A Rhythm of His Own V

COVER STORY KARAIKUDI MANI A rhythm of his own V. Karpagalakshmi Ramanatha Iyer, who had learnt music from Mazhavarayanendal Subbarama Bhagavatar as well as Swaminatha Iyer of Ganapati Agraharam, was a keen music enthusiast, well-versed in the bhajanai paddhati. Their home in Karaikudi was right opposite Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar’s. In fact, Iyengar’s disciples K.V. Narayanaswamy and B. Rajam Iyer regularly partook of the simple breakfast of pazhaiyadu or rice soaked overnight in water and buttermilk, at Ramanatha Iyer’s household. The Nagarathars of Chettinad often sponsored concerts by the leading vidwans at Karaikudi; Ramanatha Iyer not only did not miss a single concert but also cultivated the friendship of the musicians and invited them home. It was but natural for Mani to be initiated into Carnatic music by his father, that too as early as at the age of three. By the time he was four, Mani had learnt all five of Tyagaraja’s Pancharatna kritis. In the month of Margazhi, father and son regularly woke up at the crack of dawn to join the bhajanai at the Koppudai Amman temple. During temple festivals, Ramanatha Iyer carried young Mani aloft on his shoulders to watch nagaswara vidwans Karukurichi Arunachalam and Vedaranyam Vedamurthy and tavil artist Nachiarkoil Raghava Pillai lead the procession around the four mada veedis – the streets around the temple. It was ridangam maestro Mani was born on during these processions, which began at nine at night and 11 September 1945 in Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu. often went on into the early hours of the morning after, MHis father T. Ramanatha Iyer, who hailed from that Ramanatha Iyer discovered that his son had a penchant Ganapati Agraharam near Kumbakonam, taught English for rhythm. Perched on his father’s shoulders, Mani kept and mathematics at the Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar High perfect time to the beat of the tavil – on his father’s head! School, Karaikudi. His mother R. Pattammal belonged to Budalur, and was related to well-known gottuvadyam Ramanatha Iyer arranged for Mani to learn mridangam vidwan Budalur Krishnamurthy Sastri. from Karaikudi Rangu Iyengar, a disciple of Karaikudi Muthu Iyer, and chalked out a rigorous daily routine for Master Mani’s mridangam debut at Pudukotai Krishnamoorthy’s him: Mani was woken up at five veena concert in Karaikudi Rangu Iyengar every morning to practise vocal music and mridangam and then study, for forty five minutes each; it was only afterwards that he was given his morning refreshment. As an incentive, he received pocket money of a quarter anna every week to watch a movie. Ramanatha Iyer bought mridangams of different srutis for Mani and 20 l SRUTI April 2016 Mani playing the mridangam with U.R. Chandra and Kamakoti Bai (vocal) and With his mother Kunnakudi Sarada (violin). His father is seated behind him. made him accompany the concerts broadcast twice daily by All India mridanga vidwan Thinniyam Venkatarama Radio, Tiruchi. Each concert lasted an hour and a half, and it was Iyer’s house. Ramanatha Iyer, who knew quite a challenge to play to pre-recorded music, but young Mani rose Venkatarama Iyer, once took his son there, to it gamely as he could sing and was familiar with many of the kritis hoping for a few advanced lessons. However, played. all Mani learnt were errands and household chores, not music. When Mani was about seven, the renowned devotional singer Pithukuli Murugadas visited Karaikudi to perform at the kumbhabhishekam of It was around this time that their famous the Siva temple there. Staying at Ramanatha Iyer’s house, he noticed neighbour Ariyakudi suggested that Mani the array of mridangams there and suggested that Mani play along with attend the Tyagaraja Aradhana at Devakotai him at his bhajanai the next day. That is how ‘Master Mani’ came to (customarily held right after the festival accompany Pithukuli Murugadas along with the regular percussionist at Tiruvaiyaru). Ariyakudi even offered to Sikkil Vadivelu. The concerts began only around 9.30 pm, Mani often introduce him to the maestro Palghat Mani fell asleep and had to be woken up by Murugadas who would slip a Iyer at an opportune moment. At the Devakotai toffee into his mouth. Mani admits that he often pretended to sleep just Aradhana, the first four of the Pancharatna so he could get that toffee! kritis had been sung but young Mani was yet to play. Just as he was beginning to grow When he was all of eight, Master Mani performed his first full-fledged anxious, Ariyakudi sought Palghat Mani concert. With his guru Rangu Iyengar on the khanjira and Karaikudi Iyer’s permission for the young man to exhibit Ramanathan on the violin, he accompanied the veena playing of his talent. None of the well-known mridanga Pudukotai Krishnamoorthy and his guru Srinivasan at the Koppudai vidwans present was willing to lend Mani his Amman temple