The clock struck 9 in the morning, and I rushed to tune to Chennai Vaanoli nilayam' (All India Radio, Chennai) for my one hour connection with music. Even as the ever soothing divine voice of MS Amma was pouring out the emotion of a young woman's longing for Krishna - " in the garden where bees dance... he came and stole my heart!" {வண்டாடும் சோலை தனிலே கண்டு எனதுள்ளம் கொண்டான் சகியே!} - I realised that the life of the batteries is about to end. Seeing my excitement and recognising my desire to listen to that lilting mesmerising voice, My daughter A, installed the radio app in my mobile and tuned the radio station. Bless her - I was able to immerse myself in the magic of her music though for an hour only.
Once again, AIR rises to be a good patron. 16th September, 1916 was when the Nightingale of India, Madurai Shanmugavadivu Subbulakshmi was born in Madurai. She was hardly 10 when her first informal stage appearance happened. She said in an interview, “When it happened, I felt only annoyance at being yanked from my favourite game – making mud pies. Someone picked me up, dusted my hands and skirt, carried me to the nearby Sethupati School where my mother was playing before 50 to 100 people. In those days that was the usual concert attendance. At mother’s bidding, I sang a couple of songs. I was too young for the smiles and the claps to mean much. I was thinking more of returning to the mud.”
Her life story , like any of the other artist or any one of us, for that matter is filled with sudden twists, dreams, failed dreams, heartaches and successes. It is perhaps because of her simplicity, humility and Bhakthi- soaked music, it is not analysed, criticised and judged with utmost disregard for others' feelings like it is done today. It is as though, people have instinctively related to all these issues which have endeared her all the more to many of us.
She identified herself with Meerabai when she did that role in the film.
Jawaharlal Nehru and the Mountbattens watched the premiere of the movie (1947) and they were enamoured by her soul-stirring voice. When we close our eyes and tune our ears to listen to "Giridhara Gopala", "More to giridhar gopal, dusaro na koi ", " Kunjan ban chhadi hai madho kahan jaun un chhaon" or the Tamil evergreen " காற்றினிலே வரும் கீதம்" we are transported to Vrindavan and are charmed by Meera's Kanha.
She never stopped learning and with utmost humility and respect she learnt at the feet of great musicians like Bade Gulam Ali Khan or Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. True, her name is synonymous with Bhakti and devotion, her knowledge and skill to make her music more intellectual was no less. She had chosen a path and an identity and her performances and music were in harmony with that.
started wearing the blue colour saris in her concerts. (There may be others to claim credit for this. I am not able to verify this. In one version, Muthu Chetti is described as hailing from Kanchivaram.) This blue was a shade darker than sapphire and closest yet not exact to the royal.
Coming back to AIR - the programme began with " வண்டாடும் சோலை" in Harikamboji, followed by Panthuvarali kruti, रामनाथम भजेहम" and the main piece in Bhairavi - E nati nomu phalamo ( ఏ నాటి నోము ఫలమో). Then the mesmerising Punnagavarali composition of Shyama Sastri - "Kanaka Saila Viharini" was short but brought out the splendour of the raga and the bhakti of the composer for Kamakshi.
A hip swaying "kaavadi chindhu" (காவடிச்சிந்து) marked the end of the programme. A Chindu in Tamil, originally refers to a couplet or poem set to a particular meter. Kaavadi is like yoke - carrying weight on two ends. Kavadi Chindus are sung by devotees as they carry the ‘kaavadi’ for Lord Muruga, typically up a hill, to ease out some of the strain and physical exhaustion during the journey.
The ragas or the krutis never were given a cursory or hurried attention. It can be for 5 minutes or or for 15 minutes but in MS Amma's hands, (hands? voice/mind?), the feelings and thoughts behind the lyrics come alive as all the raga devatha happily sit with her.
Such good music not only lifts me up beyond the mundane things, it grounds me and align my inner self with the environment.
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