The Violinist Everyone Loves

By V Ramnarayan

RK Shriramkumar must be one of the most popular choices for the title of Sangita Kalanidhi in the history of Carnatic music, beloved as he is of senior musicians, the vocalists he accompanies, his disciples, his gurus in music as well as spiritual matters, sabhas and organisers, listeners, music patrons, even the hard-to-please tribe of critics.

Shriramkumar has had many gurus. Besides his eminent grandfather, violinist RK Venkatarama Sastry, he underwent tutelage with the iconic Damal siblings—first with DK Jayaraman, and after his demise, with elder sister DK Pattammal. His most impactful violin guru was VV Subramaniam, though he also benefited from the guidance he received from another pair of siblings in TN Krishnan and N Rajam, violinists extraordinaire in two different streams of Indian art music. The influence of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, the sangita pitamaha of a whole generation and M S Subbulakshmi on Shriram Kumar’s musical journey has been profound and lasting.

Today, he is a consummate artist, a violin maestro known for his immaculate bowing technique reminiscent of some of the revered names in the annals of the western string instrument since its seamless adaptation by chaste south Indian musical orthodoxy. A legatee of a sober, frills-free school of violin accompaniment, he quietly enhances the beauty of a concert with his deft creative touches that complement but never dominate. His raga essays are at once weighty and full of delicate beauty, a rare admixture of grammar and style. His strict adherence to tradition and pathantara is matched by his reverence for the lyrical excellence of the bhakti-soaked creations of the great composers on the Carnatic music firmament.

Born on 4 October 1966, Shriramkumar has never known a time when he was not surrounded by music and musicians. It all started with the happy accident of his birth into the musically abundant Rudrapatnam family. His grandfather RK Venkatarama Sastry was his first guru, though he did have some early lessons from Savithri Sathyamurti. From his grandfather, he learnt not only music—vocal as well as violin—but also Sanskrit, mathematics, English and the Vedas.

Venkatarama Sastry was a venerable presence on MS Subbulakshmi’s ensemble in the years he accompanied her on the violin. Simplicity and discipline defined the man and the artist. MS had tremendous respect for his austerity and dignified bearing.

Given his grandfather’s eminence as a musician and his spotless reputation, not to mention the abundance of musical talent in the extended family, it was hardly surprising that the ambience at Shriram’s home included the constant presence of a galaxy of visitors from the music world.

Shriram attended a constant whirl of concerts escorted by his Thatha. He virtually grew up at Chennai’s Music Academy, almost residing there during the December music season, attending every concert every day. As a child, he was a universal favourite of the vidwans and vidushis gathered there, and secure in the embrace of loving parents and extended family, he wandered freely about, listening to concerts and socialising with the musicians.

The joint family’s Nungambakkam home was always reverberating with song, with the whole music-rich clan including the Rudrapatnam Brothers, regularly in and out of the house. The annual Radha kalyana utsavam at a nearby ground was a gala affair, an occasion during which the house was abuzz with excitement. Several great musicians performed at the Utsavam. During one such concert by Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, accompanied by Venkatarama Sastry on the violin, Shriram, as little kid sat in the first row with his mother listening to the concert. At one moment he piped up, “Please sing Yogindranam” to Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar on stage. “O Guruvayurappa, you are here! Come over,” the grand old bhagavatar called out to Shriram, seated him on his lap and proceeded to sing the shlokam of his request.

Lessons in vocal and violin music from Thatha were de rigueur after school every evening.

While Venkatarama Sastry was Brahmin orthodoxy personified, the youngsters were allowed some leeway in their day-to-day conduct, though never to stray far from tradition. There was much musical discussion and banter. Though the youngsters could listen in, never were they allowed to speak with irreverence or express an opinion. The Trinity and other great names in Carnatic music for instance were sacrosanct, and to mention them lightly was sure to invite censure or worse. Shriram’s three sisters Srimati, Lakshmi and Matangi, all learnt Carnatic music, but none of them went on to perform on the concert stage.

