Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Thursday called upon music sabhas such as the Music Academy to give priority to Tamil music and songs in concerts.
“Tamil literature is a treasure house of thousands of Tamil songs. They should be sung in music sabhas. Whether it is bhakti music or film music or light music or pop and rock music, it should be in Tamil; this is my desire,” he said, inaugurating the 96th annual conference and concerts of the Music Academy.
Mr. Stalin said art would survive only if the language survived. “Nurturing music will not only nurture art, but also the Tamil language. All sabhas and artistes should keep this in mind,” said the Chief Minister who also honoured the Music Academy’s Sangita Kalanidhi designates vocalist Neyveli R. Santhanagopalan (2020), mridhangam player Tiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam (2021) and violinists Lalgudi GJR Krishnan and his sister GJR Vijayalakshmi.
Pointing out that Tamil music was ancient and rich and the Tamil literary work Silapathikaram was actually a musical epic, Mr. Stalin said the link between Tamil and music could be known by reading Thevaram, Thiruvachagam, Nalayira Divyaprabandam, Periyapuranam, and other works.
Recalling Music Academy president N. Murali’s interview that his organisation was promoting “unity in diversity” through music, the Chief Minister said the country needed the idea very much. “You should not think that the idea is confined only to political parties. It should be the idea of every individual and organisation,” he said.
Mr. Stalin also said that while he regularly read the publications of The Hindu Group, the two books that outnumbered the books he had been receiving as gifts were Maperum Tamil Kanavu, a book on DMK founder C.N. Annadurai and Therkilirunthu Oru Suryan, a book on Kalaignar, published by the group.
‘No small task’
Mr. Stalin also placed on record his appreciation for Music Academy saying that it was no small task that it had sustained itself for 96 years. “You can start anything, but running it successfully is not easy. It remains a Vedanthangal for music lovers from all over the world. It is the first function I have attended without any tension after assuming office as Chief Minister,” he added.
Mr. Murali said the Chief Minister inaugurating the festival held great significance as it had switched over to a physical format after a break of two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Mr. Stalin is inaugurating this festival, a quarter century after his distinguished father and the late Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi did the honours in 1996 for the second time, after having first done so in 1975,” he said.
He also pointed out that since the annual awards could not be given in the last two years due to the pandemic, it had been decided to give them for the interim years along with the awardees for 2022.
Mr. Murali said N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman, TATA Sons Private Limited, will preside over the Sadas on January 1 when the awards would be conferred. The 16th annual dance festival would be held between January 3, 2023, and January 9.
Industries Minister Thangam Thennarasu participated in the event. Secretary of the Academy V. Srikanth proposed a vote of thanks.
