Sunday Kutcheri in the Park completes 10 Years

The monthly Sunday Kutcheri in the Park organised by Sundaram Finance has completed 10 years today. Way back in February 2006, a group of 12 children from Vishwa Vidyalaya School came all the way from Vandalur to present the first Sunday Kutcheri in the Park. Since then over 1000 children aged below 15 years have presented the mikeless Kutcheri on the first Sunday of every month. In these 10 years, there have been participants from Dubai, Kuwait, Pune, Bangalore and California. For many children, this has been their first Kutcheri. There have been Kutcheris organised even in rain with umbrellas being held over the artistes.

TT Srinivasaraghavan, MD, Sundaram Finance Ltd., said ‘When we launched the Kutcheri in the Park, we had wanted this to be a stepping stone for budding musical talent. I would like to think that the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park has played a small role in helping young ‘unsung’ children aged below 15years shed the initial inhibition that we normally associate with stage performances by giving them a platform to showcase their talent. Many have gone on to the next level in their musical career. That for us is very heartening; those for whom we provided a platform, blossoming and moving on.’ Sruti Sarathy who came from the US to perform at the Sunday Kutcheri in 2008 has gone on to perform in the Chennai December season and has won the Best Violinist Award from Music Academy and the ‘Best Violinist’ award at Parthasarathy Swami Sabha. She credits the opportunity she got at the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park for her growth in her musical career. Twins Deeptha and Swetha Vasudevan who presented the Sunday Kutcheri in 2007 have now been presenting Kutcheris in the Sabhas in the city. The twins said ‘What we are today is because of the platform we got when we were young kids. That informal atmosphere inspired us and it is one of those unforgettable events of our lives.’

Sree Chitra Vijayakumar who presented almost a decade ago says ‘Thanks to the opportunity I got through the Sunday Kutcheri platform, I had cine music directors approaching me. I have now sung in three movies. The open air kutcheri also gave me a lot of self confidence and belief that soon after my Sunday Kutcheri, I cut my own CD album.’ Durga Venkatesh, Guru of Arul Priya (who came all the way from the Middle East to present the Kutcheri) said ‘I have been teaching young kids for several decades now, but I have never heard of the concept of 'mikeless kutcheri' and that, too in an open air environment. This is a very unique concept and this was a different kind of experience for my student. Without the mike, Arul Priya had to put in more effort and her voice came out much better. This will give her a lot of confidence to take her music learning into the next level.’ Audition ground for other Park Kutcheris During this period, the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park has even become an audition ground for a Kutcheri in another park in the city. The artistes who first perform here are seen performing at the other park in the succeeding months. Mikeless Kutcheri - Dr. Shubha Ganesan's disciples

On the occasion of the completion of 10 years of Kutcheri in the Park, over 15 children, all disciples of Dr. Shubha Ganesan presented a lively Mikeless Kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park on Sunday morning between 7am and 8am. They were accompanied on the Violin by G Vagadeeshwar and on the Mridangam by K S Ramakrishnan. TT Srinivasaraghavan presented certificates to the artistes and a memento to the Guru. No Mikes and Speakers are used at the Kutcheri. The Kutcheri in the Park organised on the first Sunday of every month is restricted to children aged below 15 years. A committee from Sundaram Finance conducts audition to select the artistes. To register for the audition: email Sundaykutcheri@sundaramfinance.in