Ilayaraja to go live at last

Veteran Tamil music director Ilayaraja will soon perform in his first live show.

The maestro, who came out of seclusion recently and met the media in Chennai after 12 long years, said his band and leading playback singers as well as musicians would take to stage performances in 2005.

He and his troupe will perform in Singapore, Malaysia, the US and Britain. He will do this world tour to raise money for charity homes and orphanages.

Ilayaraja's first show will be for the golden jubilee of the South Indian Artistes Association in Dubai. "I never before did a live show because it took time away from me," he said.