L. Vaidyanathan


Lakshminarayana Vaidyanathan was an acclaimed musicologist, music director and composer, trained in the classical Carnatic music tradition. Vaidyanathan was born in Chennai to V. Lakshminarayana, and Seethalakshmi, both accomplished musicians. He was the elder brother of accomplished violinist duo L. Shankar and L. Subramaniam. He created the tunes of the iconic TV serial Malgudi Days. All three brothers received their musical training from their father.

Career

Vaidyanathan started his career as an Assistant music director to G. K. Venkatesh and composed the score for over 170 films in languages including Tamil and Kannada. His notable works include Pesum Padam, Ezhavathu Manithan, Dasaratham and Marupakkam in Tamil and Aparichita, Kubi Matthu Iyala, Ondu Mutthina Kathe in Kannada. He was one of the best music arrangers in the country and was known for his use of rare and unknown instruments, subtly mixing sounds from the mandolin, flute and violin with various folk percussion instruments before the advent of present-day technological advances in sound mixing. He collaborated with C.Ashwath and composed music for many Kannada movies in the name Ashwath-Vaidi.
One catchy and enduring composition of his would be, the Opening and Closing Score 'Thaana na nana' of Shankar Nag's Malgudi Days
In 2003, the Government of Tamil Nadu awarded Vaidyanathan with the Kalaimamani for contributions to cinema.

Filmography

;With C. Aswath
YearFilm TitleNotes
1979Ene Barali Preethi IraliCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1980AnuraktheCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1980Narada VijayaCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1981AalemaneCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1981AnupamaCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1981Kanchana MrugaCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1982Baadada HooCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"
1983SimhasanaCredited as "Ashwath - Vaidi"

;As solo composer