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Thursday, November 6, 2025
TopicGramophone

Topic: Gramophone

India’s ‘shy’ classical musicians made way for theatre’s entry into gramophone record books

Vikram Sampath -
The vast corpus of theatre recordings on gramophone from various languages provide a valuable glimpse into India’s social and cultural history.

From Mahatma Gandhi to Nehru, everyone was an MS Subbulakshmi fan

Vikram Sampath -
Inspired by the gramophone, Subbulakshmi would often sing into a rolled piece of paper, imagining it to be the recording horn.

Ariyakkudi, maestro who woke up snoring crowds at concerts & made modern-day Carnatic music

Vikram Sampath -
Ariyakkudi Ramanuja put together styles of various musicians across centuries to create the ‘golden mean’ for Carnatic music.

Sundarabai, the versatile singer-actor who helped women musicians herself died unsung & poor

Vikram Sampath -
Sundarabai was witness to many changes in the world of music and entertainment, and helped several performers adapt to modern technology.

Janki Bai, singer disfigured by 56 stab wounds sold more records than her contemporaries

Vikram Sampath -
Janki Bai not only trained in music and dance, but also learnt English, Sanskrit and Persian, and wrote a collection of Urdu poetry.

Bangalore Nagarathnamma, the singer who took to Sanskrit and feminism in 19th Century India

Vikram Sampath -
European record companies participated with artists like Nagarathnamma, a devadasi, at a time Indian society hounded them in name of morality.

Hindustani vocalist Abdul Karim Khan’s music has special relevance in these communal times

Vikram Sampath -
Listening to Abdul Karim Khan at the age of 11, Bhimsen Joshi is said to have made up his mind that this was how real music ought to be.

Salem Godavari, Carnatic vocalist who fought superstitions to record erotic compositions

Vikram Sampath -
Salem Godavari is a forgotten footnote and sadly evokes no memory in Carnatic musicians or connoisseurs.

Gauhar Jaan, India’s first record artist, took Rs 3,000 a session & threw parties for her cat

Vikram Sampath -
Gramophone’s search for ‘native’ voices in 1900s brought it to India’s Gauhar Jaan, who would go on to have 600 records to her name.

On Camera

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Economy

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Defence

‘Let them see’: Putin says new nuclear-powered missiles in the making, in message to Washington

Keshav Padmanabhan -
At a ceremony felicitating Russian military engineers, Putin highlights Moscow’s 'parity' in defence technologies for the next century.

National Interest

Trump’s trade wars have rewritten powerplay, but India didn’t get the memo

Shekhar Gupta -
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