How are songs useful in tamil movies?

Right from the days of talkies, songs have been an integral part in Tamil films. Early Tamil movies even had 55 songs (in films like Pavalakodi in 1934), which slowly got reduced to around five or six in films made in 1950’s. Recently successful films like Karthik Naren’s Dhruvangal Padhinaru (2016) and Myskkin’s Thupparivalan (2017) had no song.

Instead of addressing the question of whether songs are required in films or not, one should look at different kind of films and the need for songs in them, must be analysed.

Mass commercial cinema: Such films are meant to transport audience to a make-believe world and songs are integral part in them. Mass films like Viswasam, Bigil are expected to give a full-meal experience and audience look for everything in them such as fights, dance, songs, comedy, sentiment etc. As songs are not speed-breakers but support in moving the story forward with three to five songs, such films are fine with audience. However, if there is a wrong placement of songs in films, the audience become restless.

Realistic cinema: Realistic cinema is expected to reflect real life of characters with slight exaggerations. They must be rooted in our culture and life and hence limited songs are enough. In classic films like Azhagi, Autograph, Pudhiya Padhai, Sethu, Subramaniapuram, Paruthi Veeran, Aadukalam, Vazhakku Enn 18/9, the songs were used to move the story forward and not treated as commercial elements. Realistic films need not give full-meal experience like mass films to audience. Ideally, songs in this kind of cinema should not use lip-sync and rather be used for montages of visuals.

Artistic / parallel cinema: This is pure or real cinema in which songs are not a must and can be used at best in the backdrop through montages. As these films are made without making any compromises and present the story in its purest form, songs can be avoided as much as possible or be retained in backdrop to create the mood. These films create a new learning experience among audience when they are not compromised in presentation. Films like Kanchivaram, Nandhalala, Madhubanakadai, Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai, Aarohanam, Peranbu are examples of such pure films.

Neo-Noir: A neo-noir film is unconventional in nature. They present the life of ordinary human beings and their struggles to survive by hook or crook in this crime-based society. These genre films are new in their presentation and have started appealing to audience. Songs in these films are not necessary unless it helps move the story. If they do have songs, they must be used in the backdrop. Films like Aaranya Kandam, Moodar Koodam, Soodhu Kavvum, Vikram Vedha, Super Deluxe are classic examples to this.

In its 88 years of talkie history, Tamil cinema has produced over 6,500 films and out of them only around 45 came without songs and the first movie in that list is Andha Naal (1954). Later, the other films came with 5 to 55 songs in them. Hence, it cannot be generalised that songs are not required in Tamil cinema.

For certain type of films, songs are not required while for others, right inclusion of songs satisfy audience who are looking for entertainment as the key element. Legendary actors like MGR and Sivaji Ganesan are etched in our memory thanks to their memorable songs and performance in them. Directors like Sridhar, K Balachander, Bharathirajaa, Balu Mahendra, Mahendran, Mani Ratnam, Shankar have used songs effectively to communicate their stories and not as commercial elements.

If such approach is followed by other filmmakers, the necessity of songs in films would be unquestioned. Many films with simple story like Paiyya, Kumki have succeeded due to super hit songs in them. Powerful songs do compensate for the lack of depth in the stories. Success lies in using the right number of songs at the right places with right presentation to ensure they are not an intrusion to story-telling but a value addition to the overall film.