A group of young singers were in the hotel room with M.S. Viswanathan. They shuffled uneasily when the maestro asked them to sit down beside him. When they kept standing MSV, as he was popularly known, gestured towards them and said, “If you don’t sit I’ll stand up with you,” and prepared to get up with a mischievous smile. The singers were taken aback for such humility was an anachronism. But MSV was always like that, simple and, like his music, straight from the heart.
It was this honest, frank approach to music and life that helped MSV tide over a sea of difficulties and volley of criticism during the course of his long and illustrious career.
One such instance was when MSV’s music was censured for being imitations of popular Hindi film tunes. This happened when Kalai Kovil (1964) was released. A journalist wrote, with examples, of the Hindi tunes that Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy team had used in various films. “This charge was actually right for there were strong semblances in the songs of movies such as Pathi Bhakthi (1958), Paava Mannippu (1961), Pachai Vilakku (1964), Padithaal Mattum Poduma (1962), Karnan (1964), Kaathalikka Neramillai (1964) and Kalai Kovil . But MSV’s response was so measured and frank. He said that one thing is born out of another and that, while Naushad and others like him were true composers, he was just a ‘music creator.’ He had no qualms in accepting and acknowledging his sources of inspiration,” mentions B. Vijayakumar, film historian.
MSV’s life was a journey from the low to the high notes. Nothing came easy to him and life’s experiences steeled him. He lost his father when he was just three, had to discontinue studies, and was taken to Kannur by his grandfather. He studied Carnatic music under Neelakanta Bhagavathar, perhaps the only formal training he had. When he was hardly seven MSV sang at the Kannur town hall. Bhagavathar cast him as Lohithakashan in a musical play, ‘Harishchandra’; his first role. Later, MSV went on to act in films like Kaadhal Mannan, Kaathala Kaathala and Rojavanam .
The turning point of MSV’s life was when he joined Jupiter Pictures, Coimbatore, as an office boy. He got this job as his uncle worked there. Here he got his first opportunity to act in a film, Kannagi . “Those were times when I did not know what to do. I was cast as Kovilan. But I was taken off as those who watched the rushes thought I looked like Kannagi’s sister. So that didn’t work,” MSV once said in a chat with this writer.
Jupiter Pictures was a training ground for MSV who watched the legendary music directors of the time like S.V. Venkatraman, Govindarajulu Naidu, S.M. Subbaiah Naidu and C.R. Subbaraman at work. Subbaiah Naidu, in particular, encouraged the young man, training him to play the harmonium.
In 1948, Abhimanyu was under production at the studio. Subbaiah Naidu was the music director. Dead into the night he heard MSV playing a song, which he was struggling to come to terms with. Naidu was impressed by the captivating tune and used this in the film. The song sung by Tiruchi Lokanathan and U.R. Jeevarathnam became a sensation. The fact that it was tuned by the office boy was kept in wraps. Later, Naidu revealed the truth to the world.
When Jupiter Pictures was shifted to Madras, MSV also moved. Here he worked as assistant to C.R. Subbaraman. Ramamoorthy also was working as his assistant. They became friends and this led to the birth of the magical music team that went on to create some amazing songs in Tamil.
Subbaraman died in 1952 and it was left to Viswanathan-Ramamoorthy to complete the music their guru had left unfinished in films such as Chandi Rani (Hindi and Telugu versions too), Marumakal and Sorgavasal . By then the team had scored music for their first independent project, Panam , directed by N.S. Krishnan. The duo created some super melodies. “Things finally seemed to fall in place for me. See, one’s time will surely come,” MSV said. After 13 years, in 1965, the duo decided to part ways. They joined hands again, almost three decades later in 1995 in Engiruntho Vanthaan and Ilakkiya Cholai .
