Top 5 varnams

[ragam-talam]

Name your top 5 favourite varnams and renditions . Mine are (in order of preference):
1. Abhogi - SSI, OST
2. Kanada - MDR, of course!
3. Sriragam - KVN
4. Bhairavi - by most artistes!
5. Charukesi - by lady artistes (a bit too 'sweet', though!)
(close tie-in with Natakuranji varnam)

Note: while the Bhairavi varnam is a masterpiece, I find it a bit too 'heavy' for a varnam, hence its no.4 ranking.

[bilahari]

1. bhairavi - most people, but favourite is MDR
2. nArAyaNagowLa - MDR and TNK
3. kAnaDa - most people, but MDR is again tops
4. rItigowLa - MDR
5. cArukEsi - Santhanam

[MaheshS]

1. Valachi - Navaragamalika [ MDR / TNK / UKS video]
2. Ninukori - Mohanam [ MMI/Lalgudi/VR, MDR/ MSG / GD]
3. Dayanidhe - Begada [ DKP, only DKP].
4. Innum En Manam - Charukkesi [ Santhanam ]
5. Bhairavi. Even if some one sings this varnam a bit odd, your mind just corrects it to the right way. No wonder, the composer put all his effort into his one varnam Genius indeed.

[ksrimech]

varNam is unique to karnATaka sangITam. IMHO every single varNam is a gem! So I don't understand why only 5? Its so hard to leave out other favorites. Anyways my top 5 favorites.

1. sAmininnE kOri - SrIrAga Adi tALa varNam - karUr dEvuDu ayyA (ARI/KVN/TMK)
2. viribONi - bhairavi aTa tALa varNam - pAchimIriyam Adi appayyA (MSS/ARI/MDR)
3. erA nApai - tODI - Adi tALa varNam - paTNam subrahmaNyayyar (MSS/ARI)
4. chalamEla jEsE - nATTakuranji - Adi tALa varNam - rangasAmi naTTuvanAr (chiTTi bAbu/LGJ/MDT/TMK)
5. vanajAkSA ninnE - rItigouLa - aTa tALa varNam - vIna kuppayyar (DrSR/MDR)

Unfortunately I have to leave out the likes of pallavi gOpalayyar's kalyANi varNam (ARI/MSS/MDR), vINakuppayyar dhanyASi varNam (sung by SRJ), paTNam's mukhAri varNam, narAyaNagouLa varNam (MDR), Tiger's SrIranjani varNam (MDR), lalguDi's varNams (particularly chArukESi and SaNmukhapriyA), and many many more.

One varNam I have always wanted to hear is SyAmA SAStri's Anandabhairavi aTa tALa varNam - sAmini rammanarAvE sArasAkSi I vELa on tirukacchi varadarAjan along with the sAhityAs for the muktAyi and eTTugaDa svarAs! I still haven't found or heard of any record! May be vIna dhanammAL or vidyA Sankar played it on the vINA! Who knows!!!!

[karthikbala]

Not necessarily top 5; some varnams I would like to hear more often:

Kanakangi - Todi
Vanajaksha - Mandari
Kamalakshi - Yadukulakambhoji
Sarasijaksha - Nayaki
Sarasija mukhiro - Arabhi
Niveraksha - Kadanakuthuhalam

[vs_manjunath]

How abt Kalyani (both Adi & Atta)
Shankarabharanam( --- " ----)
Arabhi
Saranga is my favourite.
Andholika is also a favourite

[prathyusha]

my favorite 5 varnam are:
1)MALAYAMARUTHAMU---RAGAM MALAYAMARUTHAM
2)VIRIBONI--RAGAM BHAIRAVI
3)SARASUDA NINNE---RAGAM SAVERI
4)CHALAMELA RA---RAGAM NATTAI KURUNJI
5)NINNU KORI--RAGAM VASANTHA

[srikant1987]

1) Narayanagaulai (maguva ninnE)
2) Saveri (sarasUDa)
3) Nattaikurinji (cAlamela)
4) Reethigaulai (vanajAkSha) -- bhairavi (viribhONi)
5) Kanada (neRa nammitinayya)

[shripathi_g]

1) Viribhoni (MDR/MMI/MSS)
2) Maguvo (MDR)
3) Vanajaksha (Reetigowla) (MDR)
4) Sarasijanabha (MDR)
5) Nera nammithi (MDR)

6) Sami ninne (MDR)
7) Valachi (MDR)
8 ) Vanajakshi (Kalyani) - there's a particular one for which he sings swarams at the end.
9) Evari bodhana (TNS/Jon Higgins)
10) Suddha Dhanyasi (TSK)

Pretty much all the varnams that MDR has sung. I have a CD in my car with just his varnams and I listen to them everyday on my way to work. I must have listened to his Viriboni at least 500 times easily.