Story of a legend

When Manjula Mala, a proof reader at Mathrubhumi Books, was asked to write a biography of any well-known person as part of a book series, the first name that came to her mind was noted Carnatic vocalist M.S. Subbulakshmi.

While her interest in Carnatic music made her select the legend’s name, the writing became an audacious task as she was given a two-month deadline and had to confine the biography to just 100 pages. However, her crisp biography soon started getting accolades and recently won her the Shaheede Hind Award.
“My father was a big fan of Subbulakshmi. He has attended almost all her concerts in Kerala. It was from him I learnt about her. I still listen to her daily. So, when assigned the task, hers was the first name that came to my mind. Also this year marks her birth centenary,” a happy Manjula says.

And it was no easy job, she says. “I had two months to submit the work and I understood looking up her history was a Herculean task. Apart from newspaper clippings and some online articles, it was very difficult to gather her details, especially on her personal life. I had to contact several of her friends and colleagues to get a complete picture of the musician.”

However, her research never went futile as Manjula got to know the unknown side of Subbulakshmi as a person. “The most striking thing I learnt during my research was about her philanthropy. She had donated about '3 crore by conducting concerts free-of-cost. I also came to know about the ordeal she went through as a musician from Devadasi community. It was an eye-opener for me,” Manjula remembers.

But the real task was to confine all the information she collected to a 100-page book. “I worked almost every day. I had loads of material to include. I tried my best and have got good response so far. Only later did I come to know that this is the first biography on her authored in Malayalam.” Buoyed up by the success of the book, Manjula is working on her next —  a biography on Mother Teresa.