School, at Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan, provided a similar environment, with the director Mrs. YGP a great supporter of artistic talent and endeavour. Shriram was the teachers’ favourite thanks to his musical talent, though his junior and child prodigy Vijay Siva was the star pupil of the school. Shriram grew up looking up to Vijay. One fine morning when both of them were in their teens, Vijay cycled up to Shriram’s place, and peremptorily told him, “You are accompanying me on the violin in a concert to observe Sankara Jayanti,” and proceeded to give him the details of the kutcheri. Shriram’s response was immediate. “You have come to the wrong address.” At his forceful best, Vijay eventually succeeded in persuading Shriram to agree. The concert was to be at a nearby ground on which a pandal would be erected. Shriram was accompanied by the whole family, eager to witness his debut, as he made his way to Vijay’s house, only to find him playing cricket on the road. The concert was scheduled for the same date next month! The debut did take place eventually at the same venue, and Vijay rendered the composition Pirava varam taarum in Latangi. This was a raga Shriram was yet unfamiliar with, but he managed all right.

After school, Shriram did everything that a typical youngster of his background did. He appeared for the IIT Joint Entrance Examination, and applied for admission to all the engineering colleges, but his heart was in music. Listening to the past masters in recordings and attending the concerts of the stars still around were the staple he thrived on.

His father RV Krishnamurthy, an engineer, was greatly disappointed when Shriram failed to gain admission to an engineering college. Joining Vivekananda College to study mathematics, he somehow managed to gain all round popularity as a budding musician. The maths department, indeed the whole college, took an active interest in Shriram’s music, as he was already a regular performer at concerts. The principal of the college was part of the fan club, while his maths professor followed his concert career closely. In the middle of a class, he would say waving his Reynolds pen, “It says Reynolds Fine Carbure here, Shriram. Do you know the song Karu baru? Do you know how well Maharajapuram sang it?” When Shriram was to sing the raga Mukhari in a Music Academy lecdem by Venkatarama Sastry, his statistics professor asked him if he knew Syama Sastry’s song Palimpavamma in Mukhari. Amazed to learn that Syama Sastry had composed a kriti in the raga, Shriram then learnt it from vidushi Vidya Shankar. His other professors, all keen followers of Carnatic music, became his mentors and well-wishers.

This was the time Shriram, along with Vijay siva and others, became one of the founding members of YACM, the Youth Association for Classical Music, an ambitious initiative of young musicians for young musicians, by young musicians. The founding members were all eager to absorb music at every possible opportunity, listening to concerts, discussing, arguing, fighting. Entering every music competition at the Music Academy and other institutions forced them to learn new songs, enlarge their technical knowledge, overcome stage fear. Sanjay Subrahmanyan was a constant companion in these adventures, a fellow seeker with whom Shriram has had the most musical interactions . To be quizzed by the likes of CS Iyer and TM Thiagarajan who judged the competitions was to face up to giants and come out unscathed—at least some of the time. Participation in YACM’s activities and college culturals helped Shriram hone his music, but also led to a certain degree of neglect of studies. He enrolled for the M.Sc maths course and continued in Vivekananda College, but by now music had completely taken over Shriram. It was a disappointing moment for his parents when he withdrew from the final exam as he was completely unprepared for it.

Becoming DK Jayaraman’s disciple was one of the major turning points of Shriram’s music career. He describes his years with DKJ as the golden period of his life. During Shriram’s initiation into his class under Thatha’s strict gaze, DKJ gently asked the boy to sing a song to demonstrate what he knew. Shriram had learnt many songs by listening to the tapes of such stalwarts as Semmangudi, Brinda, MS, Pattammal, Ramnad Krishnan and K.V. Narayanaswamy, but he deftly chose to sing a song he had learnt by listening to Pattammal. DKJ was thrilled. “You sang so well. Just like our school, too.”

