`I should have learnt more kritis'
GOWRI RAMNARAYAN
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A conscientious teacher, Chingleput Ranganathan has many blessings to count.
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Chingleput Ranganathan.
His mother was his first guru. Singing with her when she learnt music from Kulatthu Harihara Iyer was sheer joy to the boy, as was listening to Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar, Kumbakonam Brothers, Madurai Mani Iyer or V.V.Sadagopan at the Parthasarathy and Kapali temples, to which his medical representative father frequently took him. "Nothing could stop me from going to those concerts, even exams," recalls Chingleput Ranganathan. "I began to dream of becoming a musician."
Kuttipaiya (Ranganathan) stopped school at class nine when the family shifted to Tiruchi and began to learn from flautist Ramachandra Sastri. Eventually, Sastri took the boy to learn from Alathur Venkatesa Iyer, the father and uncle of Alathur brothers Srinivasa Iyer and Sivasubramania Iyer.
Ranganathan loved his 11-year-gurukulavasam. "Washing clothes, bathing cows, massaging feet, running errands... It was tough when all three called at the same time!" When they got into the mood, the gurus taught him with care and affection.
Describing a train trip from Trivandrum with his gurus, Papa Venkatramiah and Palghat Mani Iyer, Ranganathan remarks that in those days, good eating was as important as good music. Starting with an idli-sambar-chutney breakfast, the crew polished off a gargantuan lunch at Shencottah, followed by the famous vadais of Virudunagar.
The next station saw Kuttipaiya racing to fetch puri-kizhangu, rava dosai and wheat halwa with flasks of coffee. He was "welcomed" back with anxious chiding for his tardy return. "Nor did we miss dinner at Madurai," chuckles Ranganathan. Other stories highlight the good heartedness of Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar, the dignity of Rajamanikkam Pillai, the musicianship of Balasaraswati...
Venkatesa Iyer taught laya nuances through the basic sarali varisai, and insisted on 35 alankarams, and varnams in 4 speeds. "Enough to handle the most complicated pallavi. His coaching could make a stone sing!"
The Alathur kriti pathantara was unique. Every song was practised a hundred times before being introduced on the stage. "By that time it bore their individual stamp. Everything was synchronised from breath to anuswara. You were never tired of hearing their Chakkaniraja or Koniyadi. I'm also trying to sing kritis with that kayda (discipline) and azhagu (beauty). Hmmm... maybe in my next birth... " A fascinating memory is of the Brothers notating "Enduku Peddala" from houseguest Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. They stopped singing it after a few concerts saying that the song belonged to Semmangudi, he had popularised it first.
Mastery of laya
The Alathur alapana had vivid flow. Of course, the style was renowned for its mastery of laya. Awestruck Ranganathan explains, "What seemed easy, say a simple pallavi in rupaka talam, would appear complicated in their handling. On the other hand, they chose to make a most arduous sankirna nadai pallavi seem like child's play." These presentations were processed through Herculean practice and a grasp of the minute aspects of laya. Only top class accompanists like Palghat Mani Iyer, Pazhani Subramania Pillai, C. S.Murugabhoopathy or T.K.Murthy could follow their twists and turns of rhythm. Others were left bewildered. On occasion they even sang with two mridangists — Umayalpuram Sivaraman and Palghat Raghu.
"As I tried to sing like my gurus, I arrived naturally at my own style." Other musicians began to consult Ranganathan on laya challenges. Some tapped him for repertoire gains. From 1960, he established himself as a conscientious teacher, and now serves as the Principal of the Teachers' College at the Madras Music Academy. Long-term disciples include Seetha Narayanan and the late Sangita Kalanidhi Mani Krishnaswami.
Expertise in theory and practice unite in Ranganathan's setting Tiuppugazh verses in the 72 mela ragas. His tillanas in 35 talas should be of interest to dance artistes.
Ranganathan counts many blessings. His guru Venkatesa Iyer accompanied him on the harmonium for his arangetram. Later, Palghat Mani Iyer played for him, and conducted the whole concert with suggestions. In 1964, Vidwan T.R.Subramaniam not only had him sing at his own sabha at Vijayawada, but also pretended to have a sore throat in order to have Ranganathan substitute for himself at a Rajahmundry recital. "Never before - or since - did I get such a crowd. Heads ranged as far as eye could see, all for TRS! By with my gurus' grace, I managed to satisfy them."
The senior vocalist sees nothing to worry about classical music today. "Youngsters work very hard in every department. God has arranged it all." A rigorous classicist himself, he appreciates all styles, "Ilayaraja and Rahman too."
Any unfulfilled desire at age 69? "Yes," confesses Chingleput Ranganathan. "The older I grow the more distressed I get. I should have learnt more kritis, and polished them to greater perfection. Why did I waste so much time?"
(A fortnightly spotlight on music gurus, musicologists and representatives of different schools, who have enriched Carnatic music.)
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