As the curtain rose at Narada Gana Sabha’s Main Hall, the audience was greeted by a breathtaking sight — over a 100 veena artistes, ranging from sprightly 10-year-olds to seasoned septuagenarians, were seated in perfect symmetry. The soft shimmer of tuning plucks hung in the air like a delicate prelude to the event — 108 Veena Nadanjali — held recently. At the forefront, veena exponent Kannan Balakrishnan, presided with quiet intensity, poised to launch the programme on a perfect note.
This ensemble brought together stalwarts of the fraternity — Prof. R.S. Jayalakshmi, Mudicondan Ramesh, S. Sundar, Jayalakshmi Sekar, Shobana Swaminathan, GRS Murthy, Karukurichi Ravi, T.T. Narendran, Emani Lalitha Krishna, Baradwaj Raman — alongside promising youngsters such as Veena Venkatramani, Charulatha Chandrasekar, B. Sai Harini and N. Haripriya. Aswini Srinivasan ( mridangam) and Shrisainath (ghatam) provided lively rhythmic support.
108 Veena Nadanjali was the culminating crescendo of the 13-day Veena Mahotsavam, which featured 77 concerts, 100 main artistes and 36 accompanists, curated by Kannan and jointly organised by Bharata Ilango Foundation, Narada Gana Sabha Trust and Kalakendra.com.
The soft shimmer of tuning plucks hung in the air like a delicate prelude to the event .
| Photo Credit:
VELANKANNI RAJ B.
The evening began on an auspicious note with the rendering of ‘Saraswathi Ashtottara Sata Namavali’ by the ensemble, veenas and voices interlacing under Kannan’s chanting. The kritis presented were ‘Gam ganapathe’ (Hamsadhwani, Adi – tisra nadai, Muthiah Bhagavatar), ‘Sri saraswathi’ (Arabhi, Rupakam, Dikshitar), ‘Akhilandeswari’ (Dwijavanti, Adi, Dikshitar), ‘Paratpara’ (Vachaspathi, Adi, Papanasam Sivan), ‘Darini telusukonti’ (Suddhasaveri, Adi, Tyagaraja), ‘Raghuvamsa sudhambudhi’ (Kathanakuthuhalam, Adi, Patnam Subramania Iyer), ‘Kanchadalayatakshi’ (Kamalamanohari, Adi, Dikshitar) and ‘Brahmam okate’ (Bowli, Eka, Annamacharya). ‘Vande mataram’ and ‘Maithreem bhajata’, which completed the list, imbued the hall with a prayerful radiance. The effect of 100 veenas resonating in unison was overwhelming.
A concise raga essay ahead of each kriti by a senior artiste not only warded off monotony, but also infused colour and individuality. The most striking aspect of the offering was the seamless integration of diverse schools, styles and patantarams into a single, near-perfect sonic fabric. Every ‘meettu’ and note was in synchrony, yielding a vivid manifestation of harmony. ‘Darini telusukonti’ was a particularly interesting pick for an instrumental ensemble of this magnitude, with the enormity of sangatis in the pallavi presenting the risk of compromise in concordance. The artistes rose to the challenge, deftly negotiating the ‘tight-string’ walk. The buoyant gait of ‘Gam ganapathe’, the serenity of ‘Akhilandeswari’, the lilting chittaswaram of ‘Raghuvamsa sudhambudhi’ caught the attention too.
The evening began on an auspicious note with the rendering of ‘Saraswathi Ashtottara Sata Namavali’.
| Photo Credit:
VELANKANNI RAJ B.
While the song selection covered as many composers as the framework would possibly permit, the absence of a Syama Sastri kriti was discernible. Admittedly, a typical chowka kalam composition of his may not have suited a large ensemble, but a medium-paced number would have fitted the bill. Three compositions by Dikshitar, a vainika-gayaka, underlined the flavour of the year — the Nadajyoti’s 250th birth anniversary celebrations.
From a relatively modest beginning in 2009 as ‘Veena Utsav’ with 30 concerts, this celebration has blossomed into an eagerly-awaited annual carnival, cherished by practitioners and rasikas alike. Kannan recalled how, back then, veena playing was often dismissed as a dying art with a dim future. Today, 17 years on, he takes pride in the veena’s revival, evidenced by the rising number of students and growing sales of veenas as corroborated by teachers and instrument makers/dealers, respectively.
Kannan dedicated the event to global peace, a war-free future and our armed forces. In that moment, the veena was not just a vehicle of sound, but a vessel of collective prayer.
Published – September 26, 2025 04:31 pm IST
