Residence of Prof. Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, 3/1/1D, Padmapukur Road, Kolkata 700092
On Irfan Muhammad Khan
Irfan Md. Khan is an established Sarod Player. The scion of Lucknow Shahjanpur Gharana Sarod player. He represents the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur Gharana which has produced eminent Sarod players like Ustad Enayet Khan (1790-1883), Ustad Asadullah Khan Kaukab (1852-1919), Ustad Karamatuilah Khan (1848-1933), Prof. Sakhawat Hussain Khan (1875-1955), also his illustrious father Ustad Umar Khan (1916-1982) and his uncle Ustad Ilyas Khan (1924-1989) the famous Sitar player of Lucknow.
Key-words
Queen Victoria, coronation, silver jubilee, fast gat, flat plate, Yusuf Ali Khan, sitariya, Lucknow, Motilal Nehru, 1887, saw blade
Language
Hindi [also include some English and Bengali sentences.]
Irfan Muhammad Khan speaks:
Paraphrase:
It was Queen Victoria’s silver jubilee coronation in 1887. Ustad Enayat khan was invited to perform on that occasion. In old days only Drut Gats could be performed in Sarod because of their structural build up. Even on those days, in Sarod, there used to be flat plate instead of round metal plate which attached by placing a normal saw blade. Therefore those were very difficult to open up. Ustad Enayat Khan was famous for his fast fingering specially his right hand work was fabulous. The listeners were so enchanted with the enigmatic performance that they could not believe that a person could perform in such a fast speed. They thought that the Sarod might have some mechanism which helped the player to play faster. So they asked for a screw driver in order to open up the plate. But as soon as they open the plate they found hollow inside. Then they could feel the aesthetic rendition of the Sarod maestro.
In those days some eminent musicians were also very proficient instrument makers. Ustad Yusuf khan of Lucknow, the Sitar maestro, used to shape his own instrument. His father Ustad Bahadur Hussain Khan, hugely known as Bhondu Ustad, was an owner of instrument manufacturing shop. Yusuf Khan was so perfectionist that if he noticed any musical note (Swara) sound slightly closed, he started Jawari even before the programme. For this he used to get scold from Shakhawat Hussain Khan, the Grandfather of Irfan Muhammad Khan, speaker of this beautiful story.
Paraphrased by: Dr. Suranjita Paul
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University.
Residence of Prof. Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, 3/1/1D, Padmapukur Road, Kolkata 700092
On Irfan Muhammad Khan
Irfan Md. Khan is an established Sarod Player. The scion of Lucknow Shahjanpur Gharana Sarod player. He represents the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur Gharana which has produced eminent Sarod players like Ustad Enayet Khan (1790-1883), Ustad Asadullah Khan Kaukab (1852-1919), Ustad Karamatuilah Khan (1848-1933), Prof. Sakhawat Hussain Khan (1875-1955), also his illustrious father Ustad Umar Khan (1916-1982) and his uncle Ustad Ilyas Khan (1924-1989) the famous Sitar player of Lucknow.
Key-words
1880, Enayet Khan, sarodiya, sarod, Kolkata, Kashem Ali Khan, 1887, England, Atta Khan, Murshidabad, Niyamatullah Khan, Wazed Ali, Basat Khan, Karamatullah Khan, Lucknow, Metiaburuj, 1872, Kobila, Bhawal State, Shafayet Khan, Junagarh, Shakhawat Khan, Shahjahanpur, Nepal, Delhi, Pratibha Debi, Devi, Sangeet sabha, Kaukab Khan, haren Sheel, Sil, Gobar Guha, Banjo, sarod, Dhiren Bose, Kali Pal, Paul, J.C. Bose, Jagadish Chandra, Hirendra nath Chattopadhyay, Pratap Chandra Chandra, Kedara, madhyam, Kaukabh
Language
Hindi [also include some English and Bengali sentences.]
Ustd. Irfan Muhammad Khan speaks:
Text Version:
You come from a great inheritance, please share some anecdotes of your family related to Kolkata.
During 1880s, my ancestor InnayatKhan , the sarod maestro came to Kolkata. He stayed here for a while then went to Jaydevpur,Bhawal estate. Kashim Ali Khan also joined him there. Queen Victoria’s coronation silver jubilee was during that time, in 1887, and Innayat Khan was sent to England by Bengal Jamindaar Association to play at the Durbaar. He was accompanied by a Tabla player named Atta Khan of Murshidabad.
