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Namashkar

Raga Nand, known variously as Anandi, Anandi Kalyan, Nand Kalyan, has attained considerable popularity in recent times. Although the provenance of the rAga is not easy to pin down it is thought to have been conceived in the early 1900s. For a long time time the vilambit Khayal, E bAre saiyyAN tohe sakala bana dhoonDooN, composed by Mehboob Khan "Daraspiya" (d. 1921) held sway. The distinguished Daraspiya was a student of Tanras Khan and the father-in-law of 'Aftab-e-Mausiqui' Faiyyaz Khan. In those days there was considerable give-and-take of ideas, Ragas and bandishes between the Atrauli-Jaipur founder Alladiya Khan and the Agra elders. And so this Daraspiya composition came to be firmly installed in the repertoire of these two schools. Over time the composition dispersed beyond its immediate environs establishing itself as the apotheosis of the rAga. Today, it has a presence in virtually all vocal Gharanas. Another early bandish that merits mention was due to Agrawale Vilayat Hussain Khan 'Pranpiya': ajahuN na Aye Shyam, bahuta dina beete. This beautiful rAga is product of the highest musical imagination, a masterful synthesis of calculation and aesthetic imperatives. The contours of Raga Nand do not obtain from simple, straight Aroha/avarohana runs. There are tantalising chhAyAs of 3 or 4 rAgas but the overall product is a composite. The rAga is mastered by recognizing its kernel and by a gradual assimilation of its lakshaNAs. Let us examine some of the highlights. Throughout the following discussion, M = shuddha and m = teevra madhyam.

Raga Nand employs all the shuddha swaras plus the teevra madhyam. Fleeting glimpses of Kalyan, Hameer and Bihag are to be had now and then. The Raga signature may be encapsulated in the following tonal phrase:

G, M D P R, S

It is not simply a matter of hitting these notes; the swara ucchAraNa has got to be just right. There is no better example of this execution than the prelude by Lata Mangeshkar to a Ghalib gHazal tuned by her brother Hridaynath -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/lata_ghalib_nand.ram

The key lakshaNAs are now summarized:

S G, G M, M (M)G P
While the gandhAr is a nyAsa swara, the elongation of the shuddha madhyam provides a very pleasant effect.

G M P D N, (D)P, P D (P)m m P, G M D P R, S

G M P N, N (D)P, G M P N S"
The uttarAnga launch is Bihag-like.

P D R" N D P and P D S" R" G" (R")S" R" N D P are occasionally employed for embellishment; notice the latter prayoga in Kesarbai's rendition below.

P N R" N DP, P D m P G M (D)P R, S

Chromatic (albeit mediated by a meenD) use of the madhyam is found in some treatments, viz., S G, G M (G)m, m P

A superb selection of recordings has been lined up for this feature. We flag off the parade with the familiar Nand candidate from the film MERA SAAYAA (1966). Madan Mohan's composition is delivered flawlessly by Lata Mangeshkar: tu jahAN jahAN chalegA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/lata_saya.ram

Purandaradasa's pada, Enna pAlisu, in Bhimsen's voice exhibits Nand's signature in the mukhDA but then veers into alien territory -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/bhimsen.ram

Composers of Marathi Natyageete have fruitfully exploited the rich and luscious Nand landscape as the following three examples attest. Master Krishnarao's composition in AMRUTASIDDHI, inspired by Daraspiya's bandish, is voiced by Gangadhar Londhe: dhanya tuchi kAntA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/londhe.ram

The great violin maestro from Goa, Shridhar Parsekar, was a composer of considerable renown. His creation in VAHINI is deftly handled by P.L. Deshpande, another highly gifted individual known throughout the Marathi world as "Pu. La.": pAkharA jA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/pldeshpande.ram

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Jitendra Abhisheki re-ignited interest in Marathi musicals with an admirable display of creative tour de force. His compositions revealed an unusual facility in marrying verse with Raga-based melody as witness this gem from MEERA MADHURA. Why he let Ramdas Kamat (a fellow Goan) molest this gem of a song will forever remain a mystery. Take note of Ramdas-bab's tAns towards the end of the clip, indistinguishable from the bawling of a newborn baby: Ananda sudhA barse -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/ramdaskamat.ram

We kick-off the classical segment with Kesarbai Kerkar's magnificent rendition. I had the misfortune a couple of days ago of listening to a webcast of a Maharashtrian lady ruining Nand (I do not wish to be entirely negative; as a word of encouragement, let me add that we will see far worse singers in the weeks and months to come). There is a virus - a poisonous weed, really - that has taken root in Hindustani circles, one that induces people to mistake fast tAnabAzi and affected trills for Ragadari.

