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[Susmitha Turaga]: So my name is Susmitha to Turaga and I am part of the South Asian Oral Histories in Peel research project at the University of Toronto Mississauga. Thank you for taking the time to meet today. And as per the project, we are interested in having

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a recorded conversation an interview with you on your experience as a South Asian in Peel across several identity markers such as class, caste, gender, sexuality and so on. To tell the stories of people in migration, food and businesses, arts and entertainment that make Mississauga and Brampton

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such a vibrant, vibrant and multicultural space by making these visible by making it visible these everyday stories. We hope to build spaces for connection and community and as students of the third year undergraduate course called oral titled Oral History of South Asians in Peel. We receive

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rigorous methodologyical and contextual training in the method of oral histories, having access to trained researchers who are designing and teaching the course project. So this online interview will take around 1-1.5 hours of your time. Um and we will talk to you regarding your experiences as

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a South Asian being in the Peel District. Um In order for us to go through with this, you have two weeks to review and sign again the written consent forms. Um as well. Throughout this process you'll be engaged with our team consisting of me, Susmitha

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and as well as our trained researcher supervisors such as our Prof Luther Obrock and our TAs. So you're welcome to raise any questions during this interview or after our conversation today through the contact information provided. And at this time, do you have any

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questions before we proceed? [Sandhya Srivatsan]: I just wanted to thank you for calling me over. And the second point is in case I need to take a sip of water, I would just do that. [ST]: Yeah, of course. Um and so we have, I'm going to ask you for

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informed verbal consent to conduct this interview and begin our interview questions. [SS]: Yes, I consent. [ST]: Thank you so much. All right to begin with, can we get your full name and your pronouns if you feel comfortable with it? [SS]: Yeah. My pronouns, my pronouns is she and my

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name is Sandhya Srivatsangan. [ST]: Um Could you provide some clarity on your identification where you come from? Um your age? Anything that you would want to describe that you think that you are? [SS]: Yeah, I'm Canadian And I live in the city of Brampton and

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uh I'm uh I was born in 1967. [ST]: Do you consider yourself a member of the South Asian diaspora? [SS]: Yes, my roots are from southern parts of India. [ST]: Do you mind...So I remember you saying what year you were born? Where were you born? How old are

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you...well, how old are you now? And what was your childhood like? Can we get a little bit about, about, elaboration on that? [SS]: I was born in Bangalore the city, the southernmost city in Karnataka. In the state called Karnataka in southern India. And yeah,

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I was born in 1967. My childhood was pretty much in Bangalore in my parents residence and I grew up there for quite some time. I had my primary education in Bangalore. [ST]: Um would you mind sharing what your parents did when you were young, what their careers were

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focused in? [SS]: My mother was a homemaker who later went on to study and my dad was a civil engineer by profession and he retired as the Director of Central Water Commission in India. [ST]: That's amazing. Um so what languages did you speak as a child that

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coincided with the rest of your family? Was there any difference? Was there any similarities? [SS]: We predominantly we spoke Tamil at home and because the colloquial language there was Kannada, we would also converse in Kannada, but within family it used to be only Tamil. [ST]: Um so we

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go on to ask you, how does religion and spirituality play a role in your life? [SS]: From a young age, I've been inculcated in um in prayers in our religion and that's a very, very important component of my life. Spirituality. I think I got into spirituality much

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later in life, but as growing up until my 30s or 40s, I was always very, very religious and um you know, that is a huge component of my life. [ST]: So that being said, um what do you do, what's your career right now and how, so I

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know that you got into music. Music is one of uh your basis of your life. So as a musician, how did you get into music? And how did that become a part of your life? [SS]: Music per se was actually inculcated from the age of six

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for me. And I grew up in that atmosphere of Carnatic music because my mother, as I said, she is a musician and she learned music from a very young age. And so it, the greatest influence was her on me. And uh yeah, so you asked

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me that uh how did it shape me as a musician, right? Um so like my initial focus was only on my academics and music was a hobby um through right through my elementary, because I was still training. I was undergoing that education in music. Later

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on, I, it's only after much later after I got married and went out of the country, did I think of it to pursue as a career. [ST]: Okay. That's amazing. So if you don't mind, would you be able to elaborate on the concepts of Carnatic music? As

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you said before that you trained particularly in Carnatic music. Maybe even rooting to what does it consist of? How is it different to other various forms of music and what makes it unique? [SS]: OK. Actually the word Carnatic, it starts with the C um that

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is actually wrong. It should be Karnataka Samgita music. Karnataka is the reference to the state where it originated. It begins with a K and after the colonial rule it got converted to Carnatic So they pronounced it that way and it became C. A. R.

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It's actually K.A.R. So I wanted to put that on record. So it's called Karnataka Samgita and it originated in Karnataka and it the origins of Carnatic music it goes uh 16th to 18th century um that's when it actually prepped up. And it was during

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that time that a lot of composers who are also our social reformers who were also philosophers as well as religious heads. So all of them combined, they composed a lot and they composed in a variety of languages. Um like in a Sanskrit, in Kannada, in

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Tamil. And some of them even composed in Malayalam. Of course Telugu was the greatest, you have a variety of uh songs only in the language of Telugu. So Carnatic music as such is, it's, so it's a very unique form when you

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compare other genres of music like in Western classical music you have harmony. Which whereas that concept is not there in Karnataka Samgita. What it really encompasses is, it is a variety of ragas that we say. Ragas, it means uh emotion actually, so so

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to speak, it's a tune, the melodies that are there. The melodies they convey a meaning and all the lyrical content of all these compositions which are there as I mentioned, they all convey a meaning, a message. It could, and predominantly it is related to religion, the

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Hinduism. So Karnataka Samgita originated in Hindu philosophy. It's enriched in that philosophy. And so all the compositions that you find will be dedicated to a particular deity or a god of goddess. And so that's how Karnataka Samgita has evolved

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over a period of time. And we are fortunate that it is an oral tradition. It's interesting that we're having this oral uh so to speak interview because this is a very much an oral tradition. In those days, there was no Zoom. And so it was only

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by word of mouth and by how people taught uh they taught a bunch of students and those students taught the next bunch and it's gone on for ages and it has survived. It has survived all the tsunamis and all the epidemics that you can think of,

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or pandemics and that is the unique feature and how strong Karnataka Samgita is. Um So that is the basic and it has got a very strong rhythmic structure. Without rhythm you don't have music. So you have talas, they're called talas, the rhythmic patterns which

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are very different for each composition. It's got a variety of talas and hundreds of ragas. It's not like you only have a major G scale or a minor E. You have a variety. So that makes Karnataka Samgita very unique. [ST]: So that being said,

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I know that you said your mom was trained in Karnataka Sangita. So in that sense did you have anyone else that you that you grew up around that was traditionally trained that influenced your training or you have a specific role model or favorite singer

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growing up? [SS]: Role models I had many. But to begin with, I, my father was a keen rasigan, we say rasigan, it means a fan, OK. You say you have a fan following of particular models. So it's just like that rasigans are people who really love music

