Roja

In Malaysia, "Roja" was released in cassette, and CD by Alai Osai in 1992. My brother bought the "Roja' cassette, and I remember my father bought the pirated CD of "Roja" combo with "Annamalai".

In the late 1980s, and early 1990s, Ilaiyaraaja was the composer that most captured my imagination. In 1991, "Thalapathi" directed by Mani Ratnam, and starring Rajnikanth with music by Illaiyaraaja was ruling the radio airwaves. I remember the it was thrilling to listen to the violins intro of "Adi Rakkamma". It was very surprising that Mani Ratnam would attempt to change the musical partnership that he had with Ilaiyaraaja after the success of "Thalapathi".

My father used to visit India in the middle of 1980s, I remember the photo he took with Ilaiyaraaja. He mentioned about  Ilaiyaraaja's famous keyboards player - Viji Manuel. Until today, I have the highest respect for the musical contributions of Ilaiyaraaja - he's truly a living legend, and a source of inspiration for many musical talents worldwide. 

I was going through the New Straits Times's archives from 1992, and I read the movie review for "Roja" by K. Vijiyan that was published on 26 September 1992. The headline for the movie review was "Superb, uncensored songs make Roja a splendid movie". Below are some highlights from the movie review:

SONGS are the lifeline of many Indian movies; some have run well on the strength of the songs alone.

Roja is one movie which was "sold" to Tamil moviegoers even before it hit the local circuit - through its songs.

A.R. Rahman single handedly revolutionized the Indian music industry with "Roja". All the other music directors stood up, and took notice of this young prodigy. Eventually, they all had to adapt their musical style to adapt with the sounds introduced by A.R. Rahman. I liked the reggae infusion in "Chinna Chinna Asai", the percussion in "Rukkumani Rukkumani", the Star Wars/Star Trek orchestral of "Pudhu Vellai Mazhai", the haunting melody of "Kadhal Rojave", and the patriotic "Thamizha Thamizha". It is truly a blockbuster soundtrack that all Indians can be proud of.

Credits from the "Roja" Movie
Lyrics by Vairamuthu.

The audiography by V.S. Murthy, A.S. Lakshmi Narayanan, and R. Ravichandran.

The playback singers are S.P. Balasubramaniam, Unni Menon, Hariharan, Chitra, Minmini, and Sujatha.

The songs audiography by Emi, H. Sridhar, and Vincent at Panchathan Record-Inn.

Tracks Order in the "Roja" Movie
Chinna Chinna Asai
Rukkumani Rukkumani
Chinna Chinna Asai (Bit)
Pudhu Vellai Mazhai
Kadhal Rojave
Thamizha Thamizha

May Maadham

"May Maadham" was another musical blockbuster from A.R. Rahman released in 1994. The cassette was released by Mani Osai in Malaysia, and I remember it was a battle of sales between "Kaadhalan" cassette released by Alai Osai, and this audio release. The melody of the "Muppadhu Nimidam" song from the "Parasuram" movie released in 2003 appeared as a background score in this movie during the scene where the hero left the heroine without paying the bill in a restaurant. The hero's sidekick name in the movie is "Calcutta" which is mentioned in the lyrics of the song "Aadipaaru Mangaatha" as the person who asked the heroine to play the card game "Mangaatha". 

Sadly, I don't yet have the Pyramid CD of the soundtrack. I bought the Aditya Music CD release of the soundtrack but I believe the sound quality of the Pyramid CDs are much more superior. The "Holy Grail' CD will be the Pyramid CD "May Maadham & Musical Extravaganza" (CD PYR 8218) that contains the instrumental versions of the tracks with the exception of "Aadipaaru Mangaatha".

May Madham - Mani Osai - M 9040 - Cassette - Malaysia
For the Malaysian cassette release of "May Maadham", Mani Osai included 4 of the 5 instrumental tracks available. I believe Pyramid never released "Aadipaaru Mangaatha" as an instrumental track. I lost the sleeve of the Mani Osai cassette but I had the cassette with me until I converted the cassette into MP3 format.

