Swathi Tirunal: Has the world outside Kerala recognised his musical genius?

A multi-faceted Travancore King who lived a short life of 33 years, history books introduce

Swathi Tirunal

thus. For Keralites, in the context of ageless classical music or powerful social reforms, his is a name that's unforgettable. The king among the musicians, was no ordinary musician among kings (Sangeethajnanrile rajavu, rajakkanmaarile sangeethajnan, it is said about him) and that’s evident from the treasure trove of work he left behind, within that short life span. As the world of music celebrated his 205th birth anniversary recently on April 16, we asked some of the leading musicians of Kerala if the genius got his due outside the State too or if his glory remains within our borders.


Ramesh Narayan, composer and Hindustani musician

Just as in Carnatic, Swathi Tirunal has contributed to many genres of music. He has composed more than 50 North Indian kritis and in his time, they were sung by musicians who used to come down from the North. He is the only musician of his time who had promoted Hindustani music in South India.
However, outside of Kerala, Swathi compositions are not accepted enough, in my view. The ones who perform his kritis are mostly Malayalis. The reason is that his music hasn't been promoted outside much. Carnatic musicians sing them in Carnatic style as an item or so in their concerts. About 15 years ago, I had made a bunch of North Indian musicians render a few Swati kritis composed by me for Aakashvani, Kannur. I sent these recordings to Delhi. That was the best that could be done at that time. It fetched me an award from All India Radio. About four of the bandishes were tuned in Mewati gharana later by guru Pandit Jasraj as well, and they are being taught in the Pandit Jasraj Institute in the US.

I say compose, because what we have are the lyrics by the Maharaja. The ragam and the genre in which they are to be sung are specified. But it’s not exactly in the same genre or ragam that we have composed them. Some ragas are known, some aren't. For instance, the bandish Devan Ke Pati Indra was composed by guruji in Nayakikanada (In Carnatic, it’s in Darbarikanada) and Jayajaya devi in Yaman.
Sreeranjini Kodampally, Researcher and Assistant Professor at Maharaja’s College
When I do a concert outside Kerala, whenever they come to know that you are a Malayali, they ask me to sing a Swathi Tirunal kriti. Even otherwise, in my concert, I include them as those like Bhogeendrasaayinam in Kudaravarali ragam are among my favourites. There is a kind of unmatched energy about these kritis, which make the experience memorable for both the artiste and audience. Presenting these kritis is a thing of pride for the artistes too.


Mathangi Sathyamoorthy, Carnatic Singer

May be not as much as the musicians in the Tanjavur Parampara, but I guess Swathi Tirunal is much respected and recognised outside Kerala too. In Tirupati, every year, there is a day on which Swati Kritis are sung. Three times, I had performed there, with my students. In Mumbai, those like Shanmughananda Sabha also devote a day for Swathi Tirunal kritis and his compositions like Devadeva Kalayamithe, varnams in kamboji, sankarabharanam and traditional compositions like Aliveni enthu cheivu are all still very popular among performers.


Sreevalsan J Menon, music composer and Carnatic singer

Compared to earlier times, in the past 15 years, his kritis have been getting a lot more popular. In the past, people like like K V Narayanaswamy and Neyyattinkara Vasudevan Nair made it popular. Now, I notice young generation musicians from Tamil Nadu and other places, like Bombay Jayasree, Ranjini Gayathri and Unnikrishnan too sing them often. Even younger ones like Ramakrishnamoorthy and Prasanna Venkatraman are seen enthusiastically presenting them.

Prince Rama Varma, Carnatic musician and direct descendant of Swathi Tirunal
I feel he is gradually in the process of getting his due, as time goes by. If you look at those like Thyagaraja Swami, alongside his unquestionable merit, he lived to his 80s and had a great sishya parampara who were taught his works and who, in turn, popularised them. Maharaja lived only till 33 and being a ruling king, he also had to give time for administration. So many of his compositions died with him, and Amma Maharani later collected all available songs by him. In royal families like Kilimanoor, Haripad, Tiruvalla, Chirakkal kovilakams, there were people who sang swati kritis but they were scattered here and there. Amma Maharani enlisted Muthaiya Bhagavathar to collect whatever was available. Today, we don't know which is the original, modified or fresh tunes of the kritis, as singers and composers had taken their own creative liberties with them at various times.

At Swathi Sangeethotsavam that I conduct every year, I try to ensure that a minimum of 60 songs, that too lesser known kritis of the Maharaja, are presented sans repetition. This is an effort to popularise maximum of his music, as the general tendency is to stick to the popular ones, like Mamavasada Janani, Kripayapalaya Shaure, Saarasaksha Paripaalaya, etc. Also, the videos of these are shared via Youtube, which thankfully trickle down to a handful of new age music aficionados, who learn them. A composer, I would say, is at the mercy of singers of various ages to keep his works alive. Especially the ones like Swathi Tirunal who belonged to the era without audio recording devices. So, all that can be done to keep his work alive is make the maximum of singers learn more of his compositions. Another challenge is that everyone, especially outside Kerala, might not be able to connect with themes in his works like 'surrendering it all to the Padmanabha Swamy,' as compared to writing about a mountain, nature and the like.