Publish Date
8 Sep, 2025
About This Book
Who was the first ghatam player in the universe? Was it Lord Ganesh, who drummed out a rhythm on his potbelly? Or Shiva, whose love for the clay pot was so great that he decided to manifest on earth as one, becoming Kumbheswara, a form in which he is still worshipped in Tamil Nadu? Or was it Gundayya, the potter, who played and played on the pots he made, until the ‘whole world danced to the sound of the pot’? Or was it the village women who, since time immemorial, have walked home every evening with their pots on their heads, playing on them with their rings and bangles? In this fascinating book, Sumana Chandrashekar describes her love affair with the ghatam from the time when it called to her in her dreams, leading her to Sukanya Ramgopal, contemporary India’s first woman ghatam player, and to Sukanya’s own guru, Vikku Vinayakram, who, in 1966, had played the ghatam in New York, as an accompanist for the legendary M.S. Subbulakshmi, bringing this humble instrument onto the world....
About The Author
Sumana Chandrashekar is a ghatam player, writer and researcher. She studies the ghatam under Sukanya Ramgopal, and has been a student of Carnatic vocal music as well. Sumana has performed extensively, has worked on several experimental and collaborative music projects and projects in music education. As a researcher into music histories, her specific interest lies at the confluence of language, migration, gender and music. She has travelled widely in India and has worked closely with artists and artist communities. Sumana has a Master’s in Economics and has had a long stint at India Foundation for the Arts. She is currently based in Bengaluru.
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