What if the fascinating, yet complex Melakartha ragas, the pillars of strength of Carnatic music, could be described in relatable terms instead of abstract concepts? Chennai-based Vidya Bhavani Suresh, a company secretary, folklore postgraduate and musicologist, has done exactly that. Author of 43 books, Vidya—as she is known in the Chennai music circuit—has given a form and character to each of these ragas in her book Melakarthas: The Gems of Carnatic Music—Part One (Skanda Publications, Chennai). Released last month, the book demystifies the first 36 Melakarthas of Carnatic music. Melakarthas are the 72 fundamental or parent ragas of Carnatic music from which other ragas are derived.
“Thodi (at 8) is exactly like wading through a hypermarket. There are so many excellent compositions to choose from. This raga is quite popular with composers. Yagapriya, at 31, stuns me with its unique personality. It’s the only Shuddha Madhyama Melakartha where the Sa note is flanked by Vivadi notes on either side. Yagapriya is a celebration of contrasts and a textured raga. It is not your smoothie or simple blend with all parts mixed into one but like a vegetable biryani and a very well-made one at that. Rathnangi (2) is one of those ragas that grows on you slowly. Give it a little time. Not all marriages happen through love at first sight. Gayakapriya, at 13, would remind one of taking the flyover to avoid signals on a busy road. It is the jump-over feeling you get when you take off from Vivadi Ni to Sa, jumping over the intervening Ni notes,” she explains.
Vidya has now plunged right into the sequel: a tome on the remaining 36 ragas. How did this journey into the arts happen? Vidya, who trained in Carnatic music under Vidushi AP Komala for over a decade in Chennai, won the coveted Music Academy prize in 1993 for Best Lec-Dem. She has also choreographed pieces on themes like child labour, unemployment, women’s issues etc. “I even presented the full Ramayana in 20 minutes based on a Thiruppugazh song,” she adds excitedly.
Her deep interest in arts-theory led her to research, resulting in 43 books like What is Bharatanatyam? and Maths in Music and Dance, etc. “The Melakartha scheme amazes me: It’s the meeting point of mathematics, geometry, logic and scientific reasoning. I authored a small book explaining the scheme about 19 years back. In the book 50 Rare Ragas, I covered a few rare Melakarthas. However, I wanted to write a full-fledged work, on all 72.”
What were the challenges? “Structurally, all Melakarthas follow the same pattern. Each contains seven notes in an orderly arrangement. The aarohanam (ascent) and avarohanam (descent) are mirror images. Also, two adjacent ragas differ by just one note. So, differentiating each from the other and presenting them as unique musical experiences independent of one another was tough.”
Vidya firmly believes classical musicians and dancers should try to make their art as accessible as possible. So, she has added simple, everyday anecdotes from her personal life to make each chapter lively and fun as much as technical and educational. Like the ringing of temple bells, shopping at hypermarkets, cooking, etc.
This is also why she is one of those artistes who believes that Carnatic music concerts should have an announcement of the raga before the commencement of the rendition—something that is rarely followed these days. However, such opinions have not gone down well in the past with the connoisseurs who believe it robs them of the intellectual challenge of identifying the raga.
Vidya replies, “People should walk into a concert to enjoy good, soul-stirring Carnatic music. I want listeners to forget themselves and their worldly worries and soak in the bliss of the musical notes for those few hours. It’s not a quiz programme to stay on high alert. When you watch a movie, do you connect with the story or dissect the camera angles, lighting, and other technical details? If you do the first, you are a genuine rasika.
If the second, you are a critic,” she explains. Vidya says she wants her rasikas to enjoy the music. “My definition of a rasika is one who experiences the true joy of Rasothpatthi, which comes from forgetting oneself and immersing in the musical experience. For the limited few who want the challenge of guessing a raga, I say many hesitate a million times to walk into a Carnatic concert thinking they will feel like fools if someone in the adjoining seat asks what raga it is, and they don’t know. Not announcing the raga creates a distinction between listeners—those who know, and those who don’t. That is incorrect,” she concludes.
Vidya firmly believes classical musicians and dancers should try to make their art accessible. She has added simple, everyday anecdotes from her life to make each chapter lively and fun as much as technical and educational.