Music can cure diseases - Sirkazhi Sivachidambaram

“I am following the path of appa …!”
Sivachidambaram

Sirkazhi Govindarajan, the late veteran musician enslaved all with his majestic voice. His son Sivachidambaram, a true son of his father is bringing credit to the family by following his father’s path with all his talents and sincerity. He expressed his heart-felt happiness that he was continuing his father’s invaluable contribution to the music world and that he had still more to achieve.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: You have been lucky enough to be born in a family that has a lasting fame for music. Please tell us about your late father, the great musician, Sirkazhi Govindarajan …

A: Our family is basically a music family. My grandfather was preparing and selling sweets! But my father was interested in music. Because of his interest, he started acting in dramas. Then he was an actor, employed by Modern Theatres. Later, he joined the Central School of Carnatic Music in Chennai and won the title of Sangeetha Vidwan. Then, he joined Tamilisai College and won ‘Isaimani’ title. He left a deep mark in not only film music but also in Carnatic music with his flamboyant style. My grandfather’s name was Sivachidambaram. My father gave me his name. My father’s guru was Thirupamburam Swaminatha Pillai. People called him ‘Sangeetha irumbu thalaiyar’. I used to address him as ‘Vadhyar thathaa’. In those days, music dramas will be held in temples. My grandfather used to act and sing in those dramas. His brother would play harmonium. In Ramayana drama, my father would do the role of Rama as a boy (junior). These experiences proved very helpful to him when he was with the Devi nataka sabha. In those days, sabhas used to function according to strict rules like schools. Discipline was very important. All the artistes should learn putting make-up, playing instruments etc.

There were classes for literature also. And, that was the reason why even unlettered artistes had knowledge in literature. My father’s uncle Pundit P. S. Chettiar was running a publication, called ‘Cinema ulagam’. It was the first magazine for Tamil cinema. He worked as an assistant under the English director Ellis R. Duncan. My father was very hard working. One day, when he was practicing, music director G. Ramanathan happened to hear. He told my father that he could have a bright future if he took formal training from a guru. My father joined a music college in Chennai on his advice only. During the interview for winning the title ‘Isaimani’, he was lucky to meet his guru Thiruppampuram Swaminatha Pillai. My father stayed with him and learnt music, following the practice of gurukulavasam. And my father won the first prize in all the music competitions held at Music academy. The judges were M. S. Subbulakshmi, D. K. Pattammal and M. L. Vasanthakumari.