Sugama Sangeetha, a variety of Bhavageethe, is an Indian musical genre in which poetry in the Kannada language is set to music. It gained recognition with the work of P. Kalinga Rao in the mid -20th century. Mysore Ananthaswamy and C. Aswath developed the form further in the 1960s and 1970s.
Origin and development
It is unclear when exactly Bhavageethe started but in 1920s and 30s there were many attempts to set tunes to poetry. By the 1950s it started taking a more defined shape and a highly talented musicianP. Kalinga Rao was instrumental in spreading this art form. He set tunes to the poems of many famous Navodaya poets, and gave performances on All India Radio as well as public gatherings. The art form started gaining popularity through his rendering of Udayavaagali Namma Cheluvu Kannada Naadu, Yaaru Hitavaru Ninage, Anathadim Digantadim, Baarayya Beladingale, Brahma Ninge Jodistheeni etc.,