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like they've taken the essence of all the ragas. So my father was a great rasigan. 24/7 he would only listen to music at home. So I grew up with that atmosphere and so there's no other way that I could be exposed to even to filla

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music or to any other genre of music. So that is deeply imbibed in me and my sister also learned the veena and my father used to play the veena. My grandmother used to play the veena. So we come from a very traditional family of musicians and music lovers

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so to speak and patrons of music because my great grandfather um he started, he was a pioneer who started the first Sabha. Sabha meaning an organization which promotes music and dance and theater and drama. So in those days it was a huge deal to even I'm

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talking about when the Britishers were ruling India, the colonization was happening. My great grandfather, that is my maternal great grandfather had uh who was a pioneer who opened up this particular, you know organization called the sabha called the Jagannatha Bhaktha Sabah in Egmore, Chennai in another

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city in southern parts of India. So that's where it really started and that's where people started performing. So to speak he was, he was the you know, trail blazer in those days where all stalwarts and very well known musicians performed there. When I grew up of

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course I had Dr. M.S. Subbulakshmi as my role model because how uh her songs used to be always played Dr. M. L. Vasanthakumari and D. K. Pattammal. Three women who are great musicians of their time. [ST]: So in that sense can we go on

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to talk about your early training because you said that music has integrated into your life at the age of six. So how was who was your guru and who was your teacher and how was that, how was that shaped into your life? How was your early

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teaching style? [SS]: Okay, from the age of six till about say maybe age nine or eight or nine, I was under the...there was a home tutor. So there was a person who was visually impaired, his name was Sri Janardhan [?], he came home with an escort and he

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started teaching me. My parents wanted to help him financially and so he was, he came home and I think I really owe it to one of, to all my gurus but in particularly him because being visually impaired that did not deter him from being a

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very strict taskmaster in terms of putting the tala, tala or the rhythmic structure which we use our hands. Considering the fact he was visually impaired did not deter him from finding out how where I went wrong. So that keen sense of rhythm and that a

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lot of things were taught by him. I was of course playful at that age. But then later on I came under rigorous training at the Ayyanar College of Music in Bangalore. Um it was founded by T. Chowdiah, a great violin maestro of his time. So I

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went there and I learned from Shrimati Usha Char and Anoor S. Ramakrishna was the principal of the College and uh it happened to be my mother's guru as well. So my mother's teacher as well. So that's where I had rigorous training and when

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I was in grade nine I uh you know I I applied for an exam which is conducted by the, like how you have provincial tests here like EQAO like that and you have so many royal conservatory exams and things like that in Western music

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On par, in fact even more rigorous, you have a lot of graded examinations, so I had the opportunity to get trained to apply for one of the examinations, which is called the Junior Karnataka Board Music Exam um and where I got the first rank uh

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in the entire province uh or the state, so that was a real life changer for me, so to speak, because that had a great, in fact, and that was my initial training, so to speak, as long as I lived in Bangalore. [ST]: Um that being said, your

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guru's teaching style, were they more conventional, were they incorporating other techniques as a teacher of music right now, do you find differences in how you taught versus how they taught? [SS]: Good question. Um actually speaking the method of teaching in Bangalore was very different from when I

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moved to Chennai, it was very different. So everybody, that is a unique aspect again, of Carnatic music because of the oral traditions, as I explained and all the composers were of different kinds. They had their own methodology of teaching. And so as it passed on, you

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have a variety of uh, you know, I always give this example, you can have a lot of apples, you can have macintosh, you can have a gala apple, you name it, but it's an apple. So by the color, the texture, the, you know, maybe green, it

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maybe too tart maybe bittersweet, it may be sweet, but at the ultimate, it is an apple, right? So some likewise in Carnatic music I could say that for all the gurus that I learned every guru inculcated some kind of a important value to me. But

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the ultimate of the core of it was Karnataka Samgita. So uh, when I learned in Bangalore to answer your question, it was very rigorous. I had very strict disciplinary teachers who would not allow me to move forward till I got that note or

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hit that note properly. So, and they would give you notations. See notations is another important aspect, which is not so, um, uh, profound as in western music. Like in western music, you've got to have the notes in front of you when you are playing an instrument or

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when you're singing right. But whereas in Karnataka Samgita we have to grasp it. We have to take it in and memorize it and say it from memory. No looking at books so that I think you can tell, you can share your story later

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on about how you learned from me. But that was the strict, you know, very strict discipline, which is, just kept me in good stead because my memory is still intact. If you asked me to sing those songs, I remember. Um, but whereas my approach has

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definitely been very different because I live in Canada and I have a variety of, uh, students who come from backgrounds who may not belong to Karnataka Samgita who did not know about it. So that so I have to create that awareness among the students who

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come from, that, that set that kind of uh segment of the population, if I could say so. [ST]: So um in terms of discipline, you say, you had very rigorous training and rigorous um uh extracurricular activities in the sense of music, going to music and you maintain

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that with your academics as well. So in that case, how did you manage to combine both of them together and maintain them at a steady pace? [SS]: Yes, Life was not too complicated with internet those days. So I had, I used to also learn to how to

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play the instrument called the veena. Uh so I would go three times a week for classes and I would cycle myself or I would catch the bus and that local transit bus and I could go there and I would carry my school bag as well, because

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in those days communication was a little bit of a problem. Everybody did not have a telephone or a smartphone. Right? So communication to tell whether they're coming late or whether they're, you know, it caught somewhere in traffic that was not the norm in those days. So

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I had to wait and wait and wait till my guru came. So uh during that time I would not waste time at all. So I would sit and finish up and catch up all my school work. I have to study write notes and even practice music.

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So that would be my norm. So it would, I mean it made the class maybe only for 40 minutes maybe. But I mean I have to have to wait for one and a half hours because my we were expected to be there at that time. So that's

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why we would be there. Yeah. [ST]: So what is your most fondest memory that's associated with Karnataka Samgita, like an interesting experience as a student that you fondly remember with your teacher, something that sparked out that you carry with the rest of your life, something that

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you got embarrassed about fun moments, something that changed. [SS]: Okay, when I went to Chennai, I learned from Shrimati [indistinguishable] and [indistinguishable]. So Shrimati [Indistinguishable] is a very, very well known uh global artist,

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so to speak, very renowned today. Those days, she was upcoming artist. So her way of teaching would be different and she hardly had time because she was trying to make a career out of herself. And uh so one instance that she, she had to sing for

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a Bharatanatyam which is another classical dance form which is like... Bharatanatyam depends on Carnatic music for all its performances. So she was singing for a performance, for a dance performance and she told me to accompany her. Accompany her meaning that we have something called

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the drum or the tambora, which we have to play while the person is singing. So usually it's always done by the student. So it so happened, the dark lights were there and the whole, you know the stage is naturally, it is dark before the dancer comes on

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the stage. And then when it lights up the stage lights up only after the dance that comes. So in that gap, when the dancer was getting ready, the lights were dim. And there was only a small torch that my uh you know, flashlight that my

