Kalaimamani The Kalaimamani is the highest civilian award in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. These awards are given by the ''Tamil Nadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram'' (literature, music and theatre), a unit of the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government of ...

M. J. C. Comagan also spelt as either Comagan or Komagan (1972/1973 – 6 May 2021) was an Indian visually impaired musician, actor, educator and philanthropist from

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

. He was best known for his appearance in the national award-winning song ''

Ovvoru Pookalume Ovvoru Pookalume () is a Tamil language song from the soundtrack of the Indian film ''Autograph'' performed by Indian performer K. S. Chithra and composed by Bharadwaj in the raaga Sindhu Bhairavi. The song also featured the performance of the mem ...

'' which featured in the 2004 film ''Autograph''. He ran the Comaganin Raaga Priya orchestra recording live stage performances.

Career

Comagan pursued his career as a musician and composer starting up his own orchestra Comaganin Raaga Priya in 1991. He had also featured as a supporting actor in films such as '' Kanukkulle'' and ''

Sura A ''surah'' (; ar, سورة, sūrah, , ), is the equivalent of "chapter" in the Qur'an. There are 114 ''surahs'' in the Quran, each divided into '' ayats'' (verses). The chapters or ''surahs'' are of unequal length; the shortest surah ('' Al-K ...

'' (2010) in minor roles. He made his film debut as music composer in the film '' Muthal Muthalai'' (2007). It also became the first ever Tamil film where a visually impaired musician composed the entire music album for a film. Comagan was also a prominent integral part of the first ever Tamil Nadu Welfare Board for the Disabled which was established in 2008. He received the prestigious

award for the year 2019 from the

Government of Tamil Nadu Government of Tamil Nadu is the subnational government for the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is seated at Fort St George, Chennai. The legislature of Tamil Nadu was bicameral until 1986, when it was replaced by a unicameral legislature, lik ...

. He had also reportedly conducted vocal and instrumental classes to students via online amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Raaga Priya orchestra

Comagan founded the Raaga Priya orchestra in 1991 which was later known as Comaganin Raaga Priya. The orchestra was initially started with nine members and it was later expanded to around 25 members. The orchestra rose to limelight and prominence when they recorded a stage performance for about 16 hours continuously nonstop performing 183 songs. The milestone was recognized by the Limca Book of World Records. The Raaga Priya orchestra broke their own record in 2007 when they performed nonstop for about 50 hours with a group of 24 visually impaired musicians performing 682 songs. The performance was entered into the

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

. The orchestra including its founder Comagan had performed over 3000 light music shows and also for fundraising charity purposes. The troupe had also toured to about nine countries and recorded stage performances. Raaga Priya received the Tamil Nadu State Award in 2006. Raaga Priya orchestra members also made their entry in films when they performed in the national award-winning song ''

'' which featured in Cheran directorial ''Autograph''. Comagan was lauded for his role as the conductor of the orchestra in the song and he had also reportedly sung the last few lines of the song ''Manitha Un Manathai Keeri Vithai Podu Maramagum'' alongside actress Sneha. According to the website of Raaga Priya orchestra, Comagan along with the troupe members gained wide reputation and gained popularity in the society only after director Cheran cast them in the film ''Autograph''. In addition, Raaga Priya orchestra also performed in Telugu-language song ''Mounam Gaane,'' remake of Tamil film song ''Ovvoru Pookalume'' as well as in ''Uyir Thantha Thaye'' song which featured in 2007 film ''

Pasupathi c/o Rasakkapalayam ''Pasupathi c/o Rasakkapalayam'' is a Tamil language film directed by K. Selva Bharathy and released on 5 October 2007. It stars Ranjith, Sindhu Tolani, and Vivek. The music was composed by Deva. Plot Pasupathy (Ranjith) lives with his mother ...

''.

Death

He died on 6 May 2021, at around 1 am, due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

at the age of 48. He was hospitalized 12 days prior to his death.

References

{{Authority control 1973 births 2021 deaths Indian composers Indian musicians Indian educators Indian philanthropists Tamil playback singers Indian male playback singers Indian actors Singers from Tamil Nadu 21st-century Indian actors 21st-century Indian singers Indian blind people Tamil film score composers Male film score composers Musicians from Tamil Nadu 21st-century Indian male singers Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India Blind educators