MSV’s early solo efforts were a huge success. The songs in the film Anbey Vaa turned hits, especially the iconic T. M. Soundararajan-P. Susheela duet ‘Raajavin paarvai…’ There was no looking back for MSV after this. TMS and Susheela went on to render some immortal songs for him. Some of the other everlasting melodies that MSV created were ‘Anroru naal ithey nilavil... ’ ( Nadodi ), ‘Nilavey ennidam mayankaathey... ’ ( Ramu ), ‘Poomaalayil oru mallikai... ’ ( Ootty Varai Uravu) and so on.
In 1953, MSV made his Malayalam debut in the film Jenova. Produced by E.M. Eappachan this Tamil-Malayalam bilingual had M.G. Ramachandran and B.S. Saroja in the lead. “It was musician S.M. Raja who introduced MSV to the producer. Two other music directors, Njanamani and T.A. Kalyanam, were already contracted. When MGR heard that an office boy was also roped in, he called up the producer and protested. MGR’s fear was that a mere office boy would kill the music. But Eappachan stuck to his decision and the recording went on. MGR listened to the song and was impressed. He called MSV and promised to give him more opportunities in his films,” says Vijayakumar.
Busy in Tamil films by that time, MSV worked in his next Malayalam film, Lilly, after nearly five years. The songs in both these films somehow did have that MSV stamp on them. That enchanting brand of music was heard first in Lankadahanam (1971). Like the famous Kannadasan-MSV team in Tamil the Sreekumaran Thampi-MSV team was forged after this film. But MSV also went on to create ageless melodies with Vayalar Rama Varma, Mankombu Gopalakrishnan and P. Bhaskaran. In a career spanning almost a decade MSV created over 340 songs for 77 Malayalam films. ‘Thiruvabharanam…’(Lankadahanam), ‘Swarnagopura…’ (Divyadarshanam), ‘Rajeevanayane…’ (Chandrakantham), ‘Nadanpattinte…’(Babumon), ‘Chandramadathinte…’ (Ormakal Marikkumo), ‘Ayala porichathundu…’ (Venallil Oru Mazha), an English song, ‘Where there is….,’written by Randor Guy for the film Randu Penkuttikal and some of which he rendered have all found a place in the collective memory of the Malayali.
MSV belonged to a time when the music director was king. “We decided on the singers depending on the situation in the film, the actors in it. It was team work as the producer, director, singers, and the orchestra got together for rehearsals. Many of my songs, for example ‘Enge nimmathi…’, would not be alive today if it had not been for the orchestra that worked in unison for so many hours. Man is mortal but the melodies immortal,” the maestro said.
Always very judicious in his choice of singers, like for instance in using the voices of P. Jayachandran, P. Leela or L.R. Ishwari, MSV rather strangely never used his favourite voice, P. Susheela, much in Malayalam. Many commentators believe that Susheela must have been busy in other languages or perhaps the producers must have had their own choices. Some think that MSV had reserved Susheela for his best in Tamil.
MSV strongly disagreed with the talk that music directors were now trying to give the listeners what they wanted. “I feel that a music director should give only what is good and must work hard to do this. Can you give poison just because someone wants it?”
When asked whether he noticed any drastic change in today’s music MSV asked, “Change?” moving his fingers as if inquiring if ‘change’ meant money and then with a laugh added “There’s more money today in music. But it is still all about matter, meter and melody.”
Unforgettable songs
‘Swarganandini…’ ( Lankadahanam)
‘Tripurasundari trailokamohini…’ ( Divyadarshanam)
‘Veena poove…’ (Jeevikan Marannupoya Sthree)
‘Swargamenna kananathil…’ ( Chandrakantham )
‘Chanchalitha…’ ( Dharmakshetre Kurukshetre )
‘Mullamala choodivanna…’ ( Aayiram Janmangal )
‘Triprayarappa Sreerama…’ ( Ormakal Marikkumo )
‘Sruthimandalam…’ ( Randu Penkuttikkal )
‘Kaavalan chundanvallom…’ ( Simhasanam)
‘Satyanayaka muktidayaka…’ ( Jeevitham Oru Ganam)
