So far, in this year’s Kunnakudi music festival we have attended only one kutcheri, so far. The festival was inaugurated on 7.12.2010 and on the 8th, Rajesh Vaidhya’s kutcheri was on prime time. But as we had to unconsciously follow the routine, we could only go on the 9th. But we got a bonus! We got to listen to O.S.Arun, the man who works magic with music!
The program was scheduled for 7.p.m. But when we reached exactly at 7 after being caught in the traffic and talking to the organizer’s daughter and wife and fumbling with the elevator, Serugudi sisters Rama and Geetha were in the end of their very brilliant performance. The thani avarthanams of the accompanists was excellent.
O.S.Arun sat finally at 7.30. (Does he have back pain? Why does he sit on that high cushion?) He was sweating profusely. He was accompanied by Madurai Balasubramanium on the violin (awesome performer), Venkatasubramanium on the mridangam and Adambakkam Shankar on ghatam. Arun had a stack of notebooks at his side apart from the folders that lay open in front of him. To be honest, I used to think that singers should be able to perform without help. But now, I do accept it’s more convenient for them to have their songs in front. They’re doing more kutcheris these days and shuttling from place to place in a very short time. Infact, Arun was in Thumkur that noon when he called up the organizers saying that he didn’t know how he was going to make it by 7.
He started the concert vibrantly with Vatapi ganapathim. Balasubramanium gave an equally vibrant performance with his violin. When Kunnakudi V.Srinivasan, the organizer mentioned his name after Rama and Geetha left the dais, there was a loud applause from a relatively small crowd. Arun showed once again he deserved that and a lot more. The evening got better with his second song, Meru samana. I was like, “wow”. He started the third one with a violin-vocal duet which was way better than anything I’ve ever heard, which was not much. It was Theruvil Varano. His expressions too were good and strangely, he reminded me of Sanjay Subramanium.
The best piece though, was Thunai purindarul which he started with an extraordinary piece of kalapanaswaram and a violin solo. Well the thani was good overall but I loved the violin and this particular piece of swaras that went ma dha, ma ni dha, sad ha ni, ni dha ni made us laugh. Get it? Madha manidha! Sadha ni nidhani. (Mad man be calm always)
Only one rasika sent a request, so Arun sang Swagatham krsna for them. I’ve heard that song by Unni Krishnan and Nithashree Mahadevan and Aruna Sairam, but Arun’s was a little different, nevertheless, good. He concluded with Beemaka maruthi. I went home in a better mood but unfortunately for me we could not attend the other kutcheris. I do hope to catch some at other sabhas this season and I might post my descriptions here.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Random thoughts triggered by leaks of govt secrets recently
Today i was simply browsing around the web for WikiLeaks sites. Well, its true its none of my business. I'm in no way connected to any of the controversies and the people around them. I'm just a stupid, jobless, half crazy, good for nothing house wife who has been addicted to the internet for a couple of years now. But I do believe in democracy and the betterment of humanity. Why else would i be bothered of what our politicians do to our government and what our governments do to us? Whatever happens to people in far off places, like Julian Assange and the RTI activists who are being murdered, that try to bring out truth might not affect me directly but they have a major influence on the way I think and try to plan for my future. I am who I am because of what I think, right?
I even wonder why they risk everything to bring out the truth when no one cares. Not even the common man they're trying to help. Look what happened to Tehelka for exposing high level corruption in the Defence ministry. No one cared. And the recent Radia Radio and cablegate issues? We're just gossiping about them, just like we gossiped about Sneha-Srikanth, Shilpa Shetty-Richard Gere, Sourav Ganguly-nagma.
From what I've seen here in the state or the nation in general, people seem to not think, not because they can't. they don't want to. The corruption of this DMK government can't be that invisible and I know we are not that blind. But how come some people still seem to believe the old man is a selfless saviour of the Tamils? How can they be so dumb to believe Karunanidhi when he speaks of his love for the Srilankan Tamils? Everyone seems to enjoy the exclusive, first on tv, breaking news culture of unethical journalism just for the sensationalist propaganda. No one's really interested in the issues. Culprits are let off the hook openly and no one asks. They - corporates, officers, politicians, even defence personnael - continue to be corrupt with the whole world watching but no one questions.
Maybe that's how human civilization has been working since the dawn of, well, civilisation. People stopped questioning and sticking to a priciple and standing by it. Had they been any different, there might not have been mass killings of free thinking women, wars and deaths in the name of religion, and so many other conflicts that were covered up which led to many myths and legends in this age.
