The influence of the Mellisai Mannar's works on my family has been so overwhelming. In their own words, "They walk MSV, talk MSV, breathe MSV". So I grew up listening to his songs, some of them so rare…
One such song that I listened to when I was a child was this song in "Varumayin Niram Sivappu". First about the movie! Kamal and Sridevi in the peak of their career in KB’s direction- I would have seen this movie some hundred times! It will be very hard to pick a song in the movie that was just so-so. Apart from the well-known ones like “Sippi irukkudu”, there are the not-so-often heard numbers like "Paattu onnu paadu thambi" (SPB is in his element here), "Ranga Rangayya" with the Ghazal-like charanams in P.Susheela's mellifluous voice and "Tu hai Raja" by S.Janaki.
Set to the lyrics of PBS himself, "Tu hai Raja" is one of SJ's best songs in MSV's music. Her flawless Urdu pronunciation captivates the listener equally as her intoxicating voice.You can see the video of the song in You Tube.
I could not get the Tamil version of the song but the very last line and the tune that I heard years ago stayed indelibly in my mind. Hence the medley of words towards the end of the song…..
Tu Hai Raja of "Aakali Raajyam" in my voice...
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