Radha Viswanathan
Encyclopedia
Radha Viswanathan is an Indian vocalist and former classical dancer. She has performed extensively with her mother, Bharat Ratna Carnatic
vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi
, the Nightingale of India.
and his first wife, Apithakuchambal (alias Parvathi). However, she was brought up by M. S. Subbulakshmi
whom her father married after the passing away of Apithakuchambal from a scorpion bite.
Radha had her early training in music from T.R. Balasubramaniam, Ramnad Krishnan
and Mayavaram Krishna Iyer. She began accompanying her mother on stage at age of 5. She combined this with intensive training in dance from Vazhavoor Ramiah Pillai (she was, in fact, his first disciple along with Anandhi Ramachandran, daughter of Kalki Krishnamurthy
) and made a reputation for herself as a Bharatanatyam
dancer, making her arangetram
(debut) in 1945. Radha and Anandhi would perform while M.S. sang Padam
s. Radha also performed an exclusive dance recital at the Carnatic Music College
, Madras, for the violinist Yehudi Menuhin
. She danced at Birla House
before Mahatma Gandhi
for a Meera Bhajan
- "Ghanashyam Aayaari" with M.S. singing for her. At the age of 21, Radha gave up dancing to concentrate exclusively on singing. Radha was to soon become a vital force in MS concerts. M.S. and Radha jointly learnt Kriti
s from Musiri Subramania Iyer
, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
and K. V. Narayanaswamy and Padams from T. Brinda
. They also had intensive training in Hindustani classical music
from Siddheshwari Devi
of Benares and Dilipkumar Roy
.
When she was 6 years old, Radha made her debut in films as Bharata in Shakunthala and as "Baby Meera" in Meera
, which was directed by Ellis R. Dungan and produced by her father T.Sadasivam's company Chandraprabha Cinetones. In Meera she danced with Kumari Kamala
who acted as Krishna. Meera was made in both Tamil and Hindi with the premiere of the latter version in 1947, being inaugurated by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru
himself. Lord
and Lady Mountbatten
, Rajendra Prasad
, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
and Indira Gandhi
attended the premiere as well.
Radha accompanied her mother on her frequent concert tours and recording engagements. M.S. had no disciples other than Radha.Both of them performed all over India and the world including the USA, Europe
, Japan
, Singapore
, Malaysia, Thailand
and the Philippines
. In 1966 both of them toured Europe and embarked on a coast to coast tour of the USA, thus becoming some of the first vocalists of Carnatic music to perform in the US and Europe. It was during this tour that they performed a concert at the United Nations on October 24, 1966. They sang a song composed specially for the occasion by the Paramacharya of Kanchi, "Maithreem Bhajatha".
The San Francisco Chronicle
greeted their singing as "a series of miracles." The reviewer exclaimed: "Subbulakshmi’s elaborate vocal filigree sometimes sung in unison or octaves with her daughter Radha Viswanathan were unbelievable in their poised ease and constancy of flow...”
M.S. and Radha Viswanathan recorded many songs together. The "Venkateswara Suprabatham" and the "Vishnu Sahasranamam" were practiced for six months in front of Vedic scholars including Agnihotram Thathachariar and Swami Ranganathananda
of Sri Ramakrishna Mutt. The Annamacharya recordings were released in 1980. They were a series of five records called the "Balaji Pancharatnamala" that included classical and devotional music. The royalties from these recordings were donated to various charities.
In 1975, when M.S. won the Ramon Magsaysay Award in the Philippines, both of them sang at the Malacañang Palace
. In 1977 during their second tour of the USA, they performed at Carnegie Hall
. During Maha Shivaratri
, they performed in front of the Paramcharya of Kanchi with just a tambura
for accompaniment as he performed the pujas.
In 1982, at the Festival of India held in the United Kingdom, M.S & Radha performed at the Royal Albert Hall
. This program was attended among others by Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Margaret Thatcher
, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi
, Sonia Gandhi
, Ravi Shankar
, V.K. Narayana Menon (Chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi
) and Zubin Mehta
.
In April 1982 Radha fell critically ill with tuberculosis meningitis and slipped into a coma for three months. Although she survived, her recovery was slow. All of her concerts scheduled for the next year were cancelled by her father and no new ones were accepted.
Radha finally sang again on March 12, 1983 at M.S.'s benefit concert for the Houston Meenakshi Temple held at the Music Academy, Chennai.
For the next 10 years she accompanied her mother for concerts, although the number was reduced, as age was catching up with M.S. and Thiagarajan Sadasivam. However, once again Radha's health deteriorated in 1992 and she had to completely stop accompanying M.S.
