You know something special is abuzz when Raga Sudha hall (Mylapore, Chennai) overflows with rasika-s on a weekday. Like bees attracted to the lotus, rasika-s swarmed in to grab a seat, eager to  witness the musician, composer and scholar par excellence - Saṅgīta Kalānidhi designate, Vid. Śrī. RK Shriramkumar's musical perspective of Sundara kāṇḍa! 

Accompanied by Vid. Amritha Murali on vocal support, Vid. Madan Mohan on the violin and Vid. K Arunprakash on the mṛdaṅgam, he set the  tone with a sprightly svāmi mukhya prāṇa in yadukulakāmbhōji, with the kind of energy  that matches that of Āñjanēya’s! 

He very humorously mentioned how, the challenges given by Smt. Jaya of Naada Inbam were akin Hanuman’s tasks, before reflecting on how one ślōka of the samudra of Sundara Kāṇḍa is enough to experience its rasa, like one sip of the Gaṅgā (gaṅgā jalalava kaṇikā pītā - Bhaja Gōvindam). 

Well, how does the Sundara Kāṇḍa get its name? He says, Āñjanēya himself has the nāma Sundara, but this is best explained in the ślōka sundarē sundarō rāma: -What isn't beautiful in Sundara Kāṇḍa? What followed, truly, was ati sundaram. 

After mentioning how both the Rāmāyaṇa and the Sundara Kāṇḍa open with the ta-kāra (tapa: svādhyāya nirataṃ & tatō rāvaṇa nītāyāḥ) - a syllable believed to remove obstacles and bring auspiciousness, he gave some background on how post Vāli’s vada, Sugrīva forgot his promise to help in the search for Sīta, probably inspiring Tyāgarāja Svāmi to sing - ī mahini bhayamēṭi kanna māṭa ("Did you not tell me not to fear, because you are there for me?") and launched into the most soul-stirring rendition of sītā pati! 

Describing Rāma handing his ring to Hanuman, he said Rāma referred to him as paṇḍita,  fully assured he'll be the kārya-sādhaka. "After all, Hanuman is nava vyākaraṇa nipuṇa", he said, referencing Śrī Muttusvāmi Dīkṣita, and presented the electric composition, Pavanātmajāgaccha in Nāṭa.  The composition, he said, offers Hanuman's story in a capsule - like Jāmbavān reminding  him of his strength when the Vānara-s sat despondent before the ocean & how Dīkṣita even mentions him going after the sun as a baby (udita mitra dvēṣa). 

He then gave beautiful insights into Dīkṣita’s handling of Nāṭa - the unique opening  phrases (PMM,P SMR,S P̣RṆ,S) - the prevalent yet natural use of svarākṣara-s and the jhaṇṭa svara-s that are the jīva of Nāṭa. He also mentioned how beautifully Dīkṣita evokes the  dēvatā sānnidhyam of Āñjanēya svāmi in the composition by mirroring the vānara's movements in the construct of the rāga. Sure enough, Vid. Arunprakash was having a field day! 

"As Hanuman recalled his parākrama and was asked how he’d cross the ocean, he declared  he’d go as swift as Rāma’s arrow. Tyāgarāja Svāmi celebrates it in two of his kṛti-s", he noted - the well-known Rāma-bāṇa in Sāvēri and the lesser-heard evariccirirā nī śaracāpamu in Madhyamāvati, which he then presented. 

He then described Hanuman's journey across the ocean, encountering Maināka Parvata, Surasā and Simhikā and highlighted how Tyāgarāja Svāmi beautifully captures this while  describing Rāma's feet as surasā ripu karābja caraṇa. 

After an evocative narration of Hanuman’s search across Laṅkā and his first sighting of Sīta, he shared how Sīta, though capable of reducing Rāvaṇa to ashes, refrains, as she wants Rāma to earn that glory. Tyāgarāja captures this sentiment in Mā Jānakī - Rāma attained  greatness only by holding Sīta’s hand. A gem of a rendition followed. 

He said Hanuman decided to gain Sīta's confidence by narrating Rāma kathā, which she listens with equal parts of joy and fear. He then presented - Rāma kathā sudhā and Pibarē Rāma Rasam - celebrating the nectar that is Rāma's story. 

"After ensuring he had found Sīta, presenting her Rāma's ring and getting proof from her in the form of her cūḍāmaṇi, kākāsura vṛddhānta and how Rāma applied red pigment on her cheek, he tests the prowess of Rāvaṇa's army by attacking Aśōka vana, killing Rāvaṇa's youngest son Akṣaya Kumāra in the process". This was captured in the rendition of pāhi rāma-dhūta jagat-prāṇa kumāra a rare Samskṛta composition of Tyāgarāja in vasantavarāḷi where he mentions this episode as daśa-vadana-sūnu-tanu-haraṇa. 

When Indrajit bound him with the Braḥmāstra, Hanuman submitted willingly, wishing to meet Rāvaṇa. His fierce reply to Rāvaṇa was rendered next - Aruṇācala Kavirāya's rāmasāmi dūtan nānaḍā which Vid. RK Shriramkumar had set to tune in kānaḍā (how  poetic!). 

He then narrated how Hanuman's tail was set on fire, he set Laṅkā ablaze, ensured Sīta’s safety, and sought her blessings before taking off. He admired Hanuman's intellect in saying dṛṣṭā sītā / kaṇḍēn sītaiyai before offering the cūḍāmaṇi and recounting the red pigment and Kākāsura story. What followed was a goosebumps-inducing Ē Rāmuni in Vakulābharaṇam, where Tyāgarāja also recounts the tale.

"Tyāgarāja says, Hanuman has understood Gītā sāram. He also mentions saṅgītānandamu - saṅgīta gives joy - not just ānanda but braḥmānanda - eternal bliss, where everything else  dissolves - that is the goal of saṅgīta". This wasn't just spoken but shown in action as he not only reveled in the bliss of music himself but also took us along on that beautiful journey as  he presented Gītārthamu! 

The lec-dem ended with a string of renditions. First, Tulasidāsa's Hanumān Bāhuk and Hanumān Cālīsā - with a touching nod to Bharat Ratna Smt. MS Subbulakshmi for popularizing the latter. The hall felt calm yet charged with energy as the rasika-s joined in for the latter with moist eyes. Dīkṣita’s evergreen Māmava Paṭṭābhirāma brought the session to a close, leaving the hall brimming with joy.