Thiruvananthapuram: In the 1960s and 1970s, when the radio was the main form of entertainment, in Kerala, the voices of P. Jayachandran and K.J. Yesudas soothed Malayalis. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that music lovers were often divided between these legendary singers. Yesudas was also a popular name across India with several credits in Bollywood songs. But this never overshadowed a young Jayachandran, who carved his own path in the industry with his expressive singing and unique voice.
Known as Bhava Gayakan for his ability to strike a chord in people, the singer’s death Thursday night, at a private hospital in Thrissur, is personal for all Malayalis. The singer sang over 15,000 songs across several Indian languages in all genres, including light music and devotional songs, making him, for Malayalis, the epitome of nostalgia.
The singer made his mark in the Malayalam film industry in 1966 with his debut song ‘Manjalayil Mungithorthi’ in the movie Kalithozhan.
But, he became a singer of all ages and times the next year with the song ‘Anuraga Ganam Pole’, composed by M.S. Baburaj for the film Udhyogastha (1967). One of the evergreen romantic songs in Malayalam, it is adored by young people even today. This period marked Jayachandran’s collaboration with lyricist Sreekumaran Thampi, who wrote the most number of songs for him.
“Many singers attempted to mimic Yesudas’s voice and singing style. But nobody attempted to copy Jayettan (Jayan brother), that’s because of his unique voice and style. So he was the perfect choice for some romance, sad and philosophical songs,” Malayalam film director and screenwriter Kamal told ThePrint.
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Love, loss and everything in between
Born in 1944 in Ernakulam district as the third son of Ravivarma Kochaniyan Thampuran of Tripunithura kovilakam and Subhadra Kunjamma of the Cochin Royal family, Jayachandran’s family later shifted to Thrissur district’s Irinjalakuda. His tryst with music started at a young age, playing the instrument mridangam and singing choir songs for the local church.
In 1958, Jayachandran participated in mridangam and light music competitions at the second edition of the Kerala State School Youth Festival, now known as Kerala School Kalolsavam, held in Thiruvananthapuram. He won the first prize for his performance with the mridangam and was the first runner-up in light music behind Yesudas, marking a long-lasting friendship for both singers. At the same venue, Jayachandran played mridangam for one of Yesudas’s performances.
Jayachandran’s best-known songs are not just romantic, nor are they limited to the Malayalam film industry.
The singer’s collaboration with Tamil maestros Ilaiyaraaja and M.S. Viswanathan produced songs that travelled through love, loss and everything in between. The Tamil classics ‘Rasathi Unnai’ and ‘Kaathirunthu’ from the movie Vaidehi Kathirunthal (1984) are popular among people in Tamil Nadu and Kerala alike. With the songs, Jayachandran also became the voice of actor-politician Vijayakanth, who reached the peak of his acting career in the 1990s.
The singer also collaborated with composers A.R. Rahman in musicals such as May Maadham (1994) and Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), and Deva for the song ‘Vellayai Manam’ in the drama film Chokka Thangam (2003). The singer won four Tamil Nadu State Awards, a national award in 1986 and five Kerala State Awards for playback singing.
“Tamil music directors like Ilaiyaraaja utilised most of his (Jayachandran) talents,” Balu Kiriyath, a lyricist and a director in the Malayalam film industry told ThePrint. He said Viswanathan gave him the best compositions at a time when the Malayalam film industry was focusing on Yesudas. Kiriyath worked with Jayachandran in the 1979 film Abhilashangale Abhayam. Jayachandran sang two songs for the film, both written by Kiriyath.
“I had a close relationship with Jayettan since I shifted to Chennai as an assistant director,” recalls Kamal. A native of Thrissur district’s Kodungallur, Kamal said he joined the Irinjalakuda Christ College with a lot of excitement as it was Jayachandran’s alumnus.
“I went and talked to him at the AVM studios during a recording in the 1980s when I was staying in Chennai. Yesudas was there too then, but he was not that reachable. But Jayettan was not like that. I have seen him buying paan and talking to people in Chennai streets, though he was a popular singer by then,” Kamal said.
While he made waves in the Malayalam film industry in the 1970s and 1980s, Jayachandran was mostly absent in the 1990s in Kerala with more opportunities in other south Indian languages. He made a comeback in 1999 with Kamal’s movie Niram.
“One day, I met Jayettan at a hotel. He said he wanted to talk to me and scolded me for not giving him an opportunity. It’s his character. He will be moody unexpectedly, and loving the next minute. I felt guilty,” Kamal recalls.
In the next film, Kamal only had one demand for his music composer Vidyasagar—to keep one song for Jayachandran. Thus, the song ‘Prayam nammil moham nalki’ was born, becoming a youth sensation that year and bagging the singer his third Kerala State award for the best playback singer.
It marked Jayachandran’s full-fledged return to Malayalam movies with the singer collaborating with Kamal several times, including Gramophone (2003), Perumazhakkalam (2004), and Rappakal (2005)
Singer of nostalgic romance in the new wave films
After giving many evergreen hits, the singer became the de facto choice for new-age musicians in Kerala who wanted to evoke a bygone era in their songs.
“Even when new generation movies came, he sang with the youngsters for the audience of those movies,” Kiriyath said.
The song ‘Olanajali Kuruvi’ from the 2014 Bollywood sports drama 1983, an instant hit of the year is the perfect example. The voices of Jayachandran and Vani Jairam brought to life the lyrics and visuals that explored blooming childhood romance in a government school verandah where sharing a rose apple or an umbrella during the pouring rain became the way of expressing love.
In the year when the songs and visuals were going through a significant transformation in terms of movie-making, choreography, and themes, the state welcomed this much-needed collaboration that gave them a taste of the past. While the movie went on to become a hit later, to date, the song is as or even more popular when compared to the movie.
Likewise, the song ‘Premikkumbol’ from the 2011 movie Salt N’ Pepper, which is on the playlists of most youngsters today, is another song where Jayachandran created his signature magic—capturing the tenderness of romance and longing. While the protagonist, who finds love in his late adulthood, aimlessly wanders around the streets and beaches of Thiruvananthapuram city imagining his newfound love whom he is yet to meet, Jayachandran becomes his voice.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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