Artistes

Nitin Sharma (Leads: Fender statocaster): Ace guitarist that started with a band from IT-BHU.Loves Acid, Rock and Metal. Plays leads/Bass forResonanZ. His favourites include Floyd, Rush, VanHallen.

Vivek Laddha (Percussion: RolandV ): Started his musical journey with the same band as Nitin, and Krishnamurthy from IT-BHU. Crazy about Rock, metal, and would love to try some Jazz in the future. A big fan of Neil Pert (the Rush Drummer). In addition to playing for ResonanZ, Laddha performs increasingly at radio shows and live concerts with 'Khaif', a sufi rock band from Bay Area.

Nagaraj Varadharajan (Keyboards: Korg Triton):

 Talented keyboard player that started with a band from REC-Trichy. Very popular in Bay Area and has played for a variety of bands that play Tamil, Telugu and Hindi popular music. Also plays with Nitin, Vivek and Krishnamurthy for ResonanZ.

Anand Kalyanaraman has been initiated into Carnatic music since he was 11 years old. He is trained in playing carnatic violin and plays violin for Thillana, with which he has been associated with for more than one and a half years now. He is learning carnatic music and violin from several talented folks in the Thillana team like Raghavan and Sampathkumar while contributing to the instrumental music and chorus sections of Thillana. He is adept in making conversations out of trifles and thus contributes more

than music to thillana !

L.Anand is an extremely talented bass guitarist, who plays both 'Yeastern' as well as Western music. He has been performing over the last 3 years and accompanies other popular bands in the country. Recently, he has started attending formal guitar classes.

Sampath - This music enthusiast  has learnt classical violin  from Babu, Nishant; is learning carnatic vocal from Ms. Suguna Purushothaman. Has played flute, violin and has sung before in light music bands in India.  Also a dance enthusiast; has choreographed several dances and story lines and led teams to win choreography competitions. Has long enough hair to be in rock bands…..He is fondly called Sampy.

Archana’s contribution to Thillana is multifaceted. Her ever-smiling face in the sales team has led Thillana to many sold-out performances. In corporate terms, you could call Archana an artistic director cum CFO of Thillana. A painter and a calligrapher, she is an extremely creative person. An ever-hospitable host that she is, Archana and her husband Mux’s home is what people would call “a Musical Den”. Thillanaites meet there year round, with or without a programme, to exchange notes on “notes”. A violinist herself, she is the woman behind the budding composer, Mux.

Kumudha - Learning Carnatic vocal from Ms. Suguna Purushothaman, an avid enthusiast of classical  music. Has compered/sung in light music bands. Dance and fashion choreography are her other interests.Loves to beat up anything that makes noise ;). She is multi dimensional person and was well appreciated for her role in Kalavaram Play.She rocks the stage …

Natarajan Srinivasan plays his mridangam with great zeal and dedication, and is one of the most popular artists in the Bay Area, CA. He accompanies many artists in classical music concerts.

Our Tabla player Anoop is the Zakir Hussain of Thillana, having accompanied maestros such as Pt.Jasraj, well renowned Hindustani music artist. He is a master of percussion and will keep you spellbound with his talent.

Sudhakar is probably the only one of the thillana members who announces his arrival with a musical note. He is always found with his guitar on his shoulder playing soft melodies as well as the new fast numbers.

Raj played the hosted, choreographed and entertained our audience with his mimicry talents in Pongal Festival, Jan 2001.

Want to know what singing is all about? Listen to our truly terrific trio - Aiswarya, Gayatri and Shweta

Ramesh, a well respected and well renowned guitarist, has many laurels to his head. He has accompanied Tamil music wizards such as Gangai Amaran, and Deva. We are extremely fortunate to have him in our team as a bass guitarist.

Madhu is a soft spoken girl, whose presence is greatly felt through the melodious notes of her veena. She has joined thillana recently and we wish her all the very best.

Anand on the drumpads is an extremely versatile person, with a keen sense of rhythm and music.Starting with vocals, he has tried his hand at all instruments that one can play. He is the backbone behind identifying every little twist and trun that makes the music a pleasure to listen to.

Sriram is great vocalist, who can sing a variety of songs, be it an old Jesudas number, or present day Shankar Mahadevan quickstep. He is extremely talented and continues to perform with other popular bands in the country.

Raghu,the lead guitar player has recently joined hands with thillana, sharing with us his wonderful talent, and adding melody to all the songs.

Priya is a wonderful singer, with many years of classical training to her score. She has been singing light music for a number of years, and is very proficient, in modulating her voice from husky dance numbers of Asha Bhosle to the soft melodies of Lata.

What can we say about Ram Prasad, one of our guest vocalists for the Pongal show ! The fact that he has sung playback for many Kannada movies speaks volumes about his talent. We are indeed greatful to have him in our team.

Rajeshwari is a mother of 2, who continues to sing owing to her great love for music. She has a wonderful voice and is a pleasure to listen to.

Prabhu is a guest vocalist from Pallavi, a light music band based in Bay Area, CA. A great enthusiast and an equally wonderful singer. We are extremely happy that he could join us for the Pongal show.

No words can fully describe Ganesh Babu, our friend, philosopher and guide. He has been a true inspiration to all the thillana members, from the very start and we hope that he will continue to shower his support. He is a great vocalist, whose old TMS and Malaysia Vasudevan numbers, bring nostalgia into your hearts.

Sundar is a great vocalist, whose deep voice lights up the stage and will make you want to dance away. He has performed with many popular bands at India.

Karen, is a person truly worth all our appreciation. Greatly inspired by the Indian culture, she has taken to Indian music with such ease. It is a great pleasure to have her performing with Thillana.

Subha’s love life itself speaks of her passion for music, for it was music that brought Subha and her husband Sriram together. A graduate in music, she still remains her professor’s ‘apple of the eye’. In an attempt to instill carnatic music into young hearts, Subha has recently started a carnatic school for kids. Amidst a hectic schedule with the school and her two beautiful daughters, Subha continues to entrance the bay area audience with her mellifluous voice in various light music concerts.

It's the hand that waves the wand! Okay, okay, it's not really a wand - too much of Harry Potter influence! There is magic in those fingers though as they deftly draw our logo in nice clean strokes, create our poster in layers of Photoshop and design our T-shirts with an amazing swiftness and style. Padma or 'Paddy', as she is affectionately known in Thillana circles is a new entrant to the Bay area. She quickly plunged into Thillana work within a week of her arrival as Ragavan Manian's new bride. The magnificent backdrop of 'VaarayO Vasanthamey' is testimony to her skills as a vibrant and artistic designer. An architect by profession, she is also an exponent of the traditional unhurried style of Carnatic music. You can hope to see more of her handiwork in our upcoming shows.

Well, well, well... to write about the person who wrote our bios.... let's see if we can do justice to her style. Another enthusiastic Thillana person with so much talent! You get to see bits and pieces of Suj in her writing - her style, her grace, her playfulness, her sharp intellect, her creativity, and more. She reads a lot, writes with ease and style, and when she dances, she's such a delight to watch. A person with an imagination that's in bloom all season long, she can put anything into words like Paddy can sketch anything into a fine picture. Let's hope to see her on stage this time, dancing away to our songs.

One can go on and on about the laurels earned by the individual Thillana members, but in crux, they form a very talented team who will keep you mesmerized with their wide variety of melodious numbers.