Palladam Sanjeeva Rao

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Palladam Sanjeeva Rao

Born at Palladam in Coimbatore, Sanjeeva Rao picked up music even as a young lad when his blind brother, Prananathachar, was learning vocal music under Shatkala Narasayya. When the tutor died, the brothers took up violin under Seergazhi Narayanaswamy. By the age of twelve, Sanjeeva Rao was proficient. However, he took a fancy for the flute and underwent training from Sarabha Sastri for seven years. Sanjeeva Rao had a sparkling style that earned him immense popularity. He used a nine-holed flute. There was no flautist to challenge him until T R Mahalingam appeared on the scene.