An ode to the charm of Parvathy Baul

Baul music has a special following in India. Parvathy Baul is one of the first names to come to our mind when we hear of the genre, that blends Sufism and Vaishnavism. Vysakh G Nair, a Venjaramoodu- native, recently relased the song ‘Ekthara’, as a tribute to Parvathy Baul and her contribution to the art form. The song is rendered by Sithara Krishnakumar.

B K Harinarayanan penned the lyrics. ‘Ekthara’ is the debut venture from 21-year-old Vysakh. “I always wanted to start my career with a good song. When Harinarayanan wrote the song as a tribute to Parvathy Baul, I found it to be poetic and I fell in love with it. I decided it would be my first composition,” says Vysakh.

Parvathy is the first female Baul singer to be awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi award and runs the ‘Ektara Baul Sangeetha Kalari’, a Baul music school in Nedumangad, Thiruvananthapuram. Vysakh has been getting tremendous response for the song since its release. “Initially I had apprehensions. However, I’m getting a lot of messages appreciating the song and composition,” he says.

Vysakh, who works in the Trivandrum International Airport, dreams of making a career in music. He is now working on the next song which will also be written by Harinarayanan.