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guru had in front of her and she said, whenever I ask, you should give me water. She'd give me instructions. So she had asked me for water in the darkness but what happened was I just spilt the whole water. It was very, she couldn't get up, not like

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get up and the program was going to start. So that is one moment which I never forget that how I, the first time I'm getting an opportunity, I was so excited to be there behind my guru, it was such a great opportunity and I bungled

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it up. So it was an embarrassing moment yeah. [ST]: Um so that being said, um after so sorry, what, so summing it up, we wanted to ask, what do you find beautiful about Carnatic music? What what sparks the interest for you, what, you know makes it Carnatic

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music for you. [SS]: It has grown on me, I cannot be without um listening to Karnataka Samgita or even singing it, it's like part and parcel of me. [ST]: So then moving on to school and academics like we talked about before, I wanted to ask, so

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after high school, what career did you, did you go into, what, what did you go for higher education? Did you go for school just towards music? Did you look at anything else? [SS]: Um my whole aim was to, was only in academics actually, I was a

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real nerd to speak and I was totally into mathematics so that, I did do my undergraduate in mathematics and my post graduation in mathematics. That's when I moved to another city called Chennai, which is the heart of Karnataka Samgita, lot of music festivals, it's a, it's

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a city which helped me motivate, motivate me and it encouraged me to explore more of Karnataka Samgita. In fact I fell in love with Karnataka Samgita only after reaching Chennai. It kind of uh it really opened up my eyes, that so much could be

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so much, so little that I know and how much I need to learn that was the feeling, but still it was just a hobby because my academics was most important for me and I wanted to excel in it and which I did and I got everything

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in distinction and I used to always do, but I used to also have the balance of uh you know, I was a music treasurer of my music club in college and take part in all the music uh events and intercollegiate at competitions. And I

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used to always go for all competitions right from childhood like school and college. Yeah. [ST]: So what was your professional career in the sense that after you did your postgraduate, what did you pursue? [SS]: Okay, so in the South Indian culture, once a person has completed college, um

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the arranged marriage happens I know which is an alien concept in the Western world. Um but you know, they want my parents who felt the need that I should get a life partner. And so it was immediately my career was not at all a thing in

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my family at least. Because I say this because my sister is a postgraduate engineer and um she got married immediately. In fact, when she was completing her post graduation, she got married. And after which she, her family increased and I'm just giving you an idea

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as to what the perspective is of, because it's always focused on the South Indian diaspora, what I'm talking about 1990s. OK still the women did not have the opportunity to choose a career over family life. You know, like, you know, family life comes first, taking

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care of your husband, your husband's family, and that was priority. So that's where I fell into and I had to move out of the country for the very first time to the gulf a country called Oman and I was living in a city called Muscat. So

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my career in music or when my career in teaching because teaching, I was very passionate about teaching, I did my undergrad, the B.Ed degree, the Bachelors of Education by a distance learning. So I got married when I was halfway through that, so I had to

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go to Muscat and complete it. But then, excuse me, Muscat uh that whole society, the whole community is extremely different. We are expatriates and so we really do not mingle with the local population. So we reach out to the other South Indian, you know, there's a huge

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community there as well. So that's how I just, I wanted to be in touch with music and that's how it kind of defaulted and like I had to start teaching music but my passion was to teach math, which I did uh sorry,

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I did teach math, I was teaching there in the Indian school which had the uh CBS curriculum. [ST]: Yeah, that's beautiful. Um so how did you manage, struck uh like from juggling between maintaining like your passion for music, being in a foreign country, having this passion for

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teaching mathematics, how did you manage to learn how to integrate both, all three of them together or just how to process to make sure that all your passions fit together in a specific pathway. [SS]: Good question, tricky one though because when I initially did it, it was

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very difficult and I have to, I was very, um, I was very innocent in the sense that I've never exposed to a, you know, a foreign land. I've always been in India all through till the age of 23 and suddenly put into this uh, place called Muscat, Oman

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married with a partner whom I hardly know, maybe a little more not like here to today where we, uh, today, it's different in the western world is different even in India it has changed. The circumstances have changed with regards to marriage. But uh, to answer your

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question yes, it was difficult. But I made sure that I always listen to music, which was very important to audio cassettes those days. We had audio cassettes and um, listening and watching movies being connected and reading a lot of newspapers because newspapers, the Indian newspapers always

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had reviews, music, concert reviews. So I kept myself updated with that because my dad would mail it out to me to make because he knew how much I love to read the reviews. So that is how I felt connected even though I'm living in a place,

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which is, it's a desert, right? It's a desert for Carnatic music too. So it was, it was a challenge. But then we had a very good group of women who had this whole choir singing, you call it choir here. But we had group ensembles to

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honor a particular composer by name, Tyagaraja. So his uh in his memory they would organize the Aradhana. So I was all up for it. I reached out to those people I wanted to be connected. And so a lot of networking. Those days networking still existed

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despite us not having internet or smartphones, we would go to their houses and introduce ourselves or in a community setting like a temple and get to know people. So it was a challenge. Mathematics, I started tutoring at home so that I should be connected with math,

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[ST]: You managed to connect both. You managed to stay rooted to both your passions in any means that you could just to stay you know in touch and keep yourself updated and... [SS]: Yeah, I'm very fortunate that way that my husband was very understanding and he continues to be

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the biggest supporter for me like you know without his support it would have been very difficult. [ST]: So that being said, I guess we've answered the question on your marriage life and so in that sense you getting married and you tell me that back in this

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day that we didn't have uh the like you didn't know your husband when you barely knew him when you got married. So that being said and you having all these passions, how would how were you able to, you know explain that? Okay, these are my passions.

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How did you put that onto the table and how was your husband's um, response to that? Was he very supportive in the sense that I guess we answered, but in case you can elaborate a little bit more. [SS]: Uh, no, though it was an arranged marriage. Of

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course they had to, his parents and my parents both had to make sure that we are 100% sure that once we get into the partnership of marriage, right? Um, so at the outset, uh, even though we did not date, but we did have a couple

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of dates before we got engaged and before we got married. And uh, he was, he was working in Oman. So through letters, we would correspond and communicate whatever we felt. Uh, I mean, what my passions were to know, get to know each other, right? So I

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had expressed my desire that how I would like, how I envisioned my life with music and math and things like that. So he had a fair idea about it and he had no clue about Carnatic music before he got married. He had no ears for Carnatic

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music before that. [ST]: So then how has he managed to grow ears over time? Did he enjoy? [SS]: Yeah, yeah. So see the thing is, uh, as you also know, you've watched a lot of movies, we both are movie buffs. So film music is something he really appreciated.

