Sanjaya’s Mom Talks, Discusses Hare Krishna
I’m going to leave this interview in it’s original form because it just says it all:
“This story is very significant to the Indian community,” says Jillian Rechi, or Jayaradhe as she was known in the Hare Krishna movement a decade ago.
The story is about her children Shyamali and Sanjaya Malakar who became famous overnight, thanks to the talent contest American Idol.
“Both Shyamali (Rosaria Malakar) and Sanjaya (Joseph Malakar) embraced their Indian cultural roots.”
Recchi, who spent over two months recently with her 17-year-old son in Hollywood, was often joined by daughter Shyamali, and on one occasion her former husband Vasudeva Malakar, who left his construction business and chores at the Hare Krishna temple in Seattle, to be with his children.
Since her divorce nearly a decade ago, Recchi, who since remarried, raised the children mostly on her own. She says she has not been a member of the Hare Krishna congregation for many years but the Indian spirituality is deeply ingrained in her and her children.
“I consider the Hare Krishna way of life to be my spiritual foundation,” said Recchi, who met her future husband Vasudeva while she was a devotee at the Seattle Hare Krishna Temple 21 years ago. “I do not live in the temple though.”
“Vasudeva was a classical Indian singer-musician-teacher for many years in Seattle,” she continued. “He taught harmonium and bhajans to students at home. There was always Indian music in our home. I was a musician and played the flute, though I didn’t pursue it professionally. We sang in the car with the children.”
After the divorce, Shyamali and Sanjaya moved to Hawaii with their mother and lived there from 1996 to 2000. Both were in Hawaii children’s musical theatre.
“Shyamali was always a precocious, intelligent child,” Recchi says of her first born, an aspiring model, singer and actress. She was eliminated from the American Idol contest early on.
“She read by the age of 3, and had an amazing memory. She would listen to a song once and remember it. Sanjaya, too, had a great talent for singing and music early on. As soon as he was talking, he was singing, dancing and running around. Of course, they are always around music.”
When Sanjaya continued to make steady progress in the competition, despite a lot of negative criticism, Recchi closed down her home business for a few months. “I have always had my own business,” she says.
“Currently, I am an independent distributor for in-home water purification filters and distillers. I also manage and maintain some rental properties. This gives me flexibility of hours to be with and do things with my kids. I wanted to prioritise that; I didn’t want to put my kids in daycare. I wanted to be there for them while they were growing up.”
The children were exposed not only to Indian but also to contemporary and older American music, by Fred Astaire, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, their mother added.
“It was their choice to participate in the competition,” she says. “I told Sanjaya he couldn’t enter because he was too young. He was very sad; my family got involved and finally decided he could try.”
“When Shyamali got booted out, she took it really well. It didn’t discourage her; she still wants to continue and pursue a music and acting career.”
“For Sanjaya, unfortunately, I wasn’t there with him when he was voted out,” she says, a trace of sadness in her voice. “I was with him for a solid two months, but I flew back to Los Angeles to be with him the day after he was eliminated.
Sanjaya had a feeling he would get voted out after he saw a tape of his performance later that night. He mentally prepared himself for elimination: of course, he didn’t tell me that!”
She says her son has taken this as a learning experience. “This will, I think, launch him into a very successful career,” she says. “He wants to be an entertainer, whatever that might encompass. He has a real passion for singing; he also loves to act, he has thought of modeling and wants to be a spokesperson for charitable work.”
What is the best advice she has given Shyamali and Sanjaya?
“As a mother, I always felt my children would go on to do great things,” she said. “I taught them that whatever platform they might end up on, they should use it positively.”
“They are very compassionate. People can see that. I think that was really why Sanjaya had such a large fan base. He is a genuine person who is not egotistical, very compassionate, and very well grounded.
Even though they are very attractive people, I don’t think they let that go to their heads because they realise it is a God-given gift. Any gift they have comes from God; they are just an instrument of that.
That helps them stay grounded and focussed on the bigger picture. I would say that is probably one of the biggest things I have tried to give them as far as life lessons go.”
source image courtesy of Rickey.org
Tags: hare, hare-krisha, interview, krishna, malakar, mom, pot, Sanjaya, Sanjaya Malakar, shyamaliRelated Stories
POSTED IN: American Idol 6, Interviews, Sanjaya Malakar
12 opinions for Sanjaya’s Mom Talks, Discusses Hare Krishna
j.c.