Isn't it hypocrisy to talk of democracy and freedom of speech and human rights and other such stuff when people who claim to endorse them, fail to protect them and end up murdering the same. Especially, the West. They push their chest up every time thay say 'western civilisation' but their history has the most number of 'silencings', the latest being Julian Assange's silencing. I was always drawn to the so called conspiracy theories about the Holy Grail, UFO sightings, Atharvana veda that endorses Tantrika, Freemasonry and so much more. I thought that was because of the amount of history, conspiracy and art and philosophy these stories contain. That belief of mine was strenghtened by Dan Brown's books. Now, I think I knid of see the truth of how the human civilisation actually works. We are still animals that blindly follow the people in command. No, not blindly but brainlessly. Because that's easier to do than join the other side, where the biggest pillars of modern human civilisation, reveal themselves to be nothing more than cat poop.
I'm one of these ignorant people I hate. i can't do anything, not even to atleast satisfy my yearning to do something great even if it goes invisible. I don't have the brains or the talent. But I guess I'll be silently suffering everytime I see such ignorant idiocy and that's everyday, and do nothing to change it.
And I've got to say this too.
My dear family, its not true that ours is the best culture with the best ways to live. People of every other culture believe theirs is best too. And that doesn't mean anything, honestly. And to answer that frequent question of the one person among you, yes, sometimes I do wish I was never born, but at other times, I also believe I'm a tiny bit better than you in a few no so important things.
I even wonder why they risk everything to bring out the truth when no one cares. Not even the common man they're trying to help. Look what happened to Tehelka for exposing high level corruption in the Defence ministry. No one cared. And the recent Radia Radio and cablegate issues? We're just gossiping about them, just like we gossiped about Sneha-Srikanth, Shilpa Shetty-Richard Gere, Sourav Ganguly-nagma.
From what I've seen here in the state or the nation in general, people seem to not think, not because they can't. they don't want to. The corruption of this DMK government can't be that invisible and I know we are not that blind. But how come some people still seem to believe the old man is a selfless saviour of the Tamils? How can they be so dumb to believe Karunanidhi when he speaks of his love for the Srilankan Tamils? Everyone seems to enjoy the exclusive, first on tv, breaking news culture of unethical journalism just for the sensationalist propaganda. No one's really interested in the issues. Culprits are let off the hook openly and no one asks. They - corporates, officers, politicians, even defence personnael - continue to be corrupt with the whole world watching but no one questions.
Maybe that's how human civilization has been working since the dawn of, well, civilisation. People stopped questioning and sticking to a priciple and standing by it. Had they been any different, there might not have been mass killings of free thinking women, wars and deaths in the name of religion, and so many other conflicts that were covered up which led to many myths and legends in this age.
Isn't it hypocrisy to talk of democracy and freedom of speech and human rights and other such stuff when people who claim to endorse them, fail to protect them and end up murdering the same. Especially, the West. They push their chest up every time thay say 'western civilisation' but their history has the most number of 'silencings', the latest being Julian Assange's silencing. I was always drawn to the so called conspiracy theories about the Holy Grail, UFO sightings, Atharvana veda that endorses Tantrika, Freemasonry and so much more. I thought that was because of the amount of history, conspiracy and art and philosophy these stories contain. That belief of mine was strenghtened by Dan Brown's books. Now, I think I knid of see the truth of how the human civilisation actually works. We are still animals that blindly follow the people in command. No, not blindly but brainlessly. Because that's easier to do than join the other side, where the biggest pillars of modern human civilisation, reveal themselves to be nothing more than cat poop.
I'm one of these ignorant people I hate. i can't do anything, not even to atleast satisfy my yearning to do something great even if it goes invisible. I don't have the brains or the talent. But I guess I'll be silently suffering everytime I see such ignorant idiocy and that's everyday, and do nothing to change it.
And I've got to say this too.
My dear family, its not true that ours is the best culture with the best ways to live. People of every other culture believe theirs is best too. And that doesn't mean anything, honestly. And to answer that frequent question of the one person among you, yes, sometimes I do wish I was never born, but at other times, I also believe I'm a tiny bit better than you in a few no so important things.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
My experience with the story that's writing itself
Okay so I was writing Smitten when one day the Anjana Aaron story formed completely. When i started Smitten i first discovered that a story really writes itself, like many writers have said. In this story that does not have a title yet, I see how it works and am enjoying every bit of it. Apart from the fact that my in laws have hidden my papers now, I've never stopped writing. I do not know what a writer's block is, yet. Because every time I finish a scene and wonder what happens I notice I continue writing another one without realising it. My poems might have deserted me and I'm taking it for good. Because if not, I would not have started writing stories or wanted to publish. I'm so deep into Anjana's life now, I know I'm not going to stop.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)