My Mridangam Journey
My Mridangam Journey A little history: Mridangam, a little-known percussion instrument has been an integral part of my life. Its very name, “mridangam,” is said to have originated from two Sanskrit words: “mrid” meaning “clay” or “earth” and “anga” meaning “body." As time passed, Mridangam passed through multiple iterations and finally today is essentially a drum whose body is made of jackfruit wood, with sides made of animal skin. First Steps: I started learning Mridangam at the tender age of 5. In the beginning, my tender and soft fingers felt as though they could only gently kiss the surface, barely making any sound. As my hands flailed on the Mridangam everyday under the watchful guidance of my Guru, I slowly and steadily learned to play the basic syllabus (namely 4 - Tha, Dhi, Thom, Nam ) with clarity and practiced patterns and loops to improve finger movement and flexibility. This process took a lot of patience and perseverance to master the basics, day in and da...