As a Guru

Fondly addressed as Mami or Aunty by her affectionate students, she holds them very close to her heart. Besides selflessly sharing all of her musical knowledge, and collections with disciples, she is a second mother to them. She cooks for them with so much love and ensures they're all well-fed before returning home from extended classes and practice sessions.

She always takes care that her students learn authentic versions of compositions in terms of both lyrics and notations. She leads by example, showing immense respect and admiration for her teachers and mentors, composers, predecessors and peers. She gives an opportunity to every disciple to watch and work with her closely as she notates and learns new compositions from experts' recordings and concerts.

She sets the bar really high for her disciples, no matter what they are preparing for - an audition, competition or concert. Even during the peak of her active performing career, she encouraged disciples to sing on stage with her, and held herself responsible to safely drop them back in their homes after her concerts. She won't let any of her students shy away from trying to attempt raga alapanas or kalpana swaras.

During her concert tour of the USA in 2001, she taught workshops and masterclasses to several enthusiastic learners, and these sessions were hosted by her disciple, Smt. Srividya Sundaresan and her family.

Notwithstanding a global pandemic, notwithstanding her age, she has been spearheading the herculean project of getting her disciples together from different countries of the world across various time zones, involving them in the teaching and learning of the entire set of the Kamalamba Navavarana kritis of Muthuswamy Dikshitar. Her affection, selflessness and dedication have unified her disciples from everywhere, and motivated them to carry forward the wealth of music she has passed on to each of them. She is truly inimitable!