On September 16, 2007, Radha performed in concert for the first time in 15 years to celebrate M.S. Subbulakshmi's 91st birthday. Using a wheelchair, she was accompanied by her granddaughter Aishwarya. After this concert at Narada Gana Sabha, the pair sang together in more than 20 concerts, including some in the US. Radha was honoured with the title "Sangeetha Ratna" by Lalithakala Academy in March 2008. In April 2010 she was awarded the citation "Kala Chandrika" by the Cleveland Aradhana Committee for her outstanding services to the cause of Carnatic music. Radha is an excellent Guru who has won accolades from none other than the great Semmangudi himself and she continues to teach music. Amongst her disciples are Anuradha (daughter of the legend K.V.Narayanaswamy ), Sikkil Gurucharan (ref SG'S homepage), Mahesh Vinayakaram (son of the Ghatam Maestro - Vikku Vinayakram) , Navaneet Krishnan , P.T Seshadri, Balaji Shankar (disciple of the late D K Jayaraman) and the playback singer
Harini
.
, daughter of flautist Sikkil Neela. Their second son, Shrinivasan Viswanathan and his wife Geetha are parents of Aishwarya and Saundarya. Shrinivasan is the Managing Trustee of the "Suswaralakshmi Foundation for Classical Music and Performing Arts"
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...
vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi
M. S. Subbulakshmi
Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi , also known as M.S., was a renowned Carnatic vocalist. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor. She is the first Indian musician to receive...
, the Nightingale of India.
Early life and career
She is the eldest daughter of Thiagarajan SadasivamThiagarajan Sadasivam
"Kalki" Thiagaraja Sadasivam was a leading freedom fighter, singer, journalist and film producer who was one of the founders, along with Kalki Krishnamurthy of the Tamil magazine Kalki. He is well-known as the husband of famous classical carnatic singer M.S...
and his first wife, Apithakuchambal (alias Parvathi). However, she was brought up by M. S. Subbulakshmi
M. S. Subbulakshmi
Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi , also known as M.S., was a renowned Carnatic vocalist. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor. She is the first Indian musician to receive...
whom her father married after the passing away of Apithakuchambal from a scorpion bite.
Radha had her early training in music from T.R. Balasubramaniam, Ramnad Krishnan
Ramnad Krishnan
Ramnad Krishnan was a vocalist in the Carnatic tradition. He did his schooling in Ramnad in Madras Presidency.He learned music from Ramnad C S Sankarasivam. He served on the faculty of Government College of Carnatic Music in Madras.He was also a visiting Professor at Wesleyan University...
and Mayavaram Krishna Iyer. She began accompanying her mother on stage at age of 5. She combined this with intensive training in dance from Vazhavoor Ramiah Pillai (she was, in fact, his first disciple along with Anandhi Ramachandran, daughter of Kalki Krishnamurthy
Kalki Krishnamurthy
Kalki was the pen name of R. Krishnamurthy , a noted Tamil writer, film & music critic, Indian independence activist and journalist from Tamil Nadu, India.- Biography:...
) and made a reputation for herself as a Bharatanatyam
Bharatanatyam
Bharata Natyam or Chadhir Attam, is a classical dance form from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, practiced predominantly in modern times by women. The dance is usually accompanied by classical Carnatic music...
dancer, making her arangetram
Arangetram
Arangetram , also Arangettam in Malayalam, is the debut on-stage performance of a Bharatanatyam student, after undertaking years of training.Bharatanatyam is an ancient Indian dance form originating in Tamilakam....
(debut) in 1945. Radha and Anandhi would perform while M.S. sang Padam
Padam
Padam may refer to:*"Padam... Padam...",is the town area place in Tahsil Jasrana Dist Firozabad UP . Padam*"Padam... Padam...", a song by Édith Piaf*Padum, a place in Ladakh of India*Padam , an indigenous people of India...
s. Radha also performed an exclusive dance recital at the Carnatic Music College
Madras Music Academy
Madras Music Academy, or simply Music Academy, is one of the premier and early Music Academies in the South Indian city of Madras, now Chennai. It plays an important role in encouraging and promoting primarily the Carnatic Music south Indian art form. It also played an important role in revival of...
, Madras, for the violinist Yehudi Menuhin
Yehudi Menuhin
Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin, OM, KBE was a Russian Jewish American violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in the United Kingdom. He was born to Russian Jewish parents in the United States, but became a citizen of Switzerland in 1970, and of the United Kingdom in 1985...
