She might have been the ‘shy girl from Madurai’ but she was a woman of substance, if there was one.
Fondly known as MS, the ‘nightingale’ of Carnatic music M S Subbulakshmi, is remembered for her smooth-as-butter voice, the goose bumps-inducing spirituality of her rendition and her unerring grace.
But how many of us know that she loved French perfumes, that she was a kind but really persistent teacher and that she rehearsed for hours on end to perfect her enunciation of Sanskrit Shlokas?
More on MS
More such interesting nuggets of information might be forthcoming at the unique homage to the great singer organised by the Bangalore International Centre at the Bangalore Gayana Samaj on August 25.
Titled ‘Shy girl from Madurai’, the programme will feature a lecture demonstration by MS’ grand niece Gowri Ramnarayan followed by a 11-minute black and white film on MS by ace photographer Avinash Pasricha.
“The one quality I remember about her is her ‘vinaya’ — there is really no word in English that can describe this quality of hers aptly,” Gowri Ramnarayan told Metrolife.
Gowri believes that the transcendental quality of MS’ music was because of her ‘vinaya’ and the absolute devotion she had for her art.
“She was not self-obsessed in any way. For her, singing was giving up her ego and becoming one with her God.”
Versatile singer
Gowri says the spiritual quality of MS’ music has somewhat eclipsed the fact that she was also a genius in her field, a versatile singer who could as easily hum a meera bhajan as she could sing thodi.
“Though she was greatly talented, she never showed off, like some others. Her voice could soar over three octaves but MS was a picture of restraint in her concerts. She never went overboard,” Gowri remembers.
The lecture-demo is at 6 pm on August 25 at Bangalore Gayana Samaj, Sri Krishnarajendra Road, Basavanagudi, Bangalore. For details, contact the Bangalore International Centre at 080-25359680.