In search of excellence
Mohamed Nazeer
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Composer, singer and violinist, M.P. Jayashree Rajeev's dream is to develop her own style and cadence.
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DEVOTED TO MUSIC: M.P. Jayashree Rajeev.
Agricultural extension may be an area of academic interest for her as she is a post-graduate from the Kerala Agricultural University. But M.P. Jayashree Rajeev has devoted herself to Carnatic music and devotional songs after her debut as a Carnatic vocalist at the age of 13.
Her melodious voice and distinct style of rendition have won accolades from connoisseurs and music buffs.
Playback singing
She made her mark as a playback singer in the Malayalam movies, `Thattakam' and `Panchapandavar' under the music direction of C. Rajamani and in a Telugu movie, `Pandaga' under the direction of M.M. Keeravani. She has also sung for 70 audio-cassettes. She says that it was a great honour to have sung under eminent musicians such as V. Dakshinamoorthy and K. Raghavan.
The 28-year-old singer received the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademy scholarship for junior artistes in classical music in 1989. Three years later, she got the New Delhi-based Centre for Cultural Resources and Training's national scholarship for Bharatanatyam. She was the `Kalathilakam' in the KAU Arts Festival in 2000 and bestowed the `promising young artiste' award instituted by the Guruvayoorappam Kshethram at Pattambi.
When she worked with Kannur Krishi Vigyan Kendra for some time, Jayashree tapped her musical skills to become a music director. She composed the music for traditional songs related to agriculture, which she sang along with her husband Rajeev. The songs were released in a cassette titled `Vayalkili'.
Jayashree says that she continues to learn from musicians with a rich repertoire as she wants to develop an inimitable style of singing.
Jayashree began learning music at a very early age from a local veteran Nadaswara Vidwan Pathur Srinivas, who was a disciple of the late Tanjore Rajarathnam Pillai, a nadaswara maestro. Ten years under the guru helped her explore her musical skills. She acknowledges that her training under Nedumangad Sasidharan Nair, a renowned singer in Kozhikode, helped her refine her skills and improve her style. At present, Jayashree is a disciple of Thamarakkad Govindan Namboothiri, an accomplished singer.
Violinist and dancer
A B-grade artist (Carnatic vocal) of All India Radio, Kozhikode, Jayashree is also a violinist. She learned to play the violin from veteran violinist T.S. Babu who used to accompany her during her concerts. She is also a good dancer having undergone training under well-known dance teachers like Natyakalaratnam P. Shrinivasan, Kalamandalam Saraswathi and Vinodini.
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