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A natural talent Ananthapadmanabhan
The name is synonymous with the veena. He was recently conferred ‘A Top Grade’ by All India Radio (AIR), the only veena artiste from Kerala in this category. The self-groomed Ananthapadmanabhan is the only veena staff artiste of the AIR in Kerala. Born in Thiruvananthapuram in 1951, he migrated to Thrissur in 1975 with an appointment order of the AIR in pocket. A beaming Ananthapadmanabhan introspects.
Initiation into classical music...
My father, the late T.S. Ananthakrishnan, who was Professor of Civil Engineering at the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, was a good veena artiste. He always used to play the veena at home. My father’s niece Gomathi Chidambaram was also an accomplished veena player. So the ambience at home was very musical. By the time I was 15, I had learnt the basics of the veena, both formally and informally from my father; by informal, I mean listening to him practising. In 1966, I happened to hear S. Balachander’s magical mellifluousness on the veena and was besotted by it. That concert helped me make the decision that the veena would be my forte.
Training…
After learning the basics from my father, I trained myself through practice that lasted for about six to seven hours a day. This practice was my main entertainment. During the last five years of college life, I used to spend all my evenings either practising or listening to concerts. I was very lucky to enjoy many live concerts of S. Balachander, Chitti Babu, K.S. Narayanaswamy, Mysore Doraiswamy Iyengar, M.D. Ramanathan, Semmangudi, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Ravi Shankar, to name a few. Those days, I used to play all the compositions I had heard at a concert when I got back home. Sometimes, I would select a raga and practise it for about six hours, trying to highlight its special features.
The break…
After graduating in Mathematics from M.G. College, Thiruvananthapuram, I wandered around for some time. Maths was never a choice. Music is and was always in my head and heart. During that time, I used to play the veena and the sitar for Thunder Birds Orchestra. I have performed with almost all the top playback singers in Malayalam. Although I also learnt to play the sitar, I realised that playing both the veena and the sitar would not take me anywhere. So, I decided to focus on the veena. In 1975, I was appointed as a veena staff artiste in All India Radio, Thrissur.
Style of playing…
I do not belong to any particular school of playing. Moreover, I have not been trained in any music college. So, with equal ease, I play both Carnatic and Hindustani ragas on the veena. That provokes orthodox rasikas. Even now there are pundits who feel that that ragas such as Nalinakanthi, Kalyana Vasantham, Bageswari, Desh, Syamkalyan and Shudhasarang should not be played on the veena. I do play these ragas, some of which are among my favourites. My work in AIR has given me the experience and confidence as I got to tune light music compositions too.
‘Triveni Sangamam’ ‘Triveni Sangaman’ was a confluence of Carnatic, Hindustani and Western music. The audience loved it. I did it in 1976, long before the people of Kerala even started discussing about fusion music.
Favourite ragas….
All the ragas are my favourite. Nevertheless, I think I perform more compositions in Carnatic ragas such as Todi and Reetigowla and in Hindustani ragas such as Bagesri, Syamkalyan, Sindhu Bhairavi, Jaijaivanthi and so on. The moods evoked by those ragas… such as romance, devotion, melancholy and so on captivate me.
Teaching music…
I do teach. But I believe that music cannot be taught. One needs an inborn flair; constant practice can set that spark aflame. A guru is only a guide to channel such divine sparks. Being the ward of a great musician does not necessarily make one the the torch bearer of that tradition. So, usually, in my classes I perform and allow my students to pick it up and improvise according to their calibre.
K.K. GOPALAKRISHNAN
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