Many years ago a teenager accompanied his father, a Kathakali singer, to assist him on stage. Luck favoured the youngster and he got an opportunity to sing for Melappadam along with Kalamandalam Gangadharan, one of the prominent Kathakali musicians of all times. Sensing his potential, Gangadharan asked the boy to join him during the play as well. Pathiyoor Sankarankutty recollects that it was Gangadharan asan who first recognised his talent on stage on that day and prompted him to consider taking up Kathakali music seriously. However, it took a while to convince his father that his future was in music. Sankarankutty joined RLV College of Music for Ganabhushanam. Later, he also completed a short-term course in Kathakali music at Kalamandalam and eventually found his mentor in Kalamandalam Hyderali. Singing along with Hyderali, Sankarankutty honed his skills and gradually became the singer he is today. Excerpts from an interview with the singer...
How has Kathakali music evolved over the 35 years of your career?
I began singing along with my father, Pathiyoor Krishna Pillai, and his contemporaries. By the time I completed my course at RLV and started appearing along with stalwarts such as Hyderali, Haridas and Embranthiri, Kathakali music had already changed a lot. That was the time when singers began to give prominence to aesthetic aspects from a Carnatic, classical point of view. Even then the methodology and priorities of Kathakali music remained the same. These days, the singers are even more keen on making it ‘musical’ or taking it closer to the Carnatic style, focussing merely on sruti and raga, while the dramatic aspects often take a back seat. Earlier, Kathakali musicians were appreciated for singing in tune with a particular scene but these days they are praised for the use of a particular raga or for its improvisation. The present generation of singers, including myself, are responsible for this and it is time we keep a check on such tendencies.
You have shared many a stage with Kalamandalam Hyderali. How do you recollect his music and his approach?
I was fortunate to sing along with him for almost two decades. His style was distinctive and at the same time he adhered to the genre in every aspect. I always felt that he had a flair for Hindustani music and ghazals, especially when singing padams in ragas like Hindolam. He was fond of experimenting but never compromised on the expressive part of Kathakali music. And if he felt that something was not appropriate in a particular portion, he was ready to correct himself. He was also keen on listening to other streams of music, including film songs.
Do you follow the same path?
As a Kathakali musician, there is hardly anything to take from present-day film songs. I often listen to old Malayalam film songs by yesteryear composers such as Dakshinamoorthy or Devarajan and try to incorporate elements used by them in my rendering. Listening to Carnatic singers also helps, if not for singing padams in plays, to improvise during Melappadam.
You have set music for more than a dozen plays, the last one being Don Quixote , a Kathakali adaptation of the Spanish classic. Tell us about your approach.
Composing music for new plays starts with a detailed conversation with the playwright. Once I understand the mood of each scene, it is all about finalising the raga and tala, without deviating from the traditional pattern. The most preferred tala is chempada and if the lyrical structure favours it, I try to incorporate other talas such as Adantha, Triputa or Panchari.
It is not a secret that you are the most preferred singer for Kalamandalam Gopi these days. How do you think it benefits your music?
Kathakali vocalist Pathiyoor Sankarankutty with Kalamandalam Gopi
Other than my father who introduced me into Kathakali music, I am grateful to two artistes — Hyderali asan and the other is Gopi asan . When an actor like Gopi asan puts trust in my abilities by saying “Sankarankutty mathi...” (I prefer Sankarankutty), that by itself is recognition I could ever hope for. Of course, it is a great responsibility as well. He opens up a lot of chances to excel. For instance, take Indumauli harame..., a portion from Bahuka’s padam in Nalacharitham Moonaam Divasam . As an actor he improvises the scene to the best of his abilities and it is all up to the singers to make use of the opportunity and show what they can do to enrich the moment. When I began my career, the lack of Kalari training pulled me back from singing for the plays where chitta matters. If it were not for Gopi asan , I might not have had the courage to try singing those plays. In the case of some scenes of Subhadraharanam (which was rarely staged before but became hugely popular once Kalamandalam Gopi started performing it), I have never got an opportunity to sing in the sinkidi’s (co-singer) role and performing on stage was a challenge by itself. It required preparation, which included practising during cholliyattam at Sandarshan, under the guidance of Kalamandalam Vasu Pisharody and listening to the live rendering of the play by seasoned musician Madambi Subrahmanian Namboothiri.
The plays you enjoy singing for the most...
My favourite is always Unnayi Warrier’s Nalacharitham , as it has both lyrical and musical qualities. Plays by Irayimman Thampi come next. Among structured plays, those penned by Kottayathu Thampuran are my favourites.
Praise comes with a fair amount of criticism. How do you take it?
I’ve heard a lot of criticism, especially at the start of my career. I have always kept an open-mind to constructive and factual criticism, and it has certainly helped me a lot in bettering myself. With the advent of social media, criticism has became more personal and when comments are made deliberately to degrade an artiste, it can be painful.
What do you think of the next generation of singers and how do you think Kathakali music will evolve in future?
The young generation of singers are capable. However, they should always keep in mind that they are singing for a play. It is not rare to see youngsters blindly following Carnatic musicians and their style of rendering. As a result, the prominence given to the bhava, by incorporating suitable voice modulations and stylised raga improvisations, often go amiss.
A two-day event ‘Sankaradaranam’ will be held at Evoor Srikrishnaswamy Temple, near Kayamkulam, to felicitate Pathiyoor Sankarankutty on August 26 and 27.
