Carnatic singer Vasumathi Badrinathan is on her way to represent India at the first international festival in Azerbaijan

In 2005, Dr Vasumathi Badrinathan sat in a temple courtyard in the Reunion Islands located south-west of Mauritius. It was after dark, and the lighting was dim enough to light up little more than the stage. The Carnatic singer could barely see her audience. At the end of the performance, she realised that more than two thousand people had turned up for a classical music performance in a language they didn't understand.

The Mumbai-based Carnatic singer and Bharatnatyam dancer, who has toured the world, is going to represent Indian music at Space of Mugham, the international music festival at Baku, Azerbaijan, alongside artists from China, Iraq and Italy.

Carnatic and Mugham fusion

Badrinathan doesn't fancy planning. "I am going to perform classical Carnatic compositions, and will improvise on stage like I always do. I will decide Kritis (the backbone of a composition) based on the place and mood. There's a likelihood that I will collaborate with Azerbaijani musicians for a Carnatic and Mugham music (Azerbaijan's classical form of music) fusion."

When she chose French over music

For Badrinathan, learning Carnatic music was a natural choice. Her mother Padma Seshadri was a Veena player, making it impossible to escape all that was lyrical. She opted for a parallel study in Bharatnatyam. And then she sprang a surprise when she pursued a doctorate in French. "French was a favourite subject. With music, I was more keen on performing rather than getting caught up in research," she says. And since nothing learnt is ever wasted, French comes in handy when she's travelling around Europe.

When she's not touring, Badrinathan is busy conducting workshops that help initiate individuals in traditional performing arts. Having written on musicu00a0 for several publications, her favourite is a multi-media series called Stree Gaanam, on women composers of South India.