Quick Info→
Age: 26 Years Hometown: Chennai Marital Status: Unmarried
| Bio/Wiki | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan [1]Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan – Facebook |
| Other name | R. Sai Vignesh [2]The Hindu |
| Profession(s) | Playback Singer, Musician, Carnatic Vocalist, Music Teacher, Content Creator |
| Famous for | Rendering voice to the song “Varaha Roopam” from the Kannada film Kantara (2022) |
| Physical Stats & More | |
| Height (approx.) | in centimeters– 165 cm in meters– 1.65 m in feet & inches– 5’ 5” |
| Weight (approx.) | in kilograms– 65 kg in pounds– 143 lbs |
| Eye Colour | Black |
| Hair Colour | Black |
| Career | |
| Debut | Reality show: Airtel Super Singer Season 4 (2013) on Star Vijay
Song (Tamil): Oora Nenjila from the Tamil film Eghantham (2018) |
| Awards | • 2013: Second Runner-Up Award at the Times of India Thyagaraja Awards
• 2017: Top Voices for the Future 2017 Award from TAG Carnatic Music Forum |
| Personal Life | |
| Date of Birth | 20 November 1996 (Thursday) |
| Age (as of 2022) | 26 Years |
| Birthplace | Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Zodiac sign | Scorpio |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Hometown | Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
| School(s) | • Smt Ramkuwar Devi Fomra Vivekananda Vidyalaya, Chennai (2001-2011) • Sri Ahobila Math Oriental Higher Secondary School, Chennai (2012) |
| College/University | • Loyola College, Chennai • The University of Madras, Chennai |
| Educational Qualification | Bachelor of Commerce (2014) Master of Music in Vocal Performance [3]Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan – Facebook |
| Religion | Sai and his family were ardent devotees of Sathya Sai Baba [4]The Times of India |
| Hobbies | Travelling, driving, photography, watching films |
| Relationships & More | |
| Marital Status | Unmarried |
| Family | |
| Wife/Spouse | N/A |
| Parents | Father– Ramakrishnan Venkatachalam (keyboard player) Mother– Vijayalakhmi Ramakrishnan |
| Other Relatives | Grandfather– Name not known Grandmother– V. Vijaylakshami (singer) |
Some Lesser Known Facts About Sai Vignesh
- Sai Vignesh is an Indian playback singer, musician, Carnatic vocalist, music teacher, and content creator, who predominantly renders his voice to Tamil and Telugu language songs. He rose to fame in September 2022 for lending his voice to the song “Varaha Roopam” from the Kannada film Kantara.
- Being an ardent devotee of Sathya Sai Baba, Sai, since childhood, performed devotional songs on various occasions at the Sathya Sai organizations. [5]The Times of India
- As a child, Sai used to perform along with his grandmother V. Vijaylakshamim in her singing cultural programs. Sai’s father observed his interest in music and got him admitted to a music class, where he received training from the Indian musician Lakshmi Ananthakrishnan. Talking about how he got inclined towards music at a young age, Sai replied,
My grandmother used to sing, and also hear Carnatic music on the radio, every morning and noon. I used to listen to them regularly. My father is a keyboard player and my aunts sing bhajans at home. So, my love for music started at home itself.” [6]The Times of India
- In 2018, Sai voiced the song ‘Kaalai Theme’ from the Tamil film Kadaikutty Singam.
- Sai received professional music training from the Indian musician T. R. Vasudevan, who hailed from Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu.
- Sai won the “Sing with Shankar Mahadevan Contest 2014, ” which was organized by Shankar Mahadevan Academy in June 2014. Apart from it, he received the opportunity to perform live with him at a concert in Bengaluru.
- The All India Radio (AIR) ranked Sai as a “B-High” grade artist in the music category. There are four grades i.e. B, B-High, A, and Top, which are awarded on the basis of the performance quality of the musician by a committee of music experts.
- In an interview, Sai stated that one of his favourite film directors is Gautham Menon.
- In an interview, on being asked about his inspiration in music, Sai stated that he was immensely influenced by Dr S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, an Indian playback singer and music composer.
- Sai’s first live concert was held in London for Britain’s 18th Saiva Conference on 7 May 2017. Subsequently, he performed in more than 1000 live concerts in India as well as other countries including the United States, Canada, London, Singapore, Australia, Germany, etc. Apart from this, he received an opportunity to perform with a few popular musicians such as Ilaiyaraaja, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Shankar Mahadevan, K. S. Chithra, and D. Imman. [7]Sai Vignesh
- As a mentor, Sai imparts professional training in music to various aspiring singers through online and offline classes.