Through running errands for their guru, Shriram and other students got to meet his elder sister Pattammal, who grew to adore Shriram, Vijay Siva and other young disciples of DKJ. His death at a young age left all the students shattered and bereft, and it was but natural that some of them sought Pattammal out to continue learning in the same bani.

A warm welcome awaited Shriram at Pattammal’s place. A strong emotional bond developed through lazy afternoon sessions of stories told of the past—of concerts, gurus, songs—just as in the case of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and MS. Many of the stories featured the way Naina Pillai sang, and how Ambi Dikshitar taught her Kanchadalayadakshi or Balagopala. Other stories involved Chembai and his contemporaries. Once during a visit by the dancer Vyjayantimala Bali, who was learning music from her, Pattammal demonstrated abhinayam for Aduvum solluvar!

Song learning was an important part of the tutelage. Every time Shriram learnt a new song, he sang it before Pattammal for her approval. Sometimes she liked the song so much she would then learn it from him and teach her students.

MS was a veritable goddess to Shriram’s family. Unsurprisingly, she was Shriram’s idol in music. “It was a dream come true when I first ascended the stage to play violin in her concert,” he says. He also had the good fortune of learning many compositions from her. A stickler for perfection, MS imparted through her meticulous method of teaching, many subtle nuances of ragas and compositions.

Shriram has had the benefit of interacting with, learning from and accompanying some of the greatest practitioners of Carnatic music—his grandfather, DKJ and Pattammal, Semmangudi, MS, KVN, Brinda, Muktha and T Viswanathan, and last but by no means least, VV Subramanyam. The Shriramkumar we see on the concert and lecture circuit, the composer and guru young musicians happily approach, is a package moulded by all these influences.

Shriram was blessed by the opportunity to get to know Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer closely, mine a rich vein of raga music and listen to amazing stories—sometimes bordering on gossip, but often moving you to tears with the depth of his music and his reverence for past masters and the best of tradition. “He was very fond of three of us, Sanjay, TM Krishna and I,” Shriram emotionally recalls. “If I missed visiting him for more than a couple of weeks, he promptly called and reminded me.” Semmangudi was not above a touch of emotional blackmail, often resorting to reminders of his advancing age and imminent death. Reclining on his famous easychair, he went into expansive raga alapana, often excelling his concert performances with his unbridled imagination. Unfortunately, these marvellous essays by Semmangudi have not been recorded, one reason for that being Semmangudi’s allergy to recording. Most memorable in Shriram’s experience of these raga explorations was an incredible Bhairavi swaraprastara, especially in lower speed, each syllable pregnant with the essence of the raga.

Semmangudi loved the company of young people, and could make people of any age group feel comfortable in his presence. His participation in the Millennium Concert organised at the Music Academy by YACM was total and heartwarming.

KV Narayanaswamy was another musician of the twentieth century that Shriram admired and revered. Accompanying him in concerts and practising for them with him were huge learning experiences. He was a hard taskmaster who advocated poise and restraint. “Don’t run, don’t bow double!” he would admonish during the teaching sessions. Even on the concert stage, he could advise you on how to enhance the music, by playing the tara sthayi or mandra sthayi or the upper or lower register, as a counterpoint to his voice for effect. His sruti sense was extremely sharp and his music was an eye opener for sruti sensitivity.

In one of his last December concerts at Narada Gana Sabha, on 17 December 2001, KVN was not in the best of his health. Once he ascended the stage, he was spot on, singing a marvellous Kambhoji alapana and Tiruvadi saranam. He did niraval completely around the madhyamam on the phrase Aduttu vanda ennai the way only he could. He followed it with a Tayumanavar viruttam, squeezing emotion out of every syllable. According to Shriram, everybody in the audience was “washed out”, and Shriram himself was weeping, unable to hide his emotion after a point. He had to put the violin down, and wipe it as his tears were wetting it.

