Sunday, March 05, 2006

Kya Jaadu Dala...

More than twenty years ago, a hassled mother wanted to attend a concert by Smt. Girija Devi. But she had no idea what to do with her restless three-year old brat. She finally hit upon the solution. There was only one way in which her little daughter could be kept engaged. Food. She took a bag of seedless grapes to the concert, and proceeded to feed the kid. But the little one did not like the skin on the grapes. So the mom actually spent three hours, skinning each grape, and shoving the soft sweet pulp of the grape into the kid's waiting mouth. The little girl was totally occupied, and the mom got to listen to three hours of wonderful music.

If you have not already guessed, the harassed lady was my mom and the brat was, well, yours truly.

Actually I am surprised that my mom had to resort to this to keep me silent, because she tells me that I was a great fan of Girija Devi even then. If my mom hummed or sang as she moved about the house, I would order her to stop, and play a tape of Girija Devi instead.

Well, that was a long long time ago. Yesterday, I listened to Girija Devi again. Live. At the Chowdaiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore. And before you ask, no, this time, I did not need grapes to keep me occupied.

I was a little hesitant at first, to actually go and listen to her sing. I knew that she was far into her seventies. I writhe uncomfortably listening to Lata Mangeshkar, who is around the same age as Girija Devi. Lately, even Asha Bhonsle makes me want to clap my palms on my ears and run for my life. And she is younger. Then how would I be able to sit and listen to this seventy-six year old sing?

[Disclaimer: I am a big fan of both Lata and Asha, and mean no disrespect to them. I have spent many happy hours listening to Lata's unbelievably sweet voice and Asha's tantalizing, versatile music. But they should know when to stop. Or, music directors should stop asking them to sing for them. I have lost count of the number of beautiful songs that would have sounded far better if sung by singers who did not sound like they had marbles stuck in their throats].

Before Girija Devi began, she spoke to the audience in a soft, quavering voice. I was now almost sure that it was going to be an evening of respectful squirming in my seat.

Then she began. The first few notes of the beautiful and plaintive Raag Jog. The hall fell silent. My mouth fell open. Her voice filled the auditorium. Rich. Clear. Vibrant. Resonant. Like the tinkle of a rich brass bell. Effortless. Powerful. She sang like the stage was her domain, and the Raag was her playground. The magic in her voice was undiminished. The lady sitting on the stage was no longer seventy-six years old. The power in her voice belied her age. Her range, her effortless movement from note to note, her absolute ease while singing the high notes, the total command over her voice - it was a captivating performance.

I wished she would never stop. I was hungry and tired and it was very late in the night, but I would have gladly stayed on if she had continued. But everything has to come to an end! At the end, of course, she received a standing ovation, and after the concert, the crowd back-stage was unmanageable. But still, my sister and I pushed through the crowd and paid our respects to her.

One of the pieces she sang was a Thumri, the first line of which goes "Kya Jaadu Dala, Deewana kiye Shyaam" [What magic have you played upon me? You have driven me crazy, O Krishna]. Actually, I could sing that about her. She was the one who wrought magic upon the audience. And how!

May her tribe increase.

9 comments:

Raj said...

I totally agree with you abt Lata and Asha. They shud atleast give up playback singing.

I have never attended a live concert or something similar. From your post it seems like it was a great evening free of squirming :)

Chitra said...

Yup... second your disclaimer!!

Anonymous said...

girija devi?! i envy u sorely, i do! :( :(
maybe i should resort to the grape-trick too - thanks for the tip! :)
and hi-5 on lata - me too do the wriggly squiggly!!

ano

Shruthi said...

@Raj: Yup, let them sing in the confines of their home, for their own enjoyment! And you should see if you can attend a concert sometime, its a lovely experience!

@Chitra: ;)

@Ano: Thank my mom! ;) Hope it works for you too! ROTFL at wriggly-squiggly :))

Anonymous said...

not much of a Hindustani music person but thanks for all the interesting links. I did not know abt Thumri for instance till today. Most of Hindustani I have heard is from Bhimsen Joshi alone ( with my all time fav of his - Bhagyada Lakshmi Baramma ) ...oh well, ppl do sing the next line as 'nammamma maneyoLagilla' but thats for some other day.....

ROFL @ grapes peeling ! first time i am hearing something like that. Thank God children dont read the blogs lest they ask their moms abt the same!! [ Hope your mother teaches her grand-kid abt it ;) ]

Anonymous said...

Indeed you're in an enviable position, to have got this chance. Sadly, these senior artists are not going to be around for long!

I read somewhere that Smt. Gangubai Hangal (in her 90s now) gave a recital recently. Though it might not have been the best performance, but the effort has to be appreciated.

Rajit

Shruthi said...

@Anon: :) First time I heard something like that too! My mom just does not pamper my sister and me... just imagine how much she would have wanted to listen to the concert, if she actually did something like this!

@Rajit: Very true. After that, we can only listen to them through their recorded music. :( Yes, I heard about Gangubai Hangal too. I heard that she had not sung for three years after her daughter Krishna Hangal, who used to sing with her all the time, passed away. Considering that, the concert was certainly a big step for her.

anoop said...

I would want to further the experience one goes thru when in a concert:
The performer suddenly attains a larger than life status, capable of generating any note at his/her will, and that too, pleasing for the senses..
You would want to have your body full of ears,better expressed in kannada "maiyalla kivi aagbidabeku anta anisuttade". i have personally tried recording some of the concerts, its never the same, this lead me to believe that we actually use more than just our ears while in a concert..
And there are times when you close your eyes and just concentrate on the tone, virtually gliding on it, time and space cease to exist, there is the sound and there is you. I would like to have more of these intense moments when in a concert..

Shruthi said...

@Anoop: That was very profound Anoop! So glad to meet someone who has experienced a concert in such depth! I agree with you totally!

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