Side A
Aadipaaru Mangaatha
Maargazhi Poove
Yenmel Vizhunda
Madrasa Suthiparka
Palakaati Machankku

Side B
Madrasa Suthiparka (Instrumental)
Yenmel Vizhunda (Instrumental)
Minnalae (Instrumental)
Palakaati Machankku (Instrumental)
Minnalae

Credits from the "May Maadham" Movie
The singers on the soundtrack were S.P. Balasubramaniam, Jayachandran, Chitra, Swarnalatha, T.K. Kala, Shahul Hameed, Shobha Shankar, Suneeta Rao, Noell James, G.V. Prakash Kumar, and Manorama.

The recording, and re-recording at Panchathan Record Inn by H. Sridhar, and S. Sivakumar with assistance from Noell James, and Samidurai.

Lyrics by Vairamuthu.

Tracks Order in the "May Maadham" Movie
Maargazhi Poove
Palakaati Machankku
Aadipaaru Mangaatha
Madrasa Suthiparka
Yenmel Vizhunda
Minnalae

Duet

I was browsing through the videos in YouTube when I came across this video of S.P. Balasubramaniam answering a question from a fan (Rakesh Misra) about special memories of recording the song "Anjali Anjali" from Duet released in 1994.

A Conversation with SPB: The Story of Anjali Anjali

My memories of "Duet" began when my brother bought the Mani Osai cassette of "Duet" in Malaysia in 1994. The front sleeve had Prabhu posing with a saxophone. The year 1994 was the year of my SPM (the Malaysian secondary school examinations before we either pursued further tertiary education or started our working life), and I was focusing on my studies but every time my brother played "Duet" on the Aiwa sound system, I could not help but listen to the songs. I enjoyed all the songs from the "Duet" soundtrack - from the thumping bass of "Mettuppodu Mettuppodu", the rhythm of the saxophone in "Naan Paadum Sandham", and the way the vocals of S.P. Balasubramaniam sounded in "Kulicha Kuthaalam" - the soundtrack was another winner from A.R. Rahman back in the early days of his movie career but the song that captured my imagination the most is the melodic, and soothing sounds of "Anjali Anjali". The flute by Naveen that adorns the song is soulful - touches the heart.

My father borrowed the Pyramid CD of "Duet" from my cousin brother, and I remember going though the sleeve - it showed the upcoming audio releases on Pyramid from A.R. Rahman - excellent marketing strategy.

I did not know what happened to my brother's cassette copy of "Duet" but I bought another copy for myself from one of the textile shops in Jalan Masjid India after I went to university. By the time I started my collection of A.R. Rahman CDs, the Pyramid CD of "Duet" became very rare. I finally managed to find a copy from Joe's Mac (a shop selling second hand items) located in AmCorp Mall about 2-3 years back. I guess someone must have sold their Tamil CDs collection to the shop as I saw a few Pyramid, and Alai Osai CDs but I could not believe my luck when I saw the Pyramid "Duet" CD. I think I bought the CD for less than RM10.

The confusing thing about "Duet" is that the soundtrack releases from the various audio companies in cassettes, and CDs had different tracks. Noell James received a credit as one of the singers featured in the soundtrack but I believe "LOVE IS TORTURE" never appeared in the movie itself. The Chitra short rendition of "En Kadhalae" also never appeared in the movie.

Duet - Pyramid - 018 - Cassette - India (March 1994)
The Pyramid cassette release of "Duet" in India had 13 tracks which was unbelievable for me as the Pyramid CD only had 8 tracks. Below is the list of tracks from the Indian Pyramid cassette release obtained from the scans that have appeared on the Internet:
Side A
Anjali Anjali
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Kavithaikku Porul Thandha - Prabhu & Sreeja
Saththathinaal Vantha - Prabhu
Kathirikka Kathirikka

Side B
Vennilavin Theril Yeri
Naan Paadum Sandham
LOVE IS TORTURE - Written & Sung by Noell James
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam
TITLE MELODY - Kadri Gopalnath
En Kadhalae - Chitra
SAX LULLABY - Kadri Gopalnath
Kulicha Kuthaalam

Duet/Maindan - Pyramid - CD PYR 8176 - CD - Singapore (1994)
For the Pyramid CD release of "Duet", the "LOVE IS TORTURE" track was merged together at the beginning of "En Kadhalae" by S.P. Balasubramaniam. The 2 poem recital tracks - "Kavithaikku Porul Thandha", and "Saththathinaal Vantha", Chitra's short rendition of "En Kadhalae", and "SAX LULLABY" were not included on the CD version from Pyramid.

