I am in a country whose current obsession are three starry-eyed teeny boppers filled with raging hormones and loads of shady ideas . Demi Lovato , Justin Beiber and Miley Cyrus. The guys froth at the sight of Lovato and Cyrus and so do the girls when they come across Beiber. Their breakups are front page news, the underwear brand they wear sells like hot cakes and a bed bug bite on them is a national calamity . Ok i know , i am giving remba too much build up . But still , most of you would agree that some of the stuff above is true . I agree that they are ridiculously talented , but one just hopes that they act a bit more responsibly , given the gargantuan fan following they enjoy .
When u look at these three , i am reminded of people close , back home. Folk artists have never really got the right end of the stick , in India. Appreciation has been far from coming and the remuneration still farther off . Come to think of it, these are not those people who sign record labels with Sony BMG or Warner Brothers. They are people who come out of remote villages , sing songs to kill their boredom while working on paddy fields and hardly have the means to support their daily lives .
There's this lady full of youth , yet ripe with age , who sang and danced her way into many of our hearts . Paravai Muniamma , enjoys a cult status and has one of the biggest fan followings when it comes to folk artists . Her rendition of "Singam Pola Nadathu Varan Chella Perandi " in the Vikram starrer " Dhool " scorched charts all over Tamil Nadu for almost a year . She has never looked back since then. Whether it be rending out foot tapping numbers on movies or on live stage shows or combining with Vivek to dish out comedy with social relevance , she has taken the much needed recognition for folk artists to the next level . One just hopes , her popularity keeps on increasing , for the betterment of folk artists in Tamil Nadu and for the revival of a dying breed.
But , interestingly she was not the first . Kollangudi Karupaaye , was one of the first entrants into Tamil Cinema ,when it comes to folk music . However, she could gain only limited success and was reduced to playing minor roles in many movies. I bet many of you dont even know who she is . Well , neither could i find a picture of her on Google Images nor could i find a related video of her on Youtube . Says a lot , doesn it .
But , yes , all is not doom and gloom . There has been help extended , from some quarters. People outside the area of tamil folk music have been trying their best to popularize it . One prime example is that of Vijayalakshmi Navaneethakrishnan and her group . If you dont know her, she comes on television once every year during Pongal . Yes, thats the limited reach she has . Really famous for her "Dhink Chak Dhink Chak " song , she has been invited abroad to perform including Omaha in the United States. Finally, some light at the end of the tunnel .
A much more popular couple popularizing Tamil folk music worldwide ,are Anitha and Pushpavanam Kuppuswamy . Many of you would have seen these two on stage shows all over India and around the world . For those who haven , here is a video of their interview . An example of two people , who have dedicated their life to the betterment of Tamil folk music and its associated artistes. Not suprising, when you consider that it was their love for folk music ,which brought them together . I take a bow to them . More recently , he has been seen on the Vijay TV talk show " Vaanga Pesalam " , trying the best he can to popularize this art form . And as a small dedication to him from my side ,heres a song " Kaathadi Pola Endi Enna Suthure " from the movie "Maayavi " ,which i absolutely adore .
One more person , who comes to my mind is Revathi Shankaran . I was lucky enough to meet her when i was doing my 12th standard in school . She was the chief guest for the interschool cultural fest . An amazing folk artist , with a brilliant smile to accompany her amazing voice, she's one of my long time favourites .
But , despite all this , the bottomline is folk music is a dying variety in India. Folk artistes are dwindling by the day . And with most of us switching to fusion , western , metal and rock , one has to think what lays ahead for folk music and the people who practice it . One can only hope that more people like Paravai Muniamma come up and take the onus .
This post is in a small way a dedication to this wonderful art form and my love for these artists.
i'm a miley fan. She's pop, not folk. wasn't born in stardom. Nor did she have the most blessed childhood. Folk is unpopular. As in folk is less popular as compared to pop or rock anywhere in the world. Its only the natives who know and enjoy it. folk ppl prefer to perform in the rural regions, where people understand it. So, big city ppl don't know much about it. when it does come to the big cities, it gets adulterated as fusion and gets ruined. best that its preserved in the rural zone itself. its the same everywhere. folk stays in the countryside, not in the urban.
ReplyDeleteAs i responded in my tweet, i never meant Miley was a folk artist . But i am not buying the theory that a troubled childhood is an excuse for major frivolity in life . I agree with your point ,that folk music gets adulterated into fusion when it comes to the big cities. All i said, i just hope that there will be many independent folk artists in the future, who will buck this trend.
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