Recently, we reported that actor-writer-director-lyricist T Rajendar's 1980s film Uyirullavarai Usha would release in theatres again on February 13, coinciding with the Valentine's Day weekend. In an exclusive conversation with CE, Rajendar talked about his journey with the film and the struggles he had to endure to make it.
In fact, even the 'Vaigai Karai Katre' song in the film that is sung by KJ Yesudas based on Rajendar's lyrics has a moving story behind it. The filmmaker told CE that he wrote the song after his wife Usha's separation from him shortly after their marriage caused much pain to him. Usha had to leave the country to accompany her sister for a dance event. T Rajendar felt the separation deeply after dropping her off in Mumbai. The filmmaker wrote the lyrics while coming back from the city; only, he tweaked the lines for the film according to its story situation. While he composed the lines in Mumbai (then Bombay), the film is set in Tamil Nadu.
The emotions reflect deeply especially in the lines: "Mannam manam vaadudhendru... Mangai thanai thaedudhendru." This roughly means, "The hero's heart is suffering in pain. He is searching for his lady." In the original lyrics, he wrote Gangai Karai because he was standing at a place near the Ganges. However, he later changed it to 'Vaigai Karai' to reflect Usha's Madurai roots. The song captures his sorrow of separation and deep emotions during that time. Interestingly, the filmmaker revealed that he felt so much pain at the time that the ink on his original lines even blurred as his tears fell on the paper. Rajendar had a similarly emotional story to tell us that explains the reason behind the film's title as well.
