The one man who has been conspicuous with his silence ever since the controversy over the Sangita Kalanidhi award to T M Krishna a few weeks back is the man himself. 

Generally, never short of words, Krishna has gone into a shell. Even when Tamil Nadu Chief Minister made an intemperate rush to defend the award to him, Krishna did not respond. Of course, one can grudge a person’s silence, especially if it is meant to not muddy the waters any further, as it were.

But the controversial singer, who had been indulged by the essential dignity of the Carnatic music community, can no longer get away by remaining taciturn on the matter as the family of the legendary singer M S Subbulakshmi has spoken in unequivocal terms against Krishna. 

As we wrote here, it was M S Subbulakshmi’s munificent ways and grace that was largely instrumental in Music Academy getting its famed building.

In a sense, it was a bit bizarre that the current mandarins of the Music Academy chose Krishna for the Sangita Kalanidhi award knowing full well that he had done an extremely unkind hatchet piece on M S Subbulakshmi in a leftist magazine a few years back. That Krishna had been critical of the academy in the past and it was only fair that he should have declined the award on intellectual honesty grounds. 

Of course, the controversy that the crass piece had triggered is now well known. But the backlash was basically from the Carnatic music community and lay fans while the late legend’s family itself maintained a dignified reticence in the matter. But now the family seems to have decided enough is enough. 

MS Family Speaks Out For The First Time Ever

For the first time ever, the family has spoken about being “utterly dismayed at the disrespect in the essays”.

In an article in Deccan Herald, grandson of MS, V Shrinivasan — son of singer Radha Viswanathan who had accompanied MS as a singer in  concerts for around five decades  — had explained in pained detail as to how Krishna had besmirched her reputation in the past.

“I would also like to mention that some of the views expressed by Krishna on my late grandmother over the years have been downright disgraceful. To posthumously attack a musician who is in no position to defend herself reeks of arrogance.  He wrote many provocative articles which not only hurt the feelings of millions of MS fans but also my late mother Radha Viswanathan,” Shrinivasan wrote.

She also reportedly told him, “The Paramacharya of Kanchi has said Amma’s (MS’) name will endure as long as the sun and the moon. However much Krishna tries to besmirch her pure name, he will not succeed.”

Shrinivasan is the father of singers Aishwarya and Saundarya (great granddaughters of MS) who are seen as the inheritors of MS’ musical legacy.

The article by Shrinivasan is important as it also goes into detail on how MS’ efforts helped the academy get a new building. “The current building of The Music Academy, Chennai, was constructed primarily with funds generated by the many benefit concerts presented by my grandmother in the 1950s,” Shrinivasan asserted.

Mounting Pressure On Krishna

Though Shrinivasan clarified that the family would not return the Sangita Kalanidhi conferred on her, he also said that he fully endorsed the decision of the sisters Ranjani and Gayatri and also of other musicians such as Dushyanth Sridhar, Vishaka Hari, Trichur Brothers, Palghat Mani Iyer family and Arjun Kumar, who have also expressed their desire to refrain from performing at the academy this year. 

For the record, the family of mridangam icon Palghat Iyer had returned the Sangita Kalanidhi award. (That family had also had reason to be cut up with Krishna. In his book Sebastian & Sons, Krishna, with a brashness that belongs to impetuous teenagers, threw the mridangam doyen under the bus through an uncharitable portrayal. In his typical insidious style, Krishna slandered Palghat Mani by implicit suggestions and innuendos.)

It may also be recalled that top singers Ranjani-Gayatri had lambasted Krishna for causing  irreparable harm to the Carnatic music world.

“He has caused immense damage to the Carnatic music world, wilfully and happily stomped over the sentiments of this community and insulted most respected icons like Tyagaraja and M S Subbulakshmi. His actions have tried to spread a sense of shame in being a Carnatic musician and has been exhibited through his consistent denigration of spirituality in music,” they said in a statement, which triggered a flame war of sorts with the academy.

Soon Ranjani-Gayatri’s announcement was followed by popular discourser Dushyant Sridhar, who also said that he was withdrawing from his scheduled performance at the academy on 1 January 2025. Another popular Hari Katha exponent chimed in with her views on the subject, saying that the Sangita Kalanidhi designate had a history of willfully slandering and hurting the sentiments of many (in the Carnatic music field).

And then another leading musician pair, Srikrishna Mohan and Ramkumar Mohan, better known as The Trichur Brothers also said they were pulling out from performing at the academy. “To participate in a conference presided by Mr T M Krishna would make us outright hypocrites in our own eyes.”

Krishna And Academy Need To Respond

But Krishna did deign to respond to any of those criticisms. But the public rebuke of Krishna by the MS family now means that he at least must open his mouth and tender an apology to them. That is what basic decency demands. 

And the Music Academy too can perhaps rethink its award of Sangita Kalanidhi in the light of the latest developments. M S Subbulakshmi’s family has not made any such demand. But a person who had, in their own words, demonstrably slandered her, cannot be found worthy of the award.

After all, she was the one who helped Music Academy stand in its current location. The Sangita Kalanidhi to Krishna, after the new developments, seems like handing, say, Rajiv Gandhi peace prize to a member of the LTTE. 

The ‘Carnatic War’ is far from over.