"Sandhya Ragam" - Concert Reviews by Sandhya Shankar

Pra’natana’ ti In between vocal concerts happening all over the city in the month of December, I did get to attend a few chosen Bharatanatyam dance performances. One of them happened to be Pranati Ram’s at Narada Gana Sabha on 21st December at 1.45 pm.  I was impressed when she started her performance with a ‘Melaprapthi’.   In common terms  ’Melam’ means percussion and ‘Praapthi’ means prelude or opening. In the olden days, a Melaprapthi heralded the start of a temple ritual or performance.  A Melaprapthi comprises entirely of seams of sollukattu. The Melaprapthi she chose to perform, was a traditional piece from the Vazhuvoor repertoire which was composed by Gangai Muthu Nattuvanar, and choreographed by Pranati’s Guru Rhadha. Her second presentation was the popular Ragamalika Varnam Sami Ninne Kori Va set to Rupaka talam. This is a composition by the Tanjore Quartet. The meaning of this Varnam is  ‘O lord Brihadishwara of Tanjavur, I desire you and only you

Yesuvarasanam Anyone who grew up in the 1960’s would remember things like playing street cricket, when we had to behave very, very well and also study very,very well to get an ice cream or a chocolate (we had to earn anything which was not basic), like when we collected leaves & twigs for our scrap book, like our mothers wore kum kum powder on their foreheads (sticker bindis had not be devised), like we didn’t have to call people before we visited them, like listening to the Beatles, like Ameen Sayani’s voice on Binaca Geetmala on every Wednesday and Yesudas singing ‘Enna Parvai Unthan Parvai’ for the film ‘Kadhalika Neramillai’.   Anyone who grew up during 1970’s will remember things like their black telephone instrument covered with an embroidered cloth (sometimes locked so that people didn’t misuse it), like black & white tv with Doordarshan being the only channel and programmes starting only after 6pm and ending by 9pm, like playing book cricket, buying books t

Do Re Mi Fa Pa Da Ni Sa ! Not for me, are these New Year Eve parties held in clubs, where there are unfamiliar people trying to usher in another year along with badly cooked food from last year and loud music /noise. Not for me, are these private parties where people are getting drunk on the pretext of celebrating the passing of an unproductive year. I have never understood this forced gaiety just because the calendar had flipped a page !! It would have been any other normal day for me on January1st this year, except that not every day does one get to listen to two amazing musicians live at 9 am in the morning. It was the annual program at Kalakshetra on January1st which featured a musical genius namely Jayanti Kumaresh on the Veena and an extraordinary pianist Anil Srinivasan.   Kalakshetra is one place in the middle of our concrete Chennai, which is reasonably unspoilt with open spaces, and no artificial Korean grass but old shady trees in very natural and rustic surroun

Sthira Thala Ranganatha Sharma It was Day 2 of the MadRasana festival held at Sathyam Cinemas.  When I first heard about this concert series in 2016, I was very curious. Infact even skeptical about the ethos, quality & success of this concept where the ambience is of a multiplex theatre and not a sabha.  Right from the idea of snacking on a popcorn along with a cold coffee versus a Keerai Vada along with a filter Coffee was somehow incongruous with me.  This was my first year at MadRasana and I must confess the experience was not only unique but also wonderful. We had their hospitality team taking care of every single thing making it on the whole a memorable experience.  It was Shertala Ranganatha Sharma who was to perform for an avid gathering. His first song for the morning was amusingly one starting with his own name ‘Raganathudhe’ in Ragam Saurashtram, set in Rupaka thalam which was a composition of Ponnaiah Pillai. It was in praise of Lord Ranganatha and o