“I cannot imagine MS without Radha”

Brahma Gana Sabha honours Radha Viswanathan with lifetime achievement award

Radha Viswanathan receives the "Lifetime Achievement Award" from Gopalakrishna Gandhi during the 7th remembrance day of M.S. Subbulakshmi at a programme held in Chennai on Sunday. Others looking on are (from left) Nalli Kuppusami Chetti, patron, T.K.Murthy, musician and V.V.Sundaram. Photo: S.R. Raghunathan

Vocalist Radha Viswanathan was honoured with a lifetime achievement award by the Brahma Gana Sabha on Sunday on the occasion of the seventh remembrance day of M.S. Subbulakshmi.

Presenting the award, former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi said the combination of M.S. Subbulakshmi and Radha would mean both the genius of MS and the extraordinary support the genius received from Radha.

He said he could not imagine M.S. Subbulakshmi without her daughter in the background, giving support not ostentatiously, but quietly, devotedly, reflectively and indistinctively.

Mridangam artiste T.K. Murthy, who accompanied M.S. Subbulakshmi for 55 years, attributed all the success in his career to the generosity of the singer and her husband Sadasivam.

Cleveland V.V. Sundaram said the couple donated all the money to charities and refused personal help even at a time of crisis. Sabha president Nalli Kuppusami Chetti and former director of Doordarshan A. Natarajan spoke.