Seeing my passion for singing, my parents enrolled me in music classes from a nearby teacher when I was eight years old. I was happy until I realized that they only teach how to pronounce letters like Sa, Ri, Ga etc in different ways instead of film songs. When I expressed my disappointment, those around me explained that this was the basis of learning music and that knowing this would eventually make singing film songs easier. A few months later, my teacher organized a program to showcase budding talents like me. He taught me a movie song for the event. Although it was an old song, I loved it and sang it. Weeks later, we received a video recording of the event. But something bothered me – I didn’t feel the way I thought. The song, sweet and soulful, sounded flat and lifeless when I sang it. That’s when it dawned on me that maybe I wasn’t cut out to be a singer. However, I did not feel bad. Instead, I was amazed at how hard the original singer played the song. I searched and finally found his name… I had heard it before, P Jayachandranand the song: “Manjalayil Mungithorthi” from Kalithozhan (1966), composed by G Devarajan.
While any person’s passing leaves a void that can never be filled, Jayachandran’s passing is deeply personal to music lovers across the country, especially among Malayalees and Tamils. Although we’ve had countless legendary playback singers, he was the one who truly showed us that music is less about flawless execution and more about emotions. Not that his songs were not perfect, but he understood that perfection alone does not make a song memorable; and that the song sans a soul was not a song at all, no matter how perfect it sounded.
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There’s a popular anecdote about the 1984 Tamil film Vaidehi Kaathirundhal — it’s said that every day the movie played at a theater in Kambam, Theni, the song “Rasathi Unna” drew wild elephants close to the theater. Apparently they would stay until the end of the song before quietly returning to the forest. Whether this story is true or not, it wouldn’t be surprising if it were – especially considering the many studies on the effect music can have on animals. Even if the elephants weren’t really enchanted, the track captured us all. Of course, most of the credit for the amazing episode goes to “Isaignani” Ilaiyaraaja and lyricist Vaali. But think about it – one of the most famous Tamil songs ever sung was not sung by a Tamil, but by a Malayali Jayachandran. Of course, his Tamil pronunciation may not match that of a native speaker, and Ilaiyaraaja must have thought of this too; however the song remains etched in our hearts and the reason lies in Jayachandran’s amazing ability to freely breathe life and emotion into every song he sings, thus earning the sobriquet “Bhaava Gayakan“.
Although KJ Yesudas is regarded as Gaanagandharvan
Performer P Jayachandran is shaped by actor-filmmaker Balachandran Menon. (Show archive photo)
Jayachandran’s interpretation of each song makes one wonder if he knew the characters and could see into their souls, capturing their emotions with incredible precision. Be it “Karimukilkkaatile” (Kallichellamma, 1969), “Nin Padangalil” (Nazhikakkallu, 1970), “Sandhyaykkenthinu Sindooram” (Maaya, 1972), “Roopavathi Nin” (Kalachakram, 1973), “Nakshaykkenthinu Sindooram” (Maaya, 1972) , “Roopavathi Nin” (Kalachakram, 1973), “Nakshaykkenthinu Sindooram” 1973), “Suprabhaatham” (Panitheeratha Veedu, 1973), “Ramzanile Chandrikayo” (Alibabayum 41 Kallanmaarum, 1975), “Vasantha Kaala” (Moondru Mudichu, 1976), “Ragam Sreeragam” (1977), Bandrihanam), (Pagal Nilavu, 1985), “Chinna Poove Mella Pesu” (1987) or “Aavani Poovin” (CID Unnikrishnan BA BEd, 1994), brought out the depth of emotions of every character he gave voice to and it was as if Jayachandran’s song was all that was needed to convey the full range of emotions of any character.
Unlike many of his contemporaries who retreated to emerging voices, Jayachandran remained a favorite of composers for generations and continued to be the same in the 2000s as well. The song “Prayam Nammil” (Niram, 1999), composed by Vidyasagar, was instrumental in establishing his status at this time and its occurrence alone underscored his heavy command of complex tracks, cementing his unparalleled artistry. From “Devaragame Mele” (Prem Poojari, 1999), “Kaakkappoo Kaithappoo” (Arayannangalude Veedu, 2000), “Poove Poove” (The Devadoothan
Jayachandran (right) with singers Darshana and S Janaki and music director Jaidev. (Show archive photo)
Although he could masterfully convey any emotion with his words, Jayachandran’s romantic tracks stood out for the longest. For those who are in love, his music deepened their feelings and for those who are about to fall in love, it aroused the desire to hear it so that they could let their songs hit them harder. Songs like “Kodiyile Malliyappoo” (Kadalora Kavithaigal, 1986), “Sisirakala Megha Midhuna” (Devaraagam, 1996), “Marannittumenthino” (Randam Bhavam, 2001), “Ariyathe Ariyathe” (Raavanaprabhubhu, 2001), “Eneela Innum Vanneela” I -Gramophone, 2003), “Viral Thottal” (Phantom, 2002), “Onnu Thodanullil” (Yathrakarude Sradhakku, 2002), “Neeyoru Puzhayay” (Thilakkam, 2003), “Nee Manimukilaadakal” (Vellithira, 2003), “Aaraanam0”, Kandrom 0, Chandrom 2 , The “ Premikkumbol” (Salt N’ Pepper, 2011) and and “Olanjali Kuruvi” (1983 Movie, 2014) are a few examples of love songs where he put his soul into the music, making them truly immortal.
Whether he was a composer – Baburaj, Ilaiyaraaja, Johnson, Devarajan, Raveendran, Vidyasagar, AR Rahman or MS Viswanathan – or a lyricist, Jayachandran was the trusted voice of maestros when they find their compositions too complex to be complete. Still, he’s embraced their ethos with such effortless grace that it feels like these songs wouldn’t really be complete without his voice.
It feels absurd to say goodbye to P Jayachandran because only his voice can comfort us in his absence – and that voice will live on in our playlists forever. But anyway, as a rule, see you on the other side, sir! And whenever we find ourselves entering the depths of emptiness, don’t forget to come back and whisper softly in our ears, “Raasaathi unnai kaannadha nenju kaathaadi polaadudhu…“
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