Fans in the country and abroad will plant seventy thousand and one trees to celebrate the maestro’s birthday

Eight native species of trees — pungan, neem, tamarind, coconut, vilvam, naval, fig, banyan — will be planted in their thousands across the state to ring in the 70th birthday of the music maestro Ilaiyaraaja. This gesture, his fans say, is their way of saying ‘thank you’ for his music. “He has made our lives worthwhile. For every emotion and every occasion there’s an Ilaiyaraaja song. We want to show our gratitude by associating his name with Nature and a clean and green environment,” says R. Rajesh Kumar, manager of Isaignani Ilaiyaraaja fan club trust.

The registered trust has been put together by his fans across the country and abroad. It is spearheaded by P. Velusamy and Ratna Kumar. The three-month-old non-profitable charitable organisation engages in social service.

The tree plantation drive is their first big event. Fans from Madurai, Trichy, Coimbatore, Kanya Kumari, Salem, parts of Karnataka, Andhra as well as Malaysia and Singapore have set themselves a target to plant 70,001 saplings on June 2.They would also plant saplings at Ilaiyaraaja’s birth place, Pannaiyapuram. The isaignani himself has agreed to kick start the drive by planting the first sapling at the Prasad Studios in Chennai. “Mr. Velusamy mentioned it to him and he was happy as it has to do with the environment,” says Rajesh. The registered fan club www.isaignanifanclub.com has over 17 lakh registered fans. Rajesh Kumar gave up his job in the corporate world to be associated with the maestro’s trust. “I have zero knowledge in music but when I listen to Ilaiyaraaja’s ‘China thaayaaval’ and ‘En iniya ponvilave’, all my stress vanishes….” he says.

Viji Viswanathan, Coimbatore facilitator of the Trust, leads his fans to plant over 5,000 saplings in Somanur, Madhapur, Oonjappalayam village, Sarkar Samakulam near Kovilpalayam and a number of schools in Tirupur.

“His music is global. We wanted to make the environment pollution-free and new like his music and associate his name with a good cause,” he says. The trust will take up initiatives to conserve Nature, help orphanages, and associate itself with other social causes, including promoting young musicians. For Viji, it is Ilaiyaaraja’s music that connects him to different stages of his life. He says, “While we are doing this massive tree plantation drive, we also request every home that listens to his music to plant a tree.” In Bangalore, Seshadiri and team will plant 10,000 saplings at Lalbagh and other places such as Ramana Ashram and BTM Layout.Dr. Suresh Kaani, who has been into social service for 30 years, is the state facilitator of the Trust.His team plans to complete seven thousands saplings in Kanyakumari district. “His music is for the soul. Anyone who listens to music is his fan. Be it love, sorrow, a kuthu paatu or entertainment, he has given us memorable songs. I enjoy his music and my objective is to connect people like me through this forum.”

To know more and register, >visit Isaignani Fan Club. E-mail: info@isaignanifanclub.com. Call: 99529 45454/ 97919-23568.