S. G. Kittappa
| Shencottah Ganagathara Aiyer Kittappa | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Ramakrishnan 25 August 1906 Shencottah, Kingdom of Travancore |
| Died | 2 December 1933 (aged 27) Madras, British India |
| Occupation | Stage actor, singer |
| Years active | 1911-1933 |
| Spouse(s) | K. B. Sundarambal (m. 1927–33) |
Shencottah Ganagathara Aiyer Kittappa (25 August 1906 – 2 December 1933) was a Tamil classical singer and stage actor who was active in the pre-cinema days of the 1920s. He was the husband of singer and film actor K. B. Sundarambal.
Kittappa was born in Shenkottai in the then Kingdom of Travancore to Ganagathara Aiyer. He was Ganagathara Aiyer's tenth child and third son, the others being Chellappa and Subbiah. Due to the weak financial condition of the family, Kittappa did not receive any formal education but was trained in music and screenplay by Sankaradas Swamigal.
Kittappa took to the stage early in his career and achieved remarkable success. His first stage appearance was at the age of five in Madurai. He appeared in dramas in Ceylon at the age of eight. The Ceylon Indian Chamber of Commerce awarded him gold medal and certificate of appreciation for his artistic talents.
In 1919 the famous Kannaiya Nadaga Kuzhu recruited SGK to be part of them. He served them for 6 years. As his brother, Kasi Aiyyer was a good harmonium player, he teamed up perfectly with Kittappa to produce the best of songs to the standard prevalent in those days. As SGK sang and acted very well in a drama called "Kandi Raja" Justice Abdul Rahim awarded a golden shawl and "Kuthu Vilakku" for SGK.
Both SGK and his brother Kasi Aiyyer went to Ceylon to stage dramas. There K.B. Sundrambal was staging her own dramas. SGK and KBS met there for the first time. They then teamed up to perform several dramas. From there they went to Rangoon to stage dramas. They returned with much wealth. Upon their return they continued to perform in Tamil Nadu. At times KBS and SGK acted in dramas like Thookku Thookki, Nandanaar, Dasavatharam Aandaal etc. staged by the Kannaiya Nadaga Company.
The north Indian Sangeetha Vidvan Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar did not think highly of SGK. When SGK was asked to sing a song in Begada Ragam SGK very fluently sang it only to shake up the Pandit. The Pandit who was scheduled to return by night mail stayed back to see SGK's drama, called "Krishna Vilasam". The Pandit was impressed and at the end of the drama he took off the garland from his own neck and placed it upon the neck of SGK and said "You are truly Krishna, no doubt". This Pandit had a great liking for the bhajan "Ragupathi Ragava Rajaram Patheetha Pavana Seetharam". Therefore, SGK made it a point to sing this piece at the tail end of his dramas in remembrance of their historical meeting.
...
Wikipedia