"I know it is getting late for dinner, and that is why some of you are leaving. I hope this song makes you stay back for a few minutes," he said in Kannada. Even as I wondered which song he was referring to, 'Shankaraaa' rose to the rafters in that unique voice of his; and the experience was one of total 'romanchana' (loosely translated as exhilaration).
I had been waiting for SPB aka Balu sir to sing this song from the time I booked my ticket for his show in the Ramanavami concert at Kote, Bengaluru, back in 2019. People stopped in their tracks, and there was pin-drop silence for the entire duration of the song. For me though, that song and the entire concert in fact, was the culmination of a long held desire to hear the great master live.
My first memory of SPB as a singer is of his singing the Kannada hit, 'Ide naadu ide bashe endendu nannadagirali'. This is despite having first heard his songs in the timeless Telugu classic Sankarabharanam. Saagara Sangamam and Rudraveena followed, and, before I knew it, I was a fan. That his voice was distinctly different from Ghantasala and was infused with a range of emotions was probably another reason.
When, in 1996, it was announced that he was going to host 'Padutha Theeyaga', my mother and I did not miss a single episode! And when, a decade later, he started hosting 'Ede Thumbi Haaduvenu' on TV, our joy knew no bounds. He was always humble and soothing in his demeanour and comments/feedback. I remember to this day the concern he voiced to the parents of children contesting in that show, "Please select songs suitable for their age." This only increased my respect for him. Not to mention the fact that he had made an effort to learn Kannada and speak it too.
Somewhere along the way I found out that he was the Telugu voice for most of Kamal Hassan's Tamil movies. Much later, I came to know that, as a voice actor, he had lent his voice to many other actors too. Not that it mattered for I was already a fan of his - be it singing or acting. Thiruda Thiruda, Kadhalan and Avvai Shanmughi were just some of the movies I enjoyed watching him act in.
Back to his music though -- listening to him sing the first 'breathless' song 'Mannil Indha Kaadhal' is a joy to this day. And then there are numbers like 'Jotheyali Jothe Jotheyalli', 'Dil Deewana', 'Ee Bhoomi Bannada Buguri'. It is so difficult to choose from over 40,000 songs sung by him.
To this human being, I bow my head in respect and submit, Noorondu Nenapu yedeyaaladinda haadagi bantu anandadinda...Thank you for having been an integral part of my life.' (SPB's birthday was on June 4)