M. L. Vasanthakumari

When Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das died in 1925, Lalithangi came out with a song as a tribute to his patriotism.

A rare gramophone record of her rendition of this song is said to be in V. Sundaram's possession.

MLV's school education was in Madras, in a convent, where she was set to pursue a medical career until Carnatic musician G. N. Balasubramaniam became her guru.

In her own words, "My parents had rendered yeomen service to Carnatic music. They were mainly instrumental in popularising the compositions of Purandara Dasa in South India. They were not keen that I should enter the music field and gave me general education. But in the musical atmosphere of my house, I had ample opportunity of practising vocal music. Once G. N. Balasubramaniam heard me sing and he prevailed upon my parents to place me under his tutelage. It was he who was responsible for the status I occupy in the music world today."

MLV learnt Carnatic music from G. N. Balasubramaniam (GNB).

She was also GNB's first disciple.

Madras Lalithangi Vasanthakumari (popularly referred to as MLV) (3 July 1928 – 31 October 1990) was a Carnatic musician and playback singer for film songs in many Indian languages.

MLV and her contemporaries D. K. Pattammal and M. S. Subbulakshmi are popularly referred to as the female trinity of Carnatic Music.

A prime disciple of G. N. Balasubramaniam, she was the youngest among the established musicians of that era, and was the youngest female to receive the Sangita Kalanidhi award.

MLV made her debut in 1940, at 12 years old, by accompanying her mother at a recital.

Two years later, she gave a solo recital in Bengaluru.

She also cut her first 78 rpm disc.

From then on, her career took on a geometric progression, as a stage artiste, and by 1950 she had established herself as a front-ranker.

A music critic said that MLV brought the struggle of women in the world of music to a successful culmination.

Her music was said to have more male characteristics than that of any other female musician.

MLV imbibed much of GNB's style, but did not make a fetish of speed and struck out on her own, evolving an inimitable style of her own.

While MLV was known more for her cerebral style, rather than her emotional one, this was compensated for by her rich and original manodharma.

Similar to GNB, she was said to be a genius in her tricky, instantaneous brilliant manodharma.

Indira Menon comments, "MLV did adopt her Guru's idea of a quick impressionistic sketch of the raga covering the two octaves at the start, but settled down to a reposeful elaboration, unfolding it gradually with her virtuosity in the form of BRIGA - CASCADES appearing only where necessary. She was careful not to carry to an excess what her versatile voice was capable of."

MLV's mastery over vocal techniques was comprehensive and complete.

She could render several difficult ragas, with her alapana and kalpana swaras, suitably embellished with shruthi-bheda.

Her listeners had the same ecstatic experience when she sang and more particularly when in a lightning manner she shifted gracefully from the melodic world of one raga in one pitch to another raga in another pitch.

In this context, one has to refer to raga combinations like Shanmukhapriya-Sankarabharanam, Bhairavi-Kamas, Abhogi-Valaji to illustrate this point.

In GNB's own words,"Vasanthi typifies real discipleship – she absorbs all, but presents her own glorious creations."

Lalithangi, MLV's mother, had a vast repertoire of Purandaradasa kritis.

She passed on this tradition to her daughter, MLV.

As a result, like T. Brinda who brought Kshetrayya Padams to the public platform and M. S. Subbalakshmi who brought Annamacharya kritis to the public arena, MLV popularized the Devaranamas of Purandaradasa.

She popularized the composition 'Kalyana Gopalam', composed by Narayana Teertha, in raga Sindhubhairavi.

She also popularized the composition, 'Venkatachala Nilayam' by Purandaradasa in the same raga.

Hindustani maestro Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was generous in his praise for her music.

Sudha Ragunathan mentions, "MLV Amma has told me that it was Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saab who taught her the nuances of Sindhu Bhairavi in the Hindustani style."

MLV's forte was Ragam Tanam Pallavi, where she not only maintained the tradition brought to the stage by D. K. Pattammal, but enriched it in her own unique way.

In 1967, she was honored with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award by the government of India.

Her daughter, the late K.Srividya, was an actress in Tamil and Malayalam languages.

As well as being a much sought-after playback singer for films, MLV popularized unfamiliar ragas, and her Ragam Thanam Pallavis were considered cerebral.

Additionally, she popularized the compositions of the Haridasas.

Her most famous disciples include Srividya (her daughter), Sudha Raghunathan, Charumathi Ramachandran and A. Kanyakumari.

MLV was born to a musical family.

Her father, Kuthanur Ayya Swamy Iyer, was a noted musician.

Her mother, Lalithangi, was also a musician.