Vennilavin Theril Yeri
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Anjali Anjali
Kathirikka Kathirikka
Naan Paadum Sandham
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam & Noell James
Kulicha Kuthaalam
TITLE MELODY

Duet - Mani Osai - M 8092 - Cassette - Malaysia
For the Malaysian cassette release of "Duet", on the sleeve, the tracks were listed as below - the same as tracks from the Pyramid CD version but the cassette contained additional tracks. On Side A, after "Kathirikka Kathirikka", the "SAX LULLABY" track was included. On Side B, Chitra's short rendition of "En Kadhalae" was included after the "TITLE MELODY" track. For me this is best release of "Duet" in terms of tracks placement, the album needs to start off with a bang with "Mettuppodu Mettuppodu" on Side A, and "Naan Paadum Sandham" on Side B to truly appreciate the powerhouses of "Anjali Anjali", and "En Kadhalae" immediately after them.

Side A
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Anjali Anjali
Kathirikka Kathirikka
SAX LULLABY (Kadri Gopalnath) - Hidden Track

Side B
Naan Paadum Sandham
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam & Noell James
Kulicha Kuthaalam
TITLE MELODY - Kadri Gopalnath
En Kadhalae (Chitra) - Hidden Track
Vennilavin Theril Yeri

Duet/Maindan - Ramy Records - ACD 1238 - CD - Switzerland
The Ramy Records CD of "Duet" is somewhat of a "Holy Grail" among the CD collectors of A.R. Rahman as it is reportedly the only CD release that contains all the 13 tracks of the soundtrack including the poem recitals. I've seen only the sleeve scans of this CD. As usual, the "LOVE IS TORTURE" track was merged together at the beginning of "En Kadhalae" by S.P. Balasubramaniam. The credit mentioned Chitra's name as well for "En Kadhalae". I believe her short rendition of the song was merged together at the end of the track. The "Instrument" track probably refers to "SAX LULLABY" by Kadri Gopalnath, and the 2 poem recitals have been included at the end of the CD.

Mettu podu... Mettu podu...
Vannilavin Theril Eari...
Kulicha Kuttalam...
Kathirikka... Kathirikka...
En Kaathale... - S.P. Balasubramaniam & Chitra
Anjali... Anjali...
Naan Paadum Sandham...
Title Melody - Kadri Gopalnath
Instrument - A.R. Rahman
Kavithaikku & Sithathinal - Prabhu & Sreeja

Bombay/Duet - Aditya Music - AMIL 17008 - CD - India (June 2009)
Aditya Music released their version of "Duet" on CD after they had acquired the copyright to Pyramid's music catalog. It was released as a combo CD together with "Bombay". 

Vennilavin Theril Yeri
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Anjali Anjali
Kathirikka Kathirikka
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam & Noell James
Kulicha Kuthaalam
Naan Paadum Sandham
Dialogues with Saxophone

The "Dialogues with Saxophone" is a combination of 3 tracks starting with the 2 poem recitals of "Kavithaikku Porul Thandha" by Prabhu/Sreeja, and followed with "Saththathinaal Vantha" by Prabhu, and ending with the saxophone rendition by Kadri Gopalnath of the song "Naan Paarthathilae" from the 1966 movie "Anbe Vaa" starring M.G.R. with music by M.S. Viswanathan. Was this rendition included in the original cassette released from Pyramid in 1994?

Veera/Duet - Sangeeth - SGH 007 - CD - U.S.A.
The "LOVE IS TORTURE" track is included as a separate track in this release of the CD.

