevine is abuzz that producer Kalaipuli Thanu is planning a mega audio launch where the first visuals of the exciting new combination of Rajinikanth and Santhosh Narayanan will be unveiled.