Master of Manodharma

Carnatic music places an equal emphasis on Structured music (Kalpitam) and Creative/extempore music (Manodharmam). Many rasikas think that the music reaches its pinnacle mainly through manodharmam. It is not that easy to be creative and explore in a technically tight music like Carnatic music. Also, both the normal education system and the musical education paramparya focusses more on the structured, tried and tested than on the creative, unstructured and unexplored. Madurai T N Seshagopalan is one of my favourites for the simple reason that he is extremely creative and has tremendous manodharma. There are many moments in his cutcheri when momentarily you transcend to a different mood. That is the ultimate accolade for a musician. You, as a rasika, feel liberated.

Besides one need to have an inborn creativity to have manodharmam. This is true of not only music, but management and life too. And also cricket.

The contrast between the structured and the creative is seen when Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman bat. VVS has so much creativity that he can virtually do anything with the bat when he is in mood. Ditto for Mohd. Azaruddin. Normally the occidentals do not possess this manodharma. They come out of the structured school of thought. But you do rarely get a Mark Waugh or a David Gower. They, like VVS, are sublime.

For a person who had the damocle's sword over his head for most of his career, VVS completing 100 Test Matches is a tremendous achievement. We all owe him an apology for not taking him seriously. He is held in high regard by the opponents and his team mates. And only when he stops playing that we will realize what we will be missing.

We take certain people and certain things for granted. The magical creative batting of VVS is one such thing. Pure manodharma! Like T N Seshagopalan, VVS takes you to a different plane and holds you spell bound.

This world will be poorer without people like them.