in Karaikudi. instrument, so Palghat Mani Iyer gave him his An ardent aficionado of Carnatic music and a tireless promoter of own and asked him to perform. The maestro’s talent, it was Ramanatha Iyer who had first recommended the violinist was a heavy kappi vadyam which Mani was Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan to senior vidwans at the Pudukotai Narasimha not quite used to, yet he managed to play well Jayanti concerts, and organised Flute Mali’s concerts at his school, for the kriti Endaro mahanubhavulu. ensuring that students paid an entry fee of three quarters of an anna. It Afterwards, when Ariyakudi escorted the boy was said that he attended concerts in Karaikudi holding his son with to Palghat Mani Iyer and recommended that he one hand and carrying a small mridangam in the other. If Mani got to teach him, the maestro advised him to complete play and the main percussionist lost his place as a result, Ramanatha his schooling first. The next time Palghat Iyer was quick to compensate the vidwan by giving him Rs. 5 out of Mani Iyer visited Karaikudi, Ramanatha Iyer the Rs. 10 paid to young Mani. informed him that his son had completed his Mani recalls being scolded by his teachers for his frequent absences SSLC. This time, the maestro said that since from school in order to play at concerts. Later on, of course, they the boy was educated, he was likely to be ill were to realise how wrong they had been in this. He was encouraged at ease waiting upon a guru and attending to in his fledgling career by the Nagarathars. Swatantra Party leader his personal needs in the manner of a sishya in Sa. Ganesan, Tamil patron Raya Chokkalingam, and music aficionados gurukulavasam. Sensing that he was possibly Narayanan Chettiar and Thirunavukkarasu Chettiar, all supported and being evasive, Ramanatha Iyer did not pursue promoted the youngster. After every concert, he was presented a gold the topic further and left it at that. coin. Soon he collected as many as 55 such coins. Meanwhile, having completed his SSLC Mani and his family often spent their summer holidays at Madras with in 1961, Mani joined Alagappa College, his mother’s sister at Nallathambi Mudali Street, Triplicane, close to Karaikudi. At that juncture, ghatam maestro 21 l SRUTI April 2016 Vinayakram, on a visit to Karaikudi to accompany and Musiri Subramania Iyer. Mani won the first prize Ariyakudi at a concert, was invited home by Ramanatha for percussion, followed by Mullaikudi Sriramamurthy Iyer. When Vinayakram learnt about Mani, he suggested as runner-up. The winners in other categories that year that he be sent to Madras to learn mridangam from included violinist L. Subramaniam (whom Mani would his father Harihara Sarma, who had started a school. later accompany regularly), and vocalist Rajeswari – a Earlier, Mani had spent some time at the Theosophical visually challenged singer from Kumbakonam. Society, Madras, where his sister’s husband Krishnamurthy worked as chief pharmacist. Despite the restrictions on Mani also won a Government of India scholarship to the campus, Mani had been granted special permission pursue music full-time under the tutelage of to practise on the mridangam for a couple of hours every K.M. Vaidyanathan, another disciple of Harihara Sarma. day. In those days, Kalakshetra, where vidwans of the With this, he quit college studies once and for all. The calibre of Mysore Vasudevachar, Karaikudi Sambasiva scholarship amount of Rs. 250 (of which Rs. 150 went Iyer and Vittala Iyer taught, was situated within the to the teacher), along with his earnings from concerts, Theosophical Society campus. Once Rukmini Devi was enough to assure him a decent living. Presently, Arundale herself came to consult Krishnamurthy, heard Ramanatha Iyer and Pattammal sold their house in Mani play and advised him to join Kalakshetra. However, Karaikudi and joined their son at Madras. this idea did not find much favour with Ramanatha K.M. Vaidyanathan Iyer, who had his reservations about Kalakshetra’s K.M. Vaidyanathan may have co-educational system. It was then that he acted on been an established ghatam artist, Vinayakram’s offer and Mani went on to learn from but the guidance he gave Mani Harihara Sarma. on the norms to follow and the means of composing new Harihara Sarma was impressed enough to promise to permutations on the mridangam teach Mani all that he had learnt from Tanjavur proved invaluable. “Like Vaidyanatha Iyer; at the same time, he believed that kindling the wick of an oil Mani’s fingering technique had to be reinvented from lamp, he nurtured and deepened scratch. “You are already playing so many concerts,” my skills. Before every new he said, “so don’t lose heart that you need to start all over concert, he taught me new ideas again.” Mani spent days, and often nights, at Sarma’s and nuances to suit the artist household, learning his art afresh.

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