Cherthala Renganatha Sarma and JA Jayanth unraveled the layers of ragas.

Cherthala KN Renganatha Sharma | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Cherthala KN Renganatha Sharma’s concert on the inaugural day of the three-day Mangaluru Sangeethotsava 2024 featured an eclectic mix of kritis. Veenai Kuppaier’s Behag varnam ‘Vanajaaksha ninnae nammithi’ made for a pleasant beginning. Harikesanallur Muthaiah Bhagavathar’s ‘Ganapathae, suguna nidhae’ in Janaranjani followed. The Veenai Kuppaier’s Behag varnam ‘Vanajaaksha ninnae nammithi’ made for a pleasant beginning. Harikesanallur Muthaiah Bhagavathar’s ‘Ganapathae, suguna nidhae’ in Janaranjani followed. The alapana of raga Vakulabharanam by the vocalist was followed by the melodious delineation on the violin by Avaneeswaram SR Vinu and it led to Tyagaraja’s ‘E ramuni nammithino’. The lyrically rich ‘Sri ramana vibho’ in Arabhi by Swati Tirunal came next.

The leisurely alapana of Brindavana Saranga brought out the beauty of the kriti Soundara rajam ashrayae’. ‘The main krithi was ‘Nija dasa varada’ by Patnam Subrahmaniya Iyer in Kalyani. During the niraval for ‘Bhujagaadhipa shayanaa, bhoomija ramanaa’, the vocalist and violinist vied with each other in showcasing the beautiful layers of the raga. Their rhythmic prowess could be seen during the swara session.

Cherthala KN Renganatha Sharma with Avaneeswaram SR Vinu on the violin, Mannargudi Easwaran on the mridangam and Vellanttanjur Shrijith on the ghatam. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Veteran Mannargudi Easwaran’s mature and majestic strokes on the mridangam along with Vellanttanjur Shrijith’s sharp and energetic ghatam wove a rhythmic spell during the ‘thani’.

Renganatha Sharma even included a crisp RTP in Saveri with the pallavi ‘Sri raja gopala balam bhajae, sritha jana palam’. The lighter session was quite brief with ‘Innu daya baradhe’ by Purandaradasaar and the padam in Malayalam ‘Chenthar sayaka roopa’ in Behag.

JA Jayanth | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

JA Jayanth’s flute recital brought Sangeethotsava to a close. He began with the rare Tyagaraja composition ‘Sreekaantha neyeda’ in Bhavapriya, with engaging swara passages. After Syama Sastri’s ‘Shankari sankuru chandramukhi’ in Saveri, Jayanth presented ‘Entha mudho’ in Bindumalini with a nuanced alapana and swaraprastaras. ‘Raghunaatha ninnu’ in Suraranjani by Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar with a western flavor elevated the appeal of the concert.

Jayanth presented ‘Nee Paadamule Gatiyani’ by Patnam Subrahmanya Iyer in Bhairavi with due elaboration. Trivandrum Sampath lent able support on the violin. NC Bharadhwaj on the mridangam and Sharath Kaushik on the ghatam presented an interesting thani.

Jayanth chose to present ragamalika RTP with the pallavi ‘Gokula nilaya mohana madhusudhana pandava palaka pahi’. ‘Venkataachala nilayam’, ‘Jagadodharana’ and ‘Hari paanduranga’ came as tukkadas.