Shriram’s inspirations included the Dhanammal family. He had the privilege of accompanying Brinda, Muktha and T Viswanathan. He is an ardent admirer of their music, and when he started listing the great musicians who admired their bani, he soon realised that almost everyone he knew was on that list: Semmangudi, MS, DKJ, his own grandfather. He had many fruitful interactions with Brinda, and heard many an interesting story from her.

Finally we come to his violin heroes. His guru V.V. Subramanyam, to whom he was sent by S.V. Krishnan, then running Raga Sudha at Coimbatore, before his move to Chennai. To Shriram, the very way VVS holds the violin, his brilliant bowing technique, his purity of every note and it’s gamaka, the ambience of nada that he creates from his complete absorption in music are all worthy of emulation. “At my very first meeting with him, he made subtle changes to my technique that have stood me in such good stead. I am a devotee of his music, and he has been a most giving guru. Having accompanied MS Subbulakshmi for many years, he was of immense help with his advice before my concerts with Amma. He would ask me for the song list and make very useful suggestions, for instance about using the violin when she sang in the madhyama sruti.”

TN Krishnan is yet another casting influence on Shriram’s music. “Krishnan Mama’s music had a telling effect on mine. Right from his spectacles to his white shirt, and his youthful, dignified looks on stage, I admire everything about him.” ‘Grandeur in simplicity’ is how Shriram describes Krishnan’s style. He received some invaluable tips from the maestro to enhance his violin playing. Shriram also came into contact with Krishnan’s sister and senior Hindustani violinist N Rajam, who too gave him her seal of approval. Shriram is a fan of her music, too, and cherishes her advice: “Keep playing the way you play. Practise hard, and never change your bani, no matter what the pressures,” she said. To be so blessed by brother and sister is to be accepted as part of their legacy.

Shriramkumar has a phenomenal memory. You get a taste of it as he reels off the dates he first accompanied the stalwarts of Carnatic music on the violin in concerts—DK Jayaraman on 13 November 1986, D.K. Pattammal on 5 July 1988, Brinda and Muktha on 19 October 1988, KV Narayanaswamy on 13 February 1989, MS Subbulakshmi on 15 April 1989, and Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer on 25 April 1995. “Every kutcheri was a learning experience,” says Shriramkumar.

Shriramkumar spoke to the author a few years ago in an interview for Sruti magazine:

My grandfather R.K. Venkatarama Sastry groomed me to listen to great music. He imparted to me the greatness of the values of the music of the maestros – like his guru T. Chowdiah and Papa Venkataramiah (who was his inspiration), Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer, Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, Musiri Subrahmanya Iyer, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, the Alathur brothers, T Brinda, M S Subbulakshmi, Ramnad Krishnan and many others. Accompanying my grandfather to many concerts and lecdems, especially at the Music Academy provided me the ambience of the music of the doyens.

Smt Savitri Satyamurthy initiated me into violin playing and taught me the early lessons. From my grandfather, I learnt, to sing and play on the violin,many varnams and kritis. He also taught me the need to know the deeper imports of the colossal compositions. Subsequently I came under the care of Sri D K Jayaraman and Sri V V Subrahmanyam for advanced lessons in vocal music and violin playing respectively.

Learning from DKJ sir was a wholistic experience. Along with his family and other students it was happiness and joy at all times, the happiness that has given me the precious gift of love and passion for this great art form. His contribution in presenting me to the concert arena is immeasurable. It was such delight to be around him, learn from him, perform with him, hear him render compositions with such classical and emotional fervour, observe him shape new songs, and enjoy the lighter moments laced with unbelievable humour. He instilled in me not just the art of music but the art of life.

Coming under the care of VVS sir has opened my vision to the realm of Nada, the bliss that pervades when he even draws a long shadja on his violin. The nuances of keeping the violin in good shape, the importance of presenting raga and krti in the most pristine manner, adopting the perfect violin technique of which he is a master unparalleled….Learning from him has bestowed the knowledge of what the real import of music ought to be. His intense engagement with the esoteric world of Nada is awe inspiring. His playing and musical vision is the force that guides me and protects me.

