It was with state honours that the nation said goodbye to legendary Carnatic vocalist,
M. S. Subbulakshmi on Sunday evening. A ceremonial 12-gun salute, the playing of the Last Post with the firing of 36 rounds in the air is a rare tribute to an artiste. But MS deserved it.
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Even the skies over Adyar opened up that evening. Symbolic. The vocalist passed away on December 11, 2004 in Chennai; she was 88. She was admitted in a private hospital in Chennai on December 2, following a viral infection that was later diagnosed as 'broncho pneumonia'. It was around 11.30 pm on December 11, when the end came. MS' residence in Kotturpuram was abuzz since the early hours on Sunday (Dec. 12). Artistes and political leaders poured in to pay their condolences. Paying their last respects to the musician were President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, along with the Governor of Tamil Nadu, Surjit Singh Barnala and representatives from the Army, Navy and Air Force, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, J. Jayalalitha, DMK Chief M. Karunanidhi and his family, Minister T. R. Baalu and writer Cho Ramaswamy among others.
Musicians M. Balamuralikrishna, K.J. Yesudas, R. Vedavalli, T.N. Seshagopalan, L. Subramaniam, S. Rajaraman (of Kalakshetra), Mandolin Shrinivas, Nithyashree Mahadevan, O.S. Arun, Gayathri Girish, percussionists Vikku Vinayakram, K.V. Prasad, dancers Vyjayanthimala Bali, Padma Subrahmanyam, Sonal Mansingh, Chitra Visweswaran, Dhananjayans, Lakshmi Viswanathan, Chandralekha, Urmila Sathyanarayanan and Priyadarshini Govind were among the numerous other artistes who paid tributes.
Late Sunday afternoon, MS' rasikas in large numbers, lined up near 'Subham-Sivam' in Kotturpuram to attend the funeral. The last rites were performed by MS' grand-nephew V. Murali at the Besant Nagar crematorium.
Kutcheris cancelled...
With the December Season just kicking off in Chennai, a few sabhas cancelled their concerts on Sunday as a tribute to MS. The special concert of Umayalpuram Sivaraman - Priyadarshini Govind, scheduled at The Music Academy's auditorium on Sunday has been post-poned to December 15.
Doordarshan, on Sunday night, featured the 1940 film, 'Meera' with MS in the lead role. A tea-shop in Mylapore remained closed on Sunday. The shop owner who would start business with MS' ‘Suprabatham’ on tape every morning decided to pay his tribute this way.
Condolence messages...
Said vocalist Balamuralikrishna, "She will continue to live in the hearts of all her rasikas..."
R. Vedavalli, "She was no doubt legendary. Both as a musician and as a person, she was great."
Mandolin Shrinivas, "I'm lucky to have been born during the time of M.S. Her passing away is a great loss."
Sonal Mansingh, "Its sad that a whole era has passed away. She was what she was inside and outside."
V.P. Dhananjayan, "She was a divine soul and the most inspiring artiste for all the generations to come."
MS - a quick profile
Born on September 16, 1916, in Madurai to Subramania Iyer and Shanmukhavadivu, the nightingale's full name is Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi.
M.S., as she came to be known, learnt her first lessons from her mother. She gave her first performance on stage when she was 13. She moved to Chennai in 1936 and married T. Sadasivam, a senior executive in Ananda Vikatan, the Tamil weekly in 1940. And her husband has played a crucial role in promoting her.
Among the numerous awards she received were India's top civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna in 1998, Padma Bhushan (1954), Padma Vibhushan (1975), Kaalidas Sanman (1988) and the Ramon Magsaysay award (1974). In 1968, she was the first woman musician to be honoured with the Sangita Kalanidhi title by the Music Academy, Chennai.
The vocalist also had her stint in films besides world tours and numerous audio recordings to her credit.
You can contact MS’ family at No. 12, 1st Main Road, Kotturpuram, Chennai – 85.
Ph: 24474113.
If you knew MS, or if you are her rasika, mail anecdotes and condolence messages to editor@kutcheribuzz.com
Your message will be posted on the website here
