| Told by | Pt. Abhijit Banerjee |
| Obtained by | Suranjita Paul |
| Date | 13th March 2017 |
| Place | 5/15 Kalicharan Dutta Road. Behala Chowrasta. Kolkata- 700061 |
| About the speaker | Pandit Abhijit Banerjee is a renowned Tabla player of Kolkata. He is a prime disciple of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. He has also learned Vocal from Pandit Ajay Chakraborty |
| Tags | Ravi Shankar, Riyaz, Sitar, Discipline, Nikhil Banerjee, Guruji, Jnan Praksh Ghosh, Samta Prasad, Tabla, Ali Akbar Khan, Raga, Tala, Ajay Chakraborty, Sapaat Taan, Prasun Banerjee, Tarapada Chakraborty, Viswadev Chattopadhyay , Arup Chatterjee, Anindo Chatterjee, Kumar Bose, Kushal Das |
| Language | Bengali |
Abhijit Banerjee speaks:
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University
Verbatim:
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Verbatim by: Dr. Suranjita Paul
Translation:
Among the elders, I have heard about Pt Ravishankarji, I have not seen his Riyaz (practise) personally. I heard that at the age of ninety-three, he still bathed in the morning and started his practise from 9a.m. to 11 a.m. He had that discipline throughout his life. I have seen Nikhil Banerjee also, every day he had to practise. I remembered one incident. His domestic help had committed suicide inside his residence. He, as usual, had completed his morning walk and while entering his house saw the body hanging under the stairs. He was a little bit short sighted and he touched the body to ascertain. Then the police came and all the hustle bustle started. Meanwhile Nikhil Banerjee had started his Riyaz at eight a.m. To him, ‘the police are doing their job, I am doing mine’. From eight a.m. to twelve -thirty he used to practise. It was a lesson in itself to hear him practise- as my Guruji advised us about tabla practise (bolparanta) to carry on in one tempo (laya) for minimum half an hour.
Other elders like Shamta Prasadji used to practise hard, I have heard the tales. Nikhil Banerjee as I knew him and played with him, practised vigorously. Just before the day of his death, in fact, even the day he died he practised. That very day, he returned from Dover Lane, he was feeling ill, but he kept practising. Then he said he was not feeling well and needed some rest. We had a feast, we had to go there. Then I returned home. In the evening a phone call came that he was no more. I have rarely seen such a riyaji person in my life.
Another person, I can recall, is Pt. Ajay Chakraborty. When he was practicing sapa?t ta?na, he was doing three thousand sapa?t ta?na and told us to keep count. He would do this and started sweating by the sheer effort. He is the first Bengali classical singer, I can say this with much pride, whom the rest of India accepted wholly. Yes, there were others earlier, the very best of singers, but they did not get accepted in classical brotherhood. Before Ajayda, there were Prasun Banerjee, a great singer, Tarapada babu was excellent, Pt.Vismadeb Chattopadhyay was unbelievably good. I will tell you anecdote about Pt.Vismadeb Chattopadhyay later.
Another Riyazi person was Arup Chatterjee, the tabla player who is also my friend. Another senior tabla player is Anindya da, who is very sincere about Riyaz. Kumar Bose is among other Riyazi players. Another tabla player, a little senior to me, is Kushalda, we toured together a lot and I know that Riyaz is his life. I have seen Nikhil Banerjee as well as Kushalda practising simple sargam. So, one day I asked him about it, I was very young then, and I used to ask such foolish things and he didn’t mind. So, I asked away, ‘why do you have to practice sargam very day?’ He answered that your Guruji Jnanbabu did not ask you to practice such simple things in the morning? ‘Yes’ I answered truthfully, ‘but why should you do it regularly? You are a master, I am a learner.’ So, he smilingly answered ‘Why? Am I out of this world?’
He had some grievances against Pt. Ravishankar but whenever I recalled his name, Nikhil babu was agitated and started grumbling. He used to tell me, “Don’t you talk about Robuda in front of me, I know you amused yourself by hearing such anecdotes. But you should know one thing for sure that if you want to listen to shudhhara?ga, if there would be a bakra?chalan even (in a ra?ga) he would maintain that. Neither me nor Pt. Ali Akbar (whom he used to call Dada) did maintain this. There is no doubt, no second thoughts about it that if you want to listen to pure Ra?ga, pure tempo (ta?la), he is the master (Pundit). I may have my personal grievances against him but do not mix these up.”So he taught me these things, but still we used to amuse ourselves sometimes.
Translated by: Arundhati Banerjee
https://www.inmemoryglobal.com/remembrance/2016/01/nikhil-banerjee/
http://www.aimrec.com/ajoy-chakraborty/
Edited & Designed: Dr. Suranjita Paul