Concert and Arts

Sivaramakrishna Iyer had played the flute for Malayalam’s first neo-realistic cinema, `Newspaper Boy’, released in 1955. But the old man neither remembers the films to which his flute lent music nor does he wish to. He learnt to play the flute from his father, Krishna Bhagavathar. He gave his first solo recital at the age of nine and soon became a graded artist with the All India Radio in 1946. In the meanwhile he also worked as an employee of the Accountant General’s Office of the Travancore State. By the time he retired in 1984, it had been rechristened into the LIC of India.

Melodious tunes from Sivaramakrishna’s flute play all day in his home in the Brahmin Street at Valiyasala. He remembers a 75-minute programme he did with Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer on the AIR. “Impressed with my performance, he had me accompany him for a concert at the Padmanabha Swamy temple where he recited 24 ashtapadis. We remained friends until he passed away.” “In the movie `Guruvayoorappan’, I played the flute under the music direction of Dakshinamoorthy,” he says. Unfortunately, he can hardly remember what song it was. Instead, he played out the shades of the raga.

Sivaramakrishnan has accompanied singers like Brahmanandan and Kamukara Purushothaman. His years of `sadhana’ has kept his flute recitals crystal clear and sharp, even at the ripe old age of 84. “I can do solo concerts of any length even now,” he says. “Playing the flute the right way is equal to doing `pranayama’ and can help you stay clear of asthma. It empowers your lungs like no exercise can.”

As he picks up one of many flutes, he tells us about it and the music lover who had gifted him the silver flute after a solo concert at the Ettumanoor Temple when he was all of 12 years old. Soon, he loses himself in his world of melody.