Unnikrishnan and his ‘Veenatic Guitar’

Musician and composer Unnikrishnan M. has never allowed his physical impediments come in the way of his dreams. The visually-challenged 39-year-old from Konchiravila near Attukal developed a passion for music at a young age. His tryst with the guitar started with a fascination for a toy guitar he chanced upon at a shop during a visit to the Guruvayoor temple at the age of 10. “I cried standing there, asking my father to buy me the toy. He, instead, promised me a real one. I still keep it as an antique piece,” smiles Unnikrishnan.

However, at 20, he developed a serious ear infection. “All of a sudden, I realised that I was losing my hearing in the left ear. Doctors later said my cochlea was damaged and recommended that a cochlear implant was the only remedy, but it was already too late,” remembers Unnikrishnan. The disease deprived him of his hearing in the left ear completely and affected the right one too.

But none of this could pull him back. Today, with the help of a hearing aid, Unnikrishnan plays what he calls the Veenatic Guitar, an improvised instrument that combines the elements of the guitar, the veena and the violin. Resembling a standard acoustic guitar but without the frets, the Veenatic Guitar offers the relative ease of handling a guitar with the timbre of veena while also providing the acoustic depth and flow of the violin.

“I designate the instrument as ‘veenatic’ because the strings are tuned to suit the sound of the veena and it is also played in the style of the veena,” says Unnikrishnan. The inspiration for his “vision” came from the cross-instrumental experimentations of late Carnatic musician and composer Mandolin U. Shrinivas. The six-stringed Veenatic Guitar was custom-built by Unnikrishnan’s friend Abhinigosh, a guitar-servicing technician. “The key feature is since the instrument is fretless, it’s very flexible. One can glide through almost 22 to 24 swarasthanas in Carnatic music with ease while playing it,” Unnikrishnan explains.

Music classes

Unnikrishnan, who has learnt sound engineering, is also skilful at playing the veena and the keyboard, and says he knows the basics of violin as well. When not strumming his guitar in his room, he offers keyboard and guitar lessons at a private music academy at Thiruvallam. He also offers online classes via Skype to some students in the United States. Otherwise, he plays as the lead guitarist for the music band Thumbi, formed with some of his music friends in the city, which focuses on “live meditation music.”

A winner of Keralotsavam awards for best guitar recital for two consecutive years during school days, Unnikrishnan credits the unwavering support of his parents and homemaker-wife, Soorya Unnikrishnan, for his achievements. A yoga practitioner, Unnikrishnan says he wakes up at 3.30 in the morning daily without fail and makes it a point to get at least five hours of music practice in a day. So far, the music composer has set tunes for songs in seven Malayalam albums, including two devotional ones and one video album in Hindi, Agar.

Someone who regards legendary music composer R.D. Burman as both his “guru and my role model in life,” Unnikrishnan says his ambition now is to impart what he has learnt to his students. “I can only speak in the language of the guitar. I will continue teaching music. I want the next generation to understand and enjoy the beauty of music.”