Did you get dragged into music like other Mylaporean kids?

No. But as a kid I used to enjoy drumming on the table. And dad and mom would take turns to berate me. They said it was a bad habit. What they didn’t notice closely was that I was using my left hand all the time . .

So that is how you became a rare left-hand playing mirdangam artiste?

Yes. And it went on to help me to play on three mirdangams . . .

So you never got drawn to music even though your house was resounding to music and dance with the classes that were held and your Mom was a busy dancer . .

No. I used to play cricket. Or just hang around. And when I got a table or a ‘dubba’ I would drum on it.

When did you really make your talent known?

I studied at Vidya Mandir in Luz. There was a cultural event and the school’s music group wanted my help. So I used a Blowpast plastic stool as drums and we won the event. We won a few more and I even got prizes as a percussionist but Mom never got to know of it till her student who knew of my exploits told her.

Mom was working on a dance production ‘Shakthi Prabavam’ and needed some ‘effects’. The show was at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha in T. Nagar and I used the bongos. It so happened that the famed critic Subbudu was in the audience and in his review the next day, he strongly criticized the ‘effects music’. I told Mom not to involve me at all. But Mom said that when one is criticized you don’t run away, you prove yourself.

Well, people looked down. . . they still do. . . on mirdangam artistes who play for dance. They think we are some kind of side-kicks. It is that attitude which drove me to set benchmarks. I presented a paper on the ‘Nuances of the art of mirdangam in classical dance’ at the Natyakala Conference at Krishna Gana Sabha during one ‘season’ and it got the top prize. I think playing mirdangam for dance is far tougher than playing in a music kutcheri.

Since we had a dance academy at home, I could observe the dancers and play during their practice and improve. Dance calls for all kinds of sounds. So I brought in the conch, the bell and the cymbals. . . Some people made noises at this but my passion drives my music. I’m a free man. I play for our dancers and for our productions. So I don’t have to bother!

And your dancers like your music?

Our dancers say they feel energized. The music resonates. They want me to play. And when other dancers invite me I play on my terms and style. I can’t play the way they want me to.

You seem to be your own man even at this age!

I am. I don’t do things to satisfy people’s wishes. I do things that drive me. And I am a Gemini. So I work on something and move on to do something else.

Your CD on Jathis has done well you said. . .

It is called ‘Jathis for Bharatanatyam’. I was surprised that great nattuvanars/gurus hadn’t got their jathis on record. Now, that production is to come out as a DVD.

I have watched many dance productions, dance-dramas and theatre. I got to know more about lord Manmadhan as we researched for a varnam on Manmadha I composed. Down south, people told me about the Mammudha vizha which was celebrated for ten days. I realized that there were many good and nice things about this god. Over time, He was made out to be a god of desire. . .and then the Buddha had been preaching that desire is evil and somehow, Manmadha seems to have gone to dust. I decided to bring Him back to life.

I was captivated with a show my wife and I saw in Hawaii recently. And it had all the elements that make a good show. That set me going. That’s why ‘Mammudha’ is not a dance or dance drama. It’s a kind of opera. . . I even asked Mom to do theatre adavus. . . I want people to sit through and enjoy every part of it.

Yes. It costs about Rs.10 lakhs. Thankfully, we have got some nice sponsors. And since this is not dance but an opera kind of show, we are doing all we can to promote it as such to a larger audience. I have done lots of work in it too – music, composing, choreography, vocals, ideating . . .

No. I am back to mirdangam for dance. I also want to do doctoral studies in law. I will enjoy what comes out of ‘Mammudha’ but I don’t think I will work on another.