. She danced at Birla House
Birla House
Gandhi Smriti formerly known as Birla House or Birla Bhavan, is a museum dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, situated on Tees January Road, in New Delhi, India. It is the location where Mahatma Gandhi spent the last 144 days of his life and was assassinated on January 30, 1948. It was originally the house...
before Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
for a Meera Bhajan
Bhajan
A Bhajan is any type of Indian devotional song. It has no fixed form: it may be as simple as a mantra or kirtan or as sophisticated as the dhrupad or kriti with music based on classical ragas and talas. It is normally lyrical, expressing love for the Divine...
- "Ghanashyam Aayaari" with M.S. singing for her. At the age of 21, Radha gave up dancing to concentrate exclusively on singing. Radha was to soon become a vital force in MS concerts. M.S. and Radha jointly learnt Kriti
Kriti
-Structure:Kritis typically contain three parts#Pallavi. This is the equivalent of a refrain in Western music.#Anupallavi. The second verse, which is sometimes optional....
s from Musiri Subramania Iyer
Musiri Subramania Iyer
Musiri Subramania Iyer was a Carnatic vocalist who's stage performing career spanned the 1920s to the 1940s. After retirement from the stage, he remained an iconic figure in Carnatic music as a dedicated teacher and leader in the Carnatic community...
, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer is considered to be one of the greatest Carnatic vocalists of the twentieth century...
and K. V. Narayanaswamy and Padams from T. Brinda
T. Brinda
Thanjavur Brinda was one of the representatives of the Veenai Dhanammal school of Carnatic Music. She was primarily a vocalist, although she also played the Veenai. She is affectionately referred to as 'Brindamma', by her fans....
. They also had intensive training in Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the Hindustani or North Indian style of Indian classical music found throughout the northern Indian subcontinent. The style is sometimes called North Indian Classical Music or Shāstriya Sangeet...
from Siddheshwari Devi
Siddheshwari Devi
Siddheswari Devi was a Hindustani singer from Varanasi, India, known as Maa . Born in 1907, she lost her parents early and was brought up by her aunt, the noted singer Rajeshwari Devi.-Initiation into Music:...
of Benares and Dilipkumar Roy
Dilipkumar Roy
Dilipkumar Roy was a Bengali Indian musician, musicologist, novelist, poet and essayist.In 1965, the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, awarded him its highest honour for lifetime achievement, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship.-Background and...
.
When she was 6 years old, Radha made her debut in films as Bharata in Shakunthala and as "Baby Meera" in Meera
Meera (1945 film)
Meera is a 1945 Tamil-language film starring M. S. Subbulakshmi, Kumari Kamala, T. S. Baliah and Chittoor V. Nagaiah based on the life of the devotional singer and dancer Meera. The film was directed by American film director Ellis R. Dungan.-Plot:...
, which was directed by Ellis R. Dungan and produced by her father T.Sadasivam's company Chandraprabha Cinetones. In Meera she danced with Kumari Kamala
Kumari Kamala
Kumari Kamala is an Indian dancer and actress. Initially featured as a child dancer, Kamala appeared in almost 100 Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films throughout her career...
who acted as Krishna. Meera was made in both Tamil and Hindi with the premiere of the latter version in 1947, being inaugurated by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
himself. Lord
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC, FRS , was a British statesman and naval officer, and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
and Lady Mountbatten
Edwina Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma
Edwina Cynthia Annette Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma,, GBE, DCVO, CI, DStJ was an English heiress, socialite, relief-worker, wife of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, and last Vicereine of India.- Lineage and wealth :Edwina Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma...
, Rajendra Prasad
Rajendra Prasad
Dr. Rajendra Prasad was an Indian politician and educator. He was one of the architects of the Indian Republic, having drafted its first constitution and serving as the first president of independent India...
, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
Vijaya Lakshmi Nehru Pandit was an Indian diplomat and politician, the sister of Jawaharlal Nehru, the aunt of Indira Gandhi and the great-aunt of Rajiv Gandhi, all of whom served as Prime Minister of India.In 1921 she married Ranjit Sitaram Pandit, who died on 14 January 1944...
and Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
attended the premiere as well.
Radha accompanied her mother on her frequent concert tours and recording engagements. M.S. had no disciples other than Radha.Both of them performed all over India and the world including the USA, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Malaysia, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. In 1966 both of them toured Europe and embarked on a coast to coast tour of the USA, thus becoming some of the first vocalists of Carnatic music to perform in the US and Europe. It was during this tour that they performed a concert at the United Nations on October 24, 1966. They sang a song composed specially for the occasion by the Paramacharya of Kanchi, "Maithreem Bhajatha".
The San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
greeted their singing as "a series of miracles." The reviewer exclaimed: "Subbulakshmi’s elaborate vocal filigree sometimes sung in unison or octaves with her daughter Radha Viswanathan were unbelievable in their poised ease and constancy of flow...”
