HYDERABAD: From temple music to the Carnatic form, besides a fusion act and an experiment of traditional percussion with a Macbook Pro, the performance of ghatam player Karthick and his troupe as part of the Hyderabad Arts Festival recently was a scintillating union of diverse music genres. Karthick, a disciple of ghatam veterans Vikku Vinayakram and Subhash Chandran, feels there’s a sense of simplicity in the instrument he calls a ‘humble looking pot’. “It makes you wonder that so much can be done on an earthen pot. For those who aren’t acclimatised with music too, you feel you can play it.” Another reason he was drawn to ghatam was his fascination for instruments. All in all, “Only if you’re blessed, you become a musician,” he says.
Karthick manages time to teach at an academy in Chennai, write lyrics for songs and compose music for them, , deliver lectures on spirituality, Indian culture. He’s an excited child as he establishes connections between mysticism, spiritual symbols and music. “The planets, yantras, chakras are not only driven by belief but science plays its part too,” says Karthick, clearly tempted to add more.
As an example of his acceptance of various music forms — Karthick calls himself a ‘true rasika’ — he switches from a Semmangudi composition to a Michael Jackson number seamlessly. “Performing in colleges, corporate events and the classical ones, I’m exposed to different audiences and altering styles,” he adds, crediting the monotonic, unsustained (meaning the aspect of the instrument whose notes don’t drag) nature of ghatam in helping him adapt to world music with ease. “Be it Carnatic, fusion or any other genre, ghatam blends easily,” Karthick adds.
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He conducts classes on Skype, Facebook and even on Whatsapp. “Technology is doing its bit for the sustenance of the guru-shishya parampara, but there are lags in the conversations that are not conducive for the learning. That’s one reason I tell my students to visit me whenever they can for a one-to-one interaction and to date, nothing can substitute that,” he mentions.
Although he is a teacher on a certain level, the man is a student at heart. That, he says, is the secret to stay young. “I can even learn from my son, get inputs on my performance from my wife and do a self-evaluation too.” He goes back to his gurus whenever he’s in doubt or senses the need to clarify. Karthick states, “I started learning from my gurus at nine. Even as I’m performing now, at 45, the musical association never quite ends.”
Karthick, the performer, doesn’t over-analyse his concerts. “You see, there are a lot of factors that can affect a performance. The mood, the sound of the instrument, the climate, they all play a part. Things need to work on the stage. It’s easy to do a post match-like analysis on what should have worked and what didn’t. My job is only to utilise my abilities to the fullest.
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There will be criticism, appreciation and a lot of other things, my bit remains to retain the focus,” he keeps it simple.