P. S. Vidyadharan (popularly known as Vidyadharan master;

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 ...

) is a music composer and playback singer who works in

Malayalam cinema Malayalam cinema, also referred to as Mollywood, is a segment of Cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to producing films in the Malayalam, Malayalam language, primarily spoken in Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands. It encompasses both th ...

. In 2013, he completed 60 years of his musical career.

Early life

Vidyadharan was born on 6 March 1945 to Sankaran and Thankamma in Arattupuzha,

Thrissur Thrissur (, ), Renaming of cities in India, formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the List of most populous urban agglomerations in Ke ...

, as their eldest son. He has six siblings, the youngest of them being the popular music director and singer Natesh Shankar and the second sibling is P.S. Ganeshan. Vidyadharan learned classical music from his grandfather Kochakkan Asan, Irinjalakkuda Govindankutty Panicker, R. Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, and Sankaranarayana Bhagavathar. To fulfil his desire of becoming a playback singer, he later moved to

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

. Music director G. Devarajan gave him an opportunity to sing the song "Oh rikshaavaala" in the 1965 film ''

Odayil Ninnu ''Odayil Ninnu'' (''From the Gutter'') is a Malayalam novel written by Indian author P. Kesavadev in 1942. The protagonist of the novel is a rickshaw-puller named Pappu. The novel is one of the best-known works of Kesavadev. With the appearance ...

''. Based on Devarajan's advice, Vidyadharan returned home to continue his studies. He also started singing for stage dramas during this period. His wife's name is Leela. Daughter-Sangeetha Vidhyadharan and Son-Sajith vidhyadharan,are his children. Anila is his daughter in law. Devi, Devadatta, Krishnajith, and Krithika are his grandchildren.

Music composer

Vidyadharan became an independent music director through the stage drama ''Baliyaadukal''. He made his debut as film music director in the 1984 film '' Ente Gramam'', directed by Sreemoolanagaram Vijayan. One of his popular songs, "Kalpantha kaalatholam", was composed for this film. "Nashtaswargangale" (''Veena Poovu'') and "Chandanam manakkunna" ('' Achuvettante Veedu'') are among his other most popular film compositions. In 2004, Vidyadharan received the

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 ...

. In 2017, Vidyadharan won the G. Devarajan Master Award, the Sarga-Sangeetha Prathibha Award, the Ranjith Kandaran Award, and the Mookambika Souparnikamrutham Award. In 2016, he received the Dakshinamoorthy Sangeetha Sumeru Award. In 2022, he received the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship.

Popular compositions

Discography

Film discography

Independent album discography

* ''Alakananda Theeram''

References

External links

Interview with VidyadharanPaattinte Vazhi - Vidyadharan
* Malayalam:വിദ്യാധരൻ {{Authority control Malayalam film score composers Malayalam playback singers Living people Film musicians from Kerala 21st-century Indian composers 1945 births Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship