Susvarala Lakshmi MS Subbalakshmi - Pallavi

This is a 530 plus page book written in Telugu and by far the biggest book in Telugu I have read so far. Pallavi garu, the author writes a compelling story in a language that is both accessible and yet musical and eclectic. She has earlier authored the book about Mahanati Savithri. This is her second book.

 

MS Subbulakshmi (16th Sep 1916 - 11 Dec 2004) was born in Madurai to Madurai Shanmukhavadiver Ammal, a Veena player and a Devadasi, and Subramanyam Aiyer. Called Kunjamma as a child, MS went on to achieve the greatest laurels any singer could have from her humble and constrained beginnings - receiving the Bharat Ratna - India's highest civilian award. Her life story reads like a fairy tale, wonder and tragedy in equal parts, while she focused on what she was gifted with - her voice.

Born into a Devadasi family, a community which was regarded highly at one time with their status in temple procedures and rituals, one which was losing its sheen and the women were being seen as lowly women, Subbulakshmi's mother Madurai Shanmukhavadiver, brought her two children, MS and her older brother Shaktivel, by herself, with an on and off relationship from her patron and their father Subramanyam Aiyer. That she taught them music (MS learned Carnatic vocals and later Hindustani while Shaktivel learned the Mridangam), earned enough by giving her Veena Kacheris, promoted her children early enough where she could - she somehow convinced HMV records who were recording her Veena recital to record MS when she was eleven. Shanmukhavadiver's mother Akkamma was a renowned violin player. They lived in the street adjacent to the Madurai Meenakshi temple, its west gate.

MS's prowess got recognition as her mother gave her opportunities to perform on important stages at every opportunity. Soon, renowned musicians who would come to Madurai would come to hear her sing and teach her something. At an early age of 10-11 years, MS was traveling to Madras, Bangalore. Interestingly, Mahatma Gandhi's rise in Indian politics had its impact on them (and somehow his anti-nautch and anti-devadasi stance actually hurt them). In later years, Gandhiji would become a part of MS's life, one of her ardent admirers. 

One main area of conflict for MS and her mother was that MS wanted to marry and settle down with children, even at the cost of giving up her music, while her mother told her that no one marries Devadasi and she must remain with a rich patron who will take care of her and her art.

Meanwhile, the other star of the MS story, a smart, energetic journalist named Sadasivam, who worked with the popular Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan (promoted by Vasan of Gemini studios), goes to interview twenty year old MS and is attracted to her. Sadasivam, or SS, was then married, but he takes MS under his wing and helps her get opportunities at Kacheris in Madras, helps her perform in Bombay and so on. SS has many political contacts, the closest being Rajaji, Gandhiji's in law (his daughter married Gandhijis son) and had the energy and will to open many doors. 

Things take a drastic turn when MS leaves her home in Madurai, unable to handle the pressure from her mother to go with a rich patron. The Congress leader she reaches out to, chickens out and sends her to Sadasivam, who gives her shelter at his house much to the chagrin of his mother and wife. When MS's mother and brother arrive to take her away, Sadasivam confronts and sends them back. His wife leaves him and goes back to his hometown. MS now becomes his main project.

Sadasivam gets MS a role in a film called 'Sevasadanam', a move that her mother does not like. The movie does well. Sometime after that SS's wife dies and he marries MS, and they take care of his two children (he does not want children with her though and gets himself operated upon thereby denying MS her desire of having her own children). SS produces the next film 'Shakuntala' with an American Director, Ellis Dungan. At around the same time he starts the magazine Kalki with his old friend, writer, Krishnamurthy. Then follow more movies, Meera, Savithri.

As her fame as a singer grows, MS is hired to sing at Kacheris to raise money for Kasturba Gandhi Memorial. She is now a household name with close interaction with Gandhiji who mad her sing 'Hari Tum Haro' for him, Nehru, Rajaji. People like Helen Keller visit her at their Kalki residence. She is awarded the Padmabhushan in 1954, the Ramon Magsaysay award. A visit to the Edinburgh festival is the start of her many foreign tours. SS's daughter Radha, a highly gifted vocalist, would accompany her in her concerts - they were practically mother and daughter.

Meanwhile miffed by the TTD for not allowing her to sing the Suprabhatam for Lord Venkateshwara, SS gets her trained by the family that composed the Suprabhatam in 1430, Prativada Bahayankara Annangachari. She trains for twenty minutes of Sanskrit slokas diligently and they cut a record which took MS's Suprabhatam to the world (1963). MS travels to Egypt, Europa and the USA. Meanwhile her mother passes away. SS, who was not a big fan of MS's mother, was not too considerate it appears and MS Subbulakshmi gets only two days with her brother at her mother's funeral.

When invited to the UN to sing before the General Assembly in 1966, Sadasivam gets a booklet printed highlighting MS's achievements, never one to miss a trick. MS loses her voice just before the concert, and instead of giving up, she meditates in front of the photo of Kanchi Pramacharyulu, someone who she believes in, and lo behold, when it is time to sing, her voice returns. The concert is a success. The divine hand is always upon her. On Rajaji's request she learns and sings Vishnu Sahasranama from Agnihotram Ramanjuam Tata Chari. 

Her brother Shaktivel also passes away.

MS receives the Padma Vibhushan in 1985, tours the USA, is appointed state musician fro Andhra Pradesh. Radha meanwhile falls ill and goes into coma - and recovers by some miracle. However she is unable to sing again. Doctorates galore, interviews, felicitations. Sadasivam falls ill and passes away. Not too long after she is awarded the Bharat Ratna. An amazing journey for the girl from Madurai. In 20024, she passes away too.

For someone so humble and rooted in her music and art, MS had a personal rapport with the most powerful people, PMs Nehru, Indira Gandhi were good friends. Sadasivam must get full credit for having managed her career so succesfully. They had a relationship that was very interesting. He was a brilliant marketing mind and a go-getter and he presented MS to the world like he was on a mission. But he also curtailed her freedom and the words gilded cage come to mind as he would always be the first and last hurdle for anyone to clear to access her - including her family. But then that was the up and down of it and they lived their lives like that, climbing the heights of fame and success together, trying out films, music, styles, places, seeing riches and also losing it all out until they were forced to live in a small house after the luxury of living in a huge bungalow like the Kalki bungalow.

MS's devotion to her singing, to her practice is revealed when she says that what is presented in a concert is only a fourth of what she does in practice. For someone who only wanted to get married and have children and raise them, she got her wish about marriage, but had no children. And then her music gave her the world, love, awards, fame across the world.  

To me a few things resonated personally - that MS is from Madurai, a place I have become very fond of after my trip down there last year, that Gowri, her accompanying vocalist in the later years is actually my friend and senior cricketer-writer Ramnarayan's wife (they had even graced our Department of Dance for a guest lecture once a few years ago), that MS and family lived in Kotturpuram which was our go-to address in Madras then being our uncle Dr Sunderam and aunty Dr Satyabhama's house and lastly, because the author Pallavi garu seems to live in my part of the city, Madhura Nagar. Interestingly Gowri's grandfather Krishnamurthi wrote the story of the 1955 cult classic Ponniyin Selvan which was made into a film a few years ago.

I really enjoyed reading the full length 500 plus page Telugu book - my first of this size in many years. Pallavi garu has done some amazing research and the details she adds into the lives of musicians, of the places they live in, the sights, smells, sounds is amazing. I hope to meet her and get her autograph on the book sometime.