Legend caught on lens

KOCHI: A veteran musician, Parassala B Ponnammal is a woman who has a number of accomplishments to her credit. Sharing a glimpse on the Padma Shri recipient’s musical journey, a documentary titled ‘Ee Jeevithathinu Peru Sangeetham’ was released at Bharat Bhavan in the city on Tuesday.

Being the first woman to learn music from the Swathi Thirunal College of Music to training under Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and so on, the 93-year-old Padma Shri recipient has carved a niche of her own in the area of Carnatic music. Breaking the 300-year-old tradition which forbade women to perform at the Padmanabha Swamy temple, is a woman who has created history.
Priya Raveendran, who has come up with the idea for the documentary on the life of the musician feels it was hightime that her work was highlighted.

“Parassala Ponnammal was a woman who accomplished a lot. She had many firsts to her credit. She was the first woman to study music in the city, the first lady teacher, the first lady principal and so on. She was a person who deserved to gain recognition and could be put in the pedestal as singers like M S Subbalakshmi. It is only lately that she received the due acknowledgement, including the title of Padma Shri. “

The year-long effort to document the musicians work began during Navratri in 2016, says the filmmaker.  For her, the main aim behind the documentary was to create awareness on the contributions of the music stalwart. Priya said, “She has never gone behind fame or recognition, and still gives concerts, though very few. There are many who still don’t know who Parassala Ponnammal is. Others who do would have only learnt about her and her work recently.”

The documentary is produced by R Parvathi Devi, and is a detailed analysis of the veteran’s life and contributions to music. Spanning 24 minutes, the work includes inteviews of Parassala Ponnammal’s disciples including K Omanakutty and other singers.s