The last rays of the sun suffuse the sand
with a warm glow, and there is a murmur in the air, as a restive audience
around waits for the next performer of the evening. I’m at Spaces, a one of a
kind performance space in Besant Nagar, located right across from Elliot’s beach.
Today’s event, the ‘Poda Poromboke’ concert, organized by the Vettiver
Collective, is also one of a kind. The packed audience consists of a diverse
range of people; maamis in bespoke madisars are rubbing shoulders with hip
college students, while kids from the nearby fishing village run around
excitedly. It strikes me that this kind of socially diverse crowd in one place
is a rare sight, but it is exactly what the Poda Poromboke concert aims to do.
Bringing together a wide variety of artists and musical styles – from the
traditional folk style of vilupaatu,
to Carnatic music and contemporary acoustic guitar music – the concert, a
precursor to the annual Urur Vizha, is envisioned as a means to bridge social
divides through the power of music.
A performance in full swing at the Urur Olcott Vizha. photo credits: The Hindu |
The Poda Poromboke concert, like the Urur
Vizha, for me represents a new and welcome means of engaging with some
difficult questions on society and culture, that for far too long been brushed
under the carpet. For me, it also represented a culmination of a long-drawn
discussion on music and Tamil society, which had begun as a bunch of diary
entries nearly a year ago, titled ‘What is Tamil Punk?’
In the process of writing this piece, I
spent the longest time debating the various aspects of what is obviously a
complex and multi-faceted issue – encompassing questions on culture, social
structures, economics and politics. How would I present it? What had started
out as a simple article on ‘protest music’ began to grow into something far
more challenging – an enquiry into the identity of Tamil music itself – and
this is an issue that I’m still grappling with.
In the end I have decided that I will simply
lay out all my thoughts, and try and make a case for the importance of socially
relevant music in a healthy society. But I admit that the essay also touches on
various issues that I haven’t yet been able to tie into a coherent narrative.
It has been is divided into two parts: the first part specifically focuses on
the Tamil music scene – and examines the various issues around an indigenous
independent music industry, in a cultural milieu that has historically been
dominated by the film industry. The second part of the essay will focus on the
various historical factors that have adversely impacted the growth of indigenous
musical traditions, as well the potential socio-cultural impacts of an emerging
independent Tamil music industry.
As a Tamilian and a music lover, I have
often been disappointed by the limited options I have for enjoying good music
in my own language. After a point, as one more koothu song on the radio, indistinguishable from the countless
others, begins to chafe, I heave a sigh of frustration and turn the thing off. Popular
music in Tamil Nadu is almost exclusively film-based of course, but did you
know that many online playlists and song collections list Tamil music as a
separate genre? It took me a while to realize how odd that is, as if all the music
produced in that language should be of the same kind. But it is easy to see why
one might think that. Despite the repetitive and overly commercialized formula
that the film industry dishes out, it’s almost alarming when one realizes the
absolute dominance that film music has in all aspects of our cultural life – a
phenomenon that has left us with no room for any other form of music to emerge.
What really set me thinking about this
issue was a chapter from ‘This is a Call’, Paul Brannigan’s excellent biography
on former Nirvana drummer and current Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl. While
relating his musical roots and early days as a musician, Dave recounts how he
was influenced by the underground punk scene in Washington DC.
Dave Grohl in his pre-Nirvana days, playing for the punk band Scream. Photo credits: Naomi Peterson |
Punk music is in
many ways the enfant terrible of the music world – a genre that has always challenged
established norms and aesthetic values, and questioned social mores – right from
the early days of the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. The underground punk
movement in DC in the early nineties was no different – a rebellion against
established order. Washington DC, nerve centre of the American federal
establishment, was also unsurprisingly, a hotbed of political dissent and anti-government
sentiment, especially among the younger generations. Anger, frustration, and
pure absolute anarchy embodied punk music’s lyrics – and it lent a voice to an
entire disillusioned generation. What stuck with me was Dave explaining how the
Punk scene fundamentally influenced his worldview and political stance. Punk,
despite its destructive image, helped a number of young people find their
footing in a chaotic world and became an outlet for their angst. It was also
culturally influential, shaping everything from fashion to environmental
consciousness and political beliefs. In other words, I realized that music in
that society played a role that I could never imagine in our own.
