more-in Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday paid rich tributes to Carnatic vocalist D.K. Pattammal after inaugurating her birth centenary celebrations. He hailed Pattammal’s uncompromising adherence to tradition when values were fast changing, her dedication to the art without aspiring for return and judicious selection of musical offerings in concerts. Mr. Naidu was speaking after inaugurating the celebrations at Narada Gana Sabha Trust’s Sathguru Gnanananda Hall. Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar, dancer Padma Subrahmanyam, singer Bombay Jayashri Ramnath and Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Coimbatore’s director B.K. Krishnaraj Vanavarayar were present. The Vice-President said Pattammal drew inspiration from the best musicians and created her own distinct style. “No wonder former President Dr. Rajendra Prasad was so much moved on listening to her Chetasri Balakrishnam that he requested her to repeat for him,” said Mr. Naidu. Pattammal was the perennial student who was a self-taught musician. “Thanks to her husband R. Iswaran, who was quick to let go his lucrative government job only to manage her career, Pattammal reached full stature as among the first full-time professional woman musicians of the country. It was not just being the first, but being on a par, if not better than her male counterparts in all facets of music,” Mr. Naidu said. He also spoke of Pattammal’s contributions to the freedom movement, especially her renditions of various Subramanya Bharati songs. “In fact, she considered that her rendition of Bharati’s ‘aaduvome’ at the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, over AIR as the most memorable moment in her life,” the Vice-President said. After speaking on Pattammal’s proficiency while singing Hindi bhajans, Mr. Naidu deviated from his prepared remarks to talk about his involvement in the anti-Hindi movement. “No language should be blindly opposed....As a youngster influenced by Tamil Nadu, in Nellore I joined the anti-Hindi agitation. We came out of the school,” he said. The Vice-President said that his group could only find two references to Hindi in his town — at the post office and railway station — on which they poured tar. “In 1993, when I became an all India general secretary [of the BJP] and went to Delhi after being called by Advaniji, I realised I have not put tar on Hindi, I have put tar on my face. Because if you want to become an all-India leader....you must speak as many languages as possible. Hindi is one of the languages spoken by a large number of people,” he said

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