Anai Ayya brothers were two brothers, who lived in the 19th century Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...

, and were composers of Carnatic music

Carnatic music

Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...

. Anai Iyer and Annavaiyyar composed both in Telugu

Telugu language

Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...

 and Tamil

Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...

 and used the mudra

Mudra (music)

Mudra is the unique signature of a Carnatic music composer, which is woven into some or all of their respective compositions. Not all composers have mudras, and they do not necessarily relate to the composer's name....

Umadasa.

The Anai Ayya brothers were close contemporaries of the great composer Tyagaraja

Tyagaraja

Kakarla Tyagabrahmam , colloquially known as Tyāgarājar and Tyagayya was one of the greatest composers of Carnatic music or classical South Indian music. He, along with his contemporaries Muthuswami Dikshitar and Shyama Shastry, forms the Trinity of Carnatic music...

 and were related to Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer

Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer

Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan was a composer of Carnatic music. He was a great exponent of extemporaneous singing. He also composed a ragamalika with all the 72 melakartha ragas....

. They lived in Vaiyacheri and Tiruvaiyaru in the Thanjavur district. They were patronised by the king Serfoji II

Serfoji II

Serfoji II was the last ruler of the Maratha principality of Tanjore to exercise absolute sovereignty over his dominions. His descendants, however, have managed to thrive as titular Maharajahs of Thanjavur to the present day...

 of Thanjavur. Together they wrote at least 26 Tamil and 12 Telugu compositions that are currently available. Their compositions had the theme of devotion sprinkled with philosophy. Their songs were in praise of Siva

Shiva

Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...

 and his consort.

Some of their popular compositions are Ambanannu (Todi

Hanumatodi

Hanumatodi, more popularly known as Todi, is a rāgam in Carnatic music . It is the 8th melakarta rāgam in the 72 melakarta rāgam system. This is sung very often in concerts. It is known to be a difficult rāgam to perform in owing to its complexity in prayoga...

), Paruvam parkka (Dhanyasi

Dhanyasi

Dhanyasi is a rāgam in Carnatic music . It is a janya rāgam from the 8th melakarta scale Hanumatodi. It is a janya scale, as it does not have all the seven swaras in the ascending scale...

) and Saranu saranu (Jhinjooti), Mahima teliya tara ma (Sankarabharanam

Dheerasankarabharanam

Dheerashankarābharanam , commonly known as Shankarābharanam, is a rāga in Carnatic music . It is the 29th Melakarta rāga in the 72 melakarta rāga system of Carnatic music....

).

One of the last contributions that T. Viswanathan

T. Viswanathan

Tanjore Viswanathan was a Carnatic musician specializing in the Carnatic flute and voice. His brother was the mridangam player T...

and T. Sankaran made to Carnatic music was to edit the compositions of the Anai Ayya brothers (published by Brihaddhvani).