How was Wazed Ali Khan related to all these?
Niyamatullah Khan was related to Wazed Ali Khan. In 1856 when Wazed Ali Khan was deposed, he was sent to Kolkata with his full court. Basatkhan accompanied him here along with some singers and musicians. NiyamatullahKhan also came here along with his two sons, Kaukab Khan and Karamatullah Khan.Niyamatullahhad a relationship with the king for almost thirty years, both in Lucknow and Kolkata. Then he went to Nepal and to fill his empty post Innayat Khan had arrived. When Wazed Ali Shah passed away, he went to Bhawal Estate in Komilla. It was the custom of the day and these local kings were the real patrons then. Afterwards he went to England and he was the first Indian musician who went to England. When he returned, he came back to jaydebpur and spent his last days there.
His son Shafayat Khan took his post in Bhawal estate as court musician. He was also attached to Junagadh, Gujrat. He stayed in Junagadh for a while and then returned. He sentShakhawat Khan Sahabin Bengal. Shakhawat Khan sahib was a young lad then, only fifteen or twenty years of age. He stayed in Jaydebpur for a little and then escaped and went to Lucknow. He was asked why he was staying back, why he didn’t return to his job? He was very reluctant at first, he made some excuses and then he disclosed the real reason for his escape.
Everyday the Rajasaab took the young musician along with him to visit the grave of his earlier GurujiKashim Ali Khan to show respect and told Sakhawat Saab that he would do the same for him too. The young man was frustrated to see his future tomb every day. He was also a bit superstitious, he could not stand this torture daily. So, he escaped and didn’t return.
Niyamatullah khan returned from Nepal and stayed in Delhi where he took his last breath.His sons made their home here in Kolkata, Metiabruz. Pratibha Debi requested Kaukab Khan to be the Principal of her music school Sangeet Sabha. There the Jamindars took music as their hobby because it was costly. But I must say this, my ancestors made agreat mistake to teach this upper-class people. They took it as a mere hobby, nothing serious. But I think, if they taught common folk it would be better, real learners would then get a chance and they would become immortal through their disciples.
Among his desciples were HarenShil who learnt Surbahar, Gobor Guha who was a famous body builder learnt Banjo and Sarod. Dhiren Bose was a famous sarod player, Kali Pal learnt Esraj. Sarat Bose, scientist J.C.Bose learnt Sarod from my ancestors. Harindranath Chattopadhyay, the husband of Sarojini Naidu, Pratap Chandra Chandra also learnt Sarod. They were quite eccentric and loyal to my ancestors. Once HarenShil was learning Kedar and suddenly a part of a chandelier dropped down when madhyam was played. The sound of broken glass beautifully twined with the madhyam and HarenShil asked his servant to break the entire Belgian chandelier to create the beauty of the sound again. Such was their eccentricity.
TRANSLATON BY ARUNDHATI BANERJEE
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University.
Amrita Bazar Patrika published a letter from Raja Sourindra Mohun Tagore on page 3 of their 09 January 1873 edition. Tagore wrote that he put his efforts to decipher the meaning of ‘Chhalikya Geet’ that occurred in the 147th chapter in the 21st sloka of Haribangsha. He did it under the requests of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Rajendra lal Mitra.
Identified by Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee, Project Fellow.
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University.
Nidhu babu came in the mid-18th century. His area was from the later part of the 18th century to the first part of the 19th century. The Bengalis got to know of kheyal and dhrupad when Nidhu babu sang songs based on these raagas. Bengalis used to travel to Kashi, Mathura, and Vrindavan for religious and other purposes. They would hear it there. There are many songs in Bengali also, from that time, which are based on raagas. Raagas are of two types. One is the raaga of a composed song – it was rigid, but it didn’t have rigid rules like your darbari songs. Rules used to be followed more or less. It wouldn’t matter if someone missed a couple of notes. Same is the case for Rabindranath’s songs. In South India, such songs are called ‘Bhasha Raagam’. One could exclude a couple of traditional notes, or insert a new note – it was allowed. Then there are pure raagas. These are called ‘Raganga Raagam’. These are extremely rigid. Darbari songs are in this category. Each community categorised them in their own way. The Bengalis were not aware of this.
