Musician Neralattu Harigovindan of a legendery ancestry will perform at Sargam, the Malayali Margazhi Festival, today .Taking Sopana Sangeetham forward, he talks to City Express about his Idakka music, the legacy he is heir to and its future
CHENNAI:Born to an illustrious father, Neralattu Rama Poduval (who was instrumental in reviving the traditional temple music of Kerala known as Sopana Sangeetham), Neralattu Harigovindan is a descendant of an ancestry of hereditary performers of temple music. He is a distinguished exponent in the ashtapadi/sopanam form of temple music,
Sopana Sangeetham is one among many forms of music in Kerala. With a rich history as temple music, sung by the side of the holy steps (sopanam) leading to the sanctum sanctorum. The rustic, plain notes provided by the beats of the ethnic drum called idakka, the music was traditionally a profession followed by members of the Ambalavasi community. Also known as the ashtapadi form of music, Harigovindan himself admits that it wouldn’t be known if it weren’t for his trailblazing father.
“The closeted mindset of people in the past meant that this form of music was relegated to being mere ritual music instead of being considered as an art form. It was he who, through his performances, brought it out of the four walls of a temple and transformed it from a music of vishwasam (belief) to one of aashwasam (relief),” explains Harigovindan. A character from the Mohanlal-starrer Devasuram (1993) was based on Rama Poduval.
Though he initially studied Malayalam literature and even completed his B.Ed, Harigovindan felt the urge to take up the idakka in honour of his father after his death in 1996. “The purpose of Sopana Sangeetham, is to create a change in the mind of a person from negative to positive thoughts; to bring about a meditative state of mind. If this music can create a trance when played inside a temple, why can’t it do the same outside? After all, God is present everywhere!” he says.
It was with this ‘overconfidence’ (as he calls it) that he gave up his teaching job and set out to carve his own legacy in ashtapadi music. Over the years, his intent has been to change the purposes, intent and the location of the music while yet retaining its traditional folksy garb. “Be it the Mullai Periyar issue, or social evils, or even the recent demonetisation, my music speaks of contemporary problems through a traditionally rendered medium.” His vibe has struck a chord with today’s generation. He even performed in the music-based series The Dewarists with Karsh Kale and guitarist Baiju Dharmajan
Harigovindan has had the drive to take it upon himself to conduct the first ever Sopana Sangeetham festival in Shoranur in 2014, bringing together performers from all across Kerala. Another project included organising a Pennu Pattu, wherein he urged woman to the fore. Not to be outdone, he is also a prolific promoter of Kerala art forms, with a dissertation of his titled Kerala Sangeetham: Kettathum Kelkendathum (Kerala music: Heard and to be heard), published by Kerala Sahithya Akademi in 2001. “My most recent effort was a festival called Paattolam, where I brought together performers of indigenous forms of Kerala music including mappila pattu, nattupattu, ottamthullal, pullavan pattu and many more, which recently concluded in December on the banks of the Bharathapuzha.”
“It is very sad that the state of several of these art forms is in a pitiful condition. Performers in these communities are often not accorded the same status of living or respect as those in other professions. Most importantly, Kerala music is not Carnatic music, but the music of its villages. This essence is losing out to other forms,” he rues. His main aim is to create a reputation for these art forms in the mainstream, though he declines to join any government committee with the same aim. “Even the festivals that I conduct I do so with money saved from my remuneration. I prefer to stay within my art and serve my duty.”
(Join Harigovindan as he elaborates on ‘Kerala Music: Heard and to be Heard’ at Sargam 2017, from 3 pm onwards at Asan Memorial School)