The latest development in a sequence of events in the world of Carnatic music that has set social media abuzz is a strongly-worded response from The Music Academy, to the vocalist duo Ranjani and Gayathri, who declared their intention to withdraw from participating in the Academy’s 2024 conference, opposing the selection of vocalist T.M. Krishna as this year’s Sangita Kalanidhi. In a letter that was sent to them, the Academy’s president N. Murali said he was shocked by “its vituperative content, which is replete with unwarranted and slanderous assertions and insinuations verging on defamation, and its vicious tone against a respected senior fellow musician”.
“The choice of Sangita Kalanidhi made year after year is a prerogative of The Music Academy and has always been made after careful deliberation, with the sole criterion being musical excellence demonstrated over a significant and sustained career. This year the Executive Committee of the Academy chose T.M. Krishna for this accolade based on his excellence in music over a long career, with no extraneous factors influencing our choice,” Mr. Murali said.
“We regard your decision to withdraw from the upcoming annual conference because the Academy has chosen for the award a musician you dislike and malign as unbecoming of artistes and in poor taste. I note that you have shared your letter addressed to me and the Academy on the social media, which apart from being discourteous, raises doubts about the intentions behind and the purpose of your letter,” Mr. Murali said in the note.
