Engeyum Eppodhum – Ilaiyaraaja live in Toronto

On February 16th, musical maestro Ilaiyaraaja’s live concert "Engeyum Eppodhum Raja" took place in Toronto, Canada. The event was initially scheduled to take place in November, but was cancelled due to unforseen circumstances.

With an audience size of approximately 25,000, the evening was a star-studded event with performances by a number of well-known singers including Hariharan, S.P. Balasubramaniam and Chitra. Although the audience were made to wait for over an hour, they were overwhelmed by the orchestra.

In between the musical performances were stories about Ilaiyaraaja, and comedian Vivek provided some insight into the musician’s family as well as information about some of his classic compositions.

Later in the show, Ilaiyaraaja was joined on stage by his son, Yuvan Shankar Raja, who is an established music director in his own right. All in all, the show was a 5-hour extravaganza, and despite the fact that some advertised singers (including Vijay Yesudas, Haricharan and Shwetha Mohan) were absent, the crowds were not left disappointed.

The maestro’s North America tour continues on Saturday 23rd February with a performance in New Jersey, and a final show in California on the 1st of March.

Below is a fan video from the event: