Darshanam Mogilaiah

Darshanam Mogilaiah
Born1951 (age 72–73)
Ausalikunta, Lingal mandal, Nagarkurnool district, Telangana
Nationality India
Awards

Darshanam Mogilaiah (born in 1951) also known as Kinnera Mogulaiah, is an artist from the Indian state of Telangana and is one among a few surviving performers of a tribal musical instrument known by the name Kinnera.[1] The kinnera is a stringed instrument much like a veena whose origin can be traced back to as early as the 4th century CE. The instrument is indigenous to the nomadic tribes and the Dalit communities in the Deccan Plateau such as the Dakkali, Madiga and the Chenchu. There are kinneras with different numbers of stairs or steps. Mogilaiah's forefathers were pioneers in making and playing kinneras having different numbers of stairs. His father had made a nine-stair kinnera. Mogilaiah was the first person to create a 12-stair kinnera and he is the only artist who makes and plays the 12-step kinnera.[2] In the year 2022, Govt of India honoured him with the Padma Shri award for his contributions as a kinnera musician.[3]

  1. ^ Aruna Chandaraju. "Fading sounds: An Indian musical instrument with a rich history is on the cusp of extinction". Scroll.in. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  2. ^ Charan Teja. "Telangana's last 12-step Kinnera player Mogulaiah wants govt to save dying art form". The News Minute. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference PadmaShri2022 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).