Sri Guruguha Gana Vidyalaya celebrated the 248th Jayanti of Nadajyoti Muthuswamy Dikshitar through a two-day grand music festival organized by Guruguha Sangeeth Sammelan, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and Accolade Studios, co-powered by State Bank of India and partnered on the radio by Friends FM.

The program was conceived and well executed by Guru Srividya Anantharaman, Principal of Sri Guruguha Gana Vidyalaya

The first day, ‘Pravah’ was a confluence of Western and Carnatic Classical Music that showcased 35 nottuswarams composed by Dikshitar, sung by the young students of the Vidyalaya, along with five Western equivalents that were presented to the audience by members of the Calcutta Chamber Orchestra.

A skit depicting an idea of how Dikshitar would have come by composing these nottuswarams was presented which gave the audience a deeper insight about the program. The actors were splendid in their work and were successful in etching the story into the audience’s memory. The programme, infused with apt visuals was a marvel to the eyes. The children were spectacular in their rendition. S Venkatraman’s support of Mridangam and Sagnik Sammadar’s cheerful tunes on the keyboard added color to the program. ‘Pravah’ true to its name, was a flow of artistic ebullience.

On the second day, Shankara Guruguham was a  thematic concert bringing together Sri Adi Shankaracharya and Nadajyoti Muthuswamy Dikshitar, 2 great beings born across different timelines but similar in many regards. Vivek Sadasivam’s rendition of the kritis was complemented by Vinay Varanasi’s enthralling stories. Vaibhav Ramani’s support on the violin was exceptional and Adamya Ramanand gave a wonderful contribution to the program by ably supporting the artists on the Mridangam.

‘Shankara Guruguham’ was a unique program that was a treat to the audience leaving them yearning for more.

The program was well-attended on both days and was inaugurated by MLA Debashish Kumar on the first day and by eminent musician Padma Bhushan Ajoy Chakraborty on the second day.

The occasion was graced by other esteemed guests from the musical community and was a grand success.