It also marked the acting debut of Chi. Guru Dutt. Balachander chose Kala as the lead dance choreographer after being impressed with her work in his previous directorial venture "Punnagai Mannan" (1986). The dubbing voice for Rahman was provided by Nizhalgal Ravi. The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja and the lyrics were written by Vaali. This was the last collaboration between Ilaiyaraaja and Balachander. According to journalist Kamini Mathai, the split may have been due to the fact that Ilaiyaraaja could not commit to re-recording as there was a strike; an impatient Balachander decided to use background scores from his older films to fill the unfinished portions, angering Ilaiyaraaja to the point of ending his alliance with Balachander. The song "Kalyana Maalai" is set in the Carnatic raga known as Sindhu Bhairavi, "Eduthu Naan Vidava" is set in Bageshri, and "Guruvayurappa" is set in Abheri, "Keladi Kanmani" was later adapted into "Chandni Raat Hai", composed by Anand–Milind for "Baaghi". Rahman considered "Pudhu Pudhu Arthangal" to be "the biggest milestone in [his] career" in Tamil, saying, "It helped me set my two legs permanently in [Tamil cinema]".