Alleppey Ranganath, the Malayalam music director and lyricist, died on Sunday in Kottayam. According to a report by Onmanorama, the 73-year-old composer was undergoing treatment at Kottayam Medical College for Covid-19.
Ranganath has composed over a thousand songs, both in Malayalam and Tamil. Last week, He received the ‘Harivarasanam Award’ for his contribution to devotional songs dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. He is married to B Rajasri, a classical dancer and teacher.
According to the report, he was born on March 9, 1949, at Mullakkal in Alleppy district, being the oldest son in a family of musicians. Ranganath was introduced to music for the first time, by his father, who believed that an artist must master all forms of art. This notion sparked Ranganath’s interest towards learning Bharatanatyam and classical music, at an early age.
Later in 1968, he shifted to his uncle’s house in Ponkunnam to study for acquiring the Malayalam Vidwan title, exposing Ranganath to the field of drama, for the first time. He went on to compose two songs in the play Kanaljalam, backed by People’s Arts Club at Kanjirappally, which were well-received.
After Alappuzha Redstar Theaters was founded under the supervision of Vayalar Vinayachandran, at the insistence of CPI, Ranganathan became more involved with drama. He wrote the script and songs, composed music, and directed a play named Darsanam. His claim to fame ensued after two years, when his play was also reproduced by Kottayam National Theaters. Apart from music composition, Ranganathan went on to write around 42 plays for various troupes. He eventually developed an interest towards producing background scores for films, when he moved to Chennai.
His debut film titled Jesus directed by PA Thomas was released in 1973. He produced music for at least 25 films, with his light music compositions gaining popularity among audiences. The report by Onmanorama also noted that around 250 songs composed by Ranganathan were sung by musician Yesudas. Some of the most notable songs include Shaaleena Soundaryame from Aaraante Mulla Kochumulla, Kadal Varna Meghame from Principal Olivil, and Arayaal Kuruvikal from Madakkayaathra.
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Meanwhile, the Kerala governor paid his respects to the late artist, via social media. In the tweet, he wrote, “My heartfelt condolences on the sad demise of noted lyricist and music director Shri. Alleppey Ranganath. He will be remembered for the melodies which entertained audiences. May his soul attain Mukti.”
Singer KS Chithra in a condolence message, wrote, “Saddened to hear about the sudden demise of a multi faceted artist Alleppy Ranganath master. He was a music director, lyricist & dancer. I was fortunate enough to work with him for some of his films like “Aarande mulla kochu mulla”, “Captain, “Mattoru Mukham “ etc. He was a recipient of Harivarasanam award this year. Yet another loss in this pandemic. May his soul rest in heavenly peace and A thought of comfort and condolence to the grieving family.”