Modern Vishwamitra finds music of love irresistible

But more importantly for the people of the area, he has been a devout swami, devoted to the saffron robes he donned 30 years ago. Till April 24, 1995, when Rama came for his darshan at a vidyapeeth in Bangalore.

Vidhyavibhushana answered the door himself, and “fell in love”. Several months later, Rama’s father invited the swamiji to Bellary for a concert and arranged for him to stay at their house. This was Vidhyavibhushana and Rama’s second meeting. Later, in February 1996, the swami again came to the town on a concert tour. This time he confessed his love to Rama. She said yes.

“It was a slow and steady process,” she recounts. “I loved him as a person, I liked his personality, I liked the man.”

Others obviously didn’t share the feeling. If Rama’s family called it a mismatch – her father felt he was too old for her. Vidhyavibhushana’s religious counterparts weren’t exactly pleased either.

First, they reminded him of the small but powerful mutt of which he was the religious head. However, when they realised Vidhyavibhushana was ready to cast away 30 years of his ascetic life, devoted to religion and music, they launched an attack on another front. They warned him against marriage and the kind of adverse publicity it would generate for swamis. But even that didn’t work.

Finally, last week, Vidhyavibhushana bid a tearful farewell to his mutt. “He stared for long at the Samputa Lakshminarasimha Swami idol, very dear to his life, which he worshipped as a swami for 30 years. It was sad, but he came out confident that the God he worshipped will always be with him,” Rama says.

Her family too forbade her against the marriage. “But I said if I ever marry, it will be to Vidhyavibhushana,” she claims. “As a parting gift, my mother gave me flowers, kumkum and a coconut.”

Vidhyavibhushana and Rama got married at a temple in Marehalli in Mandya district. None of Rama’s family members was present on the occasion.

For now, the couple is living with his brother in Bangalore. They have no source of income. Though Vidhyavibhushana first thought of bringing with him a portion of the money earned by him as royalty for cassettes, he later didn’t as “it was paid to the swami of a mutt”. Problems haven’t ceased.

On Friday, there was a heavy police deployment at one of his concerts following rumours that “fanatics” were demanding its cancellation. However, this time, the force wasn’t needed. There was an even bigger crowd than usual as people were curious to see the “star couple”.

The organisers later arranged a special pooja and the newly weds “married” again, exchanging garlands. As Vidhyavibhushana warmed up, a bejeweled Rama sat in the second row, beaming and hopeful. “I feel I have done the right thing,” she later asserted. As for the future? “We will live.’