1. Shri S Rajam
1.1 Sangita Kalacharya Vidvan Shri S Rajam is a many splendored jewel of Indian art and music. He is the musicians’ musician, held in very high esteem by the connoisseurs of Carnatic music; he is the creator of sublime art in the pristine and ancient tradition of Chitrasutra; he is an excellent photographer who produced outstanding photographs of temple architecture and sculptures; and in his youth a hero of early South Indian films who composed songs and sung them too. The most amazing aspect of his involvement in several branches of arts is that he excelled in each of them, created a unique niche of his own and yet remained unaffected by his success. And, above all he is a remarkable human being with a flame-like imagination and a teacher with an understanding heart. He is often, aptly, described as a simple man of singular achievements in a plurality of fields. It is hard to cite anyone, in the contemporary world, as comparable to Shri S Rajam. He is a rare gem; and like any precious gem he is away from public gaze.
1.2. Even as he is mellowing sweetly into his nineties, he retains the sense of wonder and awe at the marvels of life. He continues to work with zeal, regularly, at his art; and says with a child-like delight he is discovering and learning a few new things each day. As regards music, his other passion in life, he is still active in it as a teacher and as a guide; and he continues to participate in academia and in the discussions at various Sabhas
1.3. I have special regard, appreciation and reverence towards Shri S Rajam, because I view him as one of the few gifted artists of the twentieth century who breathed fresh life into the ancient tradition of Chitrasutra, not by talking or writing about the ancient art but by diligently practicing it with devotion and sincerity over a long period of more than sixty years. My admiration of him is heightened because he is perhaps the sole true representative and votary of the Chitrasutra in the modern era. To use a favorite phrase of Sri Sankara, Shri S Rajam is a Sampradaya-vit, the one who understands Sampradaya the good tradition. Shri S Rajam pointed out, “Intradition, only good things should remain; the bad should be ignored and not continued. This is tradition”; and said, “Be modern in outlook; there is no problem with that. But learn to appreciate the beauty and elegance of your culture. Safeguard it, develop it and carry it forward for the benefit of the next generation ". The present article aims, mainly, to talk about that aspect of Shri Rajam’s artistic genius. But, before we resume discussion on Shri Rajam as an artist, let’s take a quick glance at a few facts and his other achievements.
2. Early years
2.1. S Rajam was born at Madurai on 10.12.1919 to Parvathiamma (also called Chellammal) and V Sundaram Ayyar, a leading advocate of Madras. Sundaram Ayyar was a scholar, a person of culture and a lover of Carnatic music. He,a connoisseur and patron of music, wrote music reviews for 'The Hindu'; and his views were respected by artistes such as Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar and others. S Rajam later in his life recalled, “In case my father felt that a particular sangati was out of place, Iyengar would drop it”.
2.2. Musicians, writers and scholars frequented Ayyar’s household which was a sort of cultural hub in Mylapore of those days. The atmosphere at home was conducive for nurturing love for art and culture in the young hearts of the children at home. Rajam’s younger brother, by about eight years, S Balachender (1927-1990) grew into a larger- than - life personality; a remarkable veena player with a unique style of his own; a forceful writer; an accomplished actor and an eminent director. Rajam’s two sisters: Jayalakshmi and Saraswathi too were very good singers. (Shri VS Gopal who writes and sings delightfully on Sulekha is Saraswathi’s son. We are in company.)
2.3. Rajam had his music training at a very young age; and performed as a musician as early as in his 13th year. In the year 1934, when Rajam was about 15 years young, he featured as Lord Rama in the highly successful Tamil film titled Seetha Kalyanam produced by Prabhat Talkies and directed by Baburao Pendarkar. Following that success, brothers S.Rajam (18) and Balachander (10) now famed as 'Prabhat Prodigy Stars' and 'South Indian Prodigies' toured several cities in India and in Sri Lanka ,performing duet-concerts. It is said, like the legendry Lav and Kush, the two handsome and talented young lads were the darlings of art-lovers and the cynosure of all eyes.
2.4. I understand; Shri Rajam acted in three Tamil films Seetha-kalyanam, Radha-kalyanam and Rukmini-kalyanam; wrote his songs and sang them too. During those years he also visited many temples in India and Sri Lanka; and even lived for a while in the 7th century temple of Kailasanathar at Kanchipuram.
3. Music
3.1. Shri S Rajam is a well recognized, much admired and an honored performing musician. In his home state, Tamil Nadu, he enjoys more fame in the world of music than in art. In one of the interviews to a music journal, Shri Rajam quietly remarked towards the end of the interview “Not many may know that I am a painter; and I do original classical paintings. I divide my time between painting and music.” Such is the humility of the grand-old man of Indian arts and music…!
