Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi (1916-2004), is an iconic cult figure in India. How did this Carnatic musician cross regional and linguistic barriers to be revered by listeners across the subcontinent?
Born in a temple town, MS grew up listening to her mother’s veena, and the nadaswaram from festive processions down the street. She imbibed a high classical tradition whose sophisticated form expressed simple faith. She retained that legacy in her breathtaking alapana, inimitable niraval, fastidious tanam, and impeccable diction.
In her formative years MS saw how India’s struggle for independence was as much an inner journey as a socio-political goal for the freedom fighters. When MS played the Rajasthani poet in the film Meera (1947, Hindi), the nation saw the story of India in Meera’s struggles to break free from pomp, privilege and patriarchy.
It was natural for MS to see her music as a quest for the same spiritual freedom. The bhakti poets from many regions and languages -Tyagaraja, Annamacharya, Kabirdas, Meerabai and Narsi Mehta - whose songs she sang with so much fervour, didn’t they follow the same path? Internalising their message of devotion, she lived a Spartan life, donating most of her earnings to charitable causes.
Her pitch-perfect voice combined deep emotion and technical perfection. She used it - not to display her artistic skills - but to communicate the eternal values of human bonding, compassion for the deprived, and seeking the light beyond.
Bharatratna MS Subbulakshmi continues to be loved and revered because her grace was matched by her humility.
The Hindu pays tribute to this legend in ‘Kaatrinile… Remembering MS’ as we set foot into the centenary year celebrations. The concert, conceptualized by Gowri Ramnarayan, features four prominent vocalists – S Sowmya, Nithyasree, Hari Priya and Shanmukha Priya (popularly known as Priya Sisters) who have come together specially for the first time to pay their tribute. The concert will feature a range of compositions popularized and immortalized by M S with an emphasis on the musical values that she stood for.