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And even I do enjoy. But whereas I was not allowed during my childhood, I forgot to mention that. Taboo. I was not allowed to listen to film music. So it was a huge thing for me when I had a partner, I was so excited because I

00:30:26.890 - 00:30:42.680

could listen to, at freedom. I had my freedom to listen to film music at any number at any length of time. So that we bonded over that. And invariably when I used to listen to this audio tapes of Carnatic music, Karnataka Samgita,

00:30:42.690 - 00:30:58.890

I kind of educated him and he was in fact, he's now more educated in Carnatic music and he can identify even the ragas. So to that extent, he has been very, uh, you know, he probably had an ear for music and which just got a little

00:30:58.890 - 00:31:16.010

more nourished, right? [ST]: Um, in the sense that you just mentioned, I'd like to elaborate on it was a taboo uh, film music was a taboo in the sense that was it restricted by your parents, restricted by your... [SS]: My parents. My parents of course, because they felt, you

00:31:16.010 - 00:31:33.680

know, that I, my mind should not be corrupted because the lyrics, the lyrical content of film music. Um, sometimes it would be uh, too romantic or some of them may be a little on the edge of not appropriate for age appropriate. So they would be very

00:31:33.680 - 00:31:48.910

protective. So they should shield me away from that. And also the fear that where I would not sing Carnatic music. Mm the fear that that tradition, the rich tradition which was there in our family that had to be passed on. So we would listen to the

00:31:48.910 - 00:32:03.340

radio through my sister and myself would stealthily listened in very quiet ways. We would listen to film in music. And if you hear my father's scooter out around the corner and it used to come on a vehicle we would quickly switch it off so that those

00:32:03.340 - 00:32:16.680

are the partners in crime that my sister and myself shared. [ST]: So in that sense if you talk about your sister, how many siblings did you have growing up? Was it just you and your sister? [SS]: Just me and my sister. We are very close. She's elder. [ST]: So in

00:32:16.680 - 00:32:35.570

that sense that relationship was she also a music learner. Does she learn music? Was she into any other parts? [SS]: Yeah, she played the veena and she also went to that exam which I mentioned and she was also Bharatanatyam dancer. Uh, but for her because she

00:32:35.570 - 00:32:54.520

went in the rigorous academic course. Um, she left both Bharatanatyam and the veena because she went into engineering which demanded more of her time. [ST]: So that being said when I wanted to see um, so I understand that right now you live in Brampton and you

00:32:54.520 - 00:33:11.310

told me that you went from India to Muscat and now you're here in Brampton. So I wanted to see what your journey from Muscat to Canada and how you got yourself in Brampton please. [SS]: Okay. Um, we migrated to Canada in the year 2000 and

00:33:11.320 - 00:33:30.400

uh yeah it was from the frying pan to deep freeze in Canada. So we initially lived in Mississauga and uh later on moved to Brampton. [ST]: So um so that process that process of moving from one place to another. So you told me about your transition of music

00:33:30.400 - 00:33:45.240

and your passions from India to Muscat, but how did you manage to take those passions and apply them into a different environment such as Canada? Because I'm assuming that the cultures are also different. I'm assuming that the that the people that you grow around are different.

00:33:45.240 - 00:34:02.900

So in that case, what was the transition like when you came to Canada? Can you elaborate on the process? [SS]: Okay. Um so when I came into Canada as a family, my daughter, my husband myself are initially uh it was like any other immigrant who comes into

00:34:02.900 - 00:34:21.060

Canada, they reach out to the people who can speak their language who can be on the same wavelength uh so to speak. So there was already an existing South Asian diaspora here, existence in the GTA. So my first take was it was a little challenging

00:34:21.070 - 00:34:35.760

to reach out because I didn't know a single soul here. So what I did was I was when I was just look out for apartments for example, I would look out for names those days they still have the names, you know when you enter the condo

00:34:35.760 - 00:34:47.600

you have the names. So if it was an Indian name, I would my eyes would just open up, I said I could recognize it's an Indian name. So oh my gosh, there's some Indian here. So that was the kind of things that I used to reach

00:34:47.600 - 00:35:04.630

out to people in the Indian community. So temples were the greatest place where we could meet and extend our circle of friends. [ST]: So in the sense of religion and spirituality, how did you manage to integrate that when you came to Canada? Would you, were you able

00:35:04.630 - 00:35:21.690

to find temples that were open? Did you find there were there a lot of offerings of temples, a lot of offerings of religious centers that you can go to maybe even practice your music in or apply your music knowledge into. [SS]: Yes. At that particular point in

00:35:21.690 - 00:35:38.320

time when we were in the country, there were a few, there were not many temples like today um but because 2000 is almost 21 years, right? Um so we had the biggest temple in Richmond and we used to make it like a pilgrimage to go there at

00:35:38.320 - 00:35:52.620

least once a month or every week. Um so that we get familiar with the people, it kind of uh as I said because religion was a major part of my upbringing as well in my childhood as well as later on and my husband also came from

00:35:52.620 - 00:36:12.930

such a similar family. So it was very important that we stay connected with our prayers and chanting. So we used to make that effort to go every week. Be it snow, be it rain, be it summer, whatever. Go there. So that's how we establish connections and on important festivities, people would

00:36:12.930 - 00:36:26.970

come and then they would usually at the end of a prayer in Hinduism we, they may ask someone to sing so I would volunteer or if someone knows by that time I had made some friends so they would ask me to sing. So that's how it

00:36:26.970 - 00:36:44.270

all started. Like people started recognizing me and there were also music organization that promoted like Bharathi Kala Manram which they were the first ones who gave me an opportunity. They gave me a break, so to speak. Otherwise people will not know Sandhya Srivatsan. So they

00:36:44.280 - 00:36:59.630

gave me that platform. I'm very grateful for that because uh they just said yeah, you can come and sing. So it was, they were celebrating a composer's day and they just asked me to sing. So that's when I started reaching out to all my music circle

00:36:59.630 - 00:37:15.230

of friends. That's how it started. [ST]: So in that sense you said that you came to Canada with your husband and your kid, right, I'm assuming at that time she was very young. So how did you make sure? So you connecting with your religion and staying rooted

00:37:15.230 - 00:37:27.130

is one thing and then having your child who's growing up in a completely different environment that you have, you've grown up different from what you have grown up into. How did you make sure that those roots were also going towards her, like she was being educated

00:37:27.130 - 00:37:46.930

of of your background, of the religion, of the environment, of music and your passions, how was that, how was that relationship between you and and your daughter? [SS]: Um My daughter was six when we came into this country and she uh we were actually under the impression

00:37:46.940 - 00:38:04.470

that she would really take to the Canadian way of living very fast, more quicker than us. Um but it was not the case because it was very difficult for the child to adapt because there were two cultures, one at home, uh we are inculcating our

00:38:04.480 - 00:38:19.690

Hindu beliefs and our way of upbringing was very different from the Canadian outside when they are there at school. So this kind of dual culture that she had was exposed to, she was not able to understand why we have to do it in such a way

00:38:19.690 - 00:38:36.810

here and there was a lot of bullying in school and the bullying did not help her at all. It really did not help her and we were in our process of making a living, making us comfortable with the space, learning the ropes because being in a

00:38:36.810 - 00:38:54.010

cold country, trying to learn this and that the Canadian way of speaking the Canadian way of approaching even a job, you know, opening. So it was a huge struggle like with any immigrant family. Uh, they go through that. But we had we were lucky enough to

00:38:54.010 - 00:39:10.450

find a very good teacher who volunteered her time to teach all the Sanskrit chanting. So there they were a bunch of 20 kids. So that's when we brought her into that fold and we that teacher, we really are very grateful to that teacher by name, [Sanghita?]

