With a distinguished playback career spanning over 25 years, he has rendered more than 2000 songs across multiple languages including Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Marathi, Bengali, and Tulu. Madhu has lent his voice to compositions by legendary maestros such as V. Dakshinamurthy, Raghavan Master, M.K. Arjunan, Chidambaranath, Johnson Master, Raveendran Master, M.G. Radhakrishnan, Alleppey Rangan Master, Rajamani, Kaithapram Viswanathan, and Bhavatharini, to name a few.

He continues to collaborate with contemporary music directors like Maestro Ilaiyaraaja, M.M. Keeravani, Vidyasagar, Koti, Deva, Hamsalekha, Dina, S.P. Venkitesh, Mani Sharma, Karthik Raja, Yuvan Shankar Raja, D. Imman, G.V. Prakash, Srikanth Deva, Harris Jayaraj, Babu Shankar, Gurukiran, Praveen D Rao, Sabesh-Murali, Ramesh Vinayakam, Raja Sankar, Debojyoti Mishra, Salim-Sulaiman, Vijay Prakash, Jaya-Vijaya (Jayan Master), Jerry Master, Vidyadharan Master, Ouseppachan, Mohan Sithara, Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri, Sharreth, M. Jayachandran, M.G. Sreekumar, Aji Saras, Sayan Anwar, Alphonse, Bijibal, Deepak Dev, Rahul Raj, Gopi Sundar, Shankar Ganesh, Anil Johnson, Jakes Bejoy, Shaan Rahman, Ranjin Raj, Sam C.S., Sathish Ramachandran, Deepankuran, Arun Muraleedharan, Arun Raj, Rakesh Swaminadhan, Srinath Sivasankaran, Anand Madhusoodanan, Roney Raphael, Shibu Kallar, Deepak Warrier, Joshua Raj, Nithin Siva, Venu Sankar Kalamandalam, Shankar Sharma, and Ranjini Sudheeran.

In addition to his film work, Madhu has recorded over 12,000 album songs spanning Hindu, Christian, and Muslim devotional genres, and has appeared in numerous devotional and album music videos.

fter graduating, he initially recorded Malayalam devotional songs before moving into film music around 1999. His first Malayalam playback song, “Paathiraa Pooveh”, recorded for the unreleased film Sisiram, went unnoticed. But his breakthrough came with Umayapuram Sultan, followed by opportunities from musical giants like Raveendran Master and M. G. Radhakrishnan.

However, it was the emotionally resonant “Amme Amme” from the film Vaalkannadi (2002), composed by M. Jayachandran, that truly catapulted him to fame. The performance earned him the Kerala State Film Award for Best Playback Singer, cementing his place in the industry.

His other Malayalam hits include “Raveerayai Poove” (Rock and Roll) which won him an Asianet Award, and “Ramayanam Katha” (Pathaam Nilayile Theevandi), which secured his first of many Kerala Film Critics’ Awards. In 2010, Swaralaya-Eenam honored him as the “Best Young Singer of the Decade”.

Tamil Film Industry Breakthrough

Madhu’s return to Tamil cinema began in 2000 when Swamy V. Dakshinamoorthy introduced him to Ilaiyaraaja, who signed him for “Edhilum Ingu Iruppaan” and “Vande Mataram” in the film Bharathi.

His Tamil breakthrough arrived in 2003 with Vidyasagar’s hit melody “Kanaa Kandeinadee Thozhi” (Parthiban Kanavu). Two years later, he gained further recognition by voicing Rajinikanth in “Konja Neram Konja Neram”—a duet with Asha Bhosle for the film Chandramukhi, which became a chart-topping success.

This opened doors to more Tamil films like Pithamagan, Mozhi, Abhiyum Naanum, and Naan Mahaan Alla. His stellar work earned him the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Playback Singer (2006) and the Kalaimamani Award (2007). In 2010, he bagged a Radio Mirchi Award for his haunting rendition of “Picchai Pathiram” (Naan Kadavul).

Classical Roots

Madhu’s strength lies in his robust classical foundation. Encouraged by his music-loving parents—his mother Leelavathy, trained in music and dance, and his father, a passionate singer—he began training under Sreedevi and Chandramana Narayanan Namboothiri during childhood.

After his pre-degree, Madhu committed fully to music, securing a Ford Foundation scholarship to study classical music at the Academy of Indian Music and Arts. There, he was trained by stalwarts such as T. V. Gopalakrishnan, Manikrishna Swami, and Vedavalli.

His classical training shines through in songs like “Himalayam” (Scene No 001, Malayalam), “Thendral Ennum Thear” (Paasa Killigal, Tamil), the title track from Thavamaai Thavamirundhu (Tamil), “Kana Kanade Sharade” (Apthamitra, Kannada), “Ramavinodhi Vallabha” (Swarabhishekam, Telugu), and “Kala Devatha” (Love FM, Malayalam).

Versatility Personified

Despite his classical grounding, Madhu effortlessly adapts to soft romantic melodies. His Tamil songs like “Ding Dong Koyil Mani” (Ji), “Solli Tharavaa” (Majaa), and “Attrai Thingal” (Sivapathikaram), along with Malayalam numbers like “Enguninnu Vanna” (Calcutta News) and “Chentharmizhi” (Perumazhakaalam), reflect his expressive range and emotive depth.

In 2010, Madhu surprised fans by showcasing a dynamic stage persona during the Sun TV talent show Sangeetha Maha Yutham. Performing everything from classical pieces to peppy dappankuthu songs, he led his team to victory, earning widespread admiration from Tamil audiences worldwide.

Recent Contributions

Some of Madhu’s recent Malayalam film credits include “Bharatha Circus”, “Silence”, “Baby Sam”, “Niyogam”, “Uriyattu”, and the magnum opus “Baahubali 2”, “Dharmayodha” “Malikappuram”, “Oru Thathvika Avalokanam” and “Kaaval”, “Njanum Pinnoru Njanum”.

Personal Life

Madhu was born on 24 June 1974 in Paravur, Ernakulam district, Kerala. He is married to Viditha (Divya), the sister of cricketer Sreesanth. They have two sons, Madhav (b. 2002) and Mahaadev (b. 2009), both inclined toward Western music. The family resides in Thripunithura, Ernakulam.