The Bengalis first got to know of a rule-bound system of learning raagas with the arrival of Wajid Ali Shah. The British had kept him captive in Kolkata with a pension. He used to stay at Metiabruz. According to the records, he had brought almost hundred singers with him from Lucknow. Most importantly, they belonged to different gharanas. Because Wajid Ali himself was agreat composer and good dancer and an exponent of Classical Music, he had several great qualities. It would be wrong to refer to him only as a king or a nawab, he was an artiste as well. He was essentially an artiste. His thumris were great! But when he came to Kolkata, his finances were in dire straits. He would use up his pension to pay for the singers. And the funny thing is, the books at the National Library and the animals at the Alipore Zoo actually belonged to Wajid Ali Shah – the British took it away from him. The birds and animals had names. Sometimes, in the evenings, he would touch them through the net, as if he was observing his own children. There were so many manuscripts…increadible! Wajid Ali Shah was a scholar, musician.
Imambara, Metiaburz, Kolkata
Anyway, the British didn’t admit to any of this. Just like they stole the Kohinoor. But his aim was music. Many Bengali stalwarts used to visit Wajid Ali Shah’s court. One of them was…there were many others…Rabindranath’s elder brother Dwijendranath Tagore was a close friend of Wajid Ali Shah. Rabindranath himself has written about this. The British didn’t approve of any friendships with Wajid Ali Shah because after the Sepoy Mutiny, the British were of the opinion that he had helped the rebels. And he also had a Nationality Spirit which no other Indian Sovereign possessed. The English marching commands were translated to Hindi by him. He translared military terms into Hindi. And being a Sia Muslim, he was very generous and Krishna philosophy was a favourite of his. For him, all thumris dealt with Radha–Krishna – a lot like Kirtans. He was very emotional about this matter. Then…the talent from his couty began to scatter. Some of them went to Jatindramohan’s place at Pathuriaghata. A couple of them went to the Tagore house. Many went to East Bengal…to the zamindar house in Gauripur, to Maimansingha, to Burdwan. They were scattered. So from then it can be seen…he was brought here in 1856, and by 1857, he was permanently vanished in Kolkata. And from there began…especially Basat Khan, Rababi etc…they all belonged to Wajid Ali Shah’s court. The so-called historians have all written lies. How would the Bengalis get songs of that region? Instrumental, singing…everything…Bin, sarod, sitar – everything came from there. Chhatubabu’s family, the Debs of Beadon Street – they dabbled in sitar. Chhatubabu’s nephew was Atul Chand Mitra. He had learn to play the sitae. He learn it in two ways. One was from Bishnupur. I think the Bishnupur sitar came from…those who perform…Manilal Nag etc…it is exactly as our Rampur gharana…there is an influence. But even they don’t know that it is similar to the Rampur gharana. They learnt from their guru. I think that Wajid Ali Shah is a turning point in classical music. Then one can see how the musicians got scattered across Bengal, especially to places like Kolkata, and the many zamindar households. One can see that a schooling was born.
It has to be remembered that the first school of classical music was established at Sourindramohan’s house at Pathuriaghata. Sourindramohan Tagore, Khetramohan Goswamy etc. It was called Banga Oikyatan. All kinds of instruments, vocals were taught at this school, of course in a classical way. Some of the teachers were connected with Wajid Ali Shah court. There has been no research on this. Wajid Ali Shah was completely anti-British, so the British and their followers always insulted him. But he was not so. His writings reveal that his mind was elsewhere engaged. This is one side.
So, you can see the most important school of music in Kolkata was…a school, not college…Banga Oikyatan. There were more instrumentalists than vocalists. What is now known as the Bengal Music College was called the Bengal Academy.
The Debs of Shobhabajar. These landlords were idle, they did all this when they got money. Of them, the Deb family and Chhatu babu’s family were most cultured in classical music. So they have contributed to the development of classical music, especially instrumental classical music. All names have not been recorded. Because we have seen, and there is proof, that Enayet Khan’s grandfather came and performed. We had organised a programme at the Rajya Sangeet Academy, it was Enayet Khan’s birthday, where Bilayet Khan had said, “No matter where I stay, I always think of Bengal as my motherland because Enayet Khan was here, at the Gaurupur court, and his father had also been here.”
– Imdad Khan sahib.
– Yes. In the context of Bengal, I am specifically talking ahout Bin and sitar. The surbahar came later…
– So the musicians of Wajid Ali Shah’s court had trained others.