3.2.Shri S Rajam served for about 35 years as music supervisor and a Grade A artiste at the All India Radio (AIR), where he popularized Carnatic Music and also Thirukkural singing. During his tenure, he recorded rare compositions of the Vaggeyakars, produced many operas and musical plays. Between 1970 and 1982, while serving AIR, he led a team of artists on a music tour to Africa presenting a percussion ensemble; and toured USA performing 32 musical concerts in various cities. He also performed in Burma, Sri Lanka and Canada.
His lecture demonstration on rare Ragas and kritis, vivadi ragas, as also on the compositions of Koteeswara Iyer are admired by the connoisseurs. His special interest in Lakshana and Lakshya aspects of Carnatic music is well known.
3.3. Shri Rajam continues to serve on the expert committee of the Music Academy at Chennai. His simplicity and willingness to help anyone who approaches him on subjects related to art and music has endeared him to all and to the young in particular.
3.4. Over the years, many honors have been showered on Shri Rajam. Just 
to name some of those: He was awarded the title “Isai Kadal” (ocean of music) by the Tamil Sangham, Karikud in 1988. He was accorded the Sangeetha Nataka Academy award in 1992; and the Kala Acharya in 1996. I understand that at the 76th South Indian music conference and festival of Indian Fine Arts Society to be held in Chennai during Dec 18, 2008 to Jan 4th, 2009, Shri S Rajam would be honored with the title, 'Sangeetha Kalasikhamani'. No honour is too high for Vidvan Shri S Rajam.
3.5. While reminiscenceing his musical training, Sri Rajam fondly recalls how his father Sundaram Ayyar took him, while still a lad of ten, to the well known musician Ambi Dikshitar for music lessons. Talking about his Guru, Shri Rajam mentions that Ambi Dikshitar had a deep voice of low sruthi that could easily touch the panchama in the lower octave; and Ambi Dikshitar’s voice was well suited for rendering, with clarity, the grand and slow paced compositions of Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar. Rajam was amused that his teacher a descendant of the Mutthuswami Dikshitar lineage should commence his lessons with a composition of Sri Thyagaraja (enta nercina in shuddha dhanyaasi).It was a rare privilege, he remarked. Later, of course, Ambi Dikshitar taught Rajam many compositions of Mutthuswami Dikshitar, most notable being the navagraha kritis.
3.6. He had the privilege of being trained in music by a galaxy of stalwarts. He recalls with gratitude and pleasure, “I have undergone training from many Gurus. I learnt Dikshitar kritis from Ambi Dikshitar. It is from Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar that I attained Pathantara suddham and perfection in singing fast tempo. I learnt swaraprastara from Madurai Mani Iyer. Papanasam Sivan though a composer himself has taught me lots of Tyagaraja Kritis. Although I have learnt from many gurus, I crave to express what we have not heard from other musicians.”
3.7. S Rajam’s favourite composer is Koteeswara Iyer (January 1870 - October 21, 1936) popularly known as Kavi Kunjara Dasan. “I am deeply interested in Koteeswara Iyer’s compositions ” S Rajam said,” I do not compare any other composer with him, I find great pleasure in singing his compositions”. Koteeswara Iyer was the first composer, after Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar, who composed krithis in all 72 melakartha ragas. His monumental work, "kanda ganamudam" has songs, in praise of Lord Muruga, composed in all the 72 melams. The songs are in chaste Tamil.
3.8. Shri S. Rajam has the distinction of being the only musician to have sung all those 72 compositions; each krithi being accompanied by raga, neraval and kalpana-swaras. He said,” It is vital to understand the meaning and bhava of a composition to make an emotional presentation or render the song with insight “. His rendering of Koteeswara Iyer’s songs is recorded in a set of ten cassette albums. S. Rajam has also published a book giving notations for all the 72 songs.
Listen to Shri S. Rajam singing the popular kriti, Sri Valli:
...and to Shri S. Rajam speak about Papanasanam Sivan and NatabhairavI:
4. Music & painting
4.1. Shri S Rajam is the golden link between music and art. He provided a visual identity and a tangible idiom of expression to Indian classical music through his paintings. For instance, just to mention a few, his series of paintings Origin & Classification of Swaras (inspired by Sangeetha Kalpadrumam of Harikesanallur Muthaiah Bhagavatar), illustrating the origins and charectestics of each of the seven notes of Indian music, explaining their nature and their relation to the Hindustani and Western music systems, is a remarkable work of great learning and sublime art. I have not come across a like of it anywhere.
Similarly, his series of twelve paintings illustrating Venkatamakhi’s melakartha scheme by classifying the 72 mela ragas into 12 chakrasor segments; associating each chakra with a month of the year (from April- March) ; and illustrating them through soulful and imaginative paintings is a marvelous example of the delightful amalgam of innovation , scholarship and superb artistry. It is a unique piece of visual poetry and music. This series was also meant as a tribute to Venkatamakhi the great musician-musicologist (1635-1690).
