Kalaimamani Sikkil C Gurucharan presented an enticing yet peaceful Carnatic music on the second day of the M.S. Subbulakshmi Music Festival-23 at Sri Sathguru Sangeetha Samajam, accompanied by V Sanjeeev on the violin, Palladam Ravi on the mridangam and Alathur Rajaganesh on the ghanjira.
Invoking the blessings of Lord Vinayaga through Avvaiyar’s Ganapathi Sthuthi Vaakundaam Nalla Manamundaam, he commenced the concert with Kotthavaasal Venkatrama Iyer’s saveri varnam Sarasuda ninne kori on the presiding deity of Tirumala Lord Venkatesa.
Then he rendered palayamam parvatIsha by Muthuswamy Dikshitar in kannada, which he learnt from his violinist Sanjeev, on Goddess Meenakshi, who is the annihilator of the impurities of Kaliyuga, ever-blissful one and the protector of the Universe.
Ambujam Krishna’s Om namo narayana in karnaranjani was the vocalist’s next rendition in which he built the Swarakalpana with utmost care and retained the melodic mood intact. The improvisation by the violinist was timely and applauded by the rasikas.
The raga for the evening was Kalyani for Thyagaraja’s etavunara nilakada, in which Thyagaraja explains that the location of the Lord is not known and he is unable to apprehend him in his thought. Gurucharan used the tone and texture and raga aesthetics to render this soulful kriti. The Tani that followed with Palladam Ravi on the mridangam, Alathur Rajaganesh on the ghanjira took their cues and won a round of applause.
The final pieces included a Meera bhajan, Hari Tuma Haro, Mahatma Gandhi‘s favourite song, which he requested M S Subbulakshmi to render on his last birthday celebration, and a Thillana in Kaapi by Thanjavur Kalyanaraman on Lord Nataraja.
Padmanabhan S