00:39:10.450 - 00:39:29.740

[Charlie?] who really inculcated that in this child who was a great support for all the 20 kids who was able to articulate and express and give a scientific reason for everything that was followed in Hinduism because Hinduism is actually very scientific. Um, so in that

00:39:29.750 - 00:39:46.700

aspect every all the questions that children normally ask was all answered by her in a very convincing way and a very practical and very scientific way in which they would understand. So that brought about a kind of a change in her in the sense that oh

00:39:46.710 - 00:40:03.420

okay, this is what, so she had a deep sense of belonging and an admiration for the India itself. And so that's how she understood more about us. And of course, because I started teaching music at home, she got into that. So I used to include her

00:40:03.420 - 00:40:18.690

in the classes of her age appropriate so that she could make... it was basically more to make friends for her being the only child making friends of the same color of the same uh, you know race. I don't want to be racist or you know, anything

00:40:18.690 - 00:40:32.770

like that. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to be that way. But it is a great importance at the child at that level to understand somebody can look like me, you know, the same type and who also practices the same religion. So, you know, that

00:40:32.770 - 00:40:47.840

kind of knowledge they can, because she did not have siblings. She made those friends in the 20 circle, 20 group of friends. So that was something she looked forward to on Sundays more than even the chanting learning because she would meet her friends. That is how

00:40:47.850 - 00:41:06.640

I look at. But it was very difficult, extremely difficult on her. Um, and only now we realized afterwards when she went into university did we realize how much of a struggle the child had. [ST]: Uh, so that being said, um, we can say that immigration was very significant in

00:41:06.640 - 00:41:24.620

shaping who you are now and who your family is now and how you are in a total. So looking at all of that and looking at your education as a mathematician, you add PhD or did your postgraduate in mathematics. How were you able to, did you, this

00:41:24.620 - 00:41:39.020

idea of a career when you came to Canada, did you, did you seem to be able to find roots? Did you seem to be able to find areas where you can still continue your passion for mathematics. [SS]: I really tried because I wanted to really teach mathematics at

00:41:39.020 - 00:41:55.140

schools. Unfortunately, I had to go through the licensing. Um, so at the family circumstance at that particular point in time was like, you know, I had to be there for my daughter and she comes home. I I had had made up, it was a common thing

00:41:55.140 - 00:42:10.290

with my husband and myself that we want to be there for her when she returns from school, she should not come to an empty home or go to a babysitter. So that, having said that, I was quite determined to also teach math. So I started again

00:42:10.300 - 00:42:25.280

my passion for teaching math at home and I went to Oxford Learning Center and I just walked in, I in those days there were 13, 13 grades in Ontario. So I was teaching the 13th grade math as well. And so I was having that kind of

00:42:25.280 - 00:42:39.640

a balance, but then I realized that didn't sit well with my daughter too. So I and I was also a part-time researcher at University of Toronto Rotman School of Management. I happened to be a researcher, which I'd never done because I had my stats background

00:42:39.640 - 00:42:57.590

and because of that I was able to get it through a friend's reference. And so I worked for a prof for about three years. So in the first three years when we were settling in, I had three part time jobs, one was this at U of T downtown and

00:42:57.600 - 00:43:15.540

one was the Oxford math and teaching music. Um, so that that was a struggle right? Because you're looking back, I can't dream of doing that now. [ST]: Yeah, because you had your part time, you had your three part time jobs, your part time job as a mother as

00:43:15.540 - 00:43:28.430

well. It takes a lot of time and effort to sit down and be there for your child, which is amazing that you and your husband have chosen to do. So that being said, you're, let's, if we're going to elaborate on your teaching music um I wanted

00:43:28.430 - 00:43:42.430

to know more about how you were able to start it off, like what? Because the spark in you to say that okay now I want to be able to teach music like this is what I see myself doing and want to provide the knowledge for my

00:43:42.900 - 00:43:58.260

um daughter as well as other kids around her age. [SS]: Yeah, so when I made that decision that I wanted to start teaching music at home, the first place I chose was my daughter's school because I used to wait there to pick her up. So there would

00:43:58.260 - 00:44:13.960

be parents out there and they were not the area where I lived in Mississauga on Tomken and Bloor at that point in time, there were not many Indians around that uh because I come from India and talking, but there are other South Asians of course like

00:44:13.960 - 00:44:27.390

Sri Lankan's and that's when I connected up with one Sri Lankan parent and uh I told her that I teach music, you know on parent teachers day, you know when they asked the parents to come and see this class so that I would go out of

00:44:27.390 - 00:44:40.810

my own way and I'm a little bit of an extrovert. So I go and talk to them and make friends and say hey, you know what I'm teaching music. So, excuse me, so if you're interested you can. So that's how it started and then slowly through

00:44:40.810 - 00:44:57.670

the temples as I said earlier. So word of mouth, word of mouth is the most important uh marketing tool so to speak in those days and it continues to be if you do it and if your friend tells another friend that hey, this person is good

00:44:57.670 - 00:45:15.710

to teach then people come and approach you. So it has only gone by word of mouth, no marketing gimmick, no email sending out. No, nothing if I am what I am today. It's only because of the good relationships that I've had with all parents who put

00:45:15.710 - 00:45:33.920

their children and uh, I'm only owe myself uh, for a while where I am today, it's only because of the good will of parents. Uh my gratitude is only toward the parents who really built me up. Yeah. [ST]: So that being said, what was the initial, so

00:45:33.920 - 00:45:51.910

the initial start of you teaching music, what was it, was the South Asian community as big, what was the South Asian community then compared to now. Do you see it more open, more diverse now than it was back in the day. [SS]: Uh Yes I think so.

00:45:51.920 - 00:46:06.950

We have very few. There's one for, because India is a country of languages so we have South, South Indians having a variety of languages. So it was all language-centric. So we have one for Tamil, one for Kannada, one for Telugu um and one for Malayalam

00:46:06.950 - 00:46:22.130

and things like that. So but the kind of group cliches you know, so to speak. So I was more into Tamil because my husband only knew Tamil but I would love Kannada because I know Kannada. So there was to be a Kannada organization and a Tamil

00:46:22.130 - 00:46:40.210

organization called Marca. So these were the two other organizations which also helped me to spread the word about my music teaching. [ST]: So then um so what does the story behind Gaanavarshini like where did the name come from? What was the process of starting it? Where

00:46:40.680 - 00:46:56.240

like the behind process of what became the music academy now. What I wanted to know what the basic story language because it was always a question as to how the name Gaanavarshini came up to be. So I wanted to talk more about that. Okay.

