Vinayaka, a child prodigy of 'Namma Mysuru'

In the age of reality shows, which are ready to experiment on budding talents providing a platform and making their journey into the world of fame more comfortable, S A Vinayaka of Gokulam in the city, has been slowly carving a niche for himself in the world of Carnatic music.

When it is a dream of every musician, especially vocalist to meet and spend some valuable moments with the Sangeetha Sarvabhouma M Balamuralikrishna, Vinayaka has been blessed to have been accepted as the disciple by expert himself.

When some of the art lovers including Vinayak was given the responsibility of welcoming Balamuralikrishna when he arrived in city for a programme, he made the best use of it.
He impressed Balamuralikrishna by displaying his talent in such a way that it prompted the maestro to invite him to Chennai. Vinayaka packed his bags and left for Chennai the previous summer vacation and gained more knowledge in music training under him for a fortnight.

Balamuralikrishna is not the only VIP who was impressed by this child prodigy, the other person who was bowled over was none other than the former president Abdul Kalam.

Recalling his nostalgic moments with former prez Kalam, who is loved by children across the country, Vinayaka said  the former responded with a warm ‘Vanakkam’ and presented him and his sister with fruits.

Speaking to City Herald Vinayaka said he began singing at the tender age of four and was first trained under Vijayalakshmi Manjunath.

Later, he learnt classical music under the tutelage of Vasantha Sundarrajan and light music under Amrita Subramanya. Practicing regularly even amid his busy schooling, Vinayaka aims of becoming a full time carnatic vocalist.

Expert in singing Kirtanas of Thyagaraja and Purandara Dasa, vachanas and devaranama, he has participated in various music programmes in city and also in Hassan, Bangalore, Dharmasthala, Kaivara and other places.

Speaking to the paper,his mother Shashikala says that though their family has been organising music programmes inviting musicians from across the country during Ganesha festival in Gokulam since decades, it is Vinayaka who has shown inclination towards classical music and taken into full time singing.

His father S J Ashok is a travel agent in city and his younger sister Veena is also following the footsteps of her brother.

This young bundle of talent has bagged several prizes and awards right from the age of four, which is constantly on the rise. Vinayaka is not only good in singing but also good in hand writing, painting and general knowledge and there are certificates to prove his credentials.

He has participated in several state and district level competitions and has emerged victorious.

He has also taken part in music programme aired by All India Radio. Some of his awards worth mentioning are Swami Vivekananda National Balaratna award by Basavangudi Foundation, Nittur Srinivasa Rao award, Suvarna Karnataka Chetana award, Sri Krishnadevaraja award, Basava Jyothi award by Koodala Sangama Trust in Bagalkot and many more.

He has also been felicitated with Buddha Bharat Ratna award at All Religion Meet held at Jaganmohan Palace and performed at Navratri utsava at Dharmasthala. He was presented with outstanding achievement award instituted by the Department of Woman and Child Welfare as part of International Women’s Day, which carried a cash prize of ` 10,000 last year.