As a toddler, parents expect their child to start walking, but this was the age when Carnatic singer and composer S.J. Jananiy started her career in music and by the time she was 5 years old she had given her first concert. At the age of 7, S.J.Jananiy released her first album 'Naatha Oli' in 1999. At the age of 9 years, she worked with legendary singer S.P Balasubramaniam.
Jananiy is a disciple of late Dr M. Balamuralikrishna and was bestowed with the national child award for exceptional achievement in the field of classical music, in 2001. She started composing at the age of 13 and in 2011 collaborated with renowned musician Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia in a Jugalbandi concert for the music festival Au Fil des Voix at Alhambra Concert Hall in Paris, France. In 2012, she collaborated with S.P.Balasubrahmanyam again along with Hariharan and P. Unnikrishnan for Mahakavi Bharathiar's 'Vande Mataram'.
Her compositions are very unique blend of Carnatic and contemporary music and her songs are usually based on a theme for a cause or to spread any social message. She has recently dedicated her new album "Amma" to all the mothers to commemorate World Mother's Day. The unique feature about this song is that she has sung it in 5 different languages.
In an exclusive conversation she says, "Before 'Maa' I released 'Maithreem Bhajata' and 'Sneham Ezhuga' on the subject of world peace. I wanted to pay tribute to all mothers, in multiple languages so I did 'Maa.' The unique aspect of 'Maa' is that all words are very refreshing."
S.J Jananiy has also composed for Kollywood movies. In 2002 she did playback singing under the guidance of composer Karthik Raja, for the Tamil film, Album. In 2014, she composed for Tamil movie Prabha. She has 48 albums to her credit.
