A sishya's tribute
By V Navaneet Krishnan
It is with a heavy heart that I bid adieu to the mortal coils of my guru Smt. Radha Viswanathan. She led an exemplary life, filled with music of the highest standards and wonderful associations with giants from all walks of life. She was one of the most warm and affectionate people I have ever come to know. She was always very concerned about the well-being of all her disciples. After every class, without a fail she will ask me to have lunch and only then leave. On special occasions she would ask her cook to prepare special sweets just for me, and if I happened to miss going to her place, she would call and insist that I come over. She was an affectionate and generous guru; she taught me several rare compositions without even a hint of hesitation. Even though I was not ready to assimilate some of the more complicated compositions back then, she would patiently teach me, ensuring that I understood the nuances. She was the first person to suggest that I join Smt. Padma Narayanaswamy as a disciple, seeing how passionate I was about the KVN style.
Mami, you have enriched my life through my association with you. I will cherish our special bond for eternity! My shaashtaanga pranams at your feet! My deepest, most heart-felt condolences to Shrinivasan Ceinu anna, Aishwarya and the rest of the family.