Vennilavin Theril Yeri
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Anjali Anjali
Kathirikka Kathirikka
Naan Paadum Sandham
LOVE IS TORTURE - Noell James
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam
TITLE MELODY - Kadri Gopalnath

Honest Raj/Duet/Kuyile Thoppu - Blockbuster - BB 3003 - CD
Vennilavin Theril Yeri
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
Anjali Anjali
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam & Noell James
Kulicha Kuthaalam

Credits from the "Duet" Movie
The date of issue of the Indian film certification for "Duet" was on 17 May 1994. 

Lyrics by Vairamuthu.

Classical Sax by Kadri Gopalnath.

Western Sax by Raju.

The songs audiography by H. Sridhar, and S. Sivakumar with assistance from Samidurai, J. Ramesh, and Noell James, and recorded at Panchathan Record Inn.

The singers on the soundtrack were S.P. Balasubramaniam, K.J. Yesudas, Chitra, Sujatha, T.K. Kala, and Noell James.

Tracks Order in the "Duet" Movie
TITLE MELODY - Kadri Gopalnath
Naan Paadum Sandham
Mettuppodu Mettuppodu
SAX LULLABY - Kadri Gopalnath
Kulicha Kuthaalam
Anjali Anjali
Naan Paarthathilae - Kadri Gopalnath
Kathirikka Kathirikka
Kavithaikku Porul Thandha - Prabhu & Sreeja
Saththathinaal Vantha - Prabhu
Vennilavin Theril Yer
En Kadhalae - S.P. Balasubramaniam

Deepavali with A.R. Rahman

I still remember seeing the movie poster of "Muthu" in the Broadway cinema in Johor Bahru, Malaysia during Deepavali of 1995. Ever since "Thiruda Thiruda" was released during Deepavali of 1993, I always look forward to a movie with music by A.R. Rahman being released for that special occasion of the year. I was going through the New Straits Times's archives from 1993, and I read the movie review for "Thiruda Thiruda" by K. Vijiyan that was published on 13 December 1993 (Deepavali fell on 13 November in 1993). The headline for the movie review was "Rahman's songs the main draw in this tale of thieves". Below are some highlights from the movie review:

The hordes of people making their way to see the movie since its opening three weeks ago will testify to this.

So why are Malaysians flocking to see it? There can be no doubt about it; it is Rahman's songs.

When the songs were released (in the same package with Rahman's other songs from his other hit movie Puthiya Mugam) in July, it was reported that 200,000 cassettes and CDs were sold on the launching date itself.

Every Deepavali programme over TV3 and RTM had songs from Thiruda Thiruda and Gentleman (another movie that made its producer rich with Rahman's songs). 

See this one to find out what your friends are raving about.

I still remember the Deepavali special that was aired on TV2 that had almost all the songs from "Thiruda Thiruda" recreated with local artistes. It was one of the best Deepavali specials that I've seen until today. I was so captured by "Thiruda Thiruda" that I was not aware that there was 2 additional movies from A.R. Rahman that were also released during Deepavali of 1993 - Kizhakku Cheemaielea, and Uzhavan. Below is the list of Tamil movies with music by A.R. Rahman that were released during Deepavali (as far as I can recall) - I've seen all the movies from "Ratchagan" onwards in theaters during Deepavali. 

Deepavali Releases
13/11/1993 - Thiruda Thiruda, Kizhakku Cheemaielea, Uzhavan

03/11/1994 - Karuthamma, Pavithra
23/10/1995 - Muthu

10/10/1996 - Mr. Romeo

30/10/1997 - Ratchagan

07/11/1999 - Mudhalvan, Taj Mahal

26/10/2000 - Thenali

14/11/2001 - Paarthale Paravasam
21/10/2006 - Godfather (Varalaru)
09/11/2007 - Azhagiya Tamil Magan
17/10/2009 - Blue

13/11/2012 - Jab Tak Hai Jaan

Tamil New Year Releases
14/04/1994 - Vandi Solai Chinraasu
24/04/1998 - Jeans
14/04/1999 - Padaiyappa
13/04/2000 - Alai Payuthey
14/04/2002 - Alli Arjuna
17/04/2015 - O Kadhal Kanmani 

