T.N. Rajarattinam Pillai Charisma, Caste Rivalry and the Contested Past in South Indian Music

TeradaYoshitaka, Professor Emeritus at the National Museum of Ethnology,

Osaka, Japan began his journey with South Indian music with a rather simple

query.Why had Periya Me l -am (the traditional musical genre featuring the

na gasvaram and the tavil), which is considered to be extremely important in

the religious and social life of South Indian Hindus, been neglected by both

Indian and non-Indian scholars?As he began his field research, Terada realized

that the history of Periya Me l -am is inextricably linked with the life of the master

of na gasvaram, T.N. Rajarattinam Pillai (1989-1956).

T.N. Rajarattinam Pillai: Charisma, Caste Rivalry and the Contested Past in South

Indian Music focuses on the influential artist's life and work, illuminating

important aspects of caste-based relations in South Indian music. Backed

by extensive field research and scholarship, this book is also a pioneering

ethnographic account of Periya Me l -am, its practitioners and the significant

changes in the genre that took place in the twentieth century.