Papanasam Sivan’s songs in Sanskrit

Carnatic vocalist Gayathri Girish’s recent workshop showed the composer’s flair for the language

Virtual lecture-demonstrations and interactive workshops have offered great scope for learning during the pandemic. And Fine Arts Society, Chembur, has regularly hosted such events over the past year. The society’s ‘Gurudvaar’ series, featuring eminent musicians, is an effort to understand the nuances of classical music through specific themes. The latest workshop was by senior vocalist Gayathri Girish, whose focus was the Sanskrit compositions of Papanasam Sivan. Papanasam Sivan, a prolific composer, is famous for his works in Tamil, but what is not so well known is that the scholar also composed in Sanskrit. The workshop threw light on the composer’s knowledge of the language and how, through his kritis, he tried to arouse people’s interest in it. Gayathri’s talk showed how such sessions offer opportunities for deeper reading and research.