Way back in 1937, two young long-haired women in saris stepped into a small photo studio in Madras.

They changed into striped pyjama suits and struck a pose in front of the studio camera.

One of them leaned languidly against a chair, while the other’s eyes focused on something outside the frame.

Both of them held cigarettes perhaps just for the thrill of it.

That’s world-renowned Carnatic vocalist MS Subbulakshmi and the legendary Bharatanatyam dancer Balasaraswati who were just having a bit of fun.

The two teenaged friends both became world-famous artists. From strictly disciplined households, the two asserted their independence by secretly arranging this photograph of themselves dressed outrageously in Western-style sleepwear and pretending to smoke cigarettes.

This iconic photograph was first made public only 73 years later, in the 2010 biography of Balasaraswati penned by her son-in-law Douglas Knight J.

By this time, the successful careers of these artists were so highly revered over decades, almost deified, that this picture quite suddenly threw light on a whole new aspect of their lives – just two young friends attempting to do something unconventional.

The stir caused by the release of the photograph among fans of both luminaries is perhaps understandable, particularly in the case of Subbulakshmi.

It is a very important picture that goes to show that not everyone was born with a nine-yard saree or does everything traditionally.

That is our own perspective, and we don’t like things that fall out of it. We all need a jolt sometimes.

Read more about MS Subbalaxmi and Balasaraswati here:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._S._Subbulakshmi

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balasaraswati