“Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” — The Only True Narrative Ballad in Tamil Film Music
An archival‑historical analysis of Ilaiyaraaja’s title composition for Michael Madana Kamarajan, positioning the song as a unique example of the narrative ballad form within Tamil cinema.
Prelude — Ballad as Story and Structure in Tamil Cinema
Tamil film music has long functioned as an emotive and cultural repository. Yet, very rarely has it been employed as the primary vehicle of narrative exposition. The title song of Michael Madana Kamarajan, “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu”, composed and sung by Ilaiyaraaja with lyrics by Panchu Arunachalam, constitutes a notable exception: it delivers the film’s prequel narrative in sung verse, before any dialogue or visual exposition occurs.
I. The Narrative Ballad and Its Cinematic Function
In “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu,” the song itself replaces cinematic exposition. It narrates how four identical brothers — Michael, Madan, Kameshwaran, and Raju — are separated at birth and raised under contrasting social circumstances. This lyrical narration covers the essential prologue of Michael Madana Kamarajan, offering viewers the story’s entire backstory even before the screenplay begins.
Unlike a montage or voice‑over, the song uses Ilaiyaraaja’s melody and phrasing to achieve both emotional and informational clarity. The refrain “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” (“Hear this tale”) acts as an invocation, reminiscent of the bardic call in oral storytelling. Each verse carries forward a segment of the narrative, while the orchestral interludes signal emotional shifts — tragedy, fate, and moral irony — without any dialogue.
In doing so, the composition achieves a rare hybrid form: it is simultaneously the film’s narrative introduction, its moral commentary, and its musical identity. The audience’s comprehension of the film’s world, tone, and characters begins through sound.
II. Structure and Stylistic Attributes
Musically, the song avoids percussive spectacle. Its tempo is measured, its instrumentation deliberate — violins, woodwinds, and soft percussion — creating a reflective pace suited to narration.
Ilaiyaraaja’s vocal tone is subdued and controlled, his delivery calm yet laden with empathy. He assumes the role of the Sutradhar (traditional narrator in Tamil and Sanskrit theatre), guiding the listener through events with a sense of inevitability and compassion.
The lyric structure follows a linear narrative arc:
- Introduction of Fate and Family Conflict
- Birth and Separation of the Twins
- The Divergent Upbringings
- A Foretelling of Reunion and Resolution
This sequential storytelling format aligns precisely with the traditional ballad form found in medieval and folk music — a sung story with recurring refrains, moral commentary, and episodic continuity.
Musical and Lyrical Analysis
The song employs a moderate tempo in 4/4 metre with layered strings and woodwinds...
A ballad is a narrative song form with deep roots in oral tradition. Originating in medieval Europe, ballads were composed as short poetic narratives performed and transmitted by storytellers or singers. Their defining characteristics include a clear narrative arc (beginning, conflict, resolution), a stanzaic structure, and often a recurring refrain that anchors the listener.
Ballads evolved across three main traditions: the folk ballad (oral and communal), the literary ballad (crafted by poets in imitation of folk forms), and the popular-music ballad (modern compositions that preserve narrative or emotional storytelling). Despite stylistic differences, all ballads share the essential quality of story through song — conveying events, characters, or morals through melodic verse.
In the context of Tamil film music, the term “ballad” is not used as a formal genre label. However, when applied functionally, it describes any song that advances plot or narrates events rather than merely expressing emotion or atmosphere. “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” exemplifies this definition perfectly, as it performs the task of narrative exposition within its sung text — making it a true narrative ballad in both form and function.
III. Why This Song Is the Only Ballad in Tamil Film Music
Within the long evolution of Tamil film music, songs have functioned primarily as vehicles for emotion, atmosphere, or thematic reinforcement — seldom as full narrative frameworks. From the 1940s through the 1990s, even the most poetic compositions (Thenpandi Cheemayile, Enge Nimmathi, Chinna Chinna Aasai) expressed inner experience rather than relayed external events.
“Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” stands alone because it performs the rarest musical function in Indian cinema — it tells the story before the story begins. Its verses provide character introduction, conflict, moral causation, and even foreshadow resolution — all within a single composition. The film’s screenplay does not repeat this exposition; it depends upon it.
This functional distinctiveness qualifies the song as the only true narrative ballad in Tamil film history. Other compositions may adopt a balladic tone or tempo, but none serve as complete sung prologues delivering plot continuity. Cross-checked discographies and archival interviews confirm no other Tamil film song achieves this structural role.
In essence, the song fuses Tamil oral storytelling with cinematic architecture, transforming melody into narration. It is not merely a title theme — it is the film’s preface, performed through music, and therefore the singular example of the narrative ballad in Tamil film music.
IV. Uniqueness within Tamil Film Music
Tamil cinema has seen countless memorable compositions — “Thenpandi Cheemayile”, “Chinna Chinna Aasai”, and “En Iniya Pon Nilave” among them — yet these songs explore inner emotion or philosophy rather than convey narrative chronology.
Extensive review of Ilaiyaraaja’s catalogues on Gaana, Raaga, and Discogs, as well as verified interviews and published discographies, confirms that no other Tamil film song performs a complete backstory as part of its textual function.
