With the mushrooming of  ‘chenda melam’  groups from neighbouring Kerala, the nadaswaram and thavil players in Thanjavur are getting a raw deal these days. Many temples where nadaswaram and thavil used to be played regularly, have now started hiring these chenda  melam groups for functions and rituals. At many functions including weddings, thavil is overtaken by chenda. Even though culture enthusiasts don’t make a comparison between traditional musical instruments, what worries them is the attitude shown towards the traditional folk instruments of Tamil Nadu.

“The chenda melam groups from Kerala are settled in many big towns in southern Tamil Nadu. There are many such groups doing aggressive business in Thanjavur. Many thavil and nadaswaram players are jobless due to this. If things go like this, our traditional music instruments like thavil and nadaswaram will soon become museum pieces,” says Sada Sivakumar, a social and cultural activist in Thanjavur.

Senior nadaswaram artist Kalaimamani Pattukottai Veerasamy says he is disappointed with the trend. “I am not against any musical instruments. I hate the attitude of the people towards our traditional musical instruments. We should never forget our thavil and nadaswaram. It’s our tradition,” he said.

Being a barrel-shaped percussion instrument, thavil was used widely in folk and carnatic music, accompanied by nadaswaram. Both thavil and nadaswaram were essential during marriages. “We have great thavil and nadaswaram players in Thanjavur. But they are not able to find a stage or function these days. The main reason is that they don’t have groups. So chanda melam groups from other places make use of this,” says Sada Sivakumar, adding that there are at least 20 such groups in Thanjavur.

Even though people don’t take this as a serious issue, many elders believe that soon the chenda melam groups would dominate the thavil-nadaswaram players. “I don’t think these groups have dominated our traditional thavil-nagaswaram players. Our artists are still active. But what worries me is the popularity of the chenda melam groups. They are now seen at every function and rituals,” said S Arumugham, a retired history professor in Pattukottai.

The ready-made style of functioning, according to him, is the main reason why chenda melam groups are being invited to more and more functions. “They are easily accessible unlike our artists. They work on a fast and ready-made style. Today, people want such ‘fast’ artists only. It’s our problem. We should not forget our traditional art,” said Arumugham.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Madurai / by M T Saju, TNN / November 27th, 2012