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G N Balasubramaniam
I surrender at your feet
| Composition: |
unnaDiyE gatiyenRaDaintEn |
| Composer: |
G N bAlasubramaNyam |
| mudrA: |
none |
| (signature): |
|
| rAgam: |
bahudAri (janyam of harikAmbhoji, 28th mELam) |
|
tALam:
|
Adi |
| ArOhaNam: |
SG3M1PD2N2S |
| AvarOhaNam: |
SN2PM1G3S |
| Pallavi: |
unnaDiyE
gatiyenRaDaintEn tAyE
uNmai nI aRiyAyO ulaga nAyakiyE
|
| Anupallavi: |
ponnaiyum pughazhaiyum pUvaiyaraiyum tEDi
cinnattanam aDaintu nittamum migha vADi
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| CaraNam: |
munnamE unniDam solli vaittEnE
ennavandAlum nin ponnaDi maRavEn
pannaga bhUshaNan parivuDan maruvum
minnal koDiyALE innalgaL tIrppAyE
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Lyrics:
Courtesy of Lakshman Ragde
Meaning:
Pallavi: I have sought refuge at your feet, Oh mother! That is the truth and don’t you know that Oh, the mother of the world!
Anupallavi: I have been going after wealth (gold), fame and women so far. I have demeaned myself all these days. Now I regret all that.
Caranam: I have confided in you long ago that whatever happens I shall never forget your golden feet. The Lord who wears the snake around his neck is so fond of you, Oh, the slender-waisted one, please relieve me of my miseries.
General comments:
The composer, also a musician of great repute, has written about 250 songs in Telugu, Thamizh and Sanskrit mostly in praise of Devi. He was a Sri Vidya Upasaka. This song is also a typical one in the sense that it expresses remorse for one’s past behaviour and seeks relief for the miseries (real or imagined) experienced by the author. It is an atonement of sorts.
This is also typical of a composer who had quite a prosperous career early to mid-life enjoying the material comforts. The expression “ponnaiyum, pughazhaiyum pUvaiyaraiyum…” is just the recipe that is attractive early in life but all the same loses its significance as one gets older. That is the time when one understands the futility of worldly possessions and starts to make amends for the “errors” in earlier times.
The theme of the song is appropriate when one considers it philosophically. It is natural for most people to aspire for material possessions when young. After one gets a full measure of them the same status does not offer any more allure. Thoughts turn to divinity and the so-called after-life. Devotion takes centrestage. While many composers and musicians (especially the cadre of the Trinity) of the past were immune to the lure of wealth there were quite a few composers and musicians of the past (and present) who indulged in seeking material comforts for a significant portion of their lives. Obviously, it is part of human nature (niti cAla sukhamE! - yes, money brings its own pleasures and problems too!).
This song is simple in concept, crisp in expression and conforms well to poetic grammar. The object of admiration and worship, namely Devi, is described in simple terms and the song invokes the blessings of Devi.
Composer’s bio:
G N Balasubramaniam (1910-1965), popularly known as
GNB, gained prominence in the Carnatic music world when he was still young, through a stroke of fate when he was asked to substitute for a top artiste at the
Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore. He never looked back and his career was blazing after that maiden venture.
GNB learned music from his father and Madurai Subramanya Iyer. He also obtained a B.A (Hons) degree in English literature, a rarity among musicians in the early 20th century. He had a majestic and resonant voice. He was especially known for his brisk brigas and smooth pleasing delivery. His style of madhyamakala delivery was what his fans enjoyed most. He was in great demand in the concert circuit and travelled far and wide in that quest.
GNB had a prosperous career (financially speaking) and lived opulently. He had a heart to help struggling artistes. He was principal of the
Swati Tirunal College of Music for a few years in Thiruvananthapuram. He was a great teacher and had several disciples who attained fame and fortune. The late T R Balu, S Kalyanaraman and
MLV were three of his illustrious disciples.
GNB also acted in several movies. Some of the noteworthy ones are
‘Sakuntalai’ (paired with M S Subbulakshmi), ‘Bhama Vijayam’, and ‘Sati
Anasooya’.
GNB is credited with inventing new ragas such as Chandrahasita, Sivasakthi and Amrutabehag. Some ragas which were known to be the favourites of GNB are Thodi, Kalyani, Kambhoji and Hindolam. Some of the classic songs popularised by him include Vasudevayani (kalyANi), Sadinchane (Arabhi), HimagiritanayE (suddha danyAsi), Radha Sameta Krishna (Misra Yaman) and Jayati Jayati Bharata mAtA (kamAs).
Some of GNB’s compositions that are ever popular are:
sadA pAlaya (mOhanam), ninnu pogaDa (kuntala varALi) and sAmagAna lOlE (hindOLam). Other Thamizh compositions include:
en manattAmarai (rItigauLai), kanavilum kamala (srirnajani), kavalaiyellAm (sarasvati),
pAda malirinaiyE (bEgaDa) and porumai izhandEn (simmEndra madhyamam).
References:
1. http://geocities.com/promiserani2/co1022.html
2. http://www.chennaionline.com/musicseason2k/interviews/gnb.asp
3. http://www.carnaticcorner.com/articles/gnb_comp.html
Sethuraman Subramanian
subramaniansethu@hotmail.com
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