‘Her music is unparalleled, says Sunil Raoh about his mother

Actor-singer Sunil Raoh talks about his mother B K Sumitra's stellar six-decade journey in singing

I feel blessed to be the son of legendary singer B K Sumitra, who has sung over 3,000 Kannada songs and pioneered folk, devotional, films and Bhavageethe music genres. Her 60 Kannada film songs are pure classics. Even at the age of 80, her mellifluous voice and passion to explore music stay strong.

Early life

My mother was born on April 27, 1941, in a tiny hamlet called Bilalukoppa near Horanadu. As she pursued her BSc degree, her father Patel Krishnaiyya, a Yakshagana artiste, sowed the seed of music in her. Her father, and the farmers of her village who sang folk songs, inspired her musical ambitions.

Early on, she would make notes of the songs played in transistor radios with, and wait till they were played again to write the lyrics completely. Her idols are Lata Mangeshkar, Noor Jahan, Asha Bhosle, and Amirbai Karnataki.

Entry to films

She started formal Carnatic music from Prabhakar Shastry in Shivamogga during 1956-57. He was actress Pandari Bai’s brother. She later learnt music and dance from maestro Vempati Chinna Satyam.

G K Venkatesh (GKV), a well-known music director, gave her the breakthrough in playback singing in 1964. She had been for a film shoot with Pandari Bai in Chennai when the music director asked her to sing. Impressed with her voice, he asked her to record a song for the Kannada film ‘Kavaleredu Kulavanadu’ (1964).

In those days, P Susheela and S Janaki were popular singers. It was difficult for her to get opportunities in films. Amma wanted to become a singer for one reason. She wanted my grandfather to listen to her voice on the radio, which eventually happened. My grandfather always called her ‘Swayampratibhe’ (A self-learner)

It is very difficult to name a favourite song among the 3,000 heavenly numbers. But ‘Madhura Madhuravee Manjula Gaana’ and ‘A Aa E Ee Kannadada Aksharamale’ are among my favourties.

Journey with her

Since the age of 2, I have been traveling with her for concerts. At the age of 4, I sang with her on the stage for the first time. It was a surreal experience. Sometimes, she would give 40 concerts in a month. She has performed in shows with a jam-packed audience of 3,000-5,000 people.

She has recorded many devotional and folk songs at Master Recording company in Chennai. In villages, people flocked to listen to her charming voice. She has also sung for dance performances of Bollywood superstars Hema Malini and Rekha.

Concerts and workshops

Initially, not many Kannadigas, barring say Mysore Ananthaswamy and C Ashwath, performed abroad. But she broke that barrier and performed at events organized by Kannada Sanghas in US and Singapore. She has conducted about 550 workshops across the state free of cost. She is mentally prepared to conduct more workshops but is physically weak to travel and teach students.

Personality

I had an interest in learning different kinds of music like rock, jazz and she never prevented me from practising them. When my sister and I switched careers, she didn’t object. She also credits her success to my father M L Sudhakar.

My mother is very fond of gardening. A few years ago, we launched a book to celebrate her 50 years in the music industry.

(As told to Ram Rakshith V).