- While Sai was studying in Class 8, he recorded his first jingle for the film soundtrack composer Vishal Chandrashekar.
- Sai received professional training in Carnatic music for almost eighteen years, and consequently, he primarily refers to himself as a Carnatic musician.
- In 2019, Sai joined the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) as an empanelled artist.
- In 2020, Sai created Gandiva, which is an Indo Classical Contemporary Fusion band, based in Chennai, India. He established the band along with dancer Kavya Muralidharan, and music producer Navin Shankar. On 1 January 2021, their first video “Shiva Tandava” was uploaded on YouTube, which amassed more than 1 million views.
- In an interview, talking about his super hit song “Varaha Roopam” from the Kannada film Kantara, Sai revealed that before recording the song, he was not familiar with the Kannada language and said,
I have sung the climax song in the film, titled Varaha Roopam. It is a very intense number. While Kurumugil was a romantic melody, this song was special because I’ve been learning Carnatic music for 18 years and have always wanted to sing a classical number with a contemporary touch. I am very thankful to composer Ajaneesh Loknath for calling me to sing this one. Even here, I was originally asked to sing the track version. But it was a good experience to learn the lyrics and sing in Kannada, a language that I’m not familiar with.” [8]The Times of Indiahttps://twitter.com/hombalefilms/status/1583350820967305216
- On 30 September 2022, the Kannada film Kantara, starring Rishab Shetty, was released in theatres in India. One of the film’s songs, Varaha Roopam, sung by Sai Vignesh, stocked controversy after Thaikkudam Bridge, a Kerala-based multi-genre music band alleged that the song was purposedly copied from one of their songs Navarasam, which was released in 2015. On 24 October 2022, the band shared an Instagram post in which they accused the makers of the film of plagiarising their song without their permission and announced that they will file a lawsuit against them. On 27 October, the Thaikkudam Bridge band approached the Kozhikode District Court and on 28 October the court passed an interim injunction in favour of the Thaikkudam Bridge band and ordered to remove the song from various online streaming platforms including theatres, streaming platforms, and social media. Another petition was filed at the Palakkad Court in Kerala by the Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing Company Ltd, which held the copyright of the Navarasam song. However, the makers of the film denied the allegations, but obeyed the court order and removed the song from all the streaming platforms. On 3 December the Palakkad district court lifted the ban, citing a lack of jurisdiction and the song was available again on all platforms. In an interview, Sai talked about the ongoing legal dispute between the film-makers and the Thaikkudam Bridge band and said,
I cannot speak on behalf of the music composer or the film’s team. I had not listened to ‘Navarasam’ before we recorded the track. In my opinion, the mood of both the tracks are different. ‘Navarasam’ depicts nine bhavas (emotions), whereas ‘Varaha Roopam’ concentrates on the Bhoota Kola culture and is more about divinity. ‘Varaha Roopam’ is not based on the same set of Ragas as ‘Navarasam’.”[9]The News Minute
- In 2022, Sai received positive acclaim for his song ‘Kurumugil’ from the Telugu film Sita Ramam.
- Sai, in 2022, was invited to judge Kuralosai 916, an online Tamil singing competition on YouTube. The contestants of the show were allotted a specific music genre and they had to upload a two-minute video of any Tamil song that justified their music category.
- Sai Vignesh has a self-titled YouTube channel, where he uploads videos of his cover songs; the channel has more than 10000 subscribers. He uploaded the unplugged version of his Kannada song Varaha Roopam on his channel on 9 December 2022, and within three days, the video amassed views of over 250K.
- As of 2023, Sai had lent his voice to more than 500 recordings and worked with many renowned music directors like Ilaiyaraaja, Yuvan Shankar Raja, A. R. Rahman, and Harris Jayaraj. [10]Sai Vignesh
References/Sources:[+]
| ↑1 | Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan – Facebook |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | The Hindu |
| ↑3 | Sai Vignesh Ramakrishnan – Facebook |
| ↑4, ↑5, ↑6 | The Times of India |
| ↑7, ↑10 | Sai Vignesh |
| ↑8 | The Times of India |
| ↑9 | The News Minute |