Pada Sahitya Parishat, a literary and cultural organisation, invited Prince Rama Varma, a descendent of Swathi Thirunal, Maharaja of Travancore and renowned music composer, to give a discourse on his ancestor and on his compositions. This was arranged at Thyagaraya Gana Sabha's mini auditorium. Swathi Thirunal was also a vaggeyakara and lived almost at the time of the great musical trinity, Thyagaraja, Deekshitar and Shyama Sastry. Rama Varma punctuated his discourse with rendition of some of his compositions to the support of an electronic shruti box.
Varma said he was the disciple of Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna and spread his songs all over the world. Then he spoke of his other gurus most of them are of the Tyagaraja Sishya Paramara but for whose contribution some of the krities of Thyagaraja would have vanished as in the case of Swathi Thirunal. Besides, he added, Swathi Thirunal had a shorter life and had no disciples to carry his legacy.
He also said that his ancestor was attracted more to the Hindustani system than to Carnatic music. Thirunal invited many gurus to the south and composed 45 bandishes in Hindustani music. Swathi Thirunal also made his mark in all the forms of Carnatic music.
But the original tunes of his compositions are lost now, he informed.
No original tunes
“If you ask me whether I have original manuscripts of Swathi Thirunal, I will say I have none. I know some people who said they have seen some of these compositions in Saraswathi Mahal Library in Tanjore,” he added.
Varma said we had no original tunes with notation of the Maharaja's to tell us how they were tuned.
Therefore, the rendition of his songs was at the mercy of singers. Varma also added that though he composed romantic songs on gods like Jayadeva and others did, they were never performed and staged. Maharaja was staunch devotee of Maha Vishnu in the forms of Sri Padmanabha, Jalajanabha, Sarasijanabha and so on. His compositions carried these names as his ‘mudras' (signature) in his compositions to easily identify them. Maharaja also wrote compositions on Lord Shiva, Sridevi, Ganesha, Narasimha, Krishna and other gods. He gave a new lease of life for the Kerala dance form of Mohiniattam, revealed Varma. Most of his compositions are applied to dance.
They were philosophical in content, he said. Varma sang a composition of Maharaja in Raga Bowli. Then he rendered Parvati Nayaka Sambho in Kamalamanohari. Bhavati Viswasome Bhavatu Sada in Mukhari was another number he rendered.
Raga Behag was his favourite; he said and added that Swathi Thirunal was the first person to bring Sindhu Bhairavi to Carnatic music. Smarajanaka Subha Charita a Sanskrit composition was one of his best pieces. Most of his songs were in Sanskrit. Bhavayami Raghuramam in Ragamalika depicting the Rama's life in brief was another popular number, he explained.
There was a Javali Chalunayya Matalento in Behag, Swathi Thirunal's favourite raga. Aaj Aaye Shyama Mohan with in-built rhythmic syllables in Misr Pahadi was another impressive piece Varma rendered on the occasion. The programme was received well with intermittent applause.
Mangalagiri Prameela Devi of Pada Sahitya Parishat and others warmly felicitated the young musician, Prince Rama Varma.
