L.S.Rajagopal
Above- LSRajagopal with RGK. Below: With Writer and Mrs. Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan
RGK
aka R. Gopalakrishnan aka R. G. Krishna (the illustrious writer and assistant Editor
from the stable of Times of India) invited me to meet his friend L.S. Rajagopalan.
We had a wonderfully nostalgic afternoon when the two veterans exchanged
memories about music, dancers and musicians. LSR was an amiable conversationalist and
shared some personal incidents about his life.
LSR
was born in 1922 at Konnangulam near Guruvayur. He was a student of St.
Xavier’s college in Mumbai where eminent journalist M.V. Kamath was a
classmate. After graduating in Chemistry, he procured a job in Kemp & Co.
as a chemist. Kamath was employed elsewhere and as soon as a vacancy occurred
in Kemp & Co, LSR called his friend over to work at a salary of thirty
rupees.
The
earliest contact with music was when he heard a classical music concert on the
radio. While his sister learned the violin, he opted for the flute, which cost
the least and required no maintenance. Vishnu Prasad Shirali who played
jalatarangam inspired him, so he searched for a teacher who can teach him that
instrument. Another event which inspired
him was Uday Shankar’s performance at the Capitol (Mumbai) when he witnessed
the dance-drama Man & Machine. with a one-rupee ticket.
Someone suggested Manohar Barve, a musician
who conducted classes at Dadar. When Barve heard he was from Trichur, the first
question he asked was , “ How is the King Cobra in the Trichur Zoo? When I went
there for a performance I visited the zoo. The head master of Sarkar High School
was my host.”
“My
father is the headmaster. You stayed at
my house.”, replied an astonished LSR.
Barve
could play a hundred instruments and is known to play the violin held behind
his back. LSR learnt Tilak Kamod on the flute after unsuccessfully trying out
the whimsical jalatarangam. One day, the instructor did not turn up but a young
man sitting in his place said he has been deputised to teach that day. After
the class, they made their way home together. Their conversation ran something
like this:
I
didn’t get your name.
Marathe.
Not
Ram Marathe, is it? Ha, ha.
Yes,
Ram Marathe.
Not
Ram Marathe the singer, actor?
Yes,
the same.
LSR
describes this moment as thrilling and kept him on a high all his life to think
he has been learning from Ram Marathe. He continued learning music and explored
Carnatic music. He has a letter from Tiger Varadachari who advised him that the
best way to learn Carnatic music is to learn as many varnams as you can.
In 1944,
he returned to Thrissur and began a pharmaceutical industry making medicines
for rheumatism and filaria.
In
1950, LSR witnessed Koodiyattam for the first time. He remembered a verse from
the Tamil epic Silapaddikaram: “His red eyes set forth a thousand ideas.” The
red eyes are caused by a seed inserted in the eye to enhance Netra-Abhinaya.
After considerable research in Koodiyattam and folk arts, he was considered a
scholar who was a mentor for students. LSR was equally highly impressed by the
folk and tribal artists who had fine voices perfectly aligned to sruti.
Folk
arts need a platform and be accorded a status, he says. “Money can come later.
Otherwise we may lose these arts.”
He was fascinated by the music of the Chakyars accompanying
the dance. He began to analyse the performances for the swaras (notes) and
their arrangement. In 1973, he gave a lecture demonstration on Kudiyattam at
the Madras Music Academy with Mani Madhava Chakyar. This gave instant
recognition to the art which was till then confined to Kerala.
He is the author of two books on Kudiyattam. His keen
interest in Kathakali led him to experimental production of a Kathakali play
based on Arunachala Kavi’s Rama Natakam in Tamil.
As a scholar who promoted not only the classical arts but
also tribal arts and folk music, he devoted his efforts on his own steam and
because of his passion for them.
At the time, I met LSR, I had not witnessed any Koodiyattam
recital. When I was in Irinjalakuda in 2001 for a two-month Netra Abhinaya
residential workshop, I visited LSR at his home.
Performing artistes of Indian classical and folk art forms
were bereaved as L.S. Rajagopal, an eminent scholar and researcher, passed away
in Thrissur in 2008 at the age of 86.
