N. Rajam (Violinist) Age, Husband, Children, Family, Biography

Bio/Wiki
Full Name	Dr. Narayana Rajam
Other Name	Dr. N Rajam
Profession(s)	• Violinist • Professor
Known for	Being a renowned violinist in India
Physical Stats
Eye Colour	Light Brown
Hair Colour	Light Brown
Career
Awards, Honours, Achievements	• Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1990) • Padma Shri(1984) • Padma Bhushan (2004) • Puttaraja Sanmaanav(2004) • Pune Pandit Award (2010) by The Art & Music Foundation, Pune, India • Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna) (2012) • Tana Riri award (2018) • Pt. Bhimsen Joshi Lifetime Achievement Award (2018) by Maharashtra Government • Padma Vibhushan (2026)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	25 March 1938 (Friday)
Age (as of 2026)	88 Years
Birthplace	Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Zodiac Sign	Aries
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Chennai, Tamil Nadu
College/University	Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi
Educational Qualification(s)	• A Master's degree in Sanskrit • A Doctor of Philosophy in Music
Religion	Hinduism
Social Media	• Facebook
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Married
Family
Husband/Spouse	T. S. Subramanian (chartered accountant)
Children	Son- None Daughter- Sangeeta Shankar (violinist)
Parents	Father- Vidwan A. Narayana Iyer (deceased) (classical musician) Mother- Ammini Ammal
Siblings	Brother- T. N. Krishnan (deceased) (violinist) Sister- None
Other Relative(s)	Grand-daughter(s)- 2 • Ragini Shankar (violinist) • Nandini Shankar (violinist) Mother-in-law- Padma Swaminathan (deceased) (social activist, Carnatic music singer) Sister-in-law- Vani Jairam (deceased) (playback singer)

Some Lesser Known Facts About N. Rajam

• N. Rajam was born and raised in Chennai, Tami; Nadu in a musical family.

• Her father, Vidwan A. Narayana Iyer was a well-known Carnatic musician, where her brother, T. N. Krishnan, was a renowned violinist of the Carnatic style.

• Rajam started her musical journey at the age of 3 under her father’s guidance.
  

  N. Rajam, when she was 3 years old

• At the age of 6, the violin became a major part of her daily life as her father gave her rigorous training in the Carnatic style music.
  

  N. Rajam, when she was 6 years old

• She also trained under the famous Carnatic musician, Musiri Subramania Iyer.

• At the age of 13, N. Rajam accompanied the legendary singer, M. S. Subbulakshmi to a musical event that enhanced her violin skills.

• Narayana did not restrict herself to only one form of music and keep learning useful elements from different Hindustani traditions. Her father also modified her violine techniques to help her handle Hindustani features such as slow tempos and fast taans.

• In an interview, Dr. Narayana shared that she worked on a special violin style that could copy the sound, movement and emotions of human voice. This style later became known as Gayaki Ang. Later her Gayaki Ang became so influential that other violinists began trying to adopt the her style.
  

  N. Rajam, while performing Gayaki Ang’ at the age of 15

• Later she moved from Carnatic music towards Hindustani classical because of her studies at Banaras Hindu University and learned raga development from Hindustani vocalist, Omkarnath Thakur, which helped shape her career in Hindustani classical music.

• She holds a Master’s degree in Sanskrit and a Ph.D. in Music from Banaras Hindu University.

• After her studies, she joined BHU and spent about four decades teaching music there.

• She eventually became the Head of The Department of Music and Dean of the Faculty of Performing Arts. She was also honoured the title of Emeritus Professor for her contribution to music and education.

• N. Rajam learnt about the Banaras style of Thumri from Pandit Mahadev Prasad Mishra.

• In an interview, Rajam shared that as a South Indian woman, she initially faced challenges in entering the male dominated Hindustani musical field.

• She travelled abroad and performed in countries, including the United States, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand.

• In 1984, Rajam received the Padma Shri for her contribution to Indian classical music.
  

  N. Rajam, while receiving Padma Shri Award from then India’s President Zail Singh

• In 1990, she received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, India’s one of major national honours for performing artists.
  

  N. Rajam, while receiving Sangeet Natak Akademi Award

• In 2004, Rajam was awarded with Padma Bhushan, and became one of the most highly decorated Indian classical violinists. In the same year, she received the Puttaraja Sanmaan.

• During her musical career, Rajam performed jugalbandis with several renowned classical musicians, including Ustad Bismillah Khan, Pandit Ram Narayan, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, T.N. Krishna, and N. Ramani.
  

  N. Rajam while performing with Ustad Bismillah Khan

• In 2012, N. Rajam received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna), one of the Akademi’s highest honours.

• In 2021, she was the recipient of the Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Lifetime Achievement Award from the Maharashtra government.

• Her musical legacy continued through her only daughter Dr. Sangeeta Shankar and granddaughters Ragini Shankar and Nandini Shankar, who were trained in the family tradition.
  

  N. Rajam with her daughter

• Despite being in her late 80s, Rajam remained active in classical music and in January 2026, she led the Sadas of the Music Academy, Madras and gave the Sangita Kalanidhi title to violinist R.K. Shriramkumar.

• In 2026, N. Rajam was announced as a Padma Vibhushan awardee for her contribution to Indian classical music.