Chaos ensues as the Melvins begin their set at Houston, TX. Photo credits: Daniel Jackson |
Why could there never be a Tamil Punk? More
specifically, why hasn’t anything resembling a cultural or artistic movement,
spurring new modes of musical expression, occured within the context of Tamil
music? The idea seems alien, almost laughable – but it leads us to question the
historical, social and cultural factors that have shaped Tamil society’s
attitudes and engagement with music, and the arts in general. The first and
most significant point to discuss is the dominant role of film music in our
society. In ‘The Eye of the Serpent: An Introduction to Tamil Cinema’ Theodore
Baskaran delves into the historical processes that have led to the dominance of
film music in Tamil Nadu. In many ways, this is unique among music cultures
around the world, and it becomes interesting to see how this has affected the
cultural significance and modes of engagement with music.
‘The
dominant hold of film music in society has hindered the development of any
other kind of popular musical expression outside of cinema.’ (Baskaran, 2013) Following Baskaran’s observation, the first point
of my argument is that the pervasiveness of film music, backed by a robust and
commercially oriented industry, has reduced popular music to a superficial form
of entertainment, leaving no scope for anything like Tamil Punk to emerge. The
second point is that the role of the musician as a cultural figure has been
relegated to the background, which in itself diminishes the power of music to
directly engage with society.
Creative limitations on film music:
As Tamil music is largely produced in the
context of cinema, music itself automatically begins to play a secondary role,
supporting or adding value to the visual medium, rather than as a distinct
aesthetic form to be enjoyed in its own right. Since the subject matter of film
music largely depends on its relevance to the narrative of the film, this
begins to limit its aesthetic boundaries. As Baskaran describes, songs ‘are featured
in stock situations in films,’ and as commercial Tamil films themselves largely
depend on a formulaic themes and plot structures – the subject matter and style
of the songs also become standardized and predictable. An assistant director
friend of mine once confided that discussions on music for an upcoming film
often begin with a list like this:
Hero introduction song
Romantic song
Item number/Party song
Gaana/ Folk song
Feelings song
Etc.
This list is laid out before the script is
finalized, and then modified to suit the theme and milieu of the film. Since
the songs themselves are rarely ever relevant to the narrative, one could
replace a romantic song in any one film with another, and it would make no
difference. I must clarify here that I am not commenting on the quality of the
music, only on the scope of subject matter and musical styles that film songs
are limited to. I am not denying that there is plenty of good music out there,
with many talented musicians working in the film industry. However, as Baskaran
comments, ‘songs for the most part are socially and politically superficial in
content’. There is a common perception that music is solely for entertainment
value, so it rarely, if ever, confronts issues important to society.
We are still a society that doesn’t like
talking about its problems, of course, so our music involves flights of fancy
and extravagance rather than trying to be relatable. Kaber Vasuki, vocalist of
Kurangan, one of the bands performing at the Poda Poromboke concert, mentions
in an interview that this was one the reasons that he began to write his own
songs. “Basically adolescent love
or hero worship is something cinema music does well, other than that it doesn’t
do much. I wanted to write songs that connected with me,” he says.
This brings us to the crucial point – that music
in Tamil culture has failed to become established as an aesthetic form with a
cultural role independent of cinema. There exists an entire paradigm of music that
Tamil music has never engaged with – music for protest, political criticism,
music of despair, of rage, or that which engages with social issues. Similarly
the music’s ability to be personal, acting as a conduit between the musician’s
emotions and the listener, is also diminished (There are exceptions like AR
Rahman). In short, the impact that music is capable of making as an art form
remains severely underexplored.
Tamil film music is often used as a platform for promoting hero worship |
Film
music’s specific requirements also mean that since commercial prospects
override any artistic considerations, there is no scope musical
experimentation, challenging aesthetic norms, or freedom for the musician to
innovate. This is perhaps one of the biggest tragedies of our society, Imagine
a band such as Nirvana, or even a Tamil Tupac rapping about poverty and crime
in the slums – imagine the power of Dylan’s protest music to galvanize young
people. Where are the songs of oppression or social inequality? Imagine for
example, our very own fisherman’s blues, sung by someone from a place like Urur
Kuppam, which remains at the fringes of the city despite existing long before
Chennai did. Music in many situations can be powerfully cathartic – to
oppressed communities it is a form of resistance; to confused and angry young
people, it becomes a means to channel their conflicts. It becomes a platform
for social commentary or political dissent. None of this is possible in a
cultural landscape monopolized by a commercially oriented industry.
The Secondary role of the Musician
Like music, the role of the musician has also
been relegated to the background, secondary to the actors of the film. This
explains the curious lack of musical idols in our society, whereas film stars
are blindly worshipped. Again, it has a lot to do with the dominance of the
visual medium. Since film songs are always accompanied by dancing or some other
performance by the actors of the film, the song becomes associated with the
movie or its actors, rather than the actual musicians, who remain in the
background, left out of the visuals. Of course it seems to matter very little who
was actually producing the music – because the focus was never the music
itself.
