Renowned
Carnatic
musician
M
S
Subbulakshmi
died
at
11.45
p.m.
in
Chennai
December
11
following
"various
complications",
according
to
hospital
and
family
sources.Renowned
Carnatic
musician
M
S
Subbulakshmi
died
at
11.45
p.m.
in
Chennai
December
11
following
"various
complications",
according
to
hospital
and
family
sources.
She was 88. Her husband, Sadasivam, pre-deceased her in 1997.
A Magsaysay Award winner, Subbulakshmi, popularly known as "MS," has no children.
Born as Kunjamma in the temple city of Madurai in 1916, Subbulakshmi was a chronic diabetic for nearly four decades. Some months ago, she was admitted to a private hospital, following a complaint of hyperglycemia (steep increase in blood sugar).
The
doyen
of
Carnatic
music
was
admitted
to
a
private
hospital
on
December
2,
following
a
bout
of
viral
infection
-
broncho
pneumonia.
Though
she
responded
to
treatment,
she
developed
cardiac
irregularities.
Subbulakshmi, who had also acted in a few Tamil films in her young age, was married to Sadasivam, a well-known figure in the then Madras Congress circles and a protege of the late Rajaji, in 1940.
Her first movie 'Sevasadanam' was released in 1938. This was followed by 'Shakunthalai', 'Savithri' and 'Meera,' to mention a few.
A globetrotter, MS was the first woman to be awarded the 'Sangitha Kalanidhi,' a prestigious title of the well-known Music Academy of Chennai.
An ardent devotee of the Paramacharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, the late Chandrasekharendra Saraswati, the musician received the Ramon Magasasay Award in Manila in 1974 and the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1996. She is the only Carnatic musician to have received the award so far.
MS immortalised many songs, including 'Vaishnava Janatho', a favourite of Mahatma Gandhi, Meera bhajans, Annamacharya kirtans and the like. Gandhi even asked her to sing in his prayer meetings at Sabarmati Ashram.
Her
career
touched
its
peak
in
1966,
when
she
was
invited
to
render
a
concert
before
the
General
Assembly
of
the
United
Nations,
where
she
kept
the
audience,
comprising
many
heads
of
states,
spellbound.
She had the rare privilege of rendering songs penned by the late Chandrasekharendra Saraswati, the 69th pontiff of the Kanchi Sankara Mutt, and the first and last Indian Governor General of India, C Rajagopalachari, praying for world peace.
MS also performed in concerts across the globe, including the UK, USSR, USA and France.
In 1941, she and her husband, T Sadasivam, a freedom fighter who played a major role in shaping her career, met Mahatma Gandhi at Wardha Ashram. Three years later, she gave five concerts to raise funds for the Kasturba Memorial Trust.
On October 2, 1947, she performed a concert on All India Radio on the occasion of Gandhiji's birthday, during which she sang her famous Meera Bhajans and Tulsidas, Kabirdas kirtans.
MS stopped singing after her husband's death.