Saint Thyagaraja Controversy: Will Kamal Apologise To Carnatic Musicians?

Kollywood: With lockdown in place, there is a lot of live chats happening on Instagram. Celebrities are taking to the photo-sharing app to have a live discussion with colleagues. Even south actress Suhasini held a live show with director husband Maniratnam. The interviews have seen huge viewership. The one hot interview that people are talking about is the Instagram video chat between Ulaganayagan Kamal Haasan and Kollywood actor Vijay Sethupathi.

During the chat, Kamal touched upon a variety of topics including politics and movies. Talking about music, Kamal said that Saint Thyagaraja was begging in praise of Lord Rama. This has not gone down well with Carnatic musicians. They have now filed a petition demanding the actor's apology. Signed by over 5000 music lovers, the Carnatic musicians give credit to Saint Thayagaraj for their livelihood and say they are deeply hurt by Kamal's statements.

Here's what Carnatic singer Palghat Ramprasad said in his petition:

Every Carnatic musician, regardless of how they exhibit their affiliation to the outside world, deep within themselves know that they owe every bit of their basic livelihood and professional success, to Sri Thyagaraja's contribution to Carnatic music. The specific reference to Thyagaraja and Lord Rama, also suggests the negatively pointed target on a specific religion/caste, which is indeed an insult to the followers of this faith.

It now remains to be seen if Kamal Haasan will tender an apology.