KJ Yesudas mourns the demise of musician KG Jayan: 'I lost my brother and friend'

Legendary singer KJ Yesudas was shocked to hear of the demise of his beloved friend and renowned musician KG Jayan on April 16. Yesudas mentioned that KG was a very dear friend and more like an elder brother to him.

As per a report in Manorama, Yesudas said that he lost one of his best friends and brothers. Both of them came to know each other when they studied Carnatic music under the guidance of Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar in Chennai. Jayan and his twin brother Vijayan - who were known as 'Jayavijayanmar' - were disciples of Vaidyanatha.

The twin brothers used to visit Yesudas in Kochi, and they were foodies who always loved to try the singer’s mother's preparations. Yesudas's wife Prabha and his sister Jayamma learnt music under Jayavijayan for a few years.

Yesudas added that the twin brothers had a similar musical style and could create a big impact during concerts with their deep voice. Yesudas and Jayan never had songs together, but they performed on the same stage on several occasions. At the music festivals in Sabarimala and Chembai's birthplace, Jayan performed the final concert, with Yesudas taking the stage just before him.



The singer stated that Jayavijayanmar had a special skill in making common people enjoy the 'ragas' in Carnatic music. Chembai used to sing some of the songs at his concerts.

One of Yesudas's beloved film songs is 'Nakshatra deepangal thilangi...' from the movie 'Nirakudam,' composed by Jayan and Vijayan. This song portrays a concert by Chembai, highlighting the mridangam accompaniment by Palakkad Mani Iyer and violin by Chowdayya. The timeless lyrics were penned by Bichu Thirumala.

Yesudas remembers people clapping as soon as the humming of this song begins in any concerts. He found it as his fortune, and the power of the song is unbeatable.