"Crazy about Kaara Aatakkaara (eyes-buried-in-love emoticon)^3"
"Mental manadhil - simply superb (normally-smiling emoticon) (blushing emoticon) (gleefully-smiling emoticon)"
"Aye Sinamika - ARR rules (hands-joined-in-respect symbol)^2"
The above mentioned phrases are a few of the many WhatsApp statuses I have come across since the release of the songs of O Kadhal Kanmani.
Inferring from the statuses, Kaara Aatakkaara and Mental manadhil seem to be the stand-out winners of the album. Aye Sinamika seems to be in the next place followed by Paranthu sella vaa and Theera Ulaa, in that order.
Reading the reviews of the album seems to indicate that the critics are inclined more towards the Naanae varugiraen track for Rahman's exploration of the Kaanada raga and Malargal Kaettaen for re-establishing how sweet and graceful Chithra's voice sounds.
But there seems to be very little mention about the stunning piece sung by Rahman junior, A R Ameen - Maula wa sallim - and the fact simply pains me more every time I listen to it.
The first time I listened to Maula wa salim, the feeble percussion filled background rhythm reminded me of another Rahman favorite, If I rise. But with every listening of the former, the love for it only seems to grow.
Like it always does with a beautiful song in a language I know not.
****
There goes a story in the eleventh chapter of 'Genesis' from the Bible that claims of a time when all the people on earth spoke the same language. A group of migrants from the eastern part of the earth who had settled at a place named Shinar had decided amongst themselves to build a city with a tower so high that it would be an achievement and would also contribute to their name that would unite the people all over the world. But God, on seeing the city and the tower being built, had realized that as people with the same language, they would become extremely powerful and hence had decided to confuse their speech, making them unable to understand each other's language and had scattered them all over the world.
"And the LORD said: 'Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they purpose to do will be withheld from them.
Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.' "
****
People speaking different languages cite their differences as a problem for communication. But at times, a break in communication is what paves way to a deeper understanding. Words that make sense carry the burden of implications upon them. But words that fail to strike a meaning, touch us in a way an infant devoid of emotional baggage does.
"La la da pa da le na da na
Ve va da pa da le na la dumda"
These words sung by Lisa Gerrard for the song Now we are free are part of her idioglossia - an idiosyncratic language invented and spoken by only one person or very few people (as put on Wikipedia).
But her words bond with me more than the words of my well known languages do.
A very similar bonding arises on listening to Shosholoza from Invictus, Yerushalayim shel zahav from Schindler's List and even Mini-Sloths Sing-A-Long from Ice Age: The Meltdown.
I often wonder as to the reason of this bonding.
The musical element? The artistic connect that so mystically occurs with any great work of art? A yearning for chaos?
But the thoughts always seem to point towards a very simple answer.
Perhaps, the real understanding lies in not really understanding.
Like it happens with a newborn.
Like it happens with nature.
Like it happens with ourselves.
"Mental manadhil - simply superb (normally-smiling emoticon) (blushing emoticon) (gleefully-smiling emoticon)"
"Aye Sinamika - ARR rules (hands-joined-in-respect symbol)^2"
The above mentioned phrases are a few of the many WhatsApp statuses I have come across since the release of the songs of O Kadhal Kanmani.
Inferring from the statuses, Kaara Aatakkaara and Mental manadhil seem to be the stand-out winners of the album. Aye Sinamika seems to be in the next place followed by Paranthu sella vaa and Theera Ulaa, in that order.
Reading the reviews of the album seems to indicate that the critics are inclined more towards the Naanae varugiraen track for Rahman's exploration of the Kaanada raga and Malargal Kaettaen for re-establishing how sweet and graceful Chithra's voice sounds.
But there seems to be very little mention about the stunning piece sung by Rahman junior, A R Ameen - Maula wa sallim - and the fact simply pains me more every time I listen to it.
The first time I listened to Maula wa salim, the feeble percussion filled background rhythm reminded me of another Rahman favorite, If I rise. But with every listening of the former, the love for it only seems to grow.
Like it always does with a beautiful song in a language I know not.
****
There goes a story in the eleventh chapter of 'Genesis' from the Bible that claims of a time when all the people on earth spoke the same language. A group of migrants from the eastern part of the earth who had settled at a place named Shinar had decided amongst themselves to build a city with a tower so high that it would be an achievement and would also contribute to their name that would unite the people all over the world. But God, on seeing the city and the tower being built, had realized that as people with the same language, they would become extremely powerful and hence had decided to confuse their speech, making them unable to understand each other's language and had scattered them all over the world.
"And the LORD said: 'Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they purpose to do will be withheld from them.
Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.' "
****
People speaking different languages cite their differences as a problem for communication. But at times, a break in communication is what paves way to a deeper understanding. Words that make sense carry the burden of implications upon them. But words that fail to strike a meaning, touch us in a way an infant devoid of emotional baggage does.
"La la da pa da le na da na
Ve va da pa da le na la dumda"
These words sung by Lisa Gerrard for the song Now we are free are part of her idioglossia - an idiosyncratic language invented and spoken by only one person or very few people (as put on Wikipedia).
But her words bond with me more than the words of my well known languages do.
A very similar bonding arises on listening to Shosholoza from Invictus, Yerushalayim shel zahav from Schindler's List and even Mini-Sloths Sing-A-Long from Ice Age: The Meltdown.
I often wonder as to the reason of this bonding.
The musical element? The artistic connect that so mystically occurs with any great work of art? A yearning for chaos?
But the thoughts always seem to point towards a very simple answer.
Perhaps, the real understanding lies in not really understanding.
Like it happens with a newborn.
Like it happens with nature.
Like it happens with ourselves.
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