The Balladeer from Telangana crowned with Padam Shri for reinventing Kinnera
Folk singer Darshanam Mogilaiah had his Smithsonian moment when his feat of reinventing Kinnera, a rare musical instrument of the balladeers of Telangana was honored with the Padma Shri in the Art category.
Hailing from the groves of Avusala Kunta village in Amrabad Tiger reserve of Mahabubnagar district, his predecessors are believed to have played it in the court of the Wanaparthy king about 400 years ago. Moglaiah was instrumental in reinventing Kinnera, a rare stringed musical instrument native to the nomadic tribes in the Deccan plateau, such as the Dakkali and the Chenchu. A Kinnera performance involves vocals and music, and the ballads are sung primarily in rustic Telugu.
The intriguing instrument has bamboo necks, parched & hollow gourds as resonators, and strings that were earlier made with human hair are replaced by metal. Adding an element of mystery to the instrument, he attached a wooden turtle puppet attached to it, which bows in gratitude and jumps to salute the audience as he plays on.
Being the only person to play the 12 frets folk instrument, he is admired for his unique vocal and dramatic ballads sung as a tribute to folk heroes.
Serenading a variety of songs from Bollywood, SufI to Tollywood, the fifth-generation artiste, Moglaiah has enthralled the audiences with his music and even Tollywood has taken note.He has sung the title song Bhimla Nayak of actor turned politician Pawan Kalyan’s upcoming movie, Bhimla Nayak.
Telangana folk singer Darshanam Mogilaiah was awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian government. Mogilaiah not only kept his family tradition alive, but he was also instrumental in reinventing the Kinnera.
Marking the occasion of Darshanam Mogilaiah’s selection for the coveted Padma Shri award, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao honored him at Pragathi Bhavan here on Friday. He promised Mogilaiah a house in Hyderabad and Rs 1 crore. Telangana Chief Minister KCR remarked that the state government had previously provided an honorarium to Mogilaiah in recognition of his efforts to the uncommon art form and that the state government will continue to encourage such artists who are working to resuscitate Telangana’s art forms.
