Sri Rama Bhaktha Jana Sabha inaugurated its 16th Annual Music Festival, at Padma Seshadri School, K.K. Nagar on December 30, 2012. Gomathi Radhakrishnan, chairperson, Muthukumaran Educational Trust, Premalatha Kanikannan, director, Meenakshi College of Engineering, and S. Pattabiraman, General Manager, Corporation Bank, inaugurated the fest.
S. Pattabiraman conferred the title ‘Sangeetha Mamani’ on Priya Sisters, Shanmugapriya and Haripriya, on the occasion. Narayana Vishwanath, senior columnist, who spoke on this occasion, praised the Sabha members for their efforts in promoting music. Felicitating the awardees he said that their singing exhilarated him. Complementing their strong commitment to music he further added that the sisters were a combination of two great voices arriving together in perfect unison and that they are simultaneously at their creative best always. He continued by saying, “Their voice(s) has an ineffable resonance and they integrated well and focussed on internalising the songs before presenting it to the audience.”
In her acceptance speech, Haripriya said that she was surprised to receive the title and whether the duo deserves such recognition.
She further added that this award has come to them on its own and so they will treat it as a gift from God. Haripriya remembered all their gurus - their father who was their first guru, Radha – Jayalakshmi and T.R. Subramanyam and of course, their parents who stood by them. She said as singers they were bound by the love and affection showered on them by the rasikas.
The president of the sabha, Venkatraman, and coordinator K.R. Saranathan were present on the occasion and Vaidhyanathan, vice president, proposed the vote of thanks.
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