Rhymes for a reason

When asked about her longstanding relationship with Chennaibased independent childrens publishing house Karadi Tales KT Usha Uthup says Some relationships dont have dates Its only 19 minutes after our telephonic conversation we realise that the music legend never attaches a date to any of her fondest memories including those with KTKaradi Rhymes Volumes 1 and 2 a series of nursery rhymes that relate to the Indian experience were launched in 2003 Sung by Uthup and accompanied with music by 3 Brothers and a Violin over 100000 copies have been sold since This Saturday after nearly two decades and in KTs 25th year the third volume will launch with a virtual concert by UthupUthup with Karadi Tales cofounders Shobha Viswanath and Narayan Parasuram while recording Karadi Rhymes 3 last DecemberBack when the series was first conceptualised Uthup was fired with the idea at the Taj Coromandel Chennai where she was performing She loved the thought of Indian rhymes for Indian kids and came on board instantly Its also such a wonderful thing to work with children They mean the world to me I feel that everyone in their lifetime should devote some time to them Theres the famous song thats called Teach Your Children but theres a lot you can learn from children too she saysThe early 2000s were the analogue days and thus the recordings of the rhymes had to be coordinated via audio cassettes So if one made a mistake the recording would have to be redone from scratch The third volume a set of 10 rhymes is no different from the previous two expect rhymes on weddings cobblers tailors elephants and well Akkad bakkad bambe bo We were really not planning on a third volume but parents kept asking about it It took us six to seven years to put it together and now its our first digital product Also there was never an urgency for it because the cassettes were adapted to CDs and then the USB over the years informs Shobha Viswanath cofounder and publishing director KTStills from the animated videos of My Name is Madhavi and Train Song sung by Uthup PicKaradi TalesYoutubeAccording to Uthup its not easy to sing nursery rhymes perfectly but children have a knack of picking up the most difficult things Harking back to her school days at Bycullas St Agnes she says Ringing the bell for the Angelus meant the world to me Instead of the hour of our death I used to say the hour of a death and thyoom Jesus until I understood it was thy womb Jesus Sometimes you dont need to know the answers she says And thats why her biggest takeaway from Karadi Rhymes is that it goes beyond the barriers of language and relies solely on communicationTake the Karadi classic Just like you The rhyme begins with My name is MadhaviIm from AllepeyI speak MalayalamBut Im just like you And like Madhavi the song goes on to introduce Natwar from Srinagar Shubrata from Kolkata Vasundhara from Vadodara Benjamin from Panjim and Shamsher from Ajmer among others before concluding with My name is Bindiya Im from India It only goes to show how our country is a potpourri of cultures and not just about a Jack and a Jill or Mary with a little lamb For Uthup thats a win I grew up in a Bombay that knew no religion I went to Gloria Church for midnight mass celebrated Eid and Ganesh Puja too Thats the India I want children to grow up inOn July 4 530 pmLog On to youtubecomkaraditalesCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news