Kesarbai's tAns are superbly conceived and dealt, and they are always placed in service of the rAga. Vazebuwa's description of them as a shower of costly 'ittar' comes to mind. Kesarbai, in dheemA teentAla -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kesarbai.ram

Mallikarjun Mansur, another Jaipur-Atrauli master, especially enjoyed his Nand. The Daraspiya bandish in vilambit teentAla -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/mansur.ram

If the Atrauli-Jaipur grip on Nand has not registered by now, this breathtaking assay by Kishori Amonkar should help drive home the point. We have two cuts of Kishori here -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kishori_nand_vil.ram

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kishori_nand.ram

The final act in the Atrauli-Jaipur lineup, Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/sarnaik_nand.ram

Amir Khan's Nand is a mixed bag. It is meditative, in tune with that great man's musical personality, but he hasn't really captured the gestalt of the rAga (which is perhaps not very well suited to his style). The ubiquitous Daraspiya bandish, this time in jhoomrA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/amirkhan.ram

The distinguished representative of the Rampur-Sahaswan Gharana, Nissar Hussein Khan, lends a lyrical touch to Daraspiya's baby, this time cast in vilambit ektAla...

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/nissar_vil.ram

... and then goes on to sing Vilayat Hussein Khan's cheez ajahuN na Aye Shyam -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/nissar_druta.ram

Enter the Agra punter, Dinkar Kaikini. He sings an exquisite bandish, composed by his guru Acharya S.N. Ratanjankar and, for a change, the 'sam' lands on the rishab: pAyal morA bAje -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kaikini.ram

The lovely Kirana songstress, Roshanara Begum, carries Daraspiya -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/roshanara.ram

Kumar Gandharva's recording of his own composition ranks among the finest pieces of recorded music. Do not fail to notice the extra-special extra-appealing lyric -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kumar.ram

This beautiful AIR rendition by D.V. Paluskar finds him elaborating on the jhaptAla bandish ajahuN nahiN Aye (not to be mistaken for Pranpiya's cheez encountered earlier) -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/paluskar_nand.ram

Darbhanga in Bihar once boasted a strong Dhrupad tradition. The primary exponents of that style today are the Mallicks. Vidur Mallick sings a Dhamar -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/mallick.ram

A dingdong and a blowjob at this juncture wouldn't hurt. Vilayat and Bismillah come together in this classic -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/bismil_vil.ram

Ravi Shankar distills the essence of Nand as only he can -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/ravishankar.ram

To round off the Nandfest, three 'new' compositions of Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang" are adduced. The first is in dheema teentAla: E rangila AyA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/jha_nand_vil.ram

Next, a cheez in teentAla, ajaba anokhe naina -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/jha_nand_druta1.ram

Finally, Nand ghara Ananda, heralding the arrival of baby Krishna -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/jha_nand_druta2.ram

The willingness of Nand to mate was put to good effect by Narayanrao Patwardhan in a conception he called Anandi Kedar, a cross between Nand and Kedar. The idea was embraced by Kumar Gandharva in his marvellous composition: lA de beerA mhANe chunari -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/kumar_nandkedar.ram

We end this excursion with a lovely bhajan in Raga Anandi Kedar, tuned and sung by Lakshmi Shankar in a 1995 private concert. The accompanists are Rajan P. Parrikar on the harmonium and Pranesh Khan on the tabla: darshana denA prANpiyA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/nand/lakshmi.ram

Credits

• Saraswathi Veena picture from: http://www.webindia.com/murali/
• Sitar picture from http://encarta.msn.com Indian Music