00:46:56.250 - 00:47:13.260

Um so initially I was just doing it as a private tuition right, music. But then as I started to grow and as I was living in a condominium townhouse condominium. I used to take it at the basement and uh the basement was, the wall was attached

00:47:13.260 - 00:47:27.310

to my neighbors. So I started hearing some noises from the other end whenever I teach. They would not come directly and tell me that it was causing a disturbance. So then I heard about all the thing and I said okay it's better that I open

00:47:27.320 - 00:47:43.660

an incor, and Inc so that you know that will help me uh you know cover my liabilities. And uh so when I did that I was looking for the name and I wanted it to rhyme much with my guru who Usha Char who actually

00:47:43.660 - 00:47:58.950

moved to Washington in 84. She established something called Nadatarangini wanted it to rhyme with that. She has been the sole person who trained me to even to get the first strength music which I said. So I wanted something to rhyme with it. Gaana means

00:47:58.950 - 00:48:15.740

songs. Varshini means rain. So its rain of songs. [ST]: That's a beautiful name. So that being said your husband, I'm assuming after you came here and you said you wanted to start up an incorporation he was supportive of the entire idea of Gaanavarshini and you expect

00:48:15.740 - 00:48:31.040

getting all of that. [SS]: Oh yes he's the he's my manager actually so to speak. So he's the one who really is the architect behind everything like you know. Yeah and how to because he is an Exec MBA from Western uh Western University. So of Ontario. So

00:48:31.040 - 00:48:48.120

he used to uh he did his part time MBA while I was raising the child and pursuing these three careers of mine and he was studying. So I took a backseat of studying. Though I wanted to study and yeah, that's how it went. [ST]: So that being said

00:48:48.120 - 00:49:05.290

I wanted to get into more of your life as a teacher, I wanted to talk about your students. Um so what do you see um common amongst all your students as towards the long term um vision for this art form, like where do they practice?

00:49:05.300 - 00:49:19.470

Do you see that they go to a certain age and stop or do they see that all your students are progressing well and they're looking into careers with music or most of them are doing this as a hobby. Like how do you see Canadians, Canadian children

00:49:19.470 - 00:49:43.720

here integrate themselves with Karnataka Samgita. [SS]: You mean Indo-Canadian kids? [ST]: Yeah. Indo-Canadian kids, yeah. [SS]: So the Indo-Canadian students that I have uh they always start very early but they lose the steam by the time they are teenagers. The reason being, there is a rigorous

00:49:43.720 - 00:50:01.110

training in the sense you have to go through particular exercises before you start learning full fledged songs. But what happens is the patience is lost because this needs a lot of patience in kind of practice. Practice is a key component of any art form and Karnataka

00:50:01.110 - 00:50:18.050

Samgita is more rigorous in its training, you got really be committed and motivated to do the rigorous training at home as well. For most part, what happens is the children who come, they want to stay connected. The parents at least they feel that Carnatic music

00:50:18.060 - 00:50:31.720

is a vehicle for them to get connected with their traditional roots in India because the language is spoken. Often parents come and tell me, will you teach me in Telugu, will you teach me in Tamil only? Because I really talk only in Tamil when you're teaching

00:50:31.720 - 00:50:47.960

the kids because they want to enforce that kind of language because language, they should not forget their mother tongues. So that is the essential meaning of the parents coming and approaching me for music not understanding that Carnatic music is much more than that, it's

00:50:47.960 - 00:51:09.110

not just languages that are being taught, it's not a language class, it's more of music and ragas that are taught. So to answer your question I have for every decade I'm introduced at least three or four who continue to pursue further. But there are for most part, once

00:51:09.110 - 00:51:24.170

they come into high school they're not able to balance it out. They're not able to balance their extracurricular activities and always it's uh Cranatic music which comes at the bottom line as a priority but as Bharatanatyam will because it's more visual and because it's

00:51:24.170 - 00:51:43.850

more about beautifying the person and you know showcasing themselves. Uh I think in teenage ages, the body image comes those issues come to the teenagers. So they prefer that art form which displays rather than just singing. You know, so it's that's the sad part of the whole

00:51:43.850 - 00:52:04.120

thing. But as I there are many teachers here in the GTA who are also training their students ok. But and they're also move forward and while Gaanavarshini students also move forward because many of them have uh continued to um pursue the music uh learning

00:52:04.120 - 00:52:20.250

music because this particular form of music is never ending. You continue to learn one lifetime is not enough, there's so much to learn I continue to learn. [ST]: So so that being said as a teacher, is there a specific screening criteria that you use to accept your

00:52:20.250 - 00:52:36.770

students or do as long as they have a passion they're allowed to come and learn? What is the process of, you... [SS]: I do have an auditioning process which I started very uh you know after much thought, I said, you know this has to be done

00:52:36.780 - 00:52:59.480

like you know, especially the audition tries to assess the the the year for synchronization with the drone as I said, Tambora, which is the pitch, the pitching should be perfect. So I I look at that and their uh comprehension as to how they can repeat what

00:52:59.480 - 00:53:17.260

I'm singing, you know, to the extent that they can and uh suppose say I'm a little doubtful. I always tell the parent that I'm going to give a month or two for the benefit of the kid before I really take in the child. [ST]: Yeah, so as that,

00:53:17.650 - 00:53:31.420

uh, once we've gone through that, I wanted to see if you had a significant memory with your students, something that you took as a teacher and enriched yourself and reminded you of your past as a student. Do you have any specific memories as a teacher that

00:53:31.420 - 00:53:46.660

you would like to share? Anything? You know, maybe something that you did in various things, Maybe something that your students did that caught you and went Oh my God, anything that's fond? [SS]: Well, there are many such instances, uh, it's not one or two. I have had a

00:53:46.660 - 00:54:05.260

lot of fun moments with them, especially on Halloween Day. Um, see the continuity is very important in Carnatic music, as I said, about practice. Even attending classes is very important. They only come once a week. But as I went three times a week for classes. So

00:54:05.270 - 00:54:18.590

whenever I had a class on Halloween Day, I would, uh, the children and the parents would hum and haw and say, are you sure you want to have class today? Because it's at six and it's time for trick or treating. And I would say, no we will

00:54:18.590 - 00:54:31.670

have, so what I started doing was I would also have some fun costume or have a hat and I asked them to come in their Halloween costumes and then have fun with them. And I've even gone trick or treating, I think even have gone once with

00:54:31.670 - 00:54:45.690

you or with your sister. I've got around the block along after I I would tell them that you sing perfectly today and I'm going to go trick or treating around the neighborhood with you guys because you need an adult chaperone. So I have done that. So

00:54:45.690 - 00:55:00.400

those are the fun things that I love doing to children because you have to understand where they are coming from. [ST]: So in the case of the students, what do you feel that Carnatic music has to offer Indo Canadian students in the sense that like you

00:55:00.400 - 00:55:19.490

said, memory and you said, um practice, like what does Carnatic music teach them in terms of life, in terms of um, you know, life learning skills and qualities to improve them as a as a student, as just a person in general. [SS]: Oh wow, that that's a

00:55:19.500 - 00:55:40.770

good question. I really would say that Carnatic music definitely helps children to do very well in academics because any form of music for that matter, because that involves focus, detailing the, I mean, you know, concentrating to such a level that you perfectly hear and listen.