If there is any musician who gains some
kind of recognition, then it is the ‘playback singer’, whose voice naturally
gives the song its identity. The playback singer also plays a far more
important role than the accompanying musicians because Tamil musical tradition,
even historically, has been largely a vocal tradition. This can be traced back
to the influence of literary forms and poetry in the early days of Tamil
cinema, and the importance of the spoken word – in the form of speeches or
debates – to Tamil culture in general. But again, playback singers also face
limitations in the industry. Singers are chosen largely chosen for their voice
and vocal style, and rarely have an opportunity to compose their own music. This
is usually the work of the lyricist and composer. The composer also arranges
the other parts of the music such as melody lines and interludes.
Playback singers such as SP Balasubramanyam have gained recognition for their work |
In this hierarchy, studio musicians are the
most neglected lot – contributing very little to the creative process, and
usually playing standard, industry-prescribed styles and orchestration. There
is a big disjoint between their musical skills and the scope they have to
utilize these skills for creative exploration and innovation. A number of them
are very talented, with a breadth of musical knowledge, and yet they have no
recognition. In a recent film awards show, a music composer who had received an
award had to remind the audience to not just applaud for him, but also the many
great musicians who made the music possible. However, they remained unnamed and
invisible. In the larger cultural paradigm, the act of making music itself is
under-appreciated, because there is little widespread knowledge about how music
is made and limited exposure to live performed music (except vocal concerts,
where the musicians are herded in a corner and continue to play second fiddle).
I am going to argue that if an independent music industry is to g row and
thrive, the musician has to come into the forefront in popular consciousness, and
begin to play prominent cultural roles in society.
Reasserting the Social Power of Music
Here, socially relevant music is often
misconstrued as ‘protest music’. Of course protest music can be influential – a
lot of Bob Dylan’s music is considered protest music, and his concerts draw
massive crowds. Music can catalyse social change, but protest does not have to
be the only mode of socially relevant engagement. What has been more
significant about Dylan is his cultural and aesthetic impact on an entire generation.
Social relevance is first and foremost about bringing the musician to the
forefront of popular expression, rather than the specific message or style of
their songs. That’s why Tamil Punk’s relevance is only what it stands for and
not indicative of any particular genre. When the musician is an identifiable
figure that people can relate to, the music itself makes a personal impact. The
musician through performance brings the act of making music back into public
view, and in response people begin to take ownership of the act of making music, allowing for it to become an integral part of our daily life and modes of
expression. In a society where the act of making music is democratic and
widespread, music becomes capable of rising above mere entertainment and
becoming more meaningful as a whole. Such a society also provides the space for
independently made music to experiment and evolve, allowing for a constant exploration
of musical forms that could give rise to new indigenous genres. Democratize
the means, make exposure to such music more widespread, make musical
instruments and music education more accessible – and we will start to see a
change in the way music is made and enjoyed.
The closing act at the Poda Poromboke
concert, Kurangan, the Chennai-based acoustic rock band, offers perhaps the most
tangible example of how a new mode of cultural engagement is possible. The
crowd that night went crazy as the band members came on stage, and it is clear
during their set that most people in the audience are familiar with their
songs. Again this fan base cuts across socio-cultural divides, and appeals to a
wide range of audiences. Kurangan’s stripped down singer-songwriter
aesthetic and vocalist Kaber’s singing style may seem unusual for Tamil music,
but that is exactly what makes it work. Even if the musical style is unfamiliar, it
is easily embraced when the music is authentic –the lyrics are unique,
meaningful, and have an impact on the audiences. This combined with Kaber's gift for writing
catchy hummable tunes and guitarist Tenma’s great acoustic guitar playing combine
to create a compelling musical experience.
Kurangan’s act represents the potential for
Tamil music to appropriate new forms and establish a new kind of relationship
with society and music. Through performance, they have been able to connect
more closely with people. Through their musical style, they open up the
possibilities for new forms to emerge, while remaining rooted to their context.
Can this small, but growing movement in the independent music scene usurp the
hegemony of film music? Certainly not immediately, but already a new cultural
paradigm is beginning to emerge - one that blurs social barriers and brings a new identity to Tamil music. Kurangan’s success may spur the growth of
other independent musicians, setting in motion a movement that will only gain
in influence in the coming years, and perhaps come to represent the new face of
Tamil music.