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Remembering the "Lady Bhagavathar" C SARASWATHI BAI (Born 15 June 1892 - Died 13 January 1974), eminent exponent of HARIKATHA, on her Birth Anniversary today. Saraswati Bai was one of the phenomenally talented first woman Harikatha artistes of south India. She came from poor family circumstances. With a fine guru, and great patrons, she rose to the top against all odds and was called Lady Bhagavathar.
Born in 1892, Saraswati Bai’s life was to change when her mother Rangammal nursed the cholera stricken, wealthy Venkataswami Naidu back to health. Circumstances took Rama Rao’s family from Renigunta to Madras and they lived in close relationship with the Naidu family. Saraswati Bai accompanied Venkataswami Naidu’s great grand daughter Narasamma to her Hindustani music classes with Yakoob Ali Khan and just by being a passive onlooker she had learnt “songs, how to play the sitar and harmonium.” Several musicians such as Veena Dhanammal, Abdul Karim Khan, Hirabai Badodekar… visited the Naidu household giving the eager Saraswati a footing in music. Sanskrit scholar Krishnachar who happened to listen to Saraswati sing at an informal gathering was determined to teach the girl. A teacher at the Madras Christian College, Krishnachar became a devout guru and taught her Sanskrit along with a few Carnatic kritis. He took her to top artistes of those times – T.S. Sabesa Iyer, Muthaih Bhagavathar, Pudukottai Dakshinamurthy Pillai and several others, making sure that she learnt the best from their repertoire. He was so obsessed with teaching the young Saraswati that he even neglected his job.
If the support Krishnachar gave Saraswati was phenomenal, the encouragement the Naidu family extended to her was equally important. They provided opportunities for her to perform harikatha discourses and soon, Saraswati’s knowledge and depth was being widely discussed. She was married as a child, and her husband took care of the house and allowed her to pursue her passion. But with her rise, they began to cast aspersions on her character. Her guru was sufficiently maligned and he was even asked to give up his post in the college. People stopped attending her performances, getting sabha became impossible, finding accompanists was a herculean task. Vidwans who had accompanied her were ostracized by the Brahmin community and were later forced to undergo ritual purification. Saraswati Bai wrote: “If I were to list out the ways in which I was insulted and troubled by men, it would disgust the reader.” But the backing of her guru was solid.
She relentlessly held on, and with growing public support, in the years to come, none could stop Saraswati Bai’s increasing popularity. In 1911, as a 19-year old, she travelled widely across India giving performances. Saraswati Bai also went to Sri Lanka and by the time she turned 22, she was one of the most accomplished Harikatha performers. Saraswati Bai was greatly appreciated by the stars of her time like Dhanammal and Muktamma