DT Next Exclusive: Rebonding chords over nostalgic music

CHENNAI: Vaa Vaa en Devathaiye, Thean Kizhakku Cheemaielea and Neeye Neeye are a few songs which stay timeless in the hearts of the people and also reflect their bonds like father-daughter, brother-sister and mother-son. Likewise, most of us have a particular song that connects the entire family called the Kudumba paadal. Once the music makes its way to our ears, we immerse in the pool of memories, taken back to the days when we had a hearty laugh, forgetting the stress and spent quality time with our families.

Carnatic musician and vocalist Saketharaman is on a mission to make Carnatic music accessible to all. To achieve this, he started the Samuditha Foundation. “There are several myths surrounding Carnatic music as it is a niche form and unless you know the music, one cannot enjoy it completely. Basically, I want to make it accessible and enjoyable to all. There are two objectives on which we work, music to educate and music to heal,” starts Saketharaman, the disciple of Padma Bhushan Lalgudi Jayaraman.

He runs Kala Shiksha to pursue the educational part of the mission, in which more than 400 students are learning online from across the world. He calls the music to heal as Music Medic. “For the music to heal, we have been researching and spending time with senior citizens for the last couple of years to understand their preferences as they come from different strata,” Saketharaman says. These elderly people are the ones who are abandoned by their children at old age homes.

Including Saketharaman, there were quite a few Carnatic musicians, who visited an old age home and performed. But he wanted to approach this uniquely. He scored down that Margazhi, the month celebrating music and dance, would be apt for his idea. “Instead of going to the old age homes, I brought the senior citizens to the Narada Gana Sabha,” he adds. Not only them, but their children were also part of the concert. “It is more like a musical retreat to rejuvenate and recharge themselves,” the Carnatic musician notes.

More than 200 audiences were present at the concert from eight old age homes in and around Chennai. “It was quite a challenge to plan and arrange the logistics. On top of it, it was pouring on the day of the concert. We had to gauge the safety of the elderly people and arrange volunteers for them to easily commute within the hall,” Saketharaman explains.

So, what is so unique about this concert? The songs that were performed were requested by the audience, which connects the senior citizens with their children, going back to the good old days. “Prior to the concert, I received a list of 12 songs from the heterogeneous audience. Without the knowledge of the elderly people, their children were invited, much to their surprise. I wanted to use Carnatic music as a tool to bridge the gap and build a better society. This concert was like an outreach to bring everyone together and unite with their children,” Saketharaman states, who started learning music when he was six.

Remembering the most emotional moments from the concert, the musician reminisces, “There were varied emotions like standing ovation, gratitude, curiosity and blessings. When I sang Krishna Krishna Mukunda, the interactive audience also crooned with me, some with teary eyes.” Saketharaman staged his first concert when he was 13 and he would complete three decades in the industry in 2025. He wishes to innovate music without tampering with the traditional set up to pull in more first-time listeners.

He previously performed in a concert called Karnatify, a Carnatic version of Hollywood songs. “Events like these will resonate with the youngsters and I can take Carnatic music to the future generation,” he believes.

“I am a strong believer of traditions but it shouldn’t be static. Today’s innovation is tomorrow’s tradition. Let’s innovate the field without disturbing the tradition like music legends MS Vishwanathan sir, Ilaiyaraaja sir and AR Rahman sir,” the vocalist opines.

Talking about how people in Tamil Nadu perceive Carnatic music, he shares, “I have noticed that people here have an ear for good music, though they might not be aware of the Carnatic element in it. They might not know the ragas and talas. But appreciate good music and carry memories of certain songs.”