Bombay Jayashri is a rare star in the music firmament. A singer with an enviable repertoire, she woos ragas and Carnatic notes even while singing blockbusters in all the South Indian languages and Hindi too. In addition, she is a composer and a teacher too.
After a seven-year gap, the songster recently sang in Malayalam for Arun Vaidyanathan’s Mohanlal-starrer Peruchazhi . Even while Peruchazhi flexes its muscles at the box office, Jayashri’s soulful number in the spoof is making waves with its mellifluous notes. The renowned Carnatic vocalist’s previous outing in Malayalam was the poignant number ‘Pranaya Sandhyayoru Vin Sooryan’, an Ousephachan composition for Shyamaprasad’s film Ore Kadal (2007). Now, Jayashri’s silken voice weaves its magic again with ‘Enthu Cheyyan’, composed by Arrora.
“It is a lovely number and I am an admirer of Navin Iyer’s (Arrora’s real name) musicality and sensitivity. I have performed with him on many classical stages when he has played the flute; he is someone I know very well. So I was glad to sing this song for the film. I have always taken up offers to render Malayalam film songs as and when I get it,” says Jayashri, speaking over the phone from Chennai.
Jayashri has many hits to her credit in Tamil, having worked with leading composers such as M.S. Viswanathan, Ilaiyaraaja, A.R. Rahman, Harris Jayaraj and Yuvan Shankar Raja. She points out that she has always been a keen listener of both classical music and film songs. “My family enjoyed music and while growing up in Bombay [Mumbai], we used to listen to Talat Mehmood, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhonsle. I still enjoy listening to and singing film songs,” says the singer.
Agreeing that there is a big difference in approach and attitude while performing a Carnatic concert and singing for a film, she says that the film song has to be seen through the eyes of the director, actor, composer and the story while a composition for the concert circuit is often a traditional number that has been interpreted by maestros and so it requires one to delve into the raga and the mood of the sahithya to see if the singer can shape her own perspective for the kriti.
Having performed for different kinds of audiences all across the globe and India, Jayashri says: “Each audience and listener is different and unique but music has a universal language and I am doing my bit to reach out with Carnatic music.”
She is reaching out with melody in more ways than one. In addition to concerts and performances, she is also actively involved in tapping the healing power of music to help children with special needs. “There is no doubt that music helps special children and I have seen its positive results for myself. Abinaya Shenabagaraj, one of my students, has been researching on music’s therapeutic properties and working with differently-abled children. I often wonder if it is they or supposedly ‘normal’ people like us who are different! But performing for special children is an activity that is close to my heart,” she says.
Aware of the importance of making youngsters tune in to the grandeur and musicality of Carnatic music, Jayashri, along with leading musicians like T.M. Krishna, launched Svanubhava a few years ago.
“While there is no doubt about the beauty and depth of Carnatic music, it is also true that it is not as easy to understand as popular numbers. Instead of having parents forcing children to listen to classical music and attend concerts, we thought it would be practical if we could reach out to them in an environment that they are comfortable in. Most children like being with their friends and so we had maestros performing in schools and interacting with children in schools in Chennai. They ask us questions and we try to rise up to their expectations. A maestro like Vikku Vinayakram sir, for instance, enjoys these interactions. One of these questions he is frequently asked is: ‘sir what happens if your pot breaks?’. He has the answers for these and more!”
In the meantime, Jayashri, who wrote and sang the lyrics of a lullaby in Ang Lee’s Life of Pi , which was nominated for the 2013 Oscars, has just finished composing for a dance production of Kalidasa’s ‘Meghadhootham’, which is touring in the United States. “Each project is a learning experience for me. That I am a singer is accidental. But I will always remain a student of music,” says the singer.
