N. J. Nandini
# N. J. Nandini

N J Nandini (born 5 August 1991) is a Carnatic music vocalist from Trivandrum. Nandini was awarded the Chembai Puraskaram, the Isai Chudar title and a M S Subbalakshmi fellowship at the young age of 23. Nandini, who comes from a family that has a musical lineage, has been nurtured by gurus such as Prof Parassala Ponnammal, Prof P R Kumarakerala Varma, Dr S Bhagyalakshmi and Dr M N Moorthy.

Nandini, who is the recipient of 28 prestigious awards, has performed in over 900 concerts in India and abroad.

## Early life and family

NJ Nandini was born into a musical family. Her late grandfather Vechoor N Hariharasubramania Iyer was a renowned Carnatic vocalist and teacher. Her uncle Vechoor C Sankar is a well-known Carnatic singer and her brother, NJ Nandagopal, a Charted Accountant by profession, is a talented singer and mridangist.

As a child, Nandini’s parents, C Neelakantan and S Jayanthi, would take her to nearly all the concerts in town. She could identify ragas and sing small tunes from the age of 3. Noticing her flair for music, her parents ensured she received the very best of training in the field.

She has been nurtured over the years by eminent gurus such as Padmasri B Ponnammal, Prof, PR Kumarakerala Varma, Dr S Bhagyalekshmy and Dr MN Moorthy. Set to receive her Doctorate in Music by November 2022, Nandini is a guest lecturer at Sree Swathi Thirunal Govt. College of Music, Thiruvananthapuram.

## Career

* The youngest musician to secure "A" grade from All India Radio Trivandrum
* Winner of All India Radio National Music Competition in 2009
* Winner of the title Ragaratnam Yuva, from Carnatic Music Reality Show in Amrita TV
* Ist Runner Up in Jaya TV – Pothys Carnatic Music Idol 2011
* Ist Runner Up in Jaya TV – Vivel Carnatic Music Idol 2012
* The People’s Choice Award in Jaya TV – Vivel Carnatic Music Idol 2012
* 1st Rank Holder- MA Music, Kerala University
* Delegate to China, from Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Govt of India in 2014
* ICCR Empanelled Artist since the year 2012
* Recipient of CCRT Cultural Talent Scholarship since 2002
* She has rendered songs for various devotional albums, documentaries, short films and title songs for various television programmes.
* She has composed music for various creative concepts & stage shows such as Bharatha Nandini – Tribute to Mother land, Hari Bhakti Navakam – Nava Vidha Bhakthi Krithis, Bharathiyin Kannamma (Poems of Bharathiyar) Vaggeya Vaibhavam (celebrating illustrious composers of Carnatic Music) and Abhyaasa Gaanam (Mic less practice session), with her students.
* She has composed many dance musical pieces and collaborated with musicians and danseuses.
* She has conceptualized and curated popular musical series such as Malayalam May, Padmanabham and Out of the Box on her YouTube channel.
* She has recorded Soundarya Lahari, 100 verses in 100 ragas composed by KR Kedaranathan.
* She turned playback singer in M Jayachandran’s movie Kambhoji, wherein she sang two Kathakali padams.

## Awards, honors and recognition

* 2016 – Mavelikkara Prabhakara Varma Smaraka Yuva Sangeetha Puraskara – Sri Poornathrayesha Sangeetha Sabha, Thrippunithura
* 2014 – ISAI CHUDAR – Kartik Fine Arts, Chennai
* 2014 – Chembai Puraskar – Cultural Department, Government of Kerala
* 2013 – Madurai Mani Iyer Award – Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Chennai
* 2013 – Prof P Mahalingam Endowment Award – Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai
* 2013 – Shanmukhananda Bharat Ratna Dr M S Subbulakshmi Fellowship – Shanmukhananda Sangeetha Sabha, Mumbai
* 2013 – Best Vocalist- 2013 – Kuwait Carnatic Music Forum
* 2012 – Best Vocalist - Female – The Spirit of Youth Music and Dance Festival, The Music Academy, Madras
* 2010 – Sangeetha Shri – Travancore Music Society, Harippad
* 2010 – Yuva Sangeetha Prathibha Puraskar – Swaranjali
* 2009 – Ragaratnam Yuva – Amrita TV
* 2009 – Dr. L Muthayya Bhagavathar Award – Edapally Sangeetha Sadas, Ernakulam
* 2009 – Best Female Singer Award – Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan
* 2008 – MLV Srividya Sangeetha Puraskar – MLV Srividya Charitable Society, Trivandrum
* 2008 – Yuva Sri Kala Bharathi – Bharathi Yuva Kendra, Madurai
* 2008 – Kalathilakom – Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan, Trivandrum
* 2008 – Award of Accreditation – Sri Sankara council for Assessment & Accreditation, Kalady
* 2007 – Venuganam Award – Neelakanta Sivan Sangeetha Sabha, Trivandrum
* 2005 – Augustine Joseph Memorial Award – Poornathrayeesha Sangeetha Sabha, Thrippunithura
* 2005 – Uma Maheswaran Memorial Award – Chembai Memorial Trust, Trivandrum
* 2005 – Vaikom Vasudevan Nair Memorial Award – Vaikathashtami Festival
* 2004 – Best Young Talent Award – VDS Arts Academy, Chennai