Pongal Releases
14/01/1996 - Love Birds (The audio was released in December 1995)
14/01/1997 - Iruvar, Minsara Kanavu (The audios were released in December 1996)
14/01/2015 - I (The audio was released in September 2014)

Sooriya

1995

Melody Audio & Video Centre

Lebuh Ampang, Kuala Lumpur

I remember going to the audio shop in Lebuh Ampang on one of my regular visits. I believe it was in 1995 as "Manitha Manitha" was released around that time by Alai Osai in Malaysia. I could only afford to buy a cassette in those days as I just had entered university in June of 1995. A cassette from Alai Osai or Mani Osai was selling for a recommended retail price of RM6.50. I remember Alai Osai placing advertisements in Tamil newspapers to promote the release of "Manitha Manitha". I vaguely remember the words "Thunderstorm music from A.R. Rahman" in the advertisement. I called the Hema Enterprise shop in SS5, Kelana Jaya every hour asking whether they already have received the shipment of the cassettes. The lady who answered my numerous calls must have regretted that day.  

From the cassette display cabinet in the audio shop, I remember seeing the "Beauty Palace" (released in Malaysia by Alai Osai), and "Sooriya" cassettes. The reason why I was attracted to these 2 cassettes was because of A.R. Rahman’s picture in a circle prominently displayed on the front sleeve of the cassettes telling everybody that the music is by A.R. Rahman.

I was already an A.R. Rahman fanatic back then, I bought the cassettes of "Fantasy" (released in Malaysia by Mani Osai), and "Set Me Free" (released in Malaysia by Warner Music). I did buy the "Beauty Palace" cassette but "Sooriya" was a missed opportunity.

I hope my memory serves me correctly but I believe that "Sooriya" was released in Malaysia by Mani Osai. Mani Osai was the exclusive distributor of Pyramid titles in cassette format in Malaysia. This means that "Sooriya" was a Pyramid release, and Pyramid must have released "Sooriya" in cassette or CD formats themselves for other territories. From the now defunct "www.pyramidaudio.com" site, the following Chapleton CD title was listed available for sale in the entire world including India:
C-017, 1994, Padagan/Suriya

I remember seeing the same photo of A.R. Rahman that Mani Osai used for the front sleeve of the "Indian" cassette for the "Sooriya" cassette. Vijayashanti was on the front sleeve of the cassette in an action pose.

I asked the shopkeeper to test the "Sooriya" cassette. He took out the cassette from the display cabinet, and unwrapped the plastic wrapping cover. I remember very clearly seeing a track by the name of “Kula Paikaa Pali” on the track list on Side B. He played the cassette, and I don’t remember how the songs sounded like but I was clearly not impressed. I told the shopkeeper I was not interested.

In 1995, the Internet was still in its infancy, and Netscape Navigator was the “King of the Browser”. After many years later, I found out from the Internet that A.R. Rahman did not compose the songs in the movie but only scored the background music for "Nippurava". The music for the songs was by Bappi Lahri, and Raj Koti (only for the song "Randi Kadali Randi"). The "Sooriya" Chapleton CD contains still shots from the "Timentha" song with dance choreography by Prabhu Deva. Of course, Bappi Lahri flatters to deceive but I really can't blame him for trying. Fans of A.R. Rahman will crucify me for saying this but A.R. Rahman adhered to the same formula for the songs in "Super Police" in terms of arrangement to suit the taste of the Telegu audience but of course his production is far superior.

Till this day, I regret not buying the "Sooriya" cassette from the audio shop that day.  It’s a wonderful marketing example of how audio companies took advantage of “A.R. Rahman’s Imperial Phase” back in the 1990s. Back in the 1990s after the success of "Roja", any cassette or CD with A.R. Rahman’s picture will sell, and make a profit for the audio companies – "Set Me Free" re-released by Magnasound in 1996 being a prime example.

Iruvar or Vandicholai Chinnarasu?

