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'For Queen Of Music': Vidya Balan's Photographic Tribute To MS Subbulakshmi

On legendary Carnatic singer MS Subbulakshmi's 108th birth anniversary, actor Vidya Balan chose to recreate the iconic styles of the musical sensation. 'M.S. Subbulakshmi is a spiritual experience," said Balan.

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Neha Seth
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On legendary singer MS Subbulakshmi's 108th birth anniversary, actress Vidya Balan has come together with costume designer Anu Parthasarathy to recreate the iconic styles of the musical sensation. The Parineeta actor shared a video from the shoot on Instagram along with a heartwarming note as she expressed her honour to pay a photographic tribute to Subbulakshmi.

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“Growing up, my mom would play Suprabhatam sung by her, first thing in the morning. My every day still begins with her voice. For me, M.S. Subbulakshmi is a spiritual experience. Therefore, this has been a labour of love, and I feel honoured to be able to pay tribute to her in this way,” Balan wrote alongside her post.

MS Subbulakshmi was not just a Carnatic music legend but someone who championed music as an art form for change. Music was her life. She held global audiences in rapt. She grew up in a home full of music, from her violinist grandmother to her veena-playing mother, Shanmukhavadivu Ammal. She gave her first performance at the age of 11. Jawaharlal Nehru famously said about Subbulakshmi, "Who am I a mere Prime Minister before a Queen, a Queen of Music?"

Her rendition of the Suprabhatam and Vishnu Sahasranamam (1,000 names of Vishnu) still remain the versions that are played at south Indian homes and temples in the morning.

Know more about her:

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  1. Most of us know her as MS Subbulakshmi but her full name is Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi.
  2. She had no formal training. It was her mother Shanmugavadivu who gave her the initial and the most valuable lessons of Carnatic Music.
  3. She was barely 10 years when her first recording was released.
  4. MS was not only a musical legend but she also acted on screen in some Tamil films. Her first movie 'Sevasadanam' was released in 1938.
  5. In the year 1941 no female had ever played the role of a male character but in order to raise funds for Kalki, her husband's nationalist Tamil weekly, MS Subbulakshmi essayed the male role of Narada in 'Savitri'.
  6. The esteemed Madras Music Academy which is particularly famed for its critical selection process broke all its rules when it invited a girl of 13 to perform on it stage. This girl was none other than Ms Subbulakshmi.
  7. A first of its kind on December 18, 2005, a commemorative postage stamp was issued in her honour.
Vidya Balan MS Subbulakshmi carnatic music legends women singers in India
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