They trained many people, but not everyone. Those who were more conservative didn’t consent to taking on every student who came by. As I have already mentioned, Wajid Ali Shah’s condition his condition was not good enough to pay them in full because he had brought many ustaads with him. There were pakhwaj players, sitar players, tabla players, rabab, dancers. Most importantly, the first female tabla player – Chhoti Bibi, had come with Wajid Ali Shah. Or else you would have missed this. In the beginning, his court had more musicians from Lucknow. Wajid Ali Shah himself was from Lucknow. Senia gharana was also there. I haven’t found any mention of the Rampur gharana. I might find it…the same ustaad used to work at several courts, so it is a little difficult to say. There was another role. This is a pivotal point. Those who had come with Wajid Ali Shah scattered. The Nawab wasn’t financially well-off, so they went away to some other court, or to Burdwan, or Dhaka. These things were there. In Bengal, instrumental music was cultivated far more than vocal music. String instruments gained popularity from Wajid Ali Shah’s court.
I should talk a bit about the kind of music cultivated in Kolkata in earlier times. The kings who resided in parts away from Kolkata, like in Murshidabad, Nadia, etc, got a fair chance to cultivate music. In the Mangal Kavya, we get references of Bisram Khan and other musicians. In those times, string instruments existed parallel to percussions and vocal singers. Bisram Khan was a called an ‘artist’- and in those days, an artist was one who could sing Dhrupad. So where do you think these artists came from? You must remember Shah Suja, the son of Shah Jahan, who came to Bengal as Governor? Suja had brought with him many musicians to his court. Some to name among these musicians are Naobat Khan, Misri Sing (who was also the son in law of Tansen), who could perform the Dhrupad. In this context, let me mention, that the word ‘artist’ (or ‘Kalabanta’) was known colloquially as ‘Kalawant,’ meaning one who could sing in Dhrupad. And those who could do the Khayals were known as ‘Kawal,’ like Basir Khan Kawal. There also existed a division in this. The Religious Kawali, and, the Secular, which was sung in the court and was founded by Amir Khusroe.
Now, we have evidence to prove that Misri Sing, the courtier of Shah Suja had been to Chittagong. The Mughal Empire was almost in its ruins at that time, and thus the courtiers were in a dire need of contingency for their livelihood. At least I believe so. Because where from would you suggest that the Western Kalowats came to Murshidabad or Nadia? I believe that they had come from the court of Shah Suja. This was the early status of classical music – though this kind of music was not available for the common people’s reach. Only the elites of the society, and the Zamindars, who had friendly connections with the Mughals, had access to these musical endeavours. The time I’m talking about is the 17th century.
The Basaks at that time had not yet emerged with their cultivation of classical music. They were at that time, engrossed in Kirtan- but if you want to categorize Kirtans in the realm of classical music, then I have no problems. But this wasn’t Darabari, but was religious music. After this, we know that in 1757, the British overpowered the Mughal in the Battle of Plassey. The British had come to Kolkata before this- to ask for a few rights and possessions in terms of business, which the erstwhile Nawab hadn’t granted them. So the plan of conquering Bengal was at the back of their heads for quite a long time. Soon after this, Lord Clive came to power. He, by his clever words and with the partnership of Mir Zafar, conspired to make the Emperor a puppet. The emperor had the right over the revenue and other such things, while the British took possession of the army. In one way, they were fully equipped to overthrow the Emperor at any time.
Residence of Chatu Babu and Latu Babu at North Kolkata
When they had money in their pockets, the question of entertainment gets jumbled up- and it doesn’t necessarily always have to be knowledgeable. In those days, Lord Clive (of Kolkata) used to visit the royal family at Shobha bazar. There is also another story of when Clive had hid at this house, to save himself from the bullets of Siraj ud Daullah. Reportedly, after this incident, he had also decided to reward the family. In 1772, when Warren Hastings came to power, he had a lot of cultural accomplishments, which had benefitted the British mostly.
Hastings also used to visit many of the houses to listen to music- be it at the royal family of Shobhabazar, or the residence of Chatu Babu and his family, or be it the family of Bhukailash Mukherjee. Though, the British by that time had established their rule over most parts of India, and on top of that, there were no acting ruler in Delhi, they still brought out a Pension Scheme for the native Zamindars. This resulted in the Zamindars being jobless at the moment, and it also decreased their will for any social work. They thus indulged in amusements of all sorts with the money they got from the British.
