On the occasion of Nadoja Sumitra’s birthday, Dr LG Meera Rao takes a look at her legacy and the songs and singers she has bequeathed to Kannada and Karnataka.
BK Sumithra lighting the lamp to inaugurate a Karnataka Sahitya Parishat event (LG Meera Rao)
If anyone utters the name ‘BK Sumitra’ in front of any music lover in Karnataka or the Kannada-speaking diaspora, they would get the response – ‘oh yes, I know her. The lady is a great singer!’
Who can forget the evergreen song ‘Sampige marada hasirele naduve kogile haadittu (the koel was singing among the sampige’s leaves)’ from the famous Kannada movie Upasane?
BK Sumitra speaking at a programme with the famous Kannada novelist MK Indira seated behind (LG Meera Rao)
Yes, this song and many other devotional and folk songs sung by Nadoja Dr BK Sumitra have added significant value to the melody treasure of Karnataka.
(‘Nadoja’ is a Kannada desi distinction conferred by the Hampi Kannada University on people who have made an outstanding contribution to Kannada culture.)
Her devotional songs have been an integral part of our land’s households, temples, and religious programs for decades now and they will continue to remain so.
The numerous folk songs she has sung are regularly played in schools and colleges throughout Karnataka, as children perform folk dance numbers on stage.
Dr BK Sumitra was born on 27 April 1941 in Bilalu Koppa in the Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka to Patel Ramayya and Gangamma.
Hers was a well-to-do family, which lived in a palatial house and was a warm nest to local art forms like folk songs, yakshagana, taalamaddale, and the like.
BK Sumitra with the famous thespian Jayamma (LG Meera Rao)
Little Sumitra spent her childhood in beautiful, green Malenadu and grew up like a happy koel. She was fortunate to have a very progressive and encouraging father who greatly supported the education of his daughters and believed in their talents.
He was such a supportive father that he took houses in Shivamogga and Madras (now Chennai) to encourage this daughter of his who showed a great interest in singing.
We must not forget that in those times, average households did not think of their daughters as anything more than burdens to be disposed of in the marriage market.
Dr Sumitra’s father stands out as a rare exception and Sumitra remembers his contribution very gratefully.
Apart from her encouraging parents, a person Dr Sumitra remembers with great reverence is her paternal aunt, Kaveramma.
This lady, who had a very good voice and taught little Sumitra many ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯದ ಹಾಡುಗಳು (sampradaayada haadugalu: traditional songs), was widowed at a very tender age. She lived with a shaven head and led a very frugal lifestyle, something that was the norm for widows in those times.
Sumithra believes her sensitive father felt very badly about the plight of his sister, which prompted him to get his daughters to study well and encourage their economic independence and take pride in their achievements in the public sphere.
Young Sumitra had talent and a god-given voice. She honed these with immense discipline and devotion.
Her teachers were the late Sri Manjappa Jois and Sri M Prabhakar (brother of the great Kannada movie actress, Pandaribai).
Sumitra learnt music with so much devotion that she developed the ability to recognise the swaras of any song she heard!
After being introduced to the film field by her teacher M Prabhakar, she sang her first movie song in the Kannada movie ‘Kavaleradu Kulavondu’ in 1964.
From then on, she sang in many movies. She has sung songs for great dancers like Hema Malini, Kanchana, Manju Bhargavi, and Rekha Chandrakala for their stage performances.
Dr Sumitra also started her own orchestra troupe at Madras in 1966. She has recorded about 1000 devotional songs, lyric poems, folk songs, and traditional songs in her ಕಂಚಿನ ಕಂಠ (Kanchina Kantha: bell-metal-like voice).
She has sung for most of Karnataka’s voice recording cassette and CD companies.
BK Sumitra with PB Sreenivas (LG Meera Rao)
Her song ‘Madhura Madhuravee Manjula Gaana’ became the title song for a very popular music program on Doordashan’s Chandana channel, Karnataka. This way this koel is the true voice of Karnataka.
Dr BK Sumitra has also conducted numerous workshops in light music throughout the state and abroad. Through these workshops, she has trained 35,000 budding singers! Her mission is to make music learning accessible to everyone.
The hardships she faced to learn music when she was a village girl have inspired her to make entry into the music world easier for the next generations.
Important awards Dr Sumitra has received for her contributions to the field of music include the Rajyotsava award, the Sangeetha Nruthya Academy award, the Kempegowda award, the Santha Shishunaala Sharif award, Alva’s Nudisiri award, the Aryabhata award, the Nadoja award conferred by Hampi Kannada University, and an honorary doctorate from Bangalore University.
BK Sumitra and her husband on their wedding day (LG Meera Rao)
Along with a very successful music career, she has managed her family responsibilities very well. Her husband Sri Sudhakar, daughter Soumya Raoh, son Sunil Raoh, and her extended family have wonderful things to say about her affection and devotion to her family.
Dr Sumitra’s glorious success story offers many lessons. Hard work, discipline, leadership qualities, team building ability, concentration, punctuality, the ability to manage crises without panicking, steadfastness in the face of challenges, humility – the list can go on and on. The point here is Dr Sumitra is always brimming with a positive energy that is infectious!
Today is the 82nd birthday of this superb singer! Happy birthday to you Sumitramma, our beloved singing legend! (She is fondly addressed by people in her field as Sumitramma or Sumitrakka).
You are a living example of the melodious song “Karmanyeva Adhikaraste Maa Phaleshu Kadaachana’’ that you sang in 1978 with the legendary Sri PB Srinivas for the Kannada movie ‘Anubandha’.
You simply did your duty without any expectations and did it so well that Kannada Nadu lost its heart to your voice and work! May you live long and continue to be a living inspiration to all of us.
(Dr LG Meera Rao is a Professor of Kannada at Maharani Cluster University, Palace Road, Bengaluru. She is a writer, singer, and a Bharathanatyam teacher by passion. She has published eleven books in Kannada, in the genres of translation, poetry, the short story, criticism, children’s literature, etc. Dr Meera Rao is also a two-time winner of the Karnataka Sahitya Academy book prize for her works. For the last 32 years, she has been running the ‘Chitranaatya Foundation’ in Hampinagara, Bengaluru. Chitranaatya is her own school of Bharathanatyam and Bhava Nruthya and has trained hundreds of students in dance.)
May 11, 2024
May 09, 2024
May 08, 2024
May 07, 2024
May 05, 2024
May 05, 2024
