Mandala 11“I considered music at par with divinity and
spirituality,” says Dr Varadarangan, “To know
that the instrument, mridangam, which I use as
an accompaniment to my vocal music, was made
from animal products, was disturbing.”
After five and a half years of research, Dr
Varadarangan founded Karunya Musicals, which
manufactures SRI (Synthetic Rhythm Indian)
mridangam, a zero-animal-products instrument.
While the traditional mridangam uses animal
skin, mostly goat and cow, and wood, usually
that of the jackfruit tree, Dr Varadarangan’s
vegan mridangam uses a fibreglass shell and
synthetic drum heads. “The SRI mridangam is
not entirely green but has low ecological impact,”
says Dr Varadarangan, adding that unlike a
traditional mridangam that needs frequentrepair of the head of the instrument, sometimes
even immediately after a concert, his vegan
mridangam has a long life. That being said,
making it entirely green is his long-term goal.
After this episode, Dr Varadarangan, who was
born and raised a vegetarian, took the vegan
path. He was strongly supported by his wife,
Veena, who also turned to veganism, followed
by their two children. “My migraine problems
have disappeared, and I am more energetic now
than ever,” he says, highlighting the benefits of
a vegan diet. As an extension of their love for
animals, Dr Varadarangan and his family take
care of several strays in the neighbourhood;
they have even spayed and neutered some of the
strays and homed puppies.
Over the past two years, the SRI mridangam
has been very well received by the artists’
community and serenaded music lovers at
thousands of concerts. “One mridangist in
Bangalore is soon going to complete 200
concerts on the SRI mridangam and three
others have already completed 100 concerts
each,” says a happy Dr Varadarangan. Since
March 2016, Karunya Musicals has sold about
250 mridangams, and the demand has been
steadily increasing. The SRI mridangam is also
exported to 12 countries, major markets being
the USA, Australia, and New Zealand as well as
some European countries. Spurred on by the
success of the mridangam, Dr Varadarangan
intends to launch a vegan tabla soon, which is
almost ready. http://www.karunyamusicals.comIn 2010, popular Bangalore based Carnatic vocalist,
musicologist, and physicist, Dr K Varadarangan considered
quitting stage performances. The reason for this radical
change of heart was his seeing a gory, heart-wrenching video
footage on the underlying cruelty of animal-based industries.Green music
Mridangam gets a makeover