Hailing from humble backgrounds, and owning nothing but dreams and passion, arrived this simple man from Pannaipuram located in Theni district. And today, his hard work, extraordinary compositions and unmatched contributions to music, has made him a legend who can never be forgotten and his songs will continue to treat music lovers till mankind exists. He's none other than Isaignani Ilaiyaraja, the maestro who has been in films for more than 4 decades, giving us some lovely songs that will lift our spirits irrespective of the mood we are in.

Ilayaraja's musical journey began with a classic album for Annakili (1976), and steadily the music director kept achieving and raised the bar, as he went on to conquer every film industry in the South, and his songs were a rage not just in Kollywood, but also in Tollywood. Ilayaraja's understanding of different styles of music and combining different forms and genres of music enabled him to deliver numerous classy albums with songs in the classical area as well as western numbers.

Having given some of the biggest chartbuster songs for singers like SPB, S Janaki, KJ Yesudas, P Susheela, Swarnalatha, KS Chithra, Malaysia Vasudevan among others, he has also introduced a lot of talents to the Tamil music industry, and there is a separate fan base for his voice itself, as Raja has crooned close to 400 songs. His inclination towards spirituality has made him more of a godly figure for many in the industry, who not just celebrate him, but worship him. With more than 1000 movies, 7000 songs and numerous concerts across the world, this man is indeed the "Ilaya" Raja, as he has seen different generations of music directors and has remained unique and relevant to every generation, and is still active in the industry with his impeccable talent. Here's wishing the musical maestro Ilayaraja a very happy birthday!