| Ghantasala ఘంటసాల వెంకటేశ్వర రావు |
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|---|---|
| Birth name | Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao |
| Also known as | Ghantasala |
| Born | December 4, 1922 Choutapalli, Gudivada, Krishna dt, Andhra Pradesh, India |
| Died | 11 February 1974 (aged 52) |
| Genres | Film music (playback singing), Indian classical music |
| Occupations | Singer, composer |
| Instruments | Vocalist |
| Years active | 1922–1974 |
| Website | Official site |
Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao (Telugu: ఘంటసాల వెంకటేశ్వర రావు) (1922–1974) was a famous & popular Indian Playback Singer and music composer of Telugu films and many other languages such as Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Tulu and Hindi. He is the recipient of the Padmashree award, India's fourth highest civilian award. For nearly a quarter of a century, he was the voice of Telugu films. He was one of Telugu cinema's first playback singers. He sang in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Tulu and Hindi films. He composed music for more than 100 movies. He sang the Bhagavad Gita just before his death in 1974, a rendition which became highly acclaimed and popular. On February 11, 2003, a stamp was released in honor of Ghantasala at Telugu Lalita Kala Toranam, Public Gardens, Hyderabad.
"Gifted with what V. A. K. Ranga Rao called "the most majestic voice", Ghantasala helped Telugu film music develop its own distinct character which remains unparalleled".
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Ghantasala was born to Soorayya, who was a local singer, in a traditional Telugu Brahmin Niyogi family in 1922. During his childhood, Ghantasala used to dance to his father's Tarangams. He lost his father when he was a child, and was brought up by his maternal uncle Ryali Pitchi Ramaiah. He took formal music training from Patrayani Sitarama Sastry, also known as Saluru China Guruvu Garu, and he joined Maharajah's Government College of Music and Dance in Vijayanagram without informing his family. He went through a number of hardships to learn music and went on to become a "Sangeeta Vidhwan".
Ghantasala participated in the Quit India Movement of 1942, for which he was arrested and imprisoned for 18 months at the Alipore (Allipura) Jail, Bellary.[1] After coming out of jail, he met "Senior Samudrala", who advised him to try his luck in the film industry as a singer.[2] Upon release from prison, he got married to Savitri of Pedapulivarru. It was in this village that he met Samudrala Raghavacharya, the famous lyricist, who recognised the powerful melodious voice ghantasala was gifted with and inducted him into the film industry in Madras and which changed the course of southern music history over the next three decades. Before Ghantasala found himself in the spotlight of public attention, through the media of films and gramophone records, he was an accomplished singer with impeccable training in Carnatic music.
Ghantasala went through a number of hardships before becoming a trained vidwaan in carnatic music.
Ghantasala got his first break as a singer from All India Radio. Later on, Peketi Siva Ram from HMV studios recorded his private songs. Ghantasala debuted as a chorus singer and for a character role in Seeta Rama Jananam by Pratibha Films. After this, he worked with famous music directors like Gali Penchala and C. R. Subbaraman. His first movie as a music director was Laxmamma. He introduced the technique of changing the voice pitch and diction to suit the actor singing the songs on the screen. People were so enamoured by this that they started imagining the actor singing on the screen just by hearing the song. Ghantasala was considered a master of padyam renderings, a unique genre in the Telugu films.
His way with the Telugu padyam (verse) was incomparable. Padyam was a part of the performing arts of Andhra, mostly through mythological dramas, for 50 years. The intent was primarily musical- with what intricate curlicues, what breath control the singer managed being more important than characterisation or serving the needs of the moment in the play. Ghantasala changed all this with his sophisticated interpretation (not on stage but on 78 rpm gramophone records) of the author's intent, the character's intent, the character's turmoil being at once musical and accessible. These verses were rendered without tala (rhythm) as before but he generally had a short, metrical musical interlude doing what background music does in films, setting the stage and emphasising the mental stage of the character. Poets Karunasri and Jashuva enjoyed great regard amongst the literatteurs, but it was Ghantasala who rendered their songs and introduced their work to the man on the street.Long before singers got on to the TTD/Annamacharya bandwagon, Ghantasala recorded at least a dozen sides singing the praise of Venkateswara (not through Annamayya though, only the US LP had Kolani dopariki, alas the pallavi wrongly split!) Ashtapadi-s on a Super Seven disc, Bhagavad Gita on an LP were the other assets he created.[3]
Producer Krishnaveni gave him first chance as full music director for her film Mana Desam, which incidentally was N. T. Rama Rao's first film & which established him once for all as a music composer-cum-versatile playback singer, the most prolific till the mid seventies in Telugu cinema.
