At 67, M. N. Kannan Unni sings his adoration for the legendary singer Mohammad Rafi with his first live performance in Kochi.
MN Kannan Unni is set to perform at Spotlight Socials in Padma Junction, Kochi on 24 January, 2024. (Supplied/Wikipedia)
“It was in ‘62, when I was around 7, that Rafi sahab’s Teri Pyari Pyari Soorat Ko fell in my ears. That was love at first sight.”
With this declaration, MN Kannan Unni recites his 60-year love for legendary Mohammad Rafi’s music.
“Fortunately, that affair has still not dimmed,” he says, flashing a smile to his wife Sucheta, seated beside him.
Seven years ago, Kannan and his family decided to move out of Mumbai following his retirement from the State Bank of India.
With their home state Kerala in mind, they hesitantly settled in Kochi, wondering whether they would find like-minded music lovers in the city.
Today, Kannan readies himself to take the stage at Kochi’s Spotlight Socials, singing his idol’s ghazals to the city’s Rafi fans to celebrate the legend’s 100th birth anniversary year.
“My journey into music happened inadvertently.” Kannan told South First. “We grew up listening to music.”
Like many Indian households during the time, Kannan’s parents would start their day by switching on the radio.
“That era itself was wonderful,” he remembers.
“It had amazing musicians, singers, lyricists, and of course, the greatest – Rafi” he says, resolutely.
Kannan considers Mohammad Rafi as his personal guru. (Supplied)
Like the millions who adore him, Kannan considers the iconic singer as his personal guru.
“Whatever I’ve learnt, I’ve learnt by listening to him,” he admits, recollecting the precious one hour he’d spend every Wednesday, tuned into All India Radio as it played ‘Binaca Geetmala’, a countdown show that featured Bollywood’s most popular songs.
With the radio as his only distraction, a young Kannan allowed music to paint his imagination.
“Romance was a part of growing up, and listening to ghazals, we’d imagine that we were wooing the girl of our dreams!” he remembers with a chuckle.
But upon returning to reality, Kannan realised that singing was not a career option for him.
In a family that faced their share of financial struggle, music was a professional gamble that Kannan was not willing to take.
Instead, he allowed destiny to chart his course with the artform he adored.
“I knew I had a passion for it,” he says, “so it followed me..”
“I was pleasantly shocked when I landed in Ernakulam”, reveals Kannan.
As someone who lived outside his hometown for the majority of his life, Kannan was greeted with the news that Kerala did not shy away from professing its love for his favourite singer.
Kozhikode amplified its adoration for Rafi by inaugurating a museum displaying his rare photos, albums and LP records. (Wikipedia)
“I couldn’t believe there was such a large Rafi fanbase here,” he shares, citing Fort Kochi and Kozhikode as its two major pilgrimage centres.
Kozhikode amplified its adoration for Rafi by inaugurating a museum displaying his rare photos, albums and LP records.
Upon discovering amateur music clubs and befriending people who were as crazy about music as he was, Kannan could happily call Kerala his new home.
“The amount of love and affection Rafi had in Kerala was tremendous,” he reveals.
But Kannan notices that even ardent listeners here are limited to Rafi’s popular tracks, like Teri Aankhon Ke Siva.
For his first live performance in Kochi, he plans to introduce the city to the songs that line the edges of Rafi’s musical landscape, focusing on ghazals from films as well as more obscure, underrated tracks.
“Singing popular songs doesn’t make sense, because talented singers have already sung it. There’s nothing additional I can provide!” admits Kannan.
“I hunt around looking for unusual songs of his, because some of them are real gems”, he says, bursting into a verse from Unke Khayal Aaye Toh and Khuda Abhi Aasmaan Se.
Born and raised in Mumbai, Kannan became familiar with Urdu, opening a window to the beautiful world of ghazal poetry.
“Urdu is fit for poetry,” he says, but finds that its beauty can only be felt through perfect diction.
Compromising the nuances of certain words would give it a different meaning altogether, he reveals.
Kannan was born and raised in Bombay. (Supplied)
“I was lucky to listen to ghazals growing up in Bombay because I learnt to pronounce Urdu words correctly and capture each word’s emotion while singing”, he says.
Kannan admires musicians who have been able to adopt the diction required in different styles of singing, highlighting the example of renowned singer KJ Yesudas.
“As a Kochi native, Yesudas sir, has a Kochi accent when he speaks, but when he has to sing, his diction is perfect to what the song requires.”
Kannan draws similar examples of Kumar Sanu, and Lata Mangeshkar, who even took lessons in Urdu to perfect their singing.
“These singers made the effort, so why shouldn’t we?,” he asks, hoping to work with other singers in Kochi who would like to improve their Urdu diction.
Although his love for singing has been a lifelong companion, it was only after his retirement did he decide to take it to the stage, asking himself,
“Why not?”
“As long as destiny has given me the opportunity to sing, why shouldn’t I take it? “
“As long as my voice is good, why stop myself from singing?”
After two small performances in Bengaluru, Kannan realised that his talent found a comfortable spot on stage.
“I don’t have any plans to take this forward or anything, I go with the flow,” he reveals.
“God and destiny have been kind to me, to allow me to follow my passion to this moment,” says Kannan, surrendering his love for singing to wherever it may take him next.
“When I sing, I try to emote the way the emotion is expressed in the song,” he shares.
As a singer who is relatively new to the stage, Kannan believes that the songs he performs have been composed to perfection.
“I am nowhere near the talents that made those creations. It was perfectly written, composed and sung. Who am I to change that, to sing it in a different way?” he asks.
By limiting his own contributions to the tracks he covers, Kannan only aims to echo an artistic creation that he believes must be preserved in its original form.
“I try to ensure that I don’t disrespect that creation as much as I can,” he says.
Artists in any artform must be honest to themselves in order to project that honesty in their art, which Kannan believes is the ultimate reflection of oneself.
Trusting his wife Sucheta as his biggest critic and sounding board, he is aware of his limitations and has no misgivings.
“I know what I can do well and what I cannot do.”.
By identifying this, Kannan believes that artists can take conscious risks and grow.
“It’s humanly not possible for a person to do everything,” he admits.
But after a long pause, Kannan cheekily, but unsurprisingly, says “Unless you’re somebody like Rafi sahab.”
MN Kannan Unni is set to perform at Spotlight Socials in Padma Junction, Kochi on 24 January, 2024. Visit @spotlight.socials.live on Instagram to know more!
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