SWATHI THIRUNAL AND HIS CONTRIBUTION TO INDIAN MUSIC AND LITERATURE. (N.R. Pillai, Vilavath Veed, Koovappady.)
When you go through the history of former Travancore/Cochin states (now parts of Keralam), you will find that it has produced many great saints, scholars, musicians, artistes like Adi Sankara, Unnayi Varrier, Kerala Varma, Sree Narayana Guru, Raja Ravi Varma and many more. Generation to generation, it has been the tradition of Travancore ruling family to encourage the scholars and artistes. Particularly, during the period between 17th and 19th centuries, most of the Maharajas who ruled the state were either themselves great musicians, artistes or poets, or promoters of various fine arts like dance (especially Kathakali, Mohini Attam – some dance forms of Kerala) and Ottam Thullal, music and also sports.
Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma Kulasekhara Perumal (popularly known as "Swathi Thirunal"), descendant of the Travancore ruling family, was born to Maharani Gauri Lakshmi Bai and Sri Raja Raja Verma Koyilthampuran on 16th April in the year 1813.
At the time of Swathi Thirunal's birth, the state was ruled by Maharani Gauri Lakshmi Bai with the able assistance and guidance from her husband. In the year 1815, after giving birth to her second son Marthanada Varma, Rani Lakshmi Bai breathed her last.
When Swathi Thirunal was only three years, his parents took special care of him, especially his studies, and deputed eminent scholars, like Pandit Subhja Rao and Haripad Kochupillai Warrier to give him necessary education in English, Marathi, Sanskrit and Malayalam respectively. Also appointed were renowned teachers to instruct him on other languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Persian, Hindustani, Arabic etc. Apart from learning statecraft and literature, he also received substantial training in carnatic and hindustani music (both vocal and instrumentals) under eminent musicians. The rare instrument, ‘swarbat’, that used in hindustani/carnatic music was mastered by Swathi Thirunal. In a very short time, he mastered all the fields and received appreciation from visiting dignitaries and others including Col. Mantro and Col. Welsh who were Travancore Dewan and leader of British Army respectively.
As Kulasekhara Perumal (one who got the right to take up the throne immediately after birth), Swathi Thirunal was involved actively in all the responsibilities bestowed to a Maharaja and was said to have assisted Maharani in taking important decisions on various state matters. At the age of 16, Swathi Thirunal was crowned as Maharaja of Travancore to take direct charge of the state affairs and ruled over 18 years until death.
During his tenure as Maharaja, Swathi Thirunal made a number of far reaching modifications to the government administrations and introduced new measures for the welfare of the people. These are setting up of schools (both in Malayalam and English mediums), library, observatory; introducing Malayalam as official language for handling government correspondence (replacing Tamil which was the official language used until his time); promoting and introducing new fine arts by way of appointing eminent musicians, dancers and scholars in his court. Some of the eminent personalities who were in his court are Irayimman Thampi (a great poet, musician, author of three attakathas and sanskrit scholar), Kilimanoor Vidwan Koil Tampuran, Shatkala Govinda Marar and Thanjavoor Quartet (Vadivelu and brothers).
Swathi Thirunal had been praised by various eminent personalities of British raj for his administrative capabilities and bringing his small state to the top level of popularity among the princely states in the entire country.
Swathi Thirunal's contributions to the world of Indian Music is enormous and worth mentioning. As a deep devotee of Lord Padmanabha, for spreading the deity's name to all corners of the world through devotional songs, he composed a number of varnas, tillanas, padams, krithanas etc. which are qually popular alongwith the kritis made for carnatic music by Saint Thyagaraja, Dikshitar and Shyama Sastri,. Swathi Thirunal was the only multi-linguistic music composer by contributing kritis in various languages such as sanskrit, kannada, Telugu, Malayalam (or manipravalam) as well as hindustani. His contribution to hidustanic music includes khayal, drupad, thumri, bhajan and tarana. His famous tarana is widely sung in music circles by eminent musicians but in south Indian style. Hence the original north Indian style is not available presently.
His contributions to both carnatic and hidustani music come around 400 kritis covering most of the important ragas. He has also brought to light some important technical methods used earlier in the carnatic music compositions but not familiar in contemporary or later works. Music of the highest order has all the form, constituents, bhava, raga, tala, bhakti. We can find one of these dominant feature in the musical work of his , if not all. Especially, while composing padams for the purpose of dance varieties, he is said to have received support from Irayimman Thampi and Vadivelu. Apart from the compositions devoted to Carnatic and Hindustani music, Swathi Thirunal attempted few famous poetical works in sanskrit as well as in Malayalam, some of which are Sree Padmanabhasaatakam, Bhaktimanjari, Utsavaprabandham (in Malayalam), Ajamilopakhyanam and Kuchelopakhyanam. From the above last two were made for Harikatha originated from Maharashtra which gained popularity in Kerala during his time. His small work Muhanaprasantyaprasadivyavastha, is on the specific alankara used in poetical works mainly for dance purpose.
It is believed that Maharaja was very keen in popularizing kritis, composed by his contemporaries, in his state, giving equal importance to their works along with his own creation and was said to have invited Thyagaraja to his darbar; but due to advanced age and failing health, Thyagaraja couldn't make his journey all the ways from Thanjavur to Travancore and instead conveyed his greetings and good wishes to Swathi Thirunal through the messenger.
During his time, a number of poor and eminent personalities from all over the country had come and settled in Travancore as refugees to whom Swathi Thirunal had given warm welcome and patronage. Thanjavoor brothers (Chinnayya, Ponnayya, Vadivelu, among others), spent some years in his darbar under the patronage of the Maharaja.
After ruling 18 years (these 18 years were said to be the golden era in the history of Travancore), at the age of 33, Swathi Thirunal attained Saayujyam on 25th Dec. 1846. The various arts and culture encouraged by him are now struggling for it survival – classical bharata natyam and carnatic music being no exceptions. People in the world of music from generation to generation will never forget Swathi Thirunal, for his contributions to classical music and patronage to musical exponents.
Mumbai-Dombivli.
11.2.2006.
(Published in NAVANEETHAM & JAYAKERALAM online Magazine )
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