Lockdown Sunday Kutcheri Cancelled

The 'First Sunday' without the Kutcheri

The rain in 2009 could not stop the Sunday Kutcheri but the Virus has in April 2020

Shwetha posts a video message and a song

It is just past 7am on Sunday (April 5), the morning of the first Sunday of the month when the chess square at the Nageswara Rao Park has for the last 13 years been bustling with musical activity. Sipping a hot coffee, Kutcheri buffs and music connoisseurs are seen encouraging the ‘Star of the Day’.

A Platform for Budding Artistes

Since February 2007, Sundaram Finance has been organizing a mikeless kutcheri for children aged below 15years on the first Sunday of every month. Over 200 such mikeless kutcheris have been held at the park. 11 years ago, even the rain on one of the Kutcheri mornings could not play spoilsport, for the personnel from the company held umbrellas atop the artistes so she could present the one hour Kutcheri. 

Arul Priya from Dubai presenting the Kutcheri in the rain

This morning turned out to be one of the very few occasions when the Kutcheri has had to be cancelled.

Promise Fulfilled
13 year old S Shwetha, the great grand daughter of Mridangam Vidwan Palghat Mani Iyer, was all excited when she was informed about her selection and the opportunity to perform at the April edition of the monthly mikeless kutcheri. In September 2015, her elder sister, Sowmya had performed on the same stage, a kutcheri that Shwetha watched
(https://sundaykutcheri.blogspot.com/2015/09/palghat-mani-iyers-great-grand-daughter.html). She enjoyed it so much that she promised to herself that she too would perform one day at this prestigious platform for budding artistes. Her sister, who first performed at the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park, has now moved on and become a graded artiste at the AIR.

Early morning practice

Since this was to be a kutcheri sans mikes and speakers, her Guru Palghat Shri TR Rajaram directed her to practice early in the morning so the voice comes out better. And leading up to the kutcheri, she had been practicing each day for 2 hours in the wee hours of the morning.

And then came the call from the organisers that the Kutcheri was being cancelled given the extraordinary developments worldwide ‘I was initially a bit disappointed at the cancellation. But when I thought about it, I soon realized that this was understandable as the decision was being made as a precautionary measure.”

She is now looking forward to performing at the same stage sometime in the near future once things get back to normal. While external circumstances forced the cancellation of her first full fledged Mikeless Kutcheri, her mind was all on what might have been. And in a symbolic token gesture, Shwetha has put out a video with a few lines of a song that she would have presented between 7am and 8am at the Nageswara Rao Park this first Sunday of April.

Shreyas Sunday Kutcheri in the Park

Sundaram Finance organises Mikeless Kutcheri at  Nageswara Rao Park

As part of the monthly Sunday Kutcheri in the Park organised by Sundaram Finance on the first Sunday of every month, 14 year old Shreyas Murali, student of Guru G Ravikiran, presented a vocal Carnatic music Kutcheri this morning between 7am and 8am at the chess square of the Nageswara Rao Park in Mylapore.

Accompanied on the Violin by C. S. Chinmayi and on the Mirudangam by R. Vinoth, Shreyas presented compositions that included Sriman Narayana (Bowli – Adi), Teliya Leru Rama  (Dhenuka – Adi), Evvari Maata  (Kamboji – Adi) and  Maithreem Bhajata (Ragamalika – Adi).

P Viswanathan, Company Secretary, Sundaram Finance Ltd., presented certificates and mementos to the artistes. 

The Mikeless Kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park was launched in February 2006. Around 1400 children have been part of the Kutcheri over the last 14 years. The idea of the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park is to provide opportunities to young budding talent aged below 15 years to present in front of an informal park audience amidst chirping birds and falling leaves. Mikes and speakers are not used at the Kutcheri in the Park.

Sundaram Finance conducts audition to select the artistes to present the Mikeless Kutcheri. For details, email: sundaykutcheri@sundaramfinance.in

Sunday Kutcheri enters 15th year

Mahathi presents Mikeless Kutcheri at Nageswara Rao Park

As part of the monthly Sunday Kutcheri in the Park organised by Sundaram Finance on the first Sunday of every month, 14 year old Mahathi Baskar, student of Smt. Shubha Ganesan, presented a lively Mikeless Kutcheri this morning between 7am and 8am at the chess square of the Nageswara Rao Park in Mylapore. The Kutcheri marked the beginning of the 15^th year of the Sunday Kutcheri in the Park that was launched in February 2006. Around 1400 children have been part of the Mikeless Kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park.

