Twin-edged genius
SULOCHANA PATTABHIRAMAN
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Madurai Krishnan was a true vaggeyakara, composing both the lyrics and music necessary for a full-fledged Bharatanatyam recital. Sulochana Pattabhiraman
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COMMITTED TO THE ART: Madurai N. Krishnan.
The septuagenarian vidvan of Carnatic Music, Madurai N. Krishnan, who passed away on October 9, covered an enviable distance in his artistic journey of more than six decades that is dotted with achievements, milestones, and appreciative acknowledgement of his contribution to South Indian Music and Bharatanatyam.
Born in Madurai in 1928, Krishnan had his initial training under his father, Vidvan Narayana Iyengar, renowned Harikatha exponent, and his brother violin Srinivasa Iyengar. His role as a supportive artiste in his father's performances was a rich and rewarding learning experience. He was competent, confident and well equipped to present his first concert at the tender age of 12. He also developed a degree of proficiency in the art of oral mnemonics, (konnakkol).
When he was but a mere boy of 11, Krishnan would religiously recite the Gayatri and Maha Ganapati Mantras. He seems to have been drawn to the Bhakti Marga and sought to seek mystic experiences by retiring to the woods around Madurai and spending long hours in deep meditation. He became well versed in astrology and the mantra sastras. Not many may be aware that his service as a spiritual minister pursued with utmost sincerity, devotion and altruism, were highly valued by a large number of grateful individuals among whom this scribe is one. The turning point in Krishnan's musical education was when he had the privilege of being admitted to the scholarly stable of Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar, thereby duly inducted into the direct guru-sishya parampara of Saint Tyagaraja. As a thorough-bred musician he received due recognition for his resonant, vibrant voice, full-throated singing conforming to Tyagaraja's lyrical statement in his Jaganmohini song ``Sobhillu Saptaswara" (Naabhi hruth khanta rasana). His authentic patantaram of the Ariyakkudi bani, strict adherence to the classical traditional tenets of Carnatic music, stunning repertoire and his meritorious record as a tunesmith for numerous compositions of divine composers in several languages speak volumes of his commitment to the art.
Unique distinction
The finest hour in Krishnan's illustrious career was when he began conceiving compositions suitable for Bharatanatyam. He was a true vaggeyakkara as he composed both the lyrics and music for his creations that enveloped the entire Margam necessary for a full-fledged Bharatanatyam recital. This was hailed as a unique distinction since between the Thanjavur Quartet and Dandayuthapani Pillai, a work of this magnitude has not been attributed to anybody else. His imaginative repository comprised invocations, Kauthuvams, jatiswarams, sabdams, varnams, padams and tillanas encompassing the entire spectrum of Bharatanatyam. Divinity and bhakti that have formed the nucleus in his sahitya, the lilting bhava-laden melody and the inbuilt tight rhythm important for dance movements have earned plaudits from dancers, critics and the art loving public.
V. A. K. Ranga Rao, eminent dance critic, praises Krishnan's jatiswaram in Varali for its verve and buoyancy despite the raga's inherent leisurely gait. It is to the credit of the versatile danseuse, Sudharani Raghupathi that she had the discernment to avail herself of Krishnan's guidance to her dance institution Bharatalaya as director since its inception, till he breathed his last.
Some of his accomplished disciples are S. Rajeswari, B. R. C. Iyengar of Secunderabad, Padma Rajagopal and Bhanumati. Senior musicologist T. S. Parthasarathi, dance-guru Adyar Lakshmanan, and dancers in the forefront Sudharani, Vaijayantimala Bali, Chitra Visveswaran, Yamini Krishnamurthi, Anita Ratnam and others have all expressed their respect and regard for Madurai Krishnan on many occasions.
Recipient of many honours including Padma Bhushan, Krishnan remained an unpretentious, unassuming God's good man till the very end.
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