Vidya Subramanian's Musical Journey

Excerpts from press clippings and interviews

Champion of Chennai 2022 Award for Education

KSA Trust, Aug 17 2022

Art and Entrepreneurship

The Hindu, Friday Review, Apr 22 2022

Meet Tamil Nadu's Vidya Subramanian Who Is Empowering Women With Her Online Music Academy

Akanksha Saxena, The Logical Indian, April 12, 2022

Called 'Vidya Subramanian Academy', it is run by a renowned singer named Vidya Subramanian in Chennai who uses the online platform to teach people Carnatic music and other traditional Indian arts and empower several women around India..

Apart from the online method, the Vidya Subramanian Academy stands out for an interesting reason. Over the years, she has created a team of teachers that consists of women who have learnt either Carnatic or Hindustani music. While they had the talent, they did not get an appropriate platform for them to showcase it. In a country as populous as India, very few people make it to the top when it comes to performing arts.

As a result, the academy became a source of income for several women. They got an identity and a platform where they could share their knowledge with the world. Earning a sizeable salary, the women earned respect from the community they belonged. Subramanian further continues her conversation, "Now that they were able to earn a decent income from the teaching opportunity, the way the community and the family treated them with respect."

Along with imparting knowledge, Vidya Subramanian used Carnatic Music for a noble cause by empowering women around the country. It was for this reason that she was recently awarded the NITI Aayog's 'Women Transforming India' Award. She was one of the three women from Tamil Nadu who are breaking barriers and making a difference.

Vidya Subramanian, MBA ‘02, was selected for the Women Transforming India Awards 2021 by @NITIAayog. The honor is recognition of her work as a social entrepreneur, educator, and artist. Read more about the prestigious award and Vidya's work: https://t.co/OijPa9y8Zd pic.twitter.com/N7MTw3dWeu
— BC Carroll School (@BCCarrollSchool) April 6, 2022

13th ICAI Awards - Chartered Accountants as Business Leaders

Economic Times, Feb 14 2020

Chennaiites find takers across the globe for Skype lessons on slokas

DT Next, Jan 17, 2019

A six-year-old in a tier-2 city in India and a 30-year-old in Africa share a Chennai connection. They are both taught Tamil and Sanskrit by city singer Vidya Subramanian via Skype.

Be it Vishnu Sahasranamam or Divyaprabandhams, to the more secular verses like Thirukkural to Aathichoodi, technology and the module-based programme has something to offer everyone. Vidya says, “We have those who sign up intrigued by the values and morals they teach to those who want to be able to recite them proficiently.”

The learning experience is highly customised and owing to the significance of meaning and the need to get into the depths of the knowledge the verses offer. In this initiative, Vidya is helped by a faculty of teachers who have a deep understanding of the slokas. Says Vidya, “While for children as young as six-years, the meaning may not be of significance, there are foreigners who have opted for these classes after a brief exposure to Hindu traditions or a visit to a Hindu temple.”

A Fun Interview on Big FM 92.7 Tamil radio

Chennai, Nov 8, 2018

Perfecting the pitch online

Lakshmi Anand, Times of India, March 26, 2019

Checks and Balances between Carnatic and Kalaimamani

Roshne Balasubramanian, The New Indian Express, Mar 13, 2019

Music Beyond Boundaries

Akila Kannadasan, The Hindu - Metroplus, March 5, 2019

Musical Empowerment - T Nagar woman bags "Homepreneur" award

G. Srinivasan, T Nagar Talk, Sep 2, 2018

Like Guru, Like Sishya

G. Srinivasan, T Nagar Talk, May 19 2013

Learning online at the feet of India's gurus

BBC News, Zubair Ahmed, May 13 2013

....Online tuition through live video chat devices is becoming a popular medium of learning Indian classical dance, music and instruments in the Western world and beyond...

Many foreign students are either professional musicians in their own countries, or trying to establish themselves in the world of music and dance. A French woman, who was learning classical southern Indian ragas from her teacher, Vidya Subramanian, is a jazz player in her country. She says she is learning ragas "from Vidya with a view to improvising and using it whenever I can in jazz. It'll give me an edge".

Youthful Vidya Subramnian returned to her home town Chennai three years ago having lived and worked in the US for 15 years, to raise her children in India. She left a lucrative career as a chartered accountant but quickly re-established herself in Chennai in classical singing.

Today she is a leading online teacher of classical singing. She works alongside a group of teachers to impart training to eager students overseas. "I have no regrets. I had to look after my family. So, I decided to take up online teaching from home." Teaching online means that Vidya Subramanian can also look after her children at home Vidya Subramanian says working from home allows her to look after her children, and gives her the freedom to choose what time she wants to take classes.

...India once had a great tradition of disciples learning at the feet of their gurus. That tradition seems to have been revived - in virtual world - thanks to technology.