வீணை என் மனதிற்கு மிகவும் நெருங்கிய வாத்யம். இது என் அம்மா, பாட்டி மற்றும் தாய்நாட்டின் கலாச்சாரத்தை நினைவுபடுத்துவதோடுகூட என்னை சமூகத்துடனும் இணைக்கிறது. வீணை இசைக்கும்போழுது என் மனத்தில் ௐரு சாந்தி நிலவுகிறது. சிட்னியில் உள்ள வீணைகலைஞர்கள் பற்றி எழுதுவதின் மூலம் ஆஸ்திரேலியாவின் வீணை பாரம்பரியத்தின் ஒரு பகுதியை இந்த தொடரில் அறிமுகப்படுத்துகிரறன்.
The veena is a dear instrument to me. It holds cultural memory of my mother, grandmother and homelands; it links me to community, and of course, is the source of intense artistic joy. This series of writings presents part of the fabric of the tradition of veena in Australia by introducing readers to the stories of veena artists in Sydney.
My mother Malathi Nagarajan was one of the earliest veena artists and teachers in Sydney, in the late 1980s. The quality and strength of her musicianship has been a marker in Sydney’s Carnatic instrumental tradition. A constant figure in my own practice, this interview about my mother’s veena journey was revealing to both of us.
Tell us about yourself
I had strict rules to follow as an only child and was a quiet girl. We moved regularly due to my father’s work and I had few friends and little exposure to other people’s family life. My routine as a 12-year-old revolved around study, veena, dance, sewing, and philosophy lectures of great teachers like Swamy Ranganathananda and Swamy Dayananda. The latter prompted me to thinking about life, behaviour and living very early in life. I started learning Bharatanatyam from Pakkirisami Pillai when I was seven and vocal music from my mother. She was a very strict teacher who believed one should learn and memorise vocal music before starting the veena. The discipline helped me concentrate on learning.
A challenge with my students these days is the number of activities they are involved in, and the lack of time and focus they have to build knowledge in one interest.
I did my PhD in Physics, graduating as the first female PhD graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee campus. I drew on this qualification much later in life in Australia. I became a veena-artist at the age of 22 for All India Radio I continued to play regularly on the radio, until I started teaching and playing for dance when I was around 33 years old, after marriage and two children.
Coming to Australia and playing veena has increased my interest in communicating my music to people of different cultures. Last year I played a short Bandish with pianist Andrew Alter in Raga Sindhu Bhairavi, to perform at a monthly arts event in the village of Pearl Beach in northern NSW! Both of us had significant exposure to Hindustani music but have not played it much. The process gave us both immense pleasure.
Malathi Nagarajan at the Sacred Music Festival with other musicians. Credit: Stephen Mifsud
Why the veena?
There was a small veena at home, and I had a teacher at home! I tried playing my aunt’s violin and did not enjoy the sound when I played it. I don’t remember exactly when I started playing the veena. Perhaps when I was 9? My grandmother was very fond of music. She would switch on the radio at 6am in the morning and we listened to music for two hours, no matter what the quality. According to her listening to music was more important than judging the artist. She would go to the concerts nearby and I was forced to go with her to give her company. Those four years are very memorable as I was given an opportunity to listen to great artists.
Share a particularly momentous occasion/story/conversation/ performance in your journey as a vainika – why was it an important moment, how did it transform you?
I had a wonderful opportunity to play regularly for Padma Bhushan Prof CV Chandrashekar when I lived in Baroda. I did my Bachelor’s degree in Bharatanatyam under him. Those five years were really wonderful - to improve my theory and practical knowledge. He taught students how to notate dance items with stick-figure diagrams and to teach students who were not familiar with the Carnatic tala system. I would say that was a turning point for my music: learning dance, setting music to dance, and performing nationally and internationally with his troupe.
What challenge, struggle or failure have you faced in your music practice?
For me the great challenge was to get a happy nod from my mother after any performance and the struggle to get every note correct when she taught me. Now after all these years I recognize the value. Music and dance is an opportunity to share one’s inner feeling (rasa or essence) with the audience.
What is one of your favourite pieces of non-Carnatic music and why do you like it?
In western classical music it is Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Bolero (Ravel). Bolero was one of the first pieces of western music I heard when I was 30. I was at my cousin’s home in Mumbai, and her husband was an avid listener of Western music. The rolling pattern and increasing pace and addition of instruments really enchanted me.
How do you think about your music in relation to living on Aboriginal lands?
Music is universal and for me it is not difficult to connect to the land and people in Australia. I had the opportunity to see Bangarra Dance Company perform about 10 years ago and was quite surprised to see many of their movements relating to the animals. Their facial expressions were similar to Indian classical dance. In India we also feel a close relationship with the Panchabutas (the five elements - air, earth, fire, water and space). A Bharatanatyam dancer always apologises to the earth before starting their dance. The famous play by Kalidasa – Meghadutam - describes how a cloud is sent as a messenger to a loved one by a Yaksha (supernatural being) and describes the places it passes through. I was fortunate to be part of the orchestra when Prof. Chandrashekar set this to music, which was performed throughout Southeast Asia.
How does the veena act as a link to the past and future for you?
By teaching my daughter to play veena I find that there is a common space that is available for us to discuss things and playing together gives us both happiness and peace of mind. I am trying to get in my protesting grandson to learn now. He may understand the value when he grows like all of us did too!
Hear this kriti (Carnatic music composition) performed by Malathi Nagarajan at the Melbourne Veena Festival in 2018.
For the Veena Series on SAARI Collective, Indu wrote a preface and spoke to four veena artists from Sydney. Read the preface from the link below and the four profiles are linked at the bottom of the preface.
The Veena: Wayfinding New Homes on Ancient Lands
Indu Balachandran is a Lifelong Atlantic Fellow, musician (veena) and cultural producer, and a senior executive and board director in the social-purpose sector. You can connect with Indu on LinkedIn.
