Institution of awards at the opening of Sri Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha festival

Awards go on mounting and await recipients every year at the sabhas during the December season.
This year Nithyasree Mahadevan has reasons to make awards in the names of her legendary paternal grandmother D.K. Pattammal and maternal grandfather Palghat Mani Iyer since his centenary is to be celebrated next year.

At the launch of the music festival at Sri Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha Nithyasree received the award 'Sangeetha Kala Sarathy' from the hands of 46th jeeyar of Ahobila Mutt Sri Ranganatha Yatindra Mahadesikan.

She said in her acceptance speech that the awards make her more humble and more responsible towards the music she inherited from the family.
The Palghat Mani Iyer award instituted by her went to Umayalpuram Sivaraman, but he opted to donate it to Sabha to institute a prize in the name of one of his gurus Sakkottai Rangu Iyengar and said that it be given to the best mridangam player in the evening slots during the December season at the sabha.

Sudha Raghunathan has also instituted an award in the name of her guru, veteran singer M.L. Vasanthakumari and this year, the award went to Amrita Murali., a vocalist and violinist.

The jeer recalled his growing up years at Kumbakonam listening to good music. He appealed to the well wishers especially the patron Nalli Kuppusamy Chetti to facilitate the sabha to have its own venue soon.

The opening ceremonies always go beyond the time stipulated resulting in the inaugural concert delayed and shortened at the end.
It happened at Parthasarathy Sabha too.
The genius' concert of the nonagenarian R.K. Srikantan and the prodigy musician N.Ravikiran on Chitraveena. Accompanying on the mridangam was another veteran Srimushnam Rajarao and on the Kanjira, the young Sri Sundar Kumar. The hall was packed when the concert began.

But Madras rarely choose to be outdoors beyond 8.30 pm on any day. And a huge group walked out after the Bhairavi alapana by the genius duo!

Concerts are on till Jan. 8, 2011 at this Sabha, Interesting lec-dems are also conducted in the mornings.