A great source of inspiration, even from my childhood, has been the music of Sri T N Krishnan. Being a great fan of his, I have drawn, in great measure, from his bani, music and persona. The musical insights that he has shared with me, with great affection, have enriched my musical vision to a great extent.

Smt N Rajam is yet another great musician whose violin playing has been a great source of inspiration for me. I have drawn in great measure, the spirit of her blissful music.

I have been extremely fortunate to learn, interact and absorb from doyens such as Sri Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Smt M S Subbulakshmi, Smt D K Pattammal and Sri K V Narayanaswamy. The experience cannot be expressed in words. Each one of them imparted whole heartedly, with immense love and affection, the greatest of values of music and life. The time I got to spend with all of them was really special and I cherish every moment of it.

Interacting with Semmangudi mama was sheer delight. To hear his life experience, to learn from him beautiful compositions, to accompany him in concerts, to enjoy his instant humour…every moment with him was memorable. It was such a great fortune that I was blessed with his association.

Pattamma, as she was fondly and respectfully addressed, took me into her care after my guru DKJ passed away. Learning from her, accompanying her in concerts, spending hours listening to vintage anecdotes, music and experiences…it was one of its kind. She showered such unconditional love and was greatly concerned about my well being. It was such a great blessing in my life.

KVN mama, a stickler for perfection, imparted many values, mainly the sense of shruti consciousness. I owe a great deal to him for his rigorous training to make me play niraval, of which he was a great master and instilling the importance of shruti sensitivity and bhava laden sangita. Accompanying him on his US tour in 1997 with Manoj Siva on the mridangam was a memorable experience. The concert at the Cleveland Tyagaraja Utsavam that year was such an inspiring and soulful experience.

M S Amma, in my life, is the soul of my musical existence. I have grown up with her blissful music since the the time I was born. Her music and her personality has always guided me throughout. It is one of the greatest fortunes in my life, that I was blessed to be associated with her. Every single moment….be it learning from her, accompanying her in concerts, traveling with her, listening to her share her experiences in life and music….all so precious, inspiring and memorable . I feel really blessed that my book of life has her affectionate autograph.

Yet another great blessing in my life was the opportunity to accompany Smt T Brinda, Smt T Mukta and Sri T Viswanathan. Having been a great admirer of the Dhanamma bani, it was a huge learning experience and such a great blessing to be part of their concerts.

Words don’t suffice to express my gratitude to all my gurus whose loving care and wisdom keeps me moving forward in my musical journey.

Senior musicians such as R Vedavalli, N Ramani, Suguna Varadachari, Rama Ravi, V Subrahmanyam, Seetha Rajan, Nirmala Sundararajan, Alepey Venkatesan, Sugandha Kalamegham and many others have been pillars of support to my musical career.

My peers have been my great friends. All of us have grown up together with music. My interaction with them has been intense—we have exchanged views, discussed, learnt, fought, argued, and enjoyed doing things together. The Music Academy was the hub of all activity during the December season and we had the good fortune of interacting with great musicians who also had a soft corner for all of us. Discussions galore with the likes of Rukmini Rajagopalan, TT Narendran, KSS Rajan, Spencer Venugopal, Matscience Seshadri, and SV Krishnan, were a good source of musical knowledge.

Vijay Siva, Sanjay Subrahmanyan, P Unnikrishnan, TM Krishna, Bombay Jayashri, S Sowmya, K Arunprakash, Manoj Siva, Sangeetha Sivakumar, J Vaidhyanathan, Nithyashree and her sister Gayatri have all been close friends and pillars of support to me both musically and emotionally.