Nidhi Babu, (Ram Nidhi Gupta) was born in the year 1841 and died in the year 1839. The prevalent music culture of the time was that of the Akhras. The word Akhra means a training centre, and most of the Baishnavas ha Akhras at their homes, and invited singers to perform there. the Baishnavas and also the musicians had Akhras. The Akhrai songs resembled a classical song, only if you omit the Taan and the Sargam frm the song, and only sing the Khayal. The instruments would be played in between intervals, a system which had been brought from South India.
What we know now of Kolkata, that is before Job Charnock came here in the 17th century, wasn’t very invested in music as we know today. Residents of Kolkata, mainly the business classes, they held programs for their own entertainment. Among businessmen, Seth, Basak, who were mainly Textile merchants, would held several programs to commemorate their traditions in their palaces. Baiji Dancers were also common in this respect, and also the Kirtan . The period I am talking about here is near the end of Mughal Rule, in the 17th century… these people would bring singers and performers to their houses for entertainment.
Job Charnock Mausoleum at Kolkata
Job Charnock came to Kolkata in the year 1690. But let me tell you before that, that all the settlement in this part took place on the banks of the river Ganga, which mainly comprised of Portuguese settlers. We also have to remember that it was the Business classes, which had come here. According to historical records, Brahmins, Kayasthas or Baidhyas did not used to come to settle here. The same reason, we won’t find Kayashtha Para, Bamun Para or Baidya Para. On the contrary, you will find Benetola here. Portuguese, Dutch and other merchants used to come. If you do a survey, you might find a lot of big dwelling houses of these merchants on the banks of this side of the Ganga. Bagbazar and such areas are all the same. But the Maratha Canal that was dug was later; after the attack of Maratha. So, these types of houses of the merchants are also found in and near Hoogli, though all were situated on the banks, because in those times, the river was the only communicable source for the people. There were no road or rail transport, thus the river was very important for communication. The merchant classes, mainly the textile merchants, used to work with threads, or Sutas, thus the name Sutanuti came into being. Apart from the manufactures, who sold products to the foreigners, there also were investors. These investors, or Seth, Basaks, were of two types. One was located in the Hoogli district’s Tribeni where they had a centre. The other was located at Dhaka. Thus we find the Seth Basaks in these two regions. Education came very late to Kolkata. Long before in Kolkata, Nabadwip was the hub centre for education.
The foreigners, be it the Portuguese, Dutch or British, they used to set up Bajras (or cruise boats) where they would indulge in music and dance; and here Baijis culture was also be common. We can’t now prove whether Classical Music was prevalent there or not. The court music or art music was not common, if not the rulers took the performers there. Whether the performers came to the invitation of the foreigners is a matter of doubt. But lighter songs, which may or may not be based on Raags might have been prevalent, but pure Classical Music came to Kolkata long after this time.
Our Howrah district is on either side of the Ganges. My grandfather Harishankar Ghosh was an important mridanga player. He trained under the well-known mridangacharya Durlabh Chandra Bhattacharya for almost twenty years. At that time, the only thing connecting Howrah and Kolkata was the old Rabindra Setu, on that side of the Howrah Station. But the people from Howrah to Kolkata could only cross at a particular time and same was the case for those who were travelling in the opposite direction because, unline the concrete bridge that exists today, this bridge, I’ve heard my grandfather say, was a floating bridge. Such a bridge still exists at the Kidderpore docks. This bridge is opened to let ships pass, and then closed again. This bridge would open after 11pm and let the ships pass. Then it would close again early in the morning at around 4 or 5. So, the music-lovers who went to Kolkata from Howrah would have to return by a particular hour, or else they’d get stuck.
Baithaki music at Zamindar house
It is my belief that the music scene in Kolkata was not like this before. Earlier, a programme would be organised every week at the house of some rich zamindar. Many talented persons would come to hear. In such programmes, the performer sat in the middle, and the audience sat around the performer – an arrangement similar to the jatra. My grandfather (I called him dadu although this term is usually reserved for the maternal grandfather, but I am used to calling my paternal grandfather Harishankar Ghosh by this term) had been attracted to this music from a very young age. He was associated with an ameteur jatra troupe since he was a boy. In those days, at the beginning of every play, there would be a song by bibek (the conscience). A Pakhwaj, then some on the tabla, and kirtan if need be. My grandfather played female characters in the plays when he was fourteen or fifteen years old. In those days, the men would play the part of the female characters because women couldn’t participate in such performances themselves.
How long ago was this?
The year?
Yes, which year?
