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A consummate vocalist, Hariharan Nair is not only a scholarly teacher of music, but also a grand performer. Possessing a vast repertoire of ragas and styles, and blessed with a rich and mellifluous voice further conditioned by meticulous training, Hari stands tall among the contemporary musicians in South India. Hari’s formative years were spent in an atmosphere that encouraged the musical talents in him. While in school, he learned instrumental music, choosing harmonium for specialization. In this he received encouragement from his sisters, who were themselves harmonists. In those days he accompanied drama and music troupes as a harmonist. After passing a technician’s course from an Industrial Training Institute (ITI), Hari got a job in “Premier Tyres”, Kalamassery, close to his residence. It was here that on a fateful day he lost both his arms in a freak accident. |
Felled by an accident early in his youthful and aspiring days, Hari had to fight his way upward with two artificial arms. The young harmonist in him, who dreamed of a glorious career in music, cast off the gloom, and decided to become a trained classical vocalist. He learned music from professionals like Prof. Mavelikkara R. Prabhakara Varma, Palluruthy Natesan Master, Koonammavu Lonappan Bhagavathar, Govindankutty Bhagavathar, and Nedukunnam Vasudevan.
Such was his obsession with systematic training and evaluation, that he appeared for the Higher Grade examination in music conducted by the Government of Tamilnadu, wrote the theory papers using artificial limbs, and secured a first class!
Hari thus became a performing vocalist. But his musical brain continued to plan ahead. In 1984, he started the Sariga music school, which was eventually upgraded into Sariga Sangeetha Academy.