I have also benefitted from my interactions with K K Ravi, Vittal Ramamurthy, Mullaivasal Chandramouli, S Varadarajan, KR Subrahmanyam, V Kartikeyan, V Lakshminarayanan, Umayalpuram Mali, Neyveli Narayanan, Mannarkoil J Balaji, Melakaveri Balaji, S Karthick and BS Purushotham amongst many others.

On matters musical

Vocal and instrumental: I have been groomed to play the violin only to reflect vocal music. Though you cannot actually hear the words, playing the fiddle should be like singing. It is my personal choice, although many may argue that the violinist does not necessarily have to reproduce vocal music. When my guru VV Subrahmanyam plays the violin, I can literally hear the words. You have to learn the compositions. The words, their import, along with the music and its emotional content have always been of great importance to me.

Lyrics and music: The lyrics and music go hand in hand for me. I cannot separate one from the other. I am passionate about learning a multitude of compositions. They range from kritis to varnams to padams and javalis to devarnamas, bhajans, abhangs and viruttams. The compositions of the Trinity are of paramount importance and very dear to my heart. I am equally passionate about learning languages, in particular to acquire a working knowledge of the language and the meaning when I learn or render a composition. This, I have imbibed from MS Amma: that whatever the song, in whatever language, it must be rendered with the same gauravam or dignity and commitment.

I am not drawn too much to musicology. The history of ragas does interest me, but my preference is to the presentation of ragas and compositions in a traditional manner, with the stamp of authenticity.

On teaching

Teaching is a learning experience. I became a teacher because of my own vadyar DKJ sir. In the late 1980s, he asked me to teach Prasad, a child from the USA. I told him I did not know how to teach music but he would not take no for an answer. He assured me, “It will all come by itself.” KVN Mama also insisted that I teach his niece Bhavya. I love teaching children. I am happy that all my disciples are doing well and happy with their music. A number of established young musicians like Amritha Murali, Bharathi Ramasubban, and Ramakrishnan Murthy have also been learning from me and participate in my thematic presentations and lecdems. My students are my good friends. I too get to learn in the process.

I teach my violin students through singing; and every student of mine has to learn to sing. I think it is meaningless to play an instrument without learning to sing. I don’t write notations, in fact I can’t; I need student scribes (laughs). I do not approve of referring to notes in front of you as it hampers internalisation.

Tuning and composing

I have tried my hand at composing when asked to do so. I have set several pallavis weaving in the raga names (greatly inspired by Muthuswami Dikshitar ) to make them more interesting. My attempts at composing are of course inspired by the Trinity.

Some of my compositions are: Arunachalapatey in Todi, on Ramana Maharishi, for Vijay Siva; Kathamaham varnayami in Bhairavi, on nature, and Paramapavana sudharmam in Sahana, with a message for mankind, for T.M. Krishna); and Durgam vande in Durga, for Bombay Jayashri.

I have been fortunate to set to music several stotras and gitas composed by the Jagadgurus of the Sringeri Sarada Peetham. I have also set to tune a few devarnamas, tarangams, abhangs, Tiruppugazh, verses from the Divya Prabandham and Tirupalliyezhuchi, and songs of Sadasiva Brahmendra, Tayumanavar and Annamacharya.

On request from a few dancers I have composed pieces for specific themes. A piece comprising five ragas, five talas, tanam, jati, swara and sahitya was featured in the production Saayujya presented by Priyadarsini Govind and TM Krishna. I composed the sahitya for it and with Krishna, I composed the music also.

I wrote the sahitya for five verses on Lord Tyagesa and other deities of Tiruvarur as part of a mallari for Priyadarsini Govind. Srimathy Mohan, a disciple of Sudharani Raghupathy in Phoenix, Arizona, has presented a few compositions of mine as part of her productions.

I was greatly honoured to compose the music for verses from the Ramayana for Seeta Vislesha Trayam presented by veteran dancer Vyjayantimala Bali. For the Cleveland Tyagaraja Aradhana, I set to tune some lyrics for the Yuddha Parvam of the Mahabharata. I was a resourceperson for Natyarangam for the presentation Dasa Parampara as part of their theme Krishna Bharatham.

