Eighteen-year-old Dharani Veeraraghavan won the Mumbai regional finals of the fifth edition of The Hindu -Saregama MS Subbulakshmi Award at the Y.B. Chavan Centre here on Sunday. Aimed at celebrating the legacy of eminent Carnatic singer M.S. Subbulakshmi, the award identifies young talent in the counrty in Carnatic singing in the 18 to 26 age-group.
Ms. Veeraraghavan was one of the five regional finalists who were each given 25 minutes to sing compositions allotted to them by a panel of judges comprising renowned Carnatic singers O.S. Arun and K. Krishnakumar, and mridangam maestro K.V. Prasad.
Ms. Veeraraghavan performed the Seshachala Nayakam by composer Muthuswami Dikshitar in ragam Varali. A former finalist in a popular TV channel’s junior Carnatic idol competition and a recipient of the Shanmukha Sangeetha Mani Award, Ms. Veeraraghavan will now compete in the grand finale to be held at Chennai’s Music Academy on November 13.
Charanya M., Sanjana Raman, Aditya Madhavan and Chari Kanakavalli Santhanam were the other finalists in Sunday’s competition. Violinist Mukund and mridangam artiste A.L. Nath accompanied the singers.
Mr. Arun said, “I am incredibly impressed to see the talent, dedication and sheer life of youngsters. They are so good at time management, and combine technology and proper dedication to the art beautifully.”
Mr. Prasad recounted his days accompanying Ms. Subbulakshmi on the mridangam. He said during his stint with All India Radio, upcoming singers were often featured, but they did not have much experience and were barely good singers. However, Ms. Subbulakshmi would keenly listen to the young talent and prepare detailed notes for Mr. Prasad. “She would remember the name of the performer and say, ‘What was her name? Lakshmi... something? She sang so well, just if her shruthi could improve a little bit.’”
So far, the finalists from Kochi, Hyderabad and Mumbai have been spotted. The regional rounds in Bengaluru and Chennai will take place on November 5 and 6 respectively.
The winner of the finale will get to record an album with music label Saregama.
The writer is an intern withThe Hindu
