Among them are doctors, retired government employees and professionals aged 43 to 87 who have coalesced for the sheer love of music and to support indigent artistes.
Formed in 2019, the journey of the Voice of Cherthala band, whose majority members have no formal music training, has been exhilarating from monthly musical get-togethers to gracing stages across the region.
The 12-member group, all vocalists, perform accompanied by a hired live orchestra. “We are more of a music-loving collective than singers,” says Rani Srikumar, lone member of the band with formal music education.
“Eleven of us are over 50 years of age with several already deep-dived into retirement life and others nearing the retirement age. Some of us have performed at resident association functions and events like that. Doctors in our group have often showcased their singing talent at functions organised by the Indian Medical Association. That said, launching a musical group was never in our wildest dreams. We started by conducting monthly karaoke gatherings in July 2019,” says Ms. Srikumar, who is also the treasurer and coordinator of the Cherthala-based musical group.
Devotional start
Two months later the group conducted a performance with a live orchestra. They soon got an invitation to perform at the Cherthala Devi temple in connection with the Navaratri festival. “In the initial days, we sang devotional songs. Now we are getting stages where we can sing all kinds of songs,” says Ms. Srikumar.
The band’s breakthrough, however, came when they staged a three-and-a-half-hour-long musical performance titled ‘Aayiram Paadasarangal’ made up of the songs of Vayalar Ramavarma at Vayalar Smrithi Mandapam. The band has performed on over 30 stages in the last two years including at festivals, religious places and so on.
Almost all proceeds from their concerts go to support people in need, especially artistes. “Other than paying the orchestra, we donate the rest of the amount to the welfare of artistes and economically disadvantaged families,” says Ms. Srikumar.
M.K. Sachivan, the oldest member of the group, says the musical group has infused new energy in all its members. “We are having a great time. The platform has helped us showcase our talent and contribute to the well-being of weaker sections,” says the retired ENT surgeon. Apart from Dr. Sachivan, the group consists of four more doctors – Prabha G. Nair, Sudeep T.K., K.R. Sethumadhavan, and Joshy Joseph. Other members are K.P. Venugopal (president), K.P. Sasikumar (secretary), N. Vijayakumar, K.R. Rani, Krishna Hareendranath and Rajesh.
