8 months ago
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On September 16, 2025, Gayathri Venkataraghavan took to the signifier astatine Hamsadhwani successful Chennai to people the commencement day of the legendary MS Subbulakshmi. The past year, erstwhile she was recovering from bosom cancer, melted, and everyone got to spot Gayathri backmost connected stage, lone this clip with shorter hair.
A small little than a twelvemonth ago, successful October 2024, the vocalist posted connected her societal media pages that she was taking a interruption owing to wellness reasons. During the people of the treatment, Gayathri kept posting astir her advancement and immoderate archival videos, including the 1 wherever she was seen singing snatches of Nalinakanthi with member Senthil Ramani portion holidaying astatine Kotagiri successful the Nilgiris.
Gayathri, whose interests see mountaineering and trekking, says the determination to stock her diagnosis and her travel was a cautiously considered one. “It had to beryllium done, due to the fact that I’d accepted galore concerts successful December. I had returned from a trek successful the Himalayas successful June aft which I was diagnosed with triple antagonistic cancer, which tin beryllium aggressive. But, the doctors gave maine hope. I archetypal thought attraction would not past long, but erstwhile I realised it would beryllium prolonged, I wanted to stock it with my audience. My husband, Dr Venkataraghavan felt it would besides assistance others because, sometimes, adjacent educated radical bash not confide astir this to their adjacent ones, losing precious clip successful seeking treatment.”
The effect near Gayathri profoundly moved. People offered words of encouragement. “Many women wrote to maine astir their ain acquisition with crab and however they ne'er mustered the courageousness to sermon it with anyone. We person a web of friends with crab and assistance counsel those who are recently diagnosed. Now that my concerts person begun, idiosyncratic other successful the ellipse steps in,” says Gayathri.
“When you person cancer, lone idiosyncratic other who has had it, oregon is going done attraction tin recognize you. It is simply a pugnacious journey, and a lonely one. But it is not ever imaginable to beryllium mentally strong. Luckily, I was blessed with Dhridabhakti — incidentally the sanction of my archetypal medium — implicit trust. Friends and my contiguous and extended family, particularly my niece, helped successful a large way.”
This play besides made Gayathri realise however overmuch rasikas had waited for her, praying successful the interim. This included the aged members of Anandam Old Age Home, Ambattur, that she is associated with. “The sabhas said they would hold for me, and kept checking successful connected me. That was precise motivating. I ever consciousness the radical astir maine are my wealthiness — manusha sampath,” she says. Gayathri besides fiercely held connected to her consciousness of humour, and recorded amusive videos with her household oregon for them. That kept her successful bully stead. “Everyone other astatine location had to spell to work. How bash we marque them much comfortable? Yes, I had cancer, but beingness has to spell on.”
Gayathri has besides avoided wearing a wig. “I had a wide thought that radical request to spot each the changes I was going through. Somehow, I felt it humanised me, and broke the “Carnatic singer’ mould of silk saris, plaited hairsbreadth and flowers.” Gayathri besides wanted to stock the connection that crab is curable successful astir cases if discovered early, and that the attraction protocol sees advances each day. “So galore person said they deduce anticipation from my journey. I was simply sharing what I learnt from those who walked this way earlier, specified arsenic histrion Manisha Koirala and dancer Ananda Shankar Jayanth,” says Gayathri who precocious began her euphony schoolhouse Gana Vinyasa.
Music besides healed Gayathri. “I would chant, I would sing. Some friends would travel implicit and perform. That aforesaid euphony has enactment maine backmost connected the stage. And aft this, immoderate radical are calling this GV 3.0,” laughs Gayathri.”
