She is named after a raga composed by a Carnatic legend, and she treads the classical music and playback scenes with effortless ease. S. Mahathi, a two-time winner of the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer, was in Thiruvananthapuram for a Carnatic vocal concert at the recently concluded music festival organised by Sree Neelakanta Sivan Sangeetha Sabha Trust.
In a conversation with Friday Review , Mahathi speaks about finding time for other interests, including cooking, badminton and cycling.
The music behind your name ...
My father, Thiruvayar P. Sekar, was a gurukula shishya of maestro M. Balamuralikrishna for nearly nine years. As a mark of respect to his Guru, my father had decided that he would name his daughter Mahathi.
The raga has only four notes ‘Sa Ga Pa Ni’. The kriti Mahaneeya madhura moorthe ... is set in this raga, as is Das uncle’s (K.J. Yesudas) Athisaya Raagam, Ananda Raagam... .
You have had the benefit of learning from stalwarts such as O.S. Thyagarajan, Balamuralikrishna and T.N. Seshagopalan. How has this grooming helped you?
My father is a vocalist and my mother, Vasanthi Sekar, is a flautist. I got my basic training in music from my parents; they have been taskmasters and instilled in me the discipline of practice and hard work. While in Thiruvananthapuram, I learnt from Lalitha and Gayathri, and from Mangad K. Natesan after we moved to Thrissur. I developed a keen interest in music when I was studying in class nine, late I would say, for someone who could pick up ragas as a toddler.
I always cherish the experience of learning from maestros; they have passed on many subtle nuances. For instance, one such aspect that I imbibed from them was learning how to handle a sangati. The learning that one gets from teachers is only 40 %, the rest will have to come from consistent hard work. Over time, one develops a style that amalgamates the best of the Gurus and yet is unique.
Which are your favourite ragas?
All ragas are special. Some of my favourites are Kharaharapriya because it is my father’s favourite; Sindhubhairavi, as it can be sung by almost anyone with some amount of training and knowledge; and Thodi, for it is a never-ending Akshaya Patra .
You seem to have struck an easy balance between Carnatic and playback singing...
My entry to playback singing was accidental. In 2001, I had gone to meet Ilaiyaraaja sir with my mother to take his blessings. There he made me sing, and soon afterwards I sang Enna Maranthalum... under his direction for the movie Kaadhal Jaathi . My playback career took off with Aiyyaiyyo Pudichirikku..., a duet with Hariharan, sung for Harris Jayaraj in Saamy (2003).
However, acceptance in the Carnatic music circuit was not easy, even with all my years of training. Initially, I had a tough time to prove myself. I believe that one can sing an adipoli kuthu pattu for films and yet perform Carnatic music well enough too. Nevertheless, it is important to stay true to each form, and not mix them both. While classical music is one’s own output; in playback, the artiste has to fulfil the vision of the music director.
Language boundaries have narrowed for artists these days. As someone who has sung in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Punjabi, what advice would you give to aspiring singers on learning a language and diction?
It is always easy to sing in one’s mother tongue. However when performing for the public, even in non-native tongues, the quality has to be 100%. Aspiring singers would do well to develop a grasp and understanding of the languages they are singing in.
Multitasking ...
My day in Chennai begins at 6 am. I cook and pack lunch for my husband and six-year-old son. After badminton class, I practise at my parents’ place, and go cycling before getting back home to make dinner for my family. I enjoy watching Big Boss in Tamil, and online shopping.
