It was indeed the ultimate tribute paid to the ' Shy Girl from Madurai' as some of the highest accolades she received during her legendary career, glimpses of her personal life and a few interesting tales of her simplicity and humanity was highlighted during a film cum lecture demonstration, on Saturday evening.

A two hours programme titled 'Shy girl from Madurai', which also included a lecture on the doyen of Carnatic music M S Subbulakshmi by her grand niece Gowri Ramnarayan left the audience in awe and admiration of the nightingale, as various never heard and seen aspects of her life was disclosed.

Tales of how the Mahatma was so charmed with her Meera bhajans, how a marwari shopkeeper once said : " the singer is the same as the god she is singing about' and how that she rehearsed for hours on end to perfect her enunciation of Sanskrit shlokas was narrated by Gowri.

Glimpses of her childhood, her early years as a singer and how she and her husband Sadasivam, a freedom fighter complimented and encouraged each other was discussed in detail. Gowri also disclosed how the great singer had a soft corner for the poor and deprived.

"The more poor you looked the more respect you would get from her," she said narrating an incident of how concerned MS was of them," When Sonia Gandhi came to meet her, she kept asking us if Ms Gandhi's chauffeur was served coffee and snacks," said Gowri.

Rich tradition

Finally on how the nightingale was able to maintain her popularity for such a long period, Gowri said that M S never thought she was something extraordinary but as someone who was part of the great tradition and culture of India.

"When she sang, she sang without any ego, this is what made her stand out,".The programme organised by Bangalore International Centre apart from a lecture demonstration.It also showcased a 11-minute black and white film on MS by photographer Avinash Pasricha.