HYDERABAD: She left all in awe as she seamlessly rendered — with her utterly magical voice — compositions by Annamacharya, Tyagaraja, and Muthuswami Dikshitar, among other greats. At the 66th Annual Art Festival of the South Indian Cultural Association (SICA) at Ravindra Bharathi, Sudha Ragunathan showed all, yet again, why she is a recipient of the Sangeetha Kalanidhi award, the highest honour in Carnatic music. Her voice itself is music to the ears, so her music is an elixir for the soul. She opens up to CE about Hyderabad, her journey, and more.
How was it performing in Hyderabad?
I always love performing in Hyderabad because there are a mix of people in the audience — Telugu speakers, Kannadigas, Tamilians, and of course, Hindi speakers. The audience is very affectionate, appreciative, and reciprocating.
That is what matters at the end of the day, doesn’t it? For an artist, the response from the audience is very important. We don’t plan every song; instead, we see the way the audience responds and go about it like that. They are very knowledgeable too, since many of them learned music when they were young.
Could you tell us about your journey?
My amma, V Choodamani, used to teach students while I, a three-year-old, would just sit and play and hum along as they sang. We were devotees of Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba and would visit him to take his blessings. Every time we went, he would always ask me to sing bhajans. So, the thirst to learn more bhajans was always there because I had to prove myself to him. So, this was my beginning in music.
I got an Indian government scholarship to study music under Dr ML Vasanthakumari, who became like a second mother to me. I would spend all my free time with her, watching and absorbing everything she did, how she approached each concert, and how she interacted with her audience, organisers, and accompanying artists.
There was no formal teaching. When I would provide vocal support on stage, it was very scary because you never knew when she would suddenly stop.
She wouldn’t gesture for me to take over, but I would just sing. But this was one of those challenges that sculpts you to perfection. You see, my mother herself was a perfectionist, insisting that be it a shloka, bhajan, or maths, I had to do it perfectly. And this discipline is what carries me forward even today.
Who is your inspiration?
Subbulakshmi amma and Vasantha amma have played a major role in shaping my thought process. But I’m someone who listens to many artists and embraces their music. I listen to Hindustani Classical, the Beatles and even Beyoncé! In fact, I like Punjabi music because it is so energising. I don’t shun any form of music. But if they are in bad taste, don’t sing to the sur and are not in alignment with the shruti, then I can’t listen to it.
Have you ever thought of dabbling in Hindustani Classical?
I’ve always felt that I could do only one of these two styles (Carnatic or Hindustani Classical). In Hindustani, the use of the voice, the pitching, the way they approach the raaga — everything is different. I might be able to sing a Meera bhajan, an abhang, or a Bangla song, but it would be nowhere near an authentic rendition. If someone claims they can do both perfectly, they’re either a genius or a prodigy. I’m neither.
What are your thoughts on the younger generation of singers?
They are extremely talented — sometimes when I hear them, I think, ‘Oh god, this voice is like velvet’. Shreya Ghoshal’s talent is astounding; the variety of songs she sings and how she smoothly goes from Marathi to Hindi to Tamil is marvellous. Anirudh’s music is peppy and makes you jump. It is not easy to infuse that kind of energy into music and make people feel it.
And I have to mention Thaman, who is extremely talented and focused as well. The younger singers are using AI, dolby, decibel levels — all things I just don’t understand. But they really improve the production quality, when used in the right measure of course.
Would you like to sing more Telugu songs?
Oh, definitely! I love to experiment and dabble in new areas. I recall that a couple of years ago, I did a saree ad and certain people in the Carnatic music field criticised me, asking, ‘What was the need for her to step out and do that?’ Well, you can’t please the whole world — as long as my loved ones support me, that’s all that matters.
What does music mean to you?
To say it is my soul would be cliché. It is my life, my breath. Because it actually requires my breath (laughs). It is my life because I’ve lived all my life with the benefits that music has given to me. I have immense gratitude for my audiences across the world.