Accompanied on the Violin by G. Vagadeeshwar and on the Mirudangam by S Aniruddh, Mahathi presented compositions that included Sakthi Ganapathim (Nattai / Rupakam), Kanchadalayadakshi (Kamalmanohari / Adhi), Sri Venu Gopala (Darbar / Kanda Chapu), Sarasaksha (Pantuvarali/ Adhi ) and Madharpirakkanniyanai (Kurinjippan). 

N Srirmanan, Senior GM, Sundaram Finance, presented certificates and mementos to the artistes.

Madura Ganalaya presents Group Sunday Kutcheri

Sundaram Finance Sunday Kutcheri in the Park completes 14 years
Around 1400 children have presented the Mikeless Kutcheri  at Nageswara Rao Park since February 2006

15 students from Madura Ganalaya present a lively Kutcheri in the Park on Sunday Morning

Launched on the first Sunday of February 2006, the monthly Sunday Kutcheri in the Park organised by Sundaram Finance has completed 14 years on Sunday ( Jan 12). Around 1400 children have been part of the Mikeless Kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park during this period. To mark the occasion and on the final morning of the Sundaram Finance Mylapore Festival 2020, 15 students from Madura Ganalaya presented a lively one hour Kutcheri in the Park, without mikes and speakers, at the Nageswara Rao Park in front of a big Sunday morning audience that had gathered around the chess square. 

The students presented songs that included Karimuga, Mayilmeethu, Raghuvamsa, Pandurithiko and Venkatachala

TT Srinivasaraghavan, MD, Sundaram Finance said ‘When we launched the Kutcheri in the Park 14 years ago, our idea was to make this a stepping stone for budding musical talent and to help young ‘unsung’ children aged below 15 years shed the initial inhibition that we normally associate with stage performances by giving them a platform to showcase their talent in an informal environment. Many have gone on to the next level in their musical career. That for us is very heartening.’ 

On the Mikeless Kutcheri concept, Srinivasaraghavan said, ‘We have resisted the temptation to use Mikes and stuck on to the ‘Mikeless Concept’ for we believed that an open-air kutcheri, amidst falling leaves and curious birds chirping around the park, would bring out the best in the children if they performed without the help of mikes and speakers.’

S Dhandayuthapani, GM, Sundaram Finance presented certificates to the artistes and a memento to the Guru.

Talented children from the US, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Pune and Bangalore have also presented mikeless kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park over the last 14 years.The monthly Kutcheri in the Park is restricted to children aged below 15 years. A committee from Sundaram Finance conducts audition to select the artistes. The Kutcheri in the Park has also featured in the Limca Book of Records as the longest open air Mikeless Kutcheri for children.

Paavani Cotai Mikeless Kutcheri

Paavani Cotai, a disciple of TR Vasudevan presented a one

hour mikeless kutcheri at the Nageswara Rao Park this Friday morning on day 3 of the Sundaram Finance Mylapore Festival 2020. She was accompanied by Purva Dhanashree on the Violin

and by VG Visswesh on the Mridangam.

N Sriraman presented certificates to the artistes.

Shakthi mikeless kutcheri

Shakthi Muralidharan presents one hour Mikeless Kutcheri 

Shakthi Muralidharan, disciple of Guru Smt Amritha Murali and Guru Smt Sattur Lalitha Santhanam , 

presented a Mikeless Kutcheri this morning between 7am and 8am at the Nageswara Rao Park.

She was accompanied on the Violin by Haritha Narayanan and on the Mirudangam by Sannath Parameswaran.

C Muralidharan, Sundaram Finance presented certificates to the artistes and a memento to the Guru.

Sruthilaya Students mikeless kutcheri

Sundaram Finance Mylapore Festival 2020 launches with a Group Mikeless Kutcheri at Nageswara Rao Park

15 students from Sruthilaya School presented a one hour Mikeless Kutcheri this Thursday ( Jan 9) morning at the Nageswara Rao Park to kick off the 18^th edition of the Sundaram Finance Mylapore Festival. Mikes and Speakers are not used at the Kutcheri in the Park.

The students, who are learning music from Guru Suresh Raman, presented theme based songs on ‘Mylai’ that included ‘Padame Thunai’, Karpaga Vallinin, Karunai Theivamey and Karpaga Manohara.

P Viswanathan, Company Secretary, Sundaram Finance presented certificates and cloth bags to the artistes and a memento to the Guru.