While Tamil film songs have often mirrored the spirit of storytelling, “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” is the only verifiable instance where the song itself is the story — a sung narration replacing cinematic exposition. Its structural design, narrative clarity, and musical restraint justify calling it the only true narrative ballad in Tamil film music history.
V. The Cultural and Cinematic Context
Released in 1990, Michael Madana Kamarajan came at a time when Tamil cinema was experimenting with self‑referential comedy, genre fusion, and ensemble storytelling. Ilaiyaraaja and director Singeetam Srinivasa Rao crafted a work where music was not supplementary but structural.
By transforming the title song into a narrative exposition, they revived an ancient Indian performative idea — that the story must be sung before it unfolds. It echoes Tamil Villuppaattu and Koothu traditions, where the performer narrates a tale through rhythm and melody before enacting it.
Thus, “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” operates not merely as a film song but as a modern cinematic adaptation of Tamil oral tradition.
Epilogue — The Enduring Legacy
More than three decades later, this song remains one of Ilaiyaraaja’s most structurally ambitious works. Its elegance lies not in technical virtuosity but in narrative discipline — in how it makes music the vessel of storytelling.
To describe it merely as a melody is to miss its intellectual audacity: it is cinema retold through song, proof that narrative and music can merge seamlessly when guided by a composer who understands both.
In Tamil film music’s long chronology, “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” stands as a singular experiment that succeeded beyond expectation — a ballad in the truest narrative sense, unmatched before or since.
Coda — Ilaiyaraaja as the Narrative Composer
This song reinforces Ilaiyaraaja’s dual identity: composer and chronicler. In this piece, he demonstrates that film music need not be illustrative; it can be expository.
His approach anticipates later trends in cinematic storytelling, where music itself becomes a narrative device. By merging melodic design with dramatic necessity, Ilaiyaraaja achieves what few have attempted — a sung film prologue that remains both musically elegant and narratively complete.
Ilaiyaraaja’s Philosophy of Narrative Music
Ilaiyaraaja’s approach to composition integrates structural logic and emotional realism...
Glossary of Terms and Concepts
- Ballad: A narrative song form with origins in medieval Europe, composed to recount stories through melodic verse. Ballads typically employ simple stanzaic patterns, recurring refrains, and a clear narrative progression. In this essay, the term refers to a sung narrative structure that advances a film’s plot through music rather than dialogue.
- Prologue: The opening portion of a creative or dramatic work that introduces background events, establishes the moral and emotional tone, and prepares the audience for the narrative to follow. In cinematic terms, a prologue may appear as spoken narration, visual montage, or — as in this case — a sung exposition.
- Epilogue: The concluding section of a film, play, or literary composition that offers closure, philosophical reflection, or moral synthesis. It often revisits themes introduced in the prologue, bringing interpretive unity to the work.
- Coda: A musical or literary conclusion that restates or transforms principal motifs in condensed form. In composition, it functions as both resolution and affirmation — a final gesture underscoring artistic intent.
- Sutradhar: Literally “thread-bearer” in Sanskrit, the Sutradhar is the traditional narrator in Indian theatre and performance. This figure binds together episodic actions through commentary, narration, or song, ensuring narrative coherence — a role mirrored in the narrator-like voice of this composition.
- Narrative Ballad (Tamil Context): A rare and functional category within Tamil cinema where a film song itself delivers a complete narrative arc — including premise, conflict, and moral frame — rather than expressing emotion or embellishing scenes. “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” exemplifies this hybrid form, merging Tamil oral storytelling traditions with modern cinematic structure.
Historical Context — From Folk Ballads to Film Narratives
The ballad tradition emerged as an oral form of storytelling in Europe between the 12th and 15th centuries...
Comparative Study — Narrative Songs Beyond Tamil Cinema
Across global music traditions, narrative ballads continue to appear in diverse forms...
Closing Points
- “Kadha Kelu Kadha Kelu” is not only a title track but a sung preface narrating the full backstory of Michael Madana Kamarajan.
- Ilaiyaraaja’s role as composer and narrator elevates it beyond conventional song structure.
- Cross‑referenced archives confirm no other Tamil film song serves an identical narrative function.
- It represents a bridge between Tamil oral storytelling forms and modern film music composition.
- The song thus stands as the only verifiable narrative ballad in the history of Tamil cinema.
Archival & Educational Context
This essay forms part of a continuing study on the convergence of Tamil film narrative and musical form...
Copyright & Archival Notice
This essay forms part of an ongoing archival-research series devoted to the study of Tamil film history, musicology, and narrative form. All interpretive text, comparative analysis, and historical framing are the original intellectual work of the author, produced for academic and cultural preservation purposes.
Film stills, production artwork, and embedded audiovisual materials are credited to their respective rights holders. Such content is reproduced under principles of educational fair use for non-commercial commentary, critical analysis, and documentary archiving in accordance with cultural-heritage scholarship practices.
All research findings are supported by reference consultation with verified discographies, primary interviews, and archival sources. Updates or corrections arising from verified new evidence will be duly annotated in future revisions of this work.
© Dhinakar Rajaram, 2026. All rights reserved. No portion of this essay may be reproduced, redistributed, or adapted — in part or in whole — without the author’s prior written permission. For reproduction or archival queries, please contact the author through the designated communication channel listed on the blog.
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