M.S. and Radha Viswanathan recorded many songs together. The "Venkateswara Suprabatham" and the "Vishnu Sahasranamam" were practiced for six months in front of Vedic scholars including Agnihotram Thathachariar and Swami Ranganathananda
Swami Ranganathananda
Swami Ranganathananda born Shankaran Kutty was a Hindu monk of the Ramakrishna Math order. He served as the 13th president of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission.- Biography :...
of Sri Ramakrishna Mutt. The Annamacharya recordings were released in 1980. They were a series of five records called the "Balaji Pancharatnamala" that included classical and devotional music. The royalties from these recordings were donated to various charities.
In 1975, when M.S. won the Ramon Magsaysay Award in the Philippines, both of them sang at the Malacañang Palace
Malacañang Palace
The Malacañan Palace, commonly known simply as Malacañang, is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the Philippines. Located at 1000 J. P. Laurel Street, San Miguel, Manila, the house was built in 1750 in Spanish Colonial style. It has been the residence of every...
. In 1977 during their second tour of the USA, they performed at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
. During Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivratri or Maha Sivaratri or Shivaratri or Sivarathri is a Hindu festival celebrated every year on the 13th night/14th day in the Krishna Paksha of the month of Maagha or Phalguna...
, they performed in front of the Paramcharya of Kanchi with just a tambura
Tambura
The tambura, tanpura, or tambora is a long-necked plucked lute . The body shape of the tambura somewhat resembles that of the sitar, but it has no frets – only the open strings are played to accompany other musicians...
for accompaniment as he performed the pujas.
In 1982, at the Festival of India held in the United Kingdom, M.S & Radha performed at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
. This program was attended among others by Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
, Sonia Gandhi
Sonia Gandhi
Sonia Gandhi is an Italian-born Indian politician and the President of the Indian National Congress, one of the major political parties of India. She is the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi...
, Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
, V.K. Narayana Menon (Chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India.-History:...
) and Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta is an Indian conductor of western classical music. He is the Music Director for Life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.-Biography:...
.
In April 1982 Radha fell critically ill with tuberculosis meningitis and slipped into a coma for three months. Although she survived, her recovery was slow. All of her concerts scheduled for the next year were cancelled by her father and no new ones were accepted.
Radha finally sang again on March 12, 1983 at M.S.'s benefit concert for the Houston Meenakshi Temple held at the Music Academy, Chennai.
For the next 10 years she accompanied her mother for concerts, although the number was reduced, as age was catching up with M.S. and Thiagarajan Sadasivam. However, once again Radha's health deteriorated in 1992 and she had to completely stop accompanying M.S.
On September 16, 2007, Radha performed in concert for the first time in 15 years to celebrate M.S. Subbulakshmi's 91st birthday. Using a wheelchair, she was accompanied by her granddaughter Aishwarya. After this concert at Narada Gana Sabha, the pair sang together in more than 20 concerts, including some in the US. Radha was honoured with the title "Sangeetha Ratna" by Lalithakala Academy in March 2008. In April 2010 she was awarded the citation "Kala Chandrika" by the Cleveland Aradhana Committee for her outstanding services to the cause of Carnatic music. Radha is an excellent Guru who has won accolades from none other than the great Semmangudi himself and she continues to teach music. Amongst her disciples are Anuradha (daughter of the legend K.V.Narayanaswamy ), Sikkil Gurucharan (ref SG'S homepage), Mahesh Vinayakaram (son of the Ghatam Maestro - Vikku Vinayakram) , Navaneet Krishnan , P.T Seshadri, Balaji Shankar (disciple of the late D K Jayaraman) and the playback singer
Playback singer
A playback singer is a singer whose singing is prerecorded for use in movies. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras, while the actual singer does not appear on screen.-South Asia:...
Harini
Harini
Harini is an Indian film playback singer and classical singer, who sings mainly in Tamil films. She has also sung in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam language films, whilst working with many leading film composers. She is married to another playback singer, Tippu.-Career:Harini learnt Carnatic...
.
Personal life
Radha is the wife of Late Guruswamy Viswanathan and has two sons and one daughter, Lakshmi, who is a special child.The eldest son Chandrasekhar is married to flautist Sikkil MalaSikkil Mala Chandrasekar
Sikkil Mala Chandrasekhar is a noted South Indian musician playing the flute. Mala Chandrasekhar was born to a musical family.Mala Chandrasekhar started learning from her aunt and mother Sikkil Sisters - Kunjumani & Neela...
, daughter of flautist Sikkil Neela. Their second son, Shrinivasan Viswanathan and his wife Geetha are parents of Aishwarya and Saundarya. Shrinivasan is the Managing Trustee of the "Suswaralakshmi Foundation for Classical Music and Performing Arts"