KOCHI: Looking back at his career spanning over seven decades, legendary nadaswaram artist Thiruvizha Jayashankar recalls to TNIE about his beginnings, meeting Ustad Bismillah Khan and Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, and passion for painting.
Under the evening sun, beneath the shade of a mango tree in front of the Ernakulam Siva Temple, the 83-year-old Nadaswaram maestro Thiruvizha Jayashankar radiates verve as he explains the intricacies of ragas and rasas. He is full of smiles and anecdotes for everyone who approaches him for a photo or a handshake.
Speaking about nadaswaram, one can still see shades of the 12-year-old who insisted on learning the wind instrument, despite his father’s objections. “My father was worried that I would not have a thriving future, as it was difficult to earn a living with the nadaswaram,” says Jayashankar, who hails from Thiruvizha town in Alappuzha.
“The times were such that he emphasised on education. However, watching him practising, and teaching his students at home, I couldn’t help but be drawn towards it.” His father, the legendary Thiruvizha Raghava Panickar, eventually yielded. The rest is history, as they say.
From a boy who started performing with his father at temples in southern Kerala, Jayashankar grew into a legend himself — with performances and accolades across the globe. However, he considers himself a student even now, and spends hours in sadhana every day.
“You have to practise regularly, respect the craft. Every evening, after lighting the ‘vilakku’, I practise for an hour. Only sincerity and dedication can make one a good artist, something that’s missing among the newer generation,” he laments.
“People want to learn things instantly. That is not how one becomes a musician. It takes years of effort. Even after an entire lifetime, one learns only a drop in the ocean.” And his life is an example of that dedication. Accolades naturally followed such as Padma Shri, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award, Kalaimamani from Tamil Nadu government, Central Sangeet Natak Academy Award and many more.
Jayashankar’s musical education was extensive. After training under his father, he went on to study Carnatic music at RLV College Of Music And Fine Arts in Tripunithura, and later at Sree Swathi Thirunal College of Music in Thiruvananthapuram. It is probably this background in vocals that gives a natural melodious element that sets apart Jayashankar’s renditions. “On learning vocals, one can emote better through instruments,” he explains. “Janani... ninnuvina...,” he sings. “You need to know the ‘sahityam’ to bring the ‘bhava’ into it.”
Though he is known for his otherworldly performances in nadaswaram, his decades-spanning partnership with thakil maestro Valayapetty Subramanyam, and his knowledge of Carnatic vocals, a lesser-known facet is his tryst with the world of colours. “I used to paint as well,” he smiles. But like any art, painting requires immense dedication, something that he felt was heavily distracting from his musical aspirations.
“I was 18, and wanted to paint that stillness, that morning hues on the horizon. It took days to finish. My father advised me to concentrate on one — either music or painting,” Jayashankar recalls. “I later realised that he was right. While working on an art exhibition project covering the seven ragas on a canvas, I found it difficult to concentrate on music. Days were spent perfecting the painting; I felt guilty of ignoring the nadaswaram.”
Jayashankar is known for his emotive rendition of keerthanam, especially the Abheri raga. The sahitya, the bhava, the swara, and the emotion of his renditions of ‘Nagumo’ is a truly divine experience for any music aficionado. “The ‘pranayam’ that raga holds within it is infinite. The audience can also immerse in it,” he says. Jayashankar’s passion is not limited to Carnatic music. He is an avid fan of the nadaswaram’s Hindustani counterpart, the shehnai.
“I spend hours listening to Bismillah Khan. I cannot explain the joy. His renditions are a different experience altogether. I had conveyed it to him once,” says Jayashankar. “It was a chance meeting. I was working with the All India Radio as a staff artist at that time. I read in a newspaper that he was coming to Thiruvananthapuram on that day. I went home, took a ponnada and went to the venue. He was backstage, and somebody introduced me as a nadaswaram artiste. He sat me near him, put a hand on my shoulder, and handed me a cup of tea. And I am sitting like a child mesmerised after listening to his performance. He blessed me by saying, ‘Hope you will be able to play like Rajarathinam’.”
T N Rajarathinam Pillai, the rebel who challenged traditional norms and propelled nadaswaram into the realm of performing arts, was the one who started it all. Jayashankar calls himself a disciple of Rajarathinam and several other gurus whose “music takes one to places one has never imagined”.
Jayashankar adds that he was the only south Indian artist who was invited to perform at Bismillah Khan’s centenary celebrations at Varanasi. “It’s purely because of his blessings,” he smiles.
Jayashankar later went on to win Chembai Puraskaram in 2021. He places the accolade “at the feet of Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar”. “I met him once, again by chance,” he says. “Someone told him that I was a good nadaswaram player. Shivering, I walked up to him and prostrated. With a serious face, he asked me: ‘Do you drink or have any other vices? When I said no, he blessed me,” he laughs. “Such blessings have been the impetus of my journey thus far.”
Looking back at his career spanning over seven decades, legendary nadaswaram artist Thiruvizha Jayashankar recalls to TNIE about his beginnings, meeting Ustad Bismillah Khan and Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, and passion for painting.