I've always been a bit of a Rahmaniac. Its only due to this really annoying friend of mine, I call him Patti, a take on his other nickname Pathe, that I actually listened to every single song composed by ARR. Yeah Patti! ARR does kick **'s ass! For those who don't understand Malayalam, Patti = dog. I think if someone smells like a dog, acts like a dog and thinks like a dog, you can be assured that he/she is one...a dog. :) JK Patti JK(disclaimer)!!

Moving on to more important matters, such as the enlightenment, I've always thought that he was one of the most talented music directors of all time, but I never realised the extent of his talent. If you haven't already listened to his Water tracks, get a move on and listen to them. Well all of his music is mind-blowing. The sad part is that most non-Tams can't listen to and completely appreciate his most beautiful creations. They hear the dubbed versions and appreciate them, imagine what they'd do if they could understand his originals. What I absolutely love abt ARR is his humility. There are so many instances of this wonderful trait of his. He's huge, he's an international phenomenon. If you don't believe me check this gentleman's blog out.
http://moviescore.blogspot.com/2005/10/elfman-still-number-one-composer.html

He also seems to be the most humble celebrity from where I stand. There was a concert in Bangalore on Oct 8th, and living in this village called College Station, and being as impoverished as I am, there was no way I could possibly have gotten to fly home to see him in action. I heard all the accounts though and for a while there I got asked by everyone I met whether I was doing fine? I turned a very pretty shade of green for a few days in between. There were a whole bunch of pics being circulated of people photographed with a very tired looking ARR. Dang! I wish I could've been there! He's supposed to be coming to North America(prolly not even the USA) in Feb of next year. Hopefully(keepin my fingers and toes crossed) I get to see him live in concert.

I've posted one of my fave pics of his. I'm going to have to look up who took the pic, it wasn't me. You can see him, the lil guy inside of his car, surrounded by his fans. He looks like any other ordinary guy. So unassuming. He's what I would call a dark horse. Brings back to mind that old adage: never judge a book by its cover.

Every time I try to think of which of his songs are my favorites, I find all of his songs tumbling through my head. I can tell for certain which ones aren't my faves, but I'd probably have to say that his first movie has his ultii songs. Roja....oh man! my Mom probably rues the day she bought the cassette for me back in 1992. Rest assured I played it over and over till the cassette gave way. My family was heartily sick of Roja by the time that happened, I was also forbidden to buy another one. However, I am now the proud owner of the movie itself. There was this one time I couldn't find the Kaadhalan tape and I actually asked my mother where my kaadhalan was. She gave me the 'look' before she went purple choking on her laughter.

What is the deal with ARR and Manirathnam? When asked why he comes up with simply awesome music for Mani Sir, he smiled and replied that Mani Sir knows how to use the music. I'm sorry but I disagree. Dil Se had amazing music, one of his best yet, but I always felt that the songs were just stuck in, for no reason at weird intervals in the movie. Oh well, I could go on about the choice of actors and all of that but, that could make another great post.

I'm not done extolling ARR's praises. There's plenty more where this post came from. If you're of the Patti ilk, ignore this blog. Cos I'm goin' tuh be runnin' down every other MD who lacks originality.