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 Among
musical forms, the “Harikatha” has come to grace a special place
in the Carnatic music circuit.
A composite art form, comprising elements of poetry, music and
philosophy woven in story telling format, it stands out as an
excellent medium for propagating cultural and religious values
to the masses.
On March 30 the Toronto music Rasikas were treated to one such
refreshing traditional art in the form of a Harikatha-“Seetha
Kalyanam”. Yes, the three hour presentation on March 30th by
Sangeetha Kalanidhi TN Seshagopalan at the Ayyappan auditorium
in Scarborough wa a resounding success
The traditionally attired accompanists (on
mridangam, violin and kanjira) coupled with the use of the
cymbals to keep beat enhanced the aura and mood of “Seetha
Kalayanam”- that was succinctly portrayed in dramatic style.
Prasangam- sloka interpretation and music in these expositions
relies heavily on the musical ability of the individual. Madurai
T.N. Seshagopalan, a musician par excellence is a natural
speaker and the lyrical beauty of the compositions rendered in
Sanskrit, Telegu, Marathi, Hindi and Tamil complemented his
music to perfection.
He spoke of the importance of Rama avataram,
the Rama mantra and the special place accorded to ThAyAr.
Anecdotes, episodes from the Ramayana were roped in well in
keeping with the humour of our time, making the Harikatha
contemporary and relevant. Passages from Valmiki RAmAyaNam,
Vishnu SahashranAmam, Kamba RaamAyaNam, pAsurams, abhangs and
krithis from Thyagarajar, Arunachalakavirayar, Uthukkadu Venkata
Kavi came across in a stream of musical fireworks. Indeed, one
may be bold enough to say that Thyagarajar himself is fortunate
to have the likes of TNS propagating his music via this medium.
A few bars of the krithi “yArO ivar yArO” (Arunachala
Kavirayar)originally set to Saveri - Saveri being a better
choice for nAdagams, was demonstrated in both Bhairavi and
Saveri. Particularly enjoyable was the rasa effect captured by
TNS as in a dramatic flourish he delighted us with few lines of
a krithi sung as it were by both Seetha and Surpanaka! Snippets
from Sri Raghukula (Hamsadhwani), Manasuloni(Hindolam), Nagumomu
(Abheri) and several other krithis in their lyrical splendour
were presented in an enjoyable musical narrative. A famous
Thamizh verse “aNNalum nOkkinAL” (Hameer Kalyani) from Kamba
RaamAyaNam was pleasantly soothing. Three of the six charanams
from Thyagarajar’s Seetha KalyANam in Kurinji were rendered for
full effect. All the events concomitant to the marriage
ceremony- the vil (bow) scene, the unjal, nalangu,were
represented well and laced with humour in terms of modern day
parlance. He had several people laughing as he maintained a
serious countenance with jokes interspersed in the numerous
episodes dwelling on various aspects of human nature.
Seshagopalan’s superior vidhwat in both the Hindusthani and
Carnatic idiom was reflected in his smooth delivery. He is a
phenomenal and versatile artiste and to many of us who have not
been privy to his histrionic talents, it was a pleasure seeing
the well known musician in a different light.
Excellent support by Jaisankar Balan
(violin), Vinod Seetharam (Mrudangam) and Karthik Venkatraman (Kanjira)
made for a presentation both entertaining and instructive.
The function, which began with an
introduction of the artistes by Thyagarajan, President of
Bharathi Kala Manram ended with a vote of thanks by Dr. Krishnan
followed by a presentation of a veNpA by Professor Pasupathy
honouring the artiste.
Rajeshwari Iyer
Pics Courtesy : Murali Gopalakrishnan
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