April 2020 In this unprecedented time, quarantined as we all are due to the COVID-19 pandemic, music has been a particularly big source of happiness, comfort and solace to many of us. However, the musicians’ own lives have been upended with all concert engagements and international tours cancelled in this…
As I drove through Kotturpuram, the pillion rider on the whizzing motorbike gesticulated wildly. I looked him in the eye and drove on. Now, a car sidled up, the driver miming. He brought his vehicle to a complete stop beside mine, opened his windows and gestured. His lane was free.…
My husband, who was about to head out for his several month long trip to the US, said he wanted to purchase dOsa MiLagAi poDi (for non Indians – dOsa is a traditional savoury vegan South Indian crepe, miLagAi refers to dried red chillies and poDi means powder). I told…
B Shree Sundarkumar, aka The KanjiraMan, is acknowledged as a wizard on the kanjira by artistes young and old, prolific and niche, Carnatic and other genres. An “artiste of eminence” says Sangita Kalanidhi Umayalpuram K Sivaraman. “Incomparable,” says kanjira artiste BS Purushotham. “Rare calibre,” says vocalist Abhishek Raghuram, who himself…
One evening late December, after I recovered my car from the Music Academy parking lot where the valets had left it (conveniently facing forward, of course), I realised, much to my chagrin, that the AC had stopped functioning. It had been just fine when I had driven it in. The…
A sparkling, confident on-stage persona and an approachable, cheerful demeanour characterise this lady, known for weighty classicism in vocal Carnatic music. A faculty member at The Music Academy’s Advanced School of Carnatic Music, there is a lot more to Dr. G Baby Sreeram than meets the eye. Augmented only periodically…
Of this artiste who had over 60 concerts in ~40 days this past music season, Sangita Kalanidhi Aruna Sairam says, “He is an excellent violinist on whom the music world has great expectations. His command over rAga bhAva and dexterity of playing are qualities that make him a very sought-after…
Cardamom is generally associated with Indian desserts. What would it taste like in a cake? This is the result of my attempt to answer this question. Popular opinion indicates it is a raving hit – die hard believers that cakes without egg are not cakes at all have changed their…
“Her music is full of gnanam and sukha-bhavam. The high level of technical competency in her singing is most aesthetically presented,” says Bombay Jayashri. Doyen vocalist, and sought-after expert and teacher, Suguna Varadachari states, “Regardless of the ragam or the kalapramanam, she sings beautifully. It is only when songs are…
One message that made a mark on me in childhood was an Amar Chitra Katha panel of Buddha saying “All desires bring pain” – a statement I have reflected on extensively (probably even excessively) of late. I studied Economics for school certificate exams from the University of London and again…