Common interest: (from left) Dr Radha Krishnan, Dr C. D. Siby and Indian singer and actor S.P. Balasubramaniam.
Passion for music
By SHEELA CHANDRAN
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Two ayurvedic physicians have produced a Tamil album featuring Malaysian and South Indian singers.
WE all have different tastes in music. Some of us love rock, while others, pop or jazz. Those who are more passionate about music will often take a step further, like Indian ayurvedic physicians Dr Radha Krishnan and Dr C.D. Siby, who produced a Tamil album.
What sets the album apart from others is that it features the voices of talented Malaysian and Indian singers.
Titled Nesippaya (Will You Love Me), the eight-track album features South India’s S.P. Balasubramaniam, Unni Menon, Rajesh Vijay, Madhu Balakrishnan and homegrown singers such as Alinda Alphonse, Preetha Prasad and Logeswaran.
The album, which took a year to put together, is released by Sopaanam Arts. All the songs, except for one by Unni Menon, were recorded in Kuala Lumpur, when the Indian singers were in town.
Forty-year-old Siby, who enjoys writing Tamil and Malayalee poems, penned the lyrics while Krishnan, 36, handled the music direction and composition.
For Siby, the album is proof that dreams can come true.
“I have loved music since young and it has been my childhood dream to produce an album. Nesippaya is evidence of my interest and desire to work in the music industry.
“I met Krishnan a few years back and through conversation, I discovered he was a keyboardist with a band in Kerala (South India) for 15 years. We clicked instantly due to our interest in Tamil music,” said Siby during an interview recently.
Krishnan chipped in: “Many find it hard to believe the album was conceptualised by two traditional Indian medicine specialists. And what makes it more interesting is we managed to rope in prolific South Indian singers like S.P. Bala and Unni Menon alongside local singers.”
Krishnan explained it was by chance that S.P. Bala, Kollywood’s top Tamil singer who has recorded over 40,000 songs throughout his 40-year career, agreed to sing the song, Azhagae ... Azhagae (Beautiful ... Beautiful).
“Bala did not hesitate to record the song. In fact, we were amazed that he managed to record it within an hour,” said Krishnan, a trained flautist.
“Perhaps this wasn’t a feat for him, considering he is said to have recorded 19 and 16 songs in Tamil and Hindi, respectively in a day. It has been an honour working with him – he was down-to-earth and jovial.”
Other notable singers featured on the album include Rajesh Vijay, 33, who has been singing Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam songs for Indian movies and Prasad, 40, a local stage actor.
According to Siby, Nesippaya is a collection of love songs which focuses on the raga (melodic modes used in Indian classical music).
“The album suits music lovers who appreciate soothing tunes with a hint of classic melodies. Hopefully, the songs will help shape the growth and music awareness of the youth and foster deeper bonds between Indian and Malaysian Tamil music,” said Kerala-born Siby, whose poems have been published widely in South Indian newspapers and magazines.
Not one to rest of their laurels, the passionate doctors are already planning their next project – releasing two devotional albums by year-end.
Nesippaya, selling at RM15 per CD, is available at Lotus Fivestar outlets nationwide.
Thanks to : The Star. com and Shamala, Perth for links send to me.
