THOOTHUKUDI: After TNIE reported the plight of two folk artists whose musical instruments were washed away in the recent floods, Thoothukudi MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi came forward and assured them that she would provide them with instruments.
Though artistes Murugesan (63), who played ‘Urumi Melam’ in the movie ‘Pariyerum Perumal’, and his nephew Kalidasan of Marthandampatti near Pudukudi of Srivaikuntam, narrowly survived the flash floods, they lost everything they had, as their houses collapsed in the impact.
Murugesan who performed urumi melam for the song ‘Engum Pugazh’ in ‘Pariyerum Perumal’ five years ago found his traditional musical instruments Thavil, Pampai and Urumi in a nearby banana plantation three days after the floods. However, the instruments were not in a condition to be reused.
Murugesan’s nephew M Kalidasan (52), a Nadaswaram artiste living next to his house, met with a similar fate. After his decades-old mud-tiled house crashed down, the floods washed away his nadaswaram and thavil, and he collected from the rubble later. Both the folk artists lost their legacy along with the instruments, which had been earning them livelihood for decades and brought them to the limelight in the traditional musical folk art field.
Following the detailed story under the title ‘Livelihood, legacy washed away in floods: Instrumentalist from ‘Pariyerum Perumal’ rues loss of urumi, pambai, thavil’ on January 7, the office of Kanimozhi contacted the duo and comforted them, and assured them that the parliamentarian would provide the musical instruments.
“I got a call from the office of Kanimozhi on Sunday. The person on the other side of te phone comforted us saying not to worry about the losses,” Murugesan told TNIE. When contacted, the office of MP in Thoothukudi told TNIE that they had ordered for the instruments requested by the artists. “The parliamentarian will visit the hamlet and hand over the instruments directly to the artists,” an office staff said.