Chennai
Muthukumar who shot into fame with the Veppamaram song in Saamy (2003) went on to pen lyrics laced with pathos and philosophy. Starting his film career under legendary director Balu Mahendra, he went on to assist him in over 50 films. His passion for Tamil literature was so great that he ensured only Tamil words appeared in his lyrics.
Stunned by his untimely death, the film industry plunged into mourning. Filmmaker-actor Kamal Haasan who has worked with Na Muthukumar in Papanasam in a series of tweets said, “41 is too young to go. I will miss you my friend. Thanks for the words you left behind for us in print. Hope you enjoyed life half as much as we are going to enjoy your poems.”
Muthukumar won his last National award for Saivam (2014) for which GV Prakash composed the music. Speaking to DTNext, Prakash said, “It is a great loss for me personally and to the industry. Muthukumar and I were more like brothers. He has given me some of his best work from Veyil to Saivam for which he won the National award and till my latest flick Enakku Innoru Per Iruku. He was a soulful writer and the chemistry that we shared is something I will cherish forever. I will miss him dearly.”
Apart from National awards, Muthukumar also holds the record for penning the highest number of songs in a year, 103, in 2012. Lyricist Vairamuthu said, “I am shocked to hear about Muthukumar’s death. Had he lived long, he would have gone on to win more National awards. With Muthukumar’s demise, Tamil cinema will be deprived of good lyrics.”
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