Guiding force

We, in our family, are ardent shishyas of the Sringeri Sharada Peetha. Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal of Sringeri advised my parents to perform the Purusha Sukta homam, and by that grace I was born. Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal’s grace has forever been my guiding force. Presently the blessings of Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal and Sri Vidhushekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal continues to guide me. In the year 2012, during a 4-1/2 month Chaturmasya & Navaratri camp at Sudharma in Chennai, I was privileged to organise the music concerts during the daily puja of Chandramaulishwara by Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal.

I felt greatly blessed and honoured when Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal released, during Navaratri at Sringeri, Sri Sharada Stuti Manjari, an album comprising a few compositions on Goddess Sharadamba composed by the Jagadgurus of the Sringeri parampara that I had set to tune. These compositions have been beautifully rendered by Bombay Jayashri.

Another such blessed influence in my life has been Sri Vimarshanandanatha Saraswati—who in his purvashrama —was a close associate of my grandfather. He belongs to the direct shishya parampara of the great Shakta luminary Bhaskararaya. He taught me along with his grandchildren the Lalita Sahasranama and Lalita Trishati, in a musical way, to the accompaniment of the sruti box. But for his initiation, I would probably not have learnt the Kamalamba Navavarana kritis. He gave me the impetus to learn every one of them. He made me realise their esoteric significance as well.

I am indeed fortunate to receive the blessings of such great saints, as well as that of Sri Chandrashekharendra Saraswati Mahaswamigal of Kanchi Kamakoti peetham and Bhagavan Sri Sai Baba of Puttaparthi. I have played in their presence when I accompanied Smt DKP and Smt MSS respectively.

My family

Music has been an integral part of our family. The whole extended family has musicians of great repute. Growing up in such an ambience has been a blessing. My father, an engineer by profession, is a good vocalist, though he did not take to concert singing. My mother was also an amateur veena player and had great interest in the art. All my sisters sing well.

The family bears with me. I have always been pampered since my childhood. My Thatha pampered me, so did my mother and sisters. The tradition continues and now my wife Akhila also pampers me. After marriage I don’t play tisra gati, misra gati, khanda gati—saranagati is my only gati …the only way to sadgati (Chuckles) Otherwise it would become adhogati ! (Has a good laugh).

I am blessed with great friends from all over the world. They have showered on me so much love and affection. Also, I have been highly pampered, supported and guided by them for which I am greatly thankful to them.

Unforgettable moments

Such moments are many. The occasions when I got to perform with the doyens are all very special. Nevertheless will list a few.

• The day my guru D K Jayaraman called, asking me to play for him at the Chandramoulishwara puja performed by Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha Mahaswamigal at Meenakshi College, Chennai.
• When my guru DKJ, as the president of that year’s conference at the Music Academy, said in his speech that I was to him like how Vivekananda was to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
• The day I received a call from M S Amma asking me to play for her. And how Vijay made it happen.
• When M S Amma received the Prasadam from Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamigal after rendering her concert at his puja, she specifically requested him to bless me specially with his grace.
• The day I met Pattamma last and she saved her last smile for me.
• My last concert with KVN mama at Narada Gana sabha on 17th Dec 2001, when I uncontrollably broke down after hearing him sing Tiruvadi sharanam followed by a Tayumanavar Viruttam.
• When Semmangudi mama blessed me with a gift that was his life and the substratum of all of his exquisite music.
• When Vijay, Sanjay, Arun, Vaidy, Manoj and Krishna gave me solace and support when my mother passed away.
• When my Math professor P V Ranganathan held my hand in pride and with tears of joy to see his student ( a drop out in M.Sc) accompany M S Subbulakshmi at Puttaparthi.
• When Krishna became emotional after my raga alapana of Yamuna kalyani at Krishna Gana sabha and had the large heart to let me play Krishna ni begane baro, all by myself.