Mangaluru: Carnatic maestro T.M. Krishna has regretted that artists in India do not speak on social issues of importance.

Interacting with presspersons here on Friday, Mr. Krishna, who gave two concerts in the city, attributed this reluctance to a deeper malaise of a feudal mindset.

“Artists tended to be close to the king, the zamindars, and in the present times to politicians, bureaucrats, and corporate sponsors. There is a fear among the artists that if you ruffle any one of them you may not get concerts or sponsorships, or government funding,” said Mr. Krishna.

His response was a sequel to the observations of sarod maestro Rajiv Taranath who regretted that there were not many artists supporting Mr. Krishna who was being trolled for his social and political views and attributed this to their [artists] fear of losing patrons.

Elaborating on the issue, Mr. Krishna said while it may be difficult for struggling artists to take the lead, the established ones should speak out. He pointed out that this malaise of not speaking out was not confined to musicians alone and it was prevalent among artists across various fields.

He expressed optimism that the new generation would be different and would not hesitate to ask questions as they were more aware of societal issues.

On the Sabarimala controversy, Mr. Krishna said that women had a right to go to Sabarimala and disagreed with the stance of both the Kerala Congress and the BJP on the issue.

“In religious terms, there is nothing greater than a bhakti or devotion of the person which should get prominence over a rule put in place by upper caste men who control the temple,” he added.