Malabar Gopalan Nair Radhakrishnan (29 July 1940 – 2 July 2010) was an Indian

music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

and Carnatic vocalist from

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

Personal life

M. G. Radhakrishnan was born on 29 July 1940 at

Haripad Haripad is a municipality in ''Odanad, Onattukara'' region of Alappuzha District, Kerala, India located between Alappuzha and Kollam on the NH 66, National Highway 66. Haripad is bordered on the east by Pallippad, Veeyapuram and Karuvatta ...

, in

Alappuzha district Alappuzha district (), is one of the 14 Districts of Kerala, districts in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It was formed as Alleppey district on 17 August 1957, the name of the district being changed to ''Alapp ...

as the eldest of three children of

music composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and defi ...

and harmonist Malabar Gopalan and

Harikatha ''Harikatha'' (Kannada: ಹರಿಕಥೆ : ''Harikathe''; Telugu: హరికథ : ''Harikatha;'' Marathi: हरीपाठ '': Haripatha'', ), also known as ''Harikatha Kaalakshepam'' in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam(), is a form of Hindu ...

exponent Kamalakshi marasyar. He studied at the S. D. College,

Alappuzha Alappuzha (, आलप्पुळ) or Alleppey is a municipality and town on the Laccadive Sea in the southern Indian state of Kerala. It is the district headquarters of the district, and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvana ...

, and undertook ''Ganabhooshanam'' from

Swathi Thirunal College of Music Swathi Thirunal College of Music is a music college in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. It was founded in 1939. It was first named as "The Music Academy". The name was renamed as Swathi Thirunal College of Music in 1962. The founder of this ...

K. J. Yesudas Kattassery Joseph Yesudas ( /jeːʃud̪aːs/; born 10 January 1940) is an Indian playback singer and musician who sings Indian classical, devotional and film songs. He is widely considered one of the greatest singers in the history of Indian m ...

was one of his classmates there. His younger brother M. G. Sreekumar is a

playback singer A playback singer, as they are usually known in South Asian cinema, or ghost singer in Western cinema, is a singer whose performance is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and the performers lip-sync the ...

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

and

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

cinema and his younger sister K. Omanakutty is a carnatic vocalist and academic. Radhakrishnan was married to Padmaja, who was herself famous as a poet, lyricist and classical dancer. They had two children - M. R. Rajakrishnan and Karthika. Their son Rajakrishnan is a well-known sound recordist, who has worked in many films. He died on 2 July 2010 at KIMS hospital in

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the ...

due to liver disease, less than a month short of his 70th birthday.

Career

M. G. Radhakrishnan was a disciple of Sree Vidyadhiraja Hridayanjali,; The Hindu, 2002-11-28; ''Retrieved: 2007-09-03'' an Indian ascetic, and composed music for the ascetic's lyrics, which was sung by his younger sister Dr. K Omanakutty, a Carnatic vocalist. In his official capacity, Radhakrishnan worked as staff and become the senior music composer (Grade 1) in Akashvani,

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the largest and ...

. In 1962, he joined

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

as a music composer. He used to conduct a 15-minute light music class through AIR. He has also composed the poems of

Kamala Surayya Kamala Surayya (born Kamala; 31 March 1934 – 31 May 2009), popularly known by her one-time pen name Madhavikutty and married name Kamala Das, was an Indian poet in English as well as an author in Malayalam from Kerala, India. Her fame in K ...

, an Indian writer, through the album ''Surayya Padunnu''. Radhakrishnan introduced

K. S. Chithra Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra (born 27 July 1963) is an Indian playback singer and Carnatic musician. In a career spanning around five decades, she has recorded over 25,000 Songs in various Indian languages languages such as Tamil, Kann ...

, a singer and a student of Omanakutty, to the film and music industry by employing her in the film ''Attahaasam''.

Death

Radhakrishnan died from

liver cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, chronic liver failure or chronic hepatic failure and end-stage liver disease, is a chronic condition of the liver in which the normal functioning tissue, or parenchyma, is replaced ...

on 2 July 2010 at KIMS hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. He was admitted there a week earlier after his condition worsened, and was in ventilator since then. He was less than a month short of his 70th birthday when he died. He was cremated with full state honours at Thaikkad Santhikavadam electronic crematorium on the next day. His son M. R. Rajakrishnan is a sound recordist. His wife Padmaja, who outlived him for nearly ten years, died on 15 June 2020 following a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

Awards

Kerala State Film Awards

* 2005 – Best Music Director – Ananthabadram * 2001 – Best Music Director – Achaneyaanenikkishtam

Asianet Film Awards

* 2005 – Best Music Director Award – '' Anandabhadram'' * 2001 – Best Music Director Award – ''Kaate Vannu Vilichappol''

Others

* 2004 –

Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship The Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship is an honour presented by the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, an autonomous organisation for the encouragement, preservation, and documentation of the performing arts of Kerala, set up by the Depar ...

* 1995 –

Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award is an award given by the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, an autonomous organisation for the encouragement, preservation, and documentation of the performing arts of Kerala, set up by the Department of Cultu ...

Filmography

References

External links

*
Official website of M. G. Radhakrishnan foundation
*
MG Radhakrishnan at MSI
* (in Malayalam) * (in Malayalam) * (in Malayalam) * (in Malayalam) {{DEFAULTSORT:Radhakrishnan, M. G. 1940 births 2010 deaths Deaths from cirrhosis Indian Hindus Kerala State Film Award winners Malayalam film score composers 20th-century Indian composers People from Alappuzha district Film musicians from Kerala 21st-century Indian composers 21st-century Indian male classical singers 20th-century Indian male classical singers Male Carnatic singers Carnatic singers Singers from Kerala Indian male film score composers Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award