Jun 2, 2007 at 3:43 am
pretty much like every other mother, that’s all any parent can do any way, be there for their kids and encourage them in their efforts and support their dreams. well done ms. reichi
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amanda
Jun 2, 2007 at 7:49 am
As I mother, I would never allow my teenage son to go on Idol. I remember reading reports about John Steven’s mother having to turn off FOX news whenever he entered the living room because of the relentless media attacks. That child received death threats after outlasting Jennifer Hudson. I’m sure Sanjaya has received similar threats to his life. So much hatred! These kids will probably need therapy. I’ve read that John is still recovering. He freezes up whenever a stranger approaches him.
I just don’t understand these parents. Watching their children abused and humiliated in public. It’s so irresponsible. I’m not surprised Sanjaya comes from a broken home.
Jeanne
Jun 2, 2007 at 6:58 pm
amanda - you definitely gave me some food for thought. I’m a mom too and after hearing what you wrote, I wonder what I would do if one of my children wanted to be on American/Canadian Idol. What an interesting comment!
amanda
Jun 3, 2007 at 10:04 am
I would advise against it. Unless your child has extensive experience with talent shows and pageants.
How would you feel if your child became the most hated person in America? Received death threats? Booed by an entire stadium of people? Called a joke by everyone? Had complete strangers declare that he must be gay? Called “Abu” on all the message boards? Had tabloids publish your welfare checks or mug shots from two years ago? Or print your underaged daughter’s arrest records? All this because your son auditioned for Idol… what a price to pay!
These parents need to wake up! And start protecting their children! This woman sounds flighty to me. John Steven’s mother did a better job shielding her son from the hate.
j.c.
Jun 3, 2007 at 11:23 am
we can’t protect our kids from everything, , although it’s natural instinct. job of parenting is to prepare children to handle the’real world’, and the real world’s a mean one. people are critized every day, people try to get the scope on others every day, if any of us are going to accomplish anything in this world, we must learn how to handle negative criticism. INGNORE THEM!
Chad Quist
Jun 3, 2007 at 12:02 pm
This is Chad, Sanjaya’s mother’s fiancee.
Having known the family for four years and being very close to them I have to comment on this.
Sanjaya’s mother did not want him to participate in the show this year because of his age. He insisted that he was able to handle it and being seventeen, she felt he was old enough to make the decision himself. After all, how can our kids grow to be adults if we don’t let them make these types of decisions for themselves?
Luckily, with the amount of media exposure he has received (good and bad) he has handled it quite nicely, mostly due to his upbringing. His mother has always taught her kids that the media is a fake world built on sensationalism and money (advertising).
Every parent wants to see their kids leave the nest and be self supporting doing what they love. We know that Sanjaya and Shyamali will go on to have successful careers and contributing positively to society.
tiffaney
Jun 3, 2007 at 2:26 pm
yes he did handle it very well and thats just one of the reasons i love him but the first is his amazing voice i could listen to him all night i love sanjaya and chad will you tell sanjaya that tiffaney cooper from tennessee loves him and she voted for him every week 200 times thanks
Katrina
Jun 6, 2007 at 9:45 pm
Hooray for Sanjaya and Shymali making it to American Idol. I saw Chandra the next day after she missed her flight back to Italy from being with you guys. Hope to see you guys next time Chandra is in town.
Delores Belisle
Jun 8, 2007 at 10:54 am
I thought Sanjaya was amazing to have handled everything the way he did and to have learned from it all what more could one ask for! His voice is wonderfull,my grandson is so interested in spanish he played Besame Mucho over and over untill he could sing it all,even the spanish ones! I love my grandsons voice,i love him,aswell.
sharyl
Jun 20, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Amanda what makes u think sanjaya came from a broken home. You don’t have the right to judge that. Just because his mom was a single mom doesn’t mean he came from a broken home. I’m a single mom and my kids certainly don’t come from a broken home. There are alot of kids being raised by single parents doesn’t mean they are from a broken home. You have no right to judge her till you have walked in her shoes.
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