Maharajapuram Santhanam, (20 May 1928 – 24 June 1992) was an Indian Carnatic vocalist. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1989.
Maharajapuram Santhanam | |
|---|---|
| Born | 20 May 1928 Sirunangur, Tanjore District, Madras Presidency, British India (now in Ariyalur district, Tamil Nadu, India) |
| Died | 24 June 1992 (aged 64) Kooteripattu, South Arcot District (now in Viluppuram District), Tamil Nadu, India |
| Occupations | Carnatic vocalist |
| Parents |
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Early life
editSanthanam was born on 20 May 1928 at Sirunangur, a village in the Tanjavur district of Tamil Nadu.[1] He followed the footsteps of his father Maharajapuram Viswanatha Iyer who was also a renowned Carnatic vocalist.[2] His mother was Visalakshi.[3]
Career
editBesides studying with his father, he was also a disciple of Melattur Sama Dikshitar. Maharajapuram Santhanam was also a distinguished composer. He wrote many songs on Lord Murugan and Kanchi Shankaracharya, Sri Chandrasekarendra Saraswati Swamigal (Maha Periyavar). He was the principal of Ramanathan College in Sri Lanka.[4] Later he came and settled in Chennai. The songs which were popularised by Maharajapuram Santhanam are,"Bho Shambo" (Revati), "Madhura Madhura" (Bagheshri), both composed by Swami Dayananda Saraswati, "Unnai Allal" (Kalyani Raga), "Sadha Nin Padhame gathi, Varam onnru" (Shanmukhapriya), "Srichakra Raja" (Ragamalika), "Nalinakaanthimathim" (Ragamalika),"Ksheerabdi kannike" (Ragamalika), "Thillana (Revathy)" among others.
His other most popular songs are Purandaradasa kritis: "Narayana ninna" (Shuddha Dhanyasi) and "Govinda ninna". His rendition of "Vilayada ithu nerama muruga" was without parallel. His renditions were full of Bhakthi.
Death
editOn 24 June 1992, Santhanam died in a car accident in Kooteripattu, a village near Tindivanam in present-day Viluppuram district, Tamil Nadu. A few other members of his family too died in the accident.
Legacy
editThe Maharajapuram Santhanam Day is celebrated on 3 December every year.
His sons Maharajapuram S. Srinivasan, Maharajapuram S. Ramachandran, and his primary disciple Dr. R. Ganesh are now carrying on his musical tradition.[2][5]
In Chennai, Griffith Road in T.Nagar was renamed as 'Maharajapuram Santhanam Salai' in honor of Maharajapuram Santhanam. The street has the famous Krishna Gana Sabha and Muppathamman Temple.
Awards and titles
edit- Padma Shri - 1990[6]
- Sangeetha Kalanidhi from the Madras Music Academy - 1989
- Sangeet Natak Akademi award - 1984
- Kalaimamani award by Tamil Nadu Government
- "Sangeetha Sudhakara" by the Yoga vedanta University at Rishikesh
- "Gana Kalanidhi" by Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati of Sringeri Sharada Peetha
- "Sangitha Sagaramritha Varshi" by Jayendra Saraswathi of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham.
- A former "Asthana Vidwan" of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, Pittsburgh Venkatachalapathi Temple and the Ganapathi Sachidananda Ashrama
References
edit- ^ Maharajapuram Santhanam (1976), Maharajapuram Santhanam, Vol. 1, retrieved 13 March 2024
- ^ a b "To grandfather, with love". The Hindu. 1 July 2021. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
- ^ V, Sriram (24 June 2021). "Maharajapuram Santhanam: Music on his own terms". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
- ^ Ludwig Pesch, The Illustrated Companion to South Indian Classical Music (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1999), p. 238.
- ^ Vijayalakshmi, B. (9 December 2018). "I have always admired my father's shrewd acumen: Maharajapuram S Srinivasan". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
- ^ "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- 4. ^ Maharajapuram Santhanam A Life of Music Archived 15 May 2019 at the Wayback Machine