CHENNAI: The audience’s gaze followed as he moved his hand upwards while singing in a high pitch. Accordingly, their eyes trailed down as he changed to a low pitch. Their feet tapped to the ragas he touched upon, enjoying the music. They clapped as he went on from one rendition to another. Thodur Madubasi Krishna, aka TM Krishna, had the rasikas captivated for around 150 minutes with his singing.
On Saturday, some 500m away from the traffic snarls of the city, in the MS Subbulakshmi Auditorium, Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), Krishna performed for a gathering of 300. This auditorium, designed by Ramani Ramakrishnan, an acoustic expert, is to promote performances without microphones or electronic amplifications to rediscover the pure quality of vocals. Ramakrishna Murthy, Aruna Sairam, and other singers have performed at the venue previously.
Sashi Kumar, chairman of ACJ, said, “Chennai is one of the biggest concert venues in the world. We noticed that microphones were used indiscriminately, sometimes when used rationally it is good. So, when we were building this place, we thought of one which is acoustically designed to handle mikeless and non-electronic amplified sound.”
“Just like our downtime with our devices, I think it is important for all of us to step back in terms of processing our lives in technology. This concert is similar to how we keep quiet or read a book at times, not doing anything, and taking microphones and intermediaries out is important,” shared Krishna. He rendered seven songs in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Sanskrit and Marathi languages. “Mike changes the texture of the voice,” he added.
Singing with eyes closed and a sweet smile on his lips, he transported the listeners to another world. “It is the freedom with which he sings that talks to me every time. He enjoys his singing which invites the audience to join along,” said a rasika who had come to listen to Krishna after 20 years. “I was in my early college days when I heard him last. Today, my daughter is the same age and I wanted her to experience what I did at her age. Even with the gap, his voice is soothing,” she added.
Another spectator, Meera K, shared, “I am a fan of Krishna sir and attend all his concerts. There were a few renditions that he hadn’t sung in months. Listening to him and the renditions without microphones in between was a goosebump moment.” Her favourite part of the concert was when he transitioned from Mayamalavagowla ragam to Shobillu Saptaswara.
For the evening Krishna performed on Thodi, Begada Maand, Surati, and Desh raga, indulging in a jugalbandi with the violinist HN Baskar and the mridangam artiste, K Arun Prakash.
Krishna ended the concert on a high note where he sang Subh Sukh Chain, the Hindustani and translated version of our national anthem. “We sing the first verse of Jana Gana Mana in an abridged version. As it was originally composed in Bengali, a Hindustani version was translated by Mumtaz Hussain and Abid Hasan. Subash Chandra Bose reimagined the song and set it to the same tune as our national anthem,” he explained. The hall reverberated and the song echoed in the audience’s ears as they left the room.