Around 1997-1998

Melody Audio & Video Centre
Lebuh Ampang, Kuala Lumpur

In my visits to the Lebuh Ampang audio shop in the 1990s, I never once went to the first floor of the shop – that’s the floor where they sell the audio CDs. All my visits were restricted to the ground floor where the cassettes were sold due to my student budget but on this particular visit, when I was on my way out, I saw they had a bargain bin table setup, and the CDs were selling for an unbelievable price of only RM10 each. The recommended retail price of a Pyramid CD was RM35 at that time.

I quickly browsed through the selection of titles in the bargain bin, and I managed to find to my surprise – the Pyramid CDs of "Iruvar", and "Vandicholai Chinnarasu". I already had bought the Mani Osai cassettes of "Iruvar", and "Vandicholai Chinnarasu". In my home in 1992, my father had bought an Aiwa sound system that plays CDs but I could not afford to buy CDs. This was an excellent chance for me to start building my CD collection of A.R. Rahman soundtracks but I had one big dilemma – I only had RM10 plus just enough coins for me to take the bus back home to Kelana Jaya from Lebuh Ampang.

I had to make a choice of which CD I was going to buy – "Iruvar" or "Vandicholai Chinnarasu"? At that time, I never realized how rare the Pyramid CDs of A.R. Rahman will become in the future. The "Iruvar" movie was released in 1997, and I saw the movie in Johor Bahru when I was studying in my university. I vaguely remember seeing "Vandicholai Chinnarasu" in VHS tape in my home. Of course I had warm feelings towards the "Iruvar" soundtrack – it was after all a Mani Rathnam movie, and the fourth consecutive movie with the director by A.R. Rahman after the success of "Roja", "Thiruda Thiruda", and "Bombay".

I decided to buy the "Iruvar" Pyramid CD. I must have reasoned that I could always buy the "Vandicholai Chinnarasu" CD later when I could afford to buy CDs but little did I realize how rare it will be to even find a second hand copy of the "Vandicholai Chinnarasu" Pyramid CD later.

The irony in all of this now is that it’s so much easier to obtain a new old stock of the "Iruvar" Pyramid CD in the year 2013 from various online websites compared to "Vandicholai Chinnarasu" Pyramid CD.

Was It Just A Fantasy?

Around 1997

Coliseum Theatre, Kuala Lumpur

In the 1990s, I loved to go to Jalan Masjid India in Kuala Lumpur to buy A.R. Rahman CDs especially from Haniffa Textiles. 

I remember going to the Coliseum Theatre in Kuala Lumpur to watch a movie (sadly I don’t remember what movie it was). Within the Coliseum Theatre, there was a small booth selling audio cassettes, and CDs. I was waiting for the movie to be opened with other moviegoers. I was casually browsing through the selection of titles that the audio booth had displayed, and to my surprise I saw the "Fantasy" Pyramid CD on display. I instantly recognized the same front sleeve that was used on the "Fantasy" Mani Osai cassette.

Of course, during those days, I could not afford to buy CDs, and since I already had the "Fantasy" cassette, I did not have an urge to buy the CD but it was surprising to see the CD being displayed along with other titles.

I overhead 2 young Indian boys talking about A.R. Rahman after they themselves saw the "Fantasy" CD front sleeve which had A.R. Rahman posing with his keyboard. The Indian boys said that A.R. Rahman was a keyboard wizard after witnessing him live in concert in Malaysia in 1996.

The "Fantasy" Pyramid CD now is extremely rare to be found even as a second hand copy – what a missed opportunity.

Thiruda Thiruda… Finally…

Sunday, 24 November 2013

AmCorp Mall, Malaysia

I frequently go to AmCorp Mall every Sundays because of the flea market. As I made my way through the crowds, I heard strains of "Kannum Kannum" blasting from the speakers. Immediately, I thought to myself one of the Indian sellers must be playing a copy of the "Thiruda Thiruda" CD on the CD player but was it an original CD or was it a pirated CD or from a MP3 collection?

