Margazhi comes to Mumbai

Umayalpuram K Sivaraman

December or Margazhi in Chennai is a busy affair. Classical artistes train for days to put their best foot forward; organisers have their hands full with scheduling; and viewers, from near and far, troop into the coastal city to watch it come alive with the best of Carnatic music, dance, harikatha, lecture-demonstrations, and lip-smacking canteen fare. And although it's gotten a little hot for the winter fiesta, over 1,300 kms away, Mumbai is now readying to welcome Margazhi. The upcoming weekend will witness the third edition of the Mumbai Margazhi Mahotsavam at a Bandra venue.

Performers include Sudha Ragunathan and Ashwath Narayanan

The festival organised by Banyan Tree was slotted for January, but had to be postponed owing to the third wave. After kicking off in 2020, it had a digital run last year. Nandini Mahesh, director, Banyan Tree Events, shares they're excited to be back live with a roster of Carnatic maestros and new talents. "I remember my first experience of Margazhi in Chennai. I saw the city reverberate with music and dance for a month - something I had never seen before," recollects Mahesh. What also stayed with her was how informed the audience was, she reveals, adding, "Mumbai Margazhi Mahotsavam was born out of that contagious enthusiasm of music lovers."

Nandini Mahesh

The line-up will feature kutcheris by Nadaswaram Prabhavathi Palanivel & Group; violin duet Lalgudi GJR Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi; Malladi Brothers (vocal) Sudha Ragunathan (vocal); Ashwath Narayanan (vocal); Sanjay Subrahmanyan (vocal) and Dr Umayalpuram K Sivaraman (mrudangam solo), among others. There will also be two lecture demonstrations - by Dr Chithra Madhavan on the architecture of a temple in Tamil Nadu and its connection with music and dance, and by Shriramkumar RK, who will delve into a vision of ragas as seen in the compositions of Sri Tyagarajasvami and Sri Muttusvami Dikshitar. The artistes promise to carry forward the essence of Margazhi. "It's going to be my responsibility to deliver the right compositions so that the Mumbai audience feels that, ‘Oh, we missed the Margazhi, but yes the Margazhi is here!" shares Ragunathan, while Narayanan says, "I want to present a few pieces that represent the month of Margazhi."

Mahesh hopes that the two-day fiesta is also a feast for Mumbaikars as popular South Indian canteen Arusuvai Arasu will cater to them. Maybe it's time for Mumbaikars to bring out their prized Kanjeevarams for this musical treat.

On: March 26 and 27; 10 am to 8 pm
At: St Andrews Auditorium, Bandra West
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Cost: Rs 500