A s the mercury starts falling, music begins to soar in the State. ‘Margazhi’ is followed closely by ‘Tiruvaiyaru,’ a synonym for the Tyagaraja Aradhana, a celebration of classical music on the banks of the Cauvery. The space here is more democratic, the crowd thronging a medley cutting across barriers.
“Tyagaraja draws them as a magnet would; they will not do it for anyone else,” says Haridwaramangalam A.K. Palanivel, tavil virtuoso, his voice rising above the sound of music. Secretary of the aradhana committee, he has been involved in the proceedings for decades.
This festival is inclusive and favoured by non-typical audiences in droves. They come in their shining Kanjeevarams or modest cottons, the spirit of Tyagabrahmam’s divine music uniting them under the big pandal. Caste or religion does not divide them.
On the last day, when the Pancharatna kritis were sung, Kaleesha bi Mehboob, nagaswara vidwan, centrally seated in a pink silk saree and gold kasumalai , led the large nagaswaram contingent. The flautists picked up the thread with their ‘Chetulara’ and then the eminent vidwans began singing the Pancharatna kritis, even as thousands swayed to the lilting cadence. Incidentally, Kaleesha's sparkling Todi had drawn huge applause the previous night. Kasim and Babu were also to play in a prime time slot on the last day. Says Angel Priya, a third-year student of music at Avinashilingam college, Coimbatore, “We had heard of Tiruvaiyaru, but never come here before. This year, we came to offer our prayers to Tyagaraja and to enjoy this fete.” She and her group of friends were also to perform that day.
Thirty-year-old Tamatisa, clad in a black burqa, stood by a tent pole, holding her son, who was equally absorbed in the music. “This is my first visit. I don't know music but I like it,” she said even as her much older relative, Mohammed Farooq chipped in, “I make it a point to be here every year.”
Does Farooq know music? “No it's just the enjoyment of hearing all this and this pageant,” he smiles waving his arms at the colourful stalls and food joints around the pandal . The connoisseur and uninitiated merge to participate in this unique homage.
Whole families from nearby villages and towns troop in with little children in tow, and the pandal offers an art space that belongs to everyone. As the notes of the Pancharatna rose, the sober and reverent ambience got a trendy twist with hands holding mobile phones going up aiming for that perfect selfie.
The challenges (demonetisation and drought) have not diminished the attendance at the festival, says Haridwaramangalam Palanivel. “All are free to enter this space and assimilate this music. There are no differences, just as all instruments are equal at the altar of Tyagaraja, the terms pakka vadyam and upapakkavadyam do not exist,” he reiterates. .
Papanasam Ashok Ramani, assistant secretary of the Aradhana Committee, agrees, “Despite the drought, thousands are attending - farmers and local rasikas have come to revel in the power of Tyagaraja's kritis being sung again and again. They come from across the country and for many it is a spiritual journey,” he observes.
This writer recalls listening to a magnificent Kharaharapriya by M.S. Subbulakshmi in the 1980s. Thousands stood enthralled, which was a tribute to her music, and many of these people were from the villages around Thanjavur.
An assistant secretary of the Tyagaraja Aradhana Committee, O.S. Arun, says, “You see the (milling) crowd? Whatever you sing elsewhere, this is special. Every year’s Aradhana is different; it is like a raga - every time you sing it, it’s different.”
“I have come after 15 years because this is Tyagaraja's 250th birth anniversary,” says musicologist-musician Radha Bhaskar. Her husband Mudhra Bhaskar, mridangam vidwan, says that Tiruvaiyaru actually becomes a focal point three times in a year - the Aradhana, Tyagaraja's jayanti and Sivaratri when a 24-hour akhandam is conducted.
Unchavriti in the morning and the Anjaneya Utsavam in the evening added to the devotional fervour .
“It is a great blessing to be a part of the festival every year. I take special pleasure because I belong to the direct Sishya Parampara of Tyagaraja - the Umayalpuram school.” - Umayalpuram Sivaraman.
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Sri Tyagaraja Aradhana took place, January15-17.
