During the just concluded anniversary celebration of Sri Sathguru Sangeetha Samajam, an event happened almost unnoticed. A compact disc containing the musical rendition of ‘Tirumurugan Empavai, Tiruppalliezhuchchi Tiruppallandu’ by Nithyasree Mahadevan was released.
Till recently, the work, one among the many from Madurai’s A.R. Subbier, was only in print. It can take a legitimate place in Tamil bakthi literature in the ‘Pavai’ series, following Tiruppavai and Tiruvempavai .
Subbier was born in 1903 in Alwarkurichi and studied up to fourth standard in a ‘thinnai pallikoodam’. Poverty literally drove him at the age of 10 to Madurai, where he found employment in a ‘sappattu kadai’, the olden day restaurant, in Sholavandan for a salary of Re one. After a few years, he joined another ‘sappattu kadai’ in Madurai.
“Even while working in the ‘sappattu kadai’, he learnt Tamil on his own. He associated himself with Madurai Tamil Sangam and rubbed shoulders with contemporary Tamil scholars like Narayana Iyengar and Jagaveera Pandian,” recalls his son M.S. Meenakshisundaram, advocate. Putting years of adversity behind, this “mute inglorious Milton” started to enrich Tamil language with his contributions in different forms — poetry, music and oratory. His works included ‘Kandaralangara Kalithurai’, ‘Madurai Meenakshi Sundareswarar Aalaya Darisana Murai’, ‘Sri Subramania Stotra Maalai’ and a series of ‘chitra kavi’ (poetry in art form). He also produced condensed versions (oru viruththam) of the Ramayanam and Kandapuranam .
Mr. Meenakshisundaram makes a special mention of ‘Kandaralangara Kalithurai’, published in 1936. “U.V. Saminatha Iyer called my father ‘Vaayuvega Kavi Vallunar’ for completing this work in 24 hours.” ‘Tirumurugan Empavai’ contains 30 songs on Lord Murugan to be sung during Margazhi.
Each verse contains the name of the raga in which it should be sung. It was released first by the Kanchi Acharya in Tambaram in December, 1958 and later by Krupananda Variar in Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple.
In the absence of avenues to take his works to a larger audience, Subbier’s fame was confined to Madurai. Mr. Meenakshisundaram now wants to publish all the works of his father. “His was a life filled with devotion and music,” says Mr. Meenakshisundaram. Subbier died at the age of 57 in 1960.