And, his series of paintings illustrating the Navagraha kritis of Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar are, of course, legendry; and have passed into the folklore of music, astrology, and tantra traditions and of classical school of painting.
4.2. In each case, he poured into puranas, epics and ancient texts searching for details and for the right idioms of expression. His involvement was complete; and he was totally absorbed into his work. While recalling his experience while painting the Navagraha series, he mentions, “Inexplicable incidents occurred, a reminder that Dikshitar’s compositions are invested with awesome power. While painting Surya, gusts of wind would snatch the paper from my hands. Embarking on Rahu, I found a snakeskin hanging from a creeper and even a live snake coiled beneath the finished painting.”
4.3. His portraitures of the composers in the classical traditions of Indian music are benchmarks; and now, after his advent, one can scarcely visualize the hoary composers but through the eyes of Shri S Rajam. His portrait of the trinity of Carnatic music (Saint Thyagaraja, Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar and Sri Shyama Shastri) which he painted when he was barely twenty years of age is a true classic; it is a universally acclaimed archetype and one that is even worshipped.
4.4. Hallmarks of his portraits are their authenticity. He studied and researched into his subjects thoroughly, grasped the essence of their character and achievements. His portraits therefore bring out not mere the physical resemblance of the subjects but more importantly the essence of their very inner being.
4.5. There are some interesting stories associated with his portraitures of the Music Trinity. In the case of Saint Thyagaraja, the old drawings available at that time (before 1940) showed a weak, melancholic person with his chest bones protruding and having a rather sickly countenance. Shri S Rajam felt offended by the old portraits; and was hurt the saint was shown in a poor light causing injustice to his genius. Shri S Rajam strongly felt that the portrait should aptly project the character and greatness of the person, his achievements, his genius and his mellow glowing sattvic nature; and not just his physical resemblance.
Sri Mutthuswami Dikshitar was an Upasaka of Sri Chakra and the Devi; he was an advaitin in his outlook. There was always a certain serene detachment about him; and in his eyes. In S Rajam’s portraits, Sri Dikshitar comes across as a calm, composed, handsome young person of lime-color (golden hue) complexion. He always wears a green (or a blue) shawl over his left shoulder, and sports rudraksha -mala around his neck. His veena is upturned showing the face of the yali.
His portrait of Sri Shyama Sastri which eventually turned into an Indian postal stamp has an interesting storyaround it. Sri Shyama Sastri too was a Devi Upasaka, but charged with intense devotion and a poignant longing for the Mother. He was a deeply religious person who adhered to the prescriptions of the scriptures. He always had a dash of vermilion (Devi –prasada) right between his eye brows and stripes of Vibhuthi across his forehead; he sported a tuft (Kudumi) and appeared with stuble on his chin because he shaved only once in a fortnight just as an orthodox Brahmin would do. Shyama Sastri – was a dark, handsome, serious looking person, rather absorbed in himself and with slight rotund around his waist. He was always dressed in a gold-laced (zari) dhoti and a red upper garment (uttariya). He was fond of chewing betel leaf (paan); his lips are depicted dark red (He is occasionally shown with a paan petti, a small box to hold leaves and nuts). Shyama Sastri's tambura had a yali-mukham, a unique feature not found in other tambura depictions.
Another interesting incident came up when Shri Rajam had to paint the picture of Venkatamakhin [1635-1690 , the great musicologist who devised the melakartha system of system of classifying ragas in the Carnatic music] as an introductory painting for the Apr 2008-March 2009 calendar brought out by L&T, he had no earlier pictures of Venkatamakhin to guide him. His research into the archives of Kanci mutt led him to an interesting detail showing that Venkatamakhin who was also a skillful vainika wore his long hair in a coil such that it did not touch his body; he coiled it atop his head. Shri S Rajam then pictured Venkatamakhin with coiled locks of hair, rudraksha-mala; and surrounded by musical instruments such as veena, tambura etc. as also scrolls of ancient manuscripts, lending the picture an air scholarship and a spiritual aura.
4.6. It is said, nowhere is the bond between the arts stronger than that binding painting and music.As sister arts, music and painting share a common vocabulary. Both arts are often referred to as compositions; both talk in terms of tones and shades; and there is a certain rhythm and fluency in both. In the present Indian context, nowhere do both the arts find their fulfillment, in creative as well as traditional sense, in one person than in Vidvan Shri S Rajam..
Next
Continued in part Two
---Chitrasutra and Shri S Rajam-à
Resources & References
S Rajam
An afternoon with S Rajam
Aesthetic and faithful depiction of character
Visual poetry
Ajanta Cave Paintings
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