Well, my grandfather was around twelve or fourteen. 1885-86 maybe. 1315-16 BS. Anyway, grandfather developed an interest in music through his participation in these plays. He didn’t learn the tabla, but he was fascinated by the instrument. If he ever got the opportunity, he could play along with some other member of the troupe, but he was not trained. The leader of the troupe advised my grandfather, “You have a good sense of rhythm. You learn the tabla. It’ll do you good.” Grandfather liked what he said.
One of the main disciples of Durlabh Bhattacharya was Pyareemohan Das. He was a timber merchant in Posta. Even now if you go in that direction, you’ll see timer merchants all in a row. Anyway, my grandfather got in touch with him and began to train. After training for some time, the master said, :Our gharana doesn’t use the tabla for too long, we have the pakhwaj.
Who did he learn from?
From Pyareemohan Das – the main disciple of Durlabh Bhattacharya. After that, he trained under him for ten years to learn the pakhwaj. After that, he passed away. Before that, grandfatherhad trained for ten years. But he felt like he had a lot left to learn. Durlabh Bhattacharya was still there. So he went to Durlabh Bhattacharya and said, “I was a student of Pyareemohan Das. Now, I have no one to train under. What will I do? Durlabh Bhattacharya was very impressed with my grandfather. He said, “You come to me. I will teach you.” Grandgfather trained under him for twenty years – for as long as he was alive. After passing his Entrance Examination, my grandfather also worked at several companies in Kolkata. He went to learn after work. That is why, he developed a close relationship with Kolkata and began to attend different programmes and hear performances.
When grandfather’s first guru Pyareemohan Das was still alive, he would go to many programmes with Pyareemohan Das. The latter would perform, and he would sit and listen. At that time, there would be arrangement of food not only for those who performed, but also for the audience in all the private performances. Grandfather used to be there. But he also had to keep in mind that he’d have to reach Howrah Station before 11, although the train was at 11:30, because the bridge was to open for the ships to pass. It happened many a times that he slept all night on what is now known as Jagannath Ghat (where there is a wholesale flower market). Sometimes, if he was accompanied by a friend, the friend would go with him.
At that time, there was another famous mridanga player, a contemporary of Durlabh Bhattacharya. His name was Nagendranath Mukhopadhyay. He was a famous ‘pakhwaji’. He could be called the ‘guru bhai’ of Durlabh Bhattacharya. However, his style was slightly different. Anyway, his daughter lived in Shibpur. So he often returned with grandfather. And if by chance the bridge would open, then the two of them would spend time chatting. He used to say to grandfather, “You play well, you should learn a bol or two from me.” Grandfather respected Durlabh Bhattacharya, revered him, but was also afraid of him. He was afraid that if he took the bol without Durlabh Bhattacharya’s permission, he would get angry and refuse to teach him. But he loved grandfather very much.
My old house is the Boral House in Bowbazar. Opposite to the Medical College is a Shiva temple. There is a lane next to the temple. Upon entering the lane, immediately to the right is a house with a portico – that is Lalchand Baral’s house. He used to live there. As far as we know, in his early years, he used to play the pakhwaj. He would travel with his instrument in our horse-drawn carriage and play with renowned Dhrupad singers.
Who were they?
There was one very famous Dhrupad singer. He accompanied that artiste.
Do you remember the name?
I’ll find out and tell you. He would often go to these performances. Then one day the singer said, “I’m not in the mood to sing today, so you can go back.” This irritared him. After returning, he sent word to the singer saying, “You are such a great singer and you turned me away, I’ll show you that I can also sing!” That is when he first sang. The song was – “Amare ashite bole keno eto opoman kora” (“Why do you insult me so after calling me”).
There are many other incidents involving Lalchand Baral. Jatras would be performed in the courtyard of their old house in Bowbazar where they’d sing songs such as the one mentioned and others like “Kader kuler bou”, “Dhin ta dhina paka nona”, “Anugoto jone keno”. That is how we have received the songs. Later, HMV gave him an offer to record his songs which he accepted. I’ve heard from others that HMV gained a lot during that time through these records. After that, they had come to present him with a car at the Bowbazar house. But unfortunately, Lalchand Baral passed away on that very day. That is why my uncles and others who were present decided to decline the gift.
Translation: Sarbajaya Bhattacharya
Picture Courtesy: Sri Nayak Chand Baral, Dhrupad singer, attached to Rabindra Bharati University
Edited & Designed: Ms. Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University
Faculty member of the Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University, Sarod player [disciple of Ustd. Dhyanesh Khan], Music Director, Music Critic, Composer