00:55:40.780 - 00:55:59.650

So listening is an important integral part of learning process. Any learning process. Right? So listening to music, identifying, differentiating the ragas, all that gives a very, the mind is able to, the creative aspect of comes out? Like, you know, you the the improvisation that is there

00:55:59.650 - 00:56:19.990

in Carnatic music is enormous. There is so much uh there is uh no dearth for creativity, in Karnataka Samgita. So all that adds value to the student to shine well in academics as well as to get a balance, to have a balance in life. Because

00:56:20.000 - 00:56:35.860

all these compositions that I teach, I also tried to explain the meaning because they're in languages that the children do not understand, right? So they can be in Sanskrit, the ancient script. So I tried to explain to them what the message is being conveyed. There

00:56:35.860 - 00:56:56.120

were profound messages and philosophy of goodness and how one person should really conduct himself or herself. So there are so many hidden messages there which are also said. So this helps them to have kind of you know, how to be morally right to have the balance

00:56:56.120 - 00:57:15.930

life and to also, because it's also in precision how you complete a song in time. So in a sense, time management too. [ST]: So as we talk about Covid and we look at the Covid situation that we're facing in the world right now. How have you

00:57:15.930 - 00:57:35.640

as a teacher and as teaching Carnatic music have been able to adapt to that situation. Are you providing classes through Zoom? What is your thought process on Covid? [SS]: Um actually, it's a very, a very sad state of affairs because artists themselves are not finding opportunities to

00:57:35.640 - 00:57:55.110

perform and now students when they wish to come in person to my studio to learn and that is now totally not there. So the lag in internet, right? That causes a lot of technical difficulties in them understanding the precision. But how I have adapted is I

00:57:55.110 - 00:58:10.520

have made sure that children are, my attendance is complete now. I get 100% attendance. Children don't have an excuse for not coming. Before they used to have excuse of birthday parties. Now no, they have to come for class. So that makes a good thing because there's more

00:58:10.520 - 00:58:28.500

regularity, there is more understanding and I'm able to uh use technology to my advantage in the sense, show them video clips, show them well known musicians who sing and perform and identify who's good, where are they going wrong or what is the thing that you can

00:58:28.500 - 00:58:42.270

do as a student? So that way it helps me a lot and I do the Kahoot quiz all the time. So to make sure that they're paying attention because staring at the screen is tough. Those challenges are definitely there. But I, I, I always

00:58:42.270 - 00:58:59.640

believe that a good teacher should always encourage and motivate them. So what I started doing, I started my Youtube channel, just dedicated for our children and it is also created by children by my students. So that way, what has happened is they've got very excited. So

00:58:59.640 - 00:59:16.910

they're very savvy tech savvy. So they edit the videos for me, They do whatever I ask them to do and they perform as well. So that, that I saw that sparked a kind of different interest in that too because they're going to be on Youtube.

00:59:16.920 - 00:59:31.590

[ST]: So um, that being said, did you? So I wanted to go back into a little bit of teaching because I wanted to ask an important question that I seem to have forgotten. But you as a teacher and you going through what you had to become a teacher

00:59:31.590 - 00:59:42.510

and to teach music. Did you ever wanted to do? Was there ever a moment in your life where like enough of this, I want, this is not going the way I wanted to, I want to quit teaching. This is not what I want to do. Did

00:59:42.510 - 01:00:06.400

you ever have that moment in your life? [SS]: Okay. It was a moment a couple of years back because I forgot to mention that I'm a gerontologist. After my husband finished his MBA I pursued my academics in a different way, totally different uh study of aging just called

01:00:06.400 - 01:00:25.100

gerontology. But at Ryerson University. By that time I had quite a few students, so I had to do distance learning with Ryerson and uh working with seniors has opened up a whole vista of opportunities for me. But because music, because I'm already committed to students,

01:00:25.100 - 01:00:42.550

I'm not able to go full fledged into that. So there was a point in time where I thought of pursuing Master's in Gerontology um, at McMaster, which offers a program and had applied and I didn't get in. And that was uh that was a turning point

01:00:42.550 - 01:00:56.730

when that the point of reckoning, which says that no Sandhya, for your music is the only thing that, you know, is laid out for you as a as a destiny. That you, that you should pursue that. You cannot take a break from that. Um so and

01:00:56.730 - 01:01:16.180

I've accepted that and I'm very grateful for having taken that decision because I started using that as uh even that gerontology, whatever knowledge I have, I tried to incorporate music in the field of gerontology. [ST]: And if you wouldn't mind, can you elaborate on how

01:01:16.190 - 01:01:35.380

you apply that? [SS]: Yeah, so music is a very good uh therapeutic tool. So I started on my own again, distance learning um from India I started understanding what music therapy is about. What it is, and what it entails and how Karnataka Samgita can be used in

01:01:35.380 - 01:01:53.660

this. So that's how I started thinking. And because some of the ragas are, they help elevate the mood of an individual. So that's how I started. And so I went into research because of that. So I have touched every pie and I'm not become a master

01:01:53.660 - 01:02:15.860

of any, but I've tried to incorporate all my skills together so that I can help help improve the quality of life for seniors, that's all. [ST]: So um me as your student, I have personally seen you coordinate or do some performances um with your students or um

01:02:15.870 - 01:02:32.390

with different kinds of art forms in the sense that I remember you had a part in your life where you try to um, combined Carnatic music and choir, I remember seeing pictures in your studio. So I wanted to see if you can talk about how your art intersects

01:02:32.390 - 01:02:50.720

with multiple other art forms or how you have managed to try to intersect them together to form a sense of commonality. [SS]: Okay. I've reached out to schools and Mississauga Youth Festival, youth choir. Um, they had approached me to do a workshop to help help

01:02:50.720 - 01:03:05.810

the youth who come there to learn Western classical music as a part of the choir group. And they said that they're having this Christmas season concert and they're having it in this church in Mississauga. So I just jumped at it. I said why not, why not

01:03:05.810 - 01:03:22.810

teach, you know create that educated? You know, it's, you have, it's important for a child to get educated about different cultures and the best way is music in my opinion, because I find that music is a very good leveler, like in the sense that even if

01:03:22.810 - 01:03:40.260

you belong to something but music is music, it can, you know, pep you up suddenly and it can catch you unawares. So that was a golden opportunity where I had about 50 youth from different backgrounds had come and I had taken my high school students along with

01:03:40.260 - 01:03:57.210

me to conduct this workshop and we broke up into small groups before I um and then I had done, I had addressed the whole group and then divided them into smaller groups to learn a Hindi song, you know, and they were so good because they were already

01:03:57.220 - 01:04:18.320

proficient in music, right? So they were really good at grasping all the points that I had to say. It was a wonderful experience and the pronunciation was fantastic. [ST]: So um you've experienced performing in India and you've experienced performing in Canada. How is it different for you

01:04:18.320 - 01:04:33.040

as a practitioner of music rather than a teacher? We're looking at you practicing music and still being a student of music as you continue to say that you're still learning every single day. How does that differ for you in the sense of India versus Canada. Have

