I happen to see new fads every decade. These fads I have been watching for the past two decades. Every decade sees great fanfare and craze for certain education, professions, marriages, houses, relationships, gadgets, games, arts, cinema, stars, singers, writers, literature…the list will go endless. After all, we live in an ever-changing world. Isn’t it?

I can understand the fad in education, jobs, movies and dress, and fashion to a great extent. You see nowadays all males young or old prefer to sport a beard whether it suits their face or not; well, it is fashionable. Cinema too because of the stars mainly and at times an offbeat theme.

But what surprises me today to no end is the fad for classical Carnatic music. I am making it specific because I do not know western (next to nothing) or Hindustani (some little knowledge). 

First the thousands of nonstop Carnatic music concerts in Chennai, during December once in Mylapore and Mambalam but now spread all over the city and in most unexpected suburbs also. The singers I am afraid perhaps may outnumber the patrons. There are more than a dozen outfits that keep ‘kutcheri’ during the month of December from morning to night nonstop. Apart from a handful of ‘Star Singers’ innumerable aspiring vocalists and instrument players are vying for recognition. Only some turns were successful, and many could not go beyond the periphery.

I have been writing reviews for the past two decades for classical Carnatic music out of my sheer interest in it and my writing skills to some extent. I want classical Carnatic music to spread among a lot but the way it has spread today is something gargantuan which is shocking. Today it has become more like a rat race. Every boy or a girl who can sing a dozen compositions dares to alight the stage for a performance. Some are still worse; they lack voice, creativity, and inability to repeat what they are supposed to have practiced.

What they want is just a stage and ten fellows as the audience, mostly their family people and friends, and a sabha to give them a stage. 

On the other side, there is an intellectual lot; they want to present something unusual, inappropriate, dashing, and absurd to the core. There are some in-between sections of performers who are quite good but too overzealous. Singing unfamiliar kritis, trying to project ragas and compositions unheard of as well as dull, trying to infuse too much technicality and variety in one item itself that would be bound to baffle the listener if he knows or is familiar with classical music. Nevertheless, millions of half-baked connoisseurs like these types of fanciful approaches either to applaud or criticize.

But, to be honest, giving an engaging and impressive concert is an art. It is not just a showcase to exhibit one's weird talents or preferences, even if one is an erudite scholar there are places to showcase it and not in a concert where all kinds of public attend.

Anyway, with the ever-increasing population in India and those abroad with an ear or defective ear for Carnatic music are eagerly waiting for an opportunity to participate in such mega affairs.

For women, it is also an opportunity to expose their sartorial preferences and showcase them to others with minimum knowledge of music.

The once humble show today had turned into a Mega show and it has gone out of proportion with several organizations, and sponsors more than a thousand concerts in a month for the fun-loving mostly floating rasikas.

I have been watching some gentlemen meddling with their mobiles from the start to the end or sometime before in concerts in a hallowed auditorium. Many leave invariably in the middle of the concerts is a regular feature.  

Anyway, ultimately only the lucky, not necessarily the talented persons alone win.

Anyway, the shows go on.