Wearing her veil, congrega-tion’s uniform and sporting a calm smile, Sr Linet Antony SKD would match anyone’s concept of a Christian nun.

But once the Kannur native gets on to the stage and starts singing, the listeners can’t help not being pleasantly surprised. For, she can sign a Vathapi Ganapathi with as much ease as she can belt out a choir song.

The 37-year-old nun, who is a faculty at Chetana Sangeeth Natya Academy in Thrissur, is probably the only professional Carnatic musician of the State from her community. Sister Linet, who did her arangettam way back in 2011, has performed on stages both in Kerala and outside, in the past few years.

As she speaks about her tryst with Carnatic music, Sr Linet remembers how music was always a part of her life, since childhood.

She remembers, “I used to be active in the music circles of church and could also play a keyboard. Moreover, everybody in my family loved music and could sing. My sister and brother were also getting trained in Carnatic music. So, even before I went for my music studies, I was familiar with the various stages like saptha swaras, varisakal, geetham and the like in Carnatic music.”