01:04:33.050 - 01:04:50.690

has that created a blockage in what you learn and what you expose yourself to? [SS]: Yes, in the sense in India I used to go directly to the guru and learn face-to-face, but here in Canada because of the complex lifestyle that we lead, I don't get

01:04:50.690 - 01:05:08.080

that opportunity or the time even to do a Skype or Zoom with my guru is back home. And and the, in the initial years of my life here as an immigrant, my only solace was to rehash and relearn some of the songs that I had learned

01:05:08.090 - 01:05:21.230

from my gurus and probably heard a lot. So there are songs that you hear a lot but you never tend to sing it. So those songs I try to learn on my own, it was all self taught. So most of the keerthanas, or

01:05:21.230 - 01:05:40.630

keerthanas are songs by the way and that's a technical term we use. So that was more now with the advent of the internet and on that Youtube, I now, most of it is self taught it's not from a guru, that experience I really miss. [ST]: So with

01:05:40.640 - 01:06:01.180

Gaanavarshini is your own built incorporation right, in a sense that it's it's come from passion and happiness and this this integration of all your loves in sense of music and and teaching. How do you feel as a South Asian businesswoman? [SS]: I'll be very happy that

01:06:01.180 - 01:06:16.970

I was very proud that I can bring the Karnataka Samgita um to the Indian diaspora who live in the GTA And across Canada and uh and my daughter who was continuing her Bharatanatyam and music, she's doing every bit in her efforts

01:06:16.980 - 01:06:35.680

to uh she works with Canadian heritage in Ottawa and she's trying to her level best to bring out and collaborate with cross sections of the society to you know, promote Karnataka Samgita or Bharatanatyam or the Indian classical fine arts itself. Um and I'm really happy

01:06:35.680 - 01:06:53.920

that Gaanavarshini has been instrumental in nurturing these ideas in her and in many of my students too because they go and uh give presentations in their own school, during Asian heritage month, in the month of May and I'm very happy about that and I

01:06:53.920 - 01:07:11.940

only see hope and positive energies with all the students of Gaanavarshini because they, I feel that they have now kind of by the time they come with me and they learned for a couple of years and you know, for more than eight years or a

01:07:11.940 - 01:07:29.790

decade or more, they come to understand and appreciate the connective connectiveness with their Indian roots as well as how much of self confidence it gives them through all these performances that they do. So I'm very happy about that. [ST]: So we have almost come to the end

01:07:29.790 - 01:07:41.740

of this interview and in order to conclude it and do just to it, I would want to, I was wondering if you could give us a little bit of a piece that you liked or anything that you can sing for us and give us a little

01:07:41.740 - 01:07:59.870

hear of Carnatic music itself. [SS]: That that's uh, wow, especially as I said, all my students are very special to me and we build relationship and the very fact that you had approached me after you went into university, you stopped coming for music. But the thought

01:07:59.870 - 01:08:14.520

that you still remember it and uh you know, thought of interviewing me, I really appreciate that and thank you very much. I'm looking into my phone to just you know, today we have come to the age of apps. So we have the Tanpura droid. Uh, is

01:08:14.520 - 01:08:45.090

it okay for me to show him? [ST]: Yeah, of course, of course. Go ahead. [SS]: But you know, it will be there for records. So this is the Tanpura app uh, that we use and I'm going to play it. Yeah. [sound of musical instrument.] Are you able to hear?

01:08:46.270 - 01:09:07.850

So this sound that you hear is actually a four stringed instrument called the tanpura. And this tanpura helps the musician to maintain the pitch. So the song that I would like to share with at the end of this interview is a composition by his holiness. Uh,

01:09:08.060 - 01:09:30.420

[indistinguishable], he's known as in India. Um he composed the Sanskrit uh piece for one of the well known musicians Dr. M. S. Subbulakshmi who was invited by the United Nations uh to come and inaugurated with that song. And uh his holiness had

01:09:30.430 - 01:09:49.470

specifically created this piece for her to come and sing it in front of the world stage. And this was the message that it conveyed was beautiful and it's very close to my heart. I teach all children this song because it talks about peace. It

01:09:49.470 - 01:10:12.030

says always extend the hand of friendship and remove any kind of unhealthy competitiveness that could exist between individuals, pray for the world peace and always try to have the friendship and no war should be only peace. So I think that is an important message to convey

01:10:12.040 - 01:11:20.320

and so I'd like to sing that if that's okay. [singing] [singing] [singing]

01:11:20.330 - 01:13:14.190

[singing] [singing] [singing] [singing]

01:13:16.490 - 01:13:47.290

[singing] [ST]: That was beautiful and it's been very nice to hear you sing after a very long time. [SS]: Just a second. Yeah, go ahead, thank you. [ST]: So then again we've almost, we concluded this interview, I wanted to say thank you for being here with us today and I want to

01:13:47.290 - 01:14:02.860

say thank you for sharing your experiences as South Asian, a member of South Asian member in the South South Asian Carnatic music, singer and performer and teacher. And so um before I conclude this interview, I wanted to ask you, is there anything else that you would

01:14:02.860 - 01:14:21.340

like to discuss today that we have to yet touched on? [SS]: I think we touched on all the points salient points that you wanted me to share and uh I really want to only say one thing uh Karnataka Sangeeta has grown globally and it will continue to

01:14:21.340 - 01:14:43.630

grow as long as students continue the passion of music, which they are passionate about and um I really thank you Susmitha for thinking about me as a South Asian entrepreneur, businesswoman of Gaanavarshini and as a gerontologist, what I want to pursue my future

01:14:43.640 - 01:15:02.770

with that with Carnatic music and helping seniors is my passion and I hope uh you know, in Canadian context there'll be more Canadians would also embrace this kind of music and enjoy and take the benefit of from this music form, whatever it has to offer and

01:15:02.770 - 01:15:16.560

thank you so much for interviewing me and taking their time off and I wish you all the very best in your academic pursuits. [ST]: Thank you so much auntie, it's been personally nice to talk to you after such a long time and to say thank you for

01:15:16.570 - 01:15:29.120

you know having to taught me have taught me for the past couple of years, I have definitely used music and say forever at the time that I have quit music learning, I do regret it and there's moments of time where I go and I'm like I

01:15:29.120 - 01:15:43.300

have to go back, I have to go to teach myself. [SS]: Come back any time. [ST]: Of course, definitely I've I've always regretted it to quit because it is a passion, I didn't realize, you know, it's like saying you don't realize what you have unless you've lost it, I

01:15:43.300 - 01:15:57.790

don't believe I've lost it yet, but it's not... [SS]: Music is something, I'm sorry to interrupt, music is really something that there's no age for it. [ST]: So I definitely appreciate everything that you've taught me. I use it from time to time and I can't thank

01:15:57.790 - 01:16:14.180

you for being a great teacher. [SS]: Thank you so much. That's very rewarding for the teacher to here. [ST]: And I guess we've concluded the interview and I hope you all the rest. The rest. Good rest of your day. Sorry. [SS]: Thank you. And good evening to you as

01:16:14.180 - 01:16:22.460

well. Thank you, mm hmm.