Carnatic Postage Stamp – 03 December 2010 – Rs. 5
We’re resuming our Carnatic Postage Stamp series after an extended delay – our apologies! The next in our lineup is the Rs. 5 commemorative stamp of T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai, issued on December 3rd, 2010.
T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai was a Carnatic musician, Nadaswaram Maestro, vocalist and film actor. He was popularly known as “Nadaswara Chakravarthi”.
T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai was born on 27 August 1898 to Shri Kuppuswami Pillai and Smt Govindammal in Thiruvaduthurai in Tanjavur District which is the cradle of culture and art of Tamil Nadu, and has produced several renowned dancers, musicians and artists. Among them was the great Nadaswara Vidwan, Natesa Pillai. He wanted to take Rajarathinam Pillai as his disciple and teach him to play the Nadaswaram, a wind instrument.
However, he died before his wish could be fulfilled. Rajarathinam Pillai was then sent to learn vocal music. He gave his maiden vocal performance when he was only seven years old. On the insistence of elders in the family and to fulfill the wishes of Natesa Pillai, Rajarathinam Pillai was sent to learn the Nagaswaram (an alternate spelling) from Shri Ammachatram Kannuswami Pillai a Nagaswaram vidwan. By his constant practice, dedication and sincere application Rajarathinam Pillai learned to play the instrument with great elan and perfection. Rendering raga alapanas for many hours was his forte. He briefly acted in films too. When India attained Independence, Rajarathinam Pillai had the honour of giving a recital in the historic Darbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhawan before an august gathering. He passed away on 12 December 1956.
Credit: https://www.istampgallery.com/t-n-rajarathinam-pillai/
Also read https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._N._Rajarathnam_Pillai for more information on T.N. Rajarathinam Pillai
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Next up, we’ll cover Veenai Dhanammal. Her personal style, known as the Veenai Dhanammal bani, is still regarded as a yardstick in terms of adherence to traditional values and profundity of music expression.