He later composed music for many popular Telugu movies like Patala Bhairavi, Gundamma Katha, Paramanandayya Shishyula Katha, Pelli Chesi Chudu, Mayabazar, Lava Kusa, Rahasyam, & Pandava Vanavasam and also for popular tamil & kannada movies in 50's & 60's. Ghantasala also music directed a Hindi Film Jhandaa ooncha Rahe Hamara in 1964 and sang for the film. He lent his voice to many popular heroes of the Telugu film industry at that time and has sung over 10,000 songs in Telugu, Tamil & kannada films each being as melodious as the other.
The famed heroes of telugu film industry in the 50's & 60's - N T Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao, greatly benefitted by the peerless voice of ghantasala.
He also served as the Aaasthana Gaayaka (court musician) for the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams. The famous & much acclaimed renderings of Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao include private albums, like Bhagawad Gita, Patriotic Songs, Padyalu (a unique genre of Telugu - singing the verses in dramatic style), Pushpa Vilapam, Devotional and folk songs. His recording of "Bhagawad Gita" can now be heard daily in the Tirumala temple.
Gifted with what V. A. K. Ranga Rao called "the most majestic voice", he helped Telugu film music develop its own distinct character. He won the "best singer award" in the Telugu film industry every year for three decades, a feat perhaps unachieved by any other playback singer.[4]
In the words of popular music director of the south Pendyala Nageswara Rao "Ghantasala alone is the playback singer who had a full fledged powerful voice range which could accommodate in uniformity, all the three octaves in music quite comfortably". The navarasas of music have been found in ghantasala's voice and renditions. The magical influence and spell of melodious music as ghantasala has cast on the telugu masses and culture with his melodious voice and distinct pronunciation, perhaps cannot be found elsewhere and in any other culture [5]
He has given performances in America, England, and Germany, and had the distinction of performing for the United Nations Organisation. The government of Andhra Pradesh felicitated him on the occasion of 25 years of his film career as Silver Jubilee Celebrations of Ghantasala in Hyderabad on February 1, 1970. More than 30,000 people attended the function celebrated at the Lal Bahadur Stadium, Hyderabad.[6]
His illustrious & successful career came to end on 11 February 1974, the day he passed away.
On the occasion of function for stamp release in his name on 11 February 2003, "The Hindu" carried an article showering praise on him as the "Melody king - reigns supreme" & as well highlighting his genius skills - "Ghantasala's blending of classical improvisations to the art of light music combined with his virtuosity and sensitivity puts him a class apart, above all others in the field". Ghantasala has such divine talent, that with his songs, he could move the hearts of the people. Human emotions and music were never in such perfect harmony as was during his reign as playback singer. Even after three decades of his demise, he continues to hold sway over millions of music lovers, crossing generation barriers, with the mellifluous magic spell of his golden voice. Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao strode like a colossus in the Telugu film music world for nearly 30 years and his contribution to Telugu film music remains unparalleled. He is the first movie singer-composer of the South in whose memory a stamp and first day cover was released in 2003[7]
The Indian express dt. 14 February 1974 paid a glorious tribute to ghantasala on his death stating that : Tributes paid to Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao, on his death, praise his "Melodious Voice", but these not only sound inadequate, but also fail to grasp the truth of the matter, since he was "no mere singer" but a "true poet" who could comprehend and did give expression to the deepest feelings of love, pity, joy, suffering, piety, happiness and bitterness in a manner no one else could, or did. One cannot help feeling that it would have been hardly possible for him to sing on all those varied themes with such intensity of fervor and likeness to reality, and precision in apprehension, had he not himself lived and experienced these basic emotions inwardly, in as great a manner as any of the great poets ever had.[8]
The Legendary Ghantasala continues to be as popular as ever. His statutes have been installed across Andhra Pradesh. No other cine/film singer enjoys such honour. Every year his birth/death anniversaries are celebrated with great importance, in Andhra pradesh, India as well as overseas countries [9][10][11][12][13]
Various Awards after his name are given every year to various musical artists viz., "Ghantasala melody king award" - Popular artists who are recipients of this award include K J Yesudas, Playback singer ; P Suseela, playback singer, Indian Idol Sri Ramachandra etc.[11][14][15]
Ghantasala Arts Academy has instituted the "Ghantasala National Award" and the first award was given to S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, playback singer[16]
Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao was married to Savithri and Sarala Devi. Ghantasala had eight children, four sons (Vijaya Kumar, Ravi Kumar, Shankar Kumar and Ratna Kumar) and four daughters (Shyamala, Suguna,[17] Shanti and Meera).
Ghantasala recorded songs as playback singer for the movies under popular composers - S Rajeswara Rao, Pendyala Nageswara Rao, M S Viswanathan, K V Mahadevan, Adi Narayana Rao, Master Venu, T V Raju, T Chalapathi Rao, Shankar Jai Kishan, Susarla Dakshina Murthy, Galipenchala Narasimha Rao etc.
