City gears up for Margazhi music fest spiced up with dance, dramas

KN Shashikiran, vocalist and founder of Carnatica, said that there has been an effort to offer something new to the patrons. “This year, Carnatica is presenting not only music shows but also dance and drama. The season is mostly affiliated to music, but we are trying to add variety in the form of dance and dance dramas. We are having a symphony by school children, who are participating in large numbers. We have 80 artists from the US participating this season,” he said. 

Moreover, now that Chennai has received the UN Creative Cities Network tag, there is an effort to package the events better, to ensure that this is branded as a tourism promotion. “People can look at the offerings of the sabhas and choose where to go,” he said, adding that some sabhas are trying to include food options in ticketing facilities to elicit more patrons,” he added. 

M Krishnamurthy, Secretary of the Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, one of the oldest sabhas in the city, said that the quality of performances has increased over the years. “In the mornings, we are trying to have lecture demonstrations for students. There is an increased participation and the scenario is highly competitive, resulting in high-quality performances. Over the last five years, we have seen the quality of artistes only getting better. We are seeing an increased number of people attending, especially from other countries. There has also been an increase in the number of artistes singing in Tamil. Our aim is to ensure that our patrons return for the eclectic mix of performances that we have put together for the season,” he remarked.