Planning to perform an Ilaiyaraaja song on stage? He demands royalty

In 2017 Music composer Ilaiyaraaja slapped a copyright notice to singers S. P Balasubramaniam and Chithra for singing his songs at a show/at concerts. Now, in 2018, the veteran composer has shared a video in which he speaks about royalty and copyright on his songs. He stated that singers who sing his songs in public events should do so only after prior permission from him, and after they’ve paid him royalty charges. He also stated that the royalty for his songs will be collected by South Indian Film Musicians Association.

என்னுடைய அனுமதியைப் பெற்றுத் தான் என்னுடைய பாடல்களைப் பாட வேண்டும்-இளையராஜா #Ilayaraja #Viral #ilaiyaraaja [1/2] pic.twitter.com/JMAe1ybSNY

— Oneindia Tamil (@thatsTamil) November 28, 2018

இசையமைப்பாளர் இளையராஜா எச்சரிக்கை #இளையராஜா @diamondbabu4 pic.twitter.com/PzyUg2sMPs

— meenakshisundaram (@meenadmr) November 27, 2018

In the video, he said ”I wanted to announce something today. I want to inform that it is illegal to perform my songs without my consent and ones who do so will face legal action. I was a member of IPRS, they used to collect my royalty. But, now I am no longer a part of the organization. Going forward the South Indian Film Musicians Association will govern the royalty charges of my work. I also want to clarify that I am not stopping anyone from singing my songs. I just want the ones performing to pay a small percentage as royalty to me. Shouldn’t I get a share when the song is mine?”

Ilayaraaja has composed music over 7000 songs and has composed for more than 1000 movies including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Hindi. In 2018 he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan in 2010.

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