Veteran carnatic vocalist Manakkal Rangarajan was honoured with title ‘Sangeetha Kala Pravina’ by the Charubala Mohan Trust at the Srinavasa Sastri Hall, Mylapore. Started by M.Chandrasekhar as a tribute to his mother Charubala Mohan, the violinist honours eminent artistes every year. Along with Manakkal Rangarajan, violinist T. Rukmani was conferred with the title Violin Nadamani and 'Tambura' Venkatraman was also felicitated on this occasion.

Talking about the artiste of the evening, Ramachandran, who runs the organisation, Hamsadhwani said that it was rare to find musicians like him who have been in the field for more than six decades and maintain the classicism. He added that born into a musical family, Manakkal Rangarajan was appreciated by maestros of yester years.

T.Rukmani another awardee was guided by maestro Lalgudi Jayaraman and gave her first performance at the age of 16 when she accompanied the genius flute Mali. It was a nice gesture of Chandrasekharan has taken the initiative to felicitate Tambura artiste Venkatraman. It’s not often that they are felicitated and recognised.

Violinist M. S. Antharaman who was present on the occasion, made it a point to appreciate Manakkal Rangarajan and narrated his personal experiences when he accompanied the vocalist. He also stated that sabhas should be more judicious before selecting an awardee and recognise artistes like Manakkal Rangarajan and Rukmani. An empty hall for such ceremony is not new to the organisers, but that did not deter the enthusiasm and was evident in the speech given by M. Chandrasekharan. The function was followed by a concert by Manakkal Rangarajan who accompanied by his son Manakkal Sriram on the mridangam, V. V. Ravi on the violin and B.S.Purushottam on the kanjira. Rangarajan had the vocal support of his wife Padma Rangarajan for the concert.