I have typed the first few words... then, I am lost in MS Amma's voice rendering 'vandaadum solai'. Incidentally, the lyrics are by our own Kalki!!
It is an aural treat to hear her sing. I've always viewed her as angelic. She never seemed mortal to me. There was an unmistakable 'deiveegakak kalai' in her face.
Her head rests on a down-turned basket on the floor. Her thick, incredibly curly hair is spread over it after the customary oil bath. As the incense fumes rise from the live coals under the basket, the black waves seem endless and enchanting. The face they frame turns ethereal. Diamond sparks from ear and nose intensify the fragrant dream.
When she rises from cloudy repose, she knots her hair, tucks jasmine flowers into its folds, sits before the Gods in the puja (prayer) room and sings with her eyes closed, slender fingers gliding over the tanpura (stringed musical instrument). I become even more convinced that grandaunt Kunjamma is a celestial being. How else could she make music which thrilled you all over?
I have read a lot about how simple her lifestyle was. It must be true that she would have made lot of adjustments. But, that is nothing surprising given that even today, womenfolk make adjustments to suit the menfolk. Be it father, brother, husband or even son!
It is surprising to most of us, that she remained docile, despite the fame that made her larger than life. But, she belonged to a different school of upbringing and thought. One of a bygone era. One, that you and me might never even comprehend. At least not me :-)
She was conservative to the core, convinced that a woman's place was in the home. She shook her head over "independent" girls, it was one of the few English words in her vocabulary. If you reminded her that she herself was a career woman on hectic professional tours, she would look puzzled and say, "I just did what your Thatha (grandfather) asked me to do. Besides, he was always with me."
I remember a hilarious conversation between M.S and a film star activist. "Shouldn't women stand on their own feet?" the young woman asked. "Of course," M.S replied. "I've never done anything against my husband's will." The star persisted, "But women must think for themselves." Grandma agreed, "In fact young women don't think before they act. That is why nowadays there are so many divorces."
The star mentioned women's rights. "The woman's dharma is to be meek, and listen to elders, not argue all the time. Look at television! What vulgarity! Times have changed, become so bad," M.S. shook her head.
Everything else apart, her voice moves one to another plane, transcending all boundaries. Her rendition of 'kurai ondrum illai' has moved me to tears, many a times.
Hi Swetha; I still have your "Ethanai Kodi Inbam kondai iraiva" after a group visit to Thanjavur. This mail is as beautiful as that one.
I would like share something about MS. My dad's maternal grandfather, Narayana Iyer, had the largest and only hotel in Madurai called Dhinakara Vilas. This hotel was the most famous hotel in Madurai(during that period) and its southern villages. MS, when she was a child, performed her first "kutcheri" (for the want of a better word) for an important ceremony held by "Dhinakara Vilas" Narayana Iyer. His wife, still alive (!), remembers this quite well. She should be coming to Madurai, from Bangalore, sometime in May, maybe i'll ask her about this in detail then.
Hi Swetha, nice to meet you and very nice article on MSS, thanks :))
I havent met her, I have seen her, at a distance, while I was young, in my teens. She used to stay with my relative for concerts in and around Bangalore and we would be allowed to 'visit' once in a while to catch a glimpse of her. She reminded me often of my athai, who was similar in character and temperment although not a singer like her. Yes she was from a different generation. The adjustments we make or even our mothers make these days are nothing compared to what these women did. To them their husbands were God, a reputation that no man can live up to and many men often took advantage of.
Further if you study her story and background there were many women similar (NC Vasanthakokilam for example) who did not get to marry the right person, their talents were lost to the world as nobody to promote it like Sadasivam did for her.
I would call her Meera, without hesitation. I would not eulogise or idealise her marriage. Not only have times changed but in all times men and women are human beings, not God. To deify someone is not just lowering one's own self respect, it is expecting too much of the other person also.