I tracked down the CD player that was playing the song. I can see it was track 1 – 2:27 minutes have elapsed. Then I saw the original Magnasound "Thiruda Thiruda/Puthiya Mugam" CD jewel case next to the CD player on top of other CDs arranged inside a box. I was surprised at first. I was overjoyed but I kept my cool.

But the owner of the booth was not an Indian man… it was an old Chinese man. What was he doing playing "Thiruda Thiruda" CD? I asked him how much was he selling the CD for? His reply was harsh, and cruel. The Chinese man said the CD was not for sale. Is he for REAL? Oh my God…

He told me a lot of people wanted to buy the CD but he refused to sell the CD – saying that the CD was for his personal use only. I was heart broken. He was really playing hard to sell. He told he would have sold the CD a long time ago if he wanted to but he did not.

I tried to establish a rapport with him. I asked if he sold any other Indian CDs. He said he only had the "Thiruda Thiruda" CD. Now he was getting a little bit annoyed with me. He slowly pushed the "Thiruda/Puthiya Mugam" CD jewel away from me – as if asking me to leave – that I will not be able to buy the CD from him.

Desperate to get the CD – I turned around, and stood next to him – side by side – and offered him RM100 to buy the CD. Immediately, once he heard my offer, I can see that his heart gave way, and he accepted my offer. He did not try to negotiate or ask more – he just accepted my first offer.

He offered to shake my hands, and I shook his hands. He stopped the CD player, and took out the CD, and showed me the back of CD indicating that it had no scratches. He put the CD inside the jewel case, and gave it to me. He told me before I left his booth – “You are well aware of the CD’s worth and value…”. He was very happy, and I saw him talking to a young Indian seller next to his booth about his good fortune. It’s actually my good fortune to buy the CD on that day.

I just wanted to go back home. I could not believe my luck. The CD was worth the RM100 that I paid to the old Chinese man, and even more!!!  I remember the first time I saw the Magnasound "Thiruda/Puthiya Mugam" CD was in November 1993 in my cousin brother's house during Deepavali. He played the CD, and people were very impressed with "Putham Pudhu Boomi" - saying the song was very refreshing to listen to. Later, my father borrowed the CD from my cousin brother but later the CD was given back. I got my first copy of the CD from Haniffa Textiles shop in Jalan Masjid India around 1998. I remember the CD being displayed in the audio cabinet section of Haniffa Textiles. Everytime I went to the shop late in 1990s, it was always there - waiting for me to buy it. In 1998, I was accepted into Shell Malaysia as an industrial trainee, and I received a monthly allowance of RM500. This allowed me to finally buy the CD. I still remember when I wanted to purchase the CD - one of the staff working at the audio section of Haniffa Textiles asked me whether "Koncham Nilavu" can be played for a while. I lost my copy of the CD in 2006. I have never seen another copy of the CD for sale anywhere since – not even on the Internet sites.

It feels great to be finally among the privileged few to have an original copy of the Magnasound "Thiruda/Puthiya Mugam" CD. Thiruda Thiruda is one of A.R. Rahman’s best soundtracks of all time. It’s my personal favourite. Thank you to the Old Chinese Man…

On the jewel case of the CD, there was a price tag sticker pasted upside down with Chinese characters hand written on it. The price tag had "Golden Rainbow" printed underneath it. There is also the following name written on the jewel case using a black marker pen but it appears to be slowly fading away: 
Fauziah Zakariah (R2)

My first thought was that R2 stood for Radio 2 - which is a defunct national radio station in Malaysia - maybe Fauziah Zakariah was a former DJ working for the Radio 2 station. A quick search from Google highlighted there was indeed a Fauziah Zakaria (Zakariah without the "h" but close enough) who previously was a DJ with Radio 2. Was she the original owner of the CD? Wow... this is so amazing!!!

http://fauziahzakaria.blogspot.com/

Later on Tuesday, when I was back in office, I asked my Chinese colleagues what was written on the price tag pasted on the jewel case of the CD. They said it was written in Mandarin, and literally meant "self use" or "personal use". The Old Chinese Man really meant it when he told the CD was not for sale, and was for his personal use.