When a college auditorium turned into a sabha

CHENNAI : MOP Vaishnav College for women inaugurated the fifth edition of its three-day annual art and music festival ‘Shringar’ on Thursday. “The Margazhi ‘utsavam’ sets in early at MOP Vaishnav College, even before any of the sabhas open its doors for artistes. This year, we have dedicated Shringar as a tribute to Padma Vibhushan awardee DK Pattamal. This also coincides with her centenary year 
celebrations,” said Lalitha Balakrishnan, principal.

The event was inaugurated by eminent Carnatic musician and DK Pattammal’s granddaughter Nithyashree Mahadevan. A 20-minute documentary tracing the life of DK Pattammal, the stalwart who along with her contemporaries MS Subbulakshmi and ML Vasanthakumari were popularly referred to as the female trinity of Carnatic music was presented to the audience. “She was one of the finest and legendary exponents of Carnatic music. One of the first women to establish a stronghold in the field, she paved way for other women to take up music as a career and she is an inspiration to all of us. The full-length documentary will be released in our YouTube Channel Rang Manch,” said Lalitha.

Addressing the audience, Nithyashree said, “It is extremely commendable that MOP is dedicating this festival in memory of my late guru, grandmother, revolutionary musician and extraordinaire DK Pattammal. The documentary was beautifully done and is weaved with such nuances and intricate details. This is one of the best tributes to her.”

DK Pattammal was the first female musician who rendered the ‘Ragam Thanam Pallavi’ and went on to master it. “Until then, it was considered a male bastion. She is the first lady to have included this in all her concerts in intricate ‘tala’ patterns. Her thirst to widen her repertoire was never ending and she did it till her last breath,” beamed Nithyashree and went on to render a patriotic song, ‘Engal naatuku endha naadu eedu’. This was followed by a dance performance by Ananya Rajagopalan.

The second day of the festival featured illustrious alumni of the college, dancer Aparajitha Rao and vocalist Mathangi Kailasanath. The performances were cheered by thunderous applause from a packed auditorium that consisted of rasikas and students. 

“It was a great show,” said Meltem Mamat, a Turkish woman who has lived in Chennai for over 14 years. “It is always nice to watch these performances because it portrays a completely different culture and is so different and colourful from our own art forms.” The students too praised the performances and said they felt a sense of pride knowing that their seniors were the ones performing.

“The fact that the college is providing students a platform to showcase their talent even after leaving the institution’s portals is so encouraging,” said R Sowmyalakshmi, a second year BCA student in the college. “It makes the show all the more special because it makes one feel proud that the college will remember us even after we have left.”

Another student, Avantika S who is a second-year Sociology student and a trained Bharatnatyam dancer, said she enjoyed the dance the most. The three-day festival came to a end with a vocal concert of Mrinalini Balasubramanian, a disciple of Kala  Balakrishnan and a dance recital of Gowthami A, a disciple of Radhika Shurajit.

Tribute to DKP The event was inaugurated by eminent Carnatic musician and DK Pattammal’s granddaughter Nithyashree Mahadevan. A 20-minute documentary tracing the life of DK Pattammal, the stalwart who along with her contemporaries MS Subbulakshmi and ML Vasanthakumari were popularly referred to as the female trinity of Carnatic music was presented to the audience.