In praise of the lord in Srirangam, Sri Ranga Vibho is an album of compositions by Muthuswamy Dikshithar, Tanjore Ponniah Pillai, Arunachala Kavi, and Purandara Dasa rendered by young carnatic vocalist Aishwarya Srinivas. The album also includes a few pasurams (hymns in praise of the deity) written by the Azhwars, and selected verses from the Ranganathashtakam (a hymn that glorifies the Lord). She says, “Ranganathar is a deity close to my heart. There is a lot of significance attached to the lord — the abhishekam and alangaram — are all vital aspects of the worship.”
Aishwarya has been accompanied by Kalpana Venkat on the violin and N C Bharadwaj on the mridangam.
It was her mother who had enrolled her in a music class, when she was three. Trained by Sangeetha Kalanidhi D K Pattammal and Sangeetha Kala Acharya Sulochana Pattabhiraman, and later under Sangeetha Kalanidhi R K Srikantan, Aishwarya is currently under the tutelage of Sangeetha Kala Acharya P S Narayanaswamy. A topper in school and college, and a qualified Chartered Accountant, Aishwarya decided to dedicate her time to music completely. “However, it was never difficult for me to manage both studies and music. In fact, my gurus have all encouraged me to strike a balance. That has been the biggest blessing for me.”
Having received the best of the training under stalwarts, Aishwarya took the call to pursue music. “I never learnt to perform. All my gurus have shared their vast knowledge with me. It is not just music that they imparted; they imparted their experience. My guru Pattamal amma was unassuming, despite being such a great artiste. Having learnt a lot more than music from my gurus, I go by the belief that the art form shouldn’t be diluted,” she adds.
Sri Ranga Vibho is available at GIRI showrooms and leading music outlets.