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Short Takes: Desi Rajan P. Parrikar Rajan P. Parrikar is a recognized expert on Indian Classical music and shares his knowledge freely with those interested in the subject. He has written a series of articles on Classical Indian Music some of which have been archived on Sawf. Click here to read Rajan's earlier articles.

Rajan P. Parrikar in San Francisco (1989)

Namashkar.

In this edition of Short Takes we shall investigate Desi ('Deshi'), a rAga of highly vakra build and independent swaroopa. Like other rAgas in this genus, there is a measure of 'abstraction' involved in its manufacture. That is to say, a simple Aroha-avaroha set barely conveys its essence nor is it a simple pastiche of tonal sentences sown together. Considerable thought and tAleem go into the mastery of such rAgas. Perhaps that is one reason why Desi is seldom heard on the concert stage today despite its tremendous aesthetic appeal.

Desi is sometimes denominated as 'Desi Todi' but the modern form carries no trace of the Todi-anga. A version known as Utari Desi or Komal Desi uses both the rishabs, komal in the avarohi mode, thus opening up the possibility of a Todi-anga.

Throughout this discussion, M=shuddha madhyam.

Raga Desi

Desi's kernel is obtained through a chalan-bheda on Raga Kafi. This is not to say that its originator conceived it with a conscious and deliberate intent of turning Kafi around. Nonetheless, Ragas don’t happen in a vacuum; the accumulated corpus of rAgAngas colour and influence the active imagination. The process of accretion of rAgAngas and other distinct 'melodic molecules,' and their manifestation in several disparate melodies are potentially rich areas of study awaiting inauguration of a serious effort by Hindustani and Carnatic researchers. I dare say that there is a much deeper and common thread uniting rAgas across the two systems than is currently understood and appreciated.

Desi comes in three primary flavours subject to the type and proportion of the dhaivats employed. The D-only flavour enjoys the most circulation followed by the version with both dhaivats but where D preponderates. The d-only type of Desi is less common. With the D-only Desi, the choice of thAT is clear (Kafi) but along with the Kafi-anga, a measure of Asavari-anga may be advanced through a deergha use of the komal gandhAr, as we shall shortly see. In the case of the d-only Desi, the Asavari association naturally suggests itself but the attack on the rishab is through the agency of Kafi. Let us now amplify on these themes. First, the key tonal sentences are written out. For purposes of illustration, we shall work with the D-only flavour.

The definitive poorvAnga phrases are:

S, R (R)n' S, R M P, M P (M)g, R, R g S R (R)n' S

R M P D M P (M)g R, R P (M)g R, R (R)g, S R (R)n' S
Notice the strong rishab, its Kafi-like behaviour, and the trailing S R (R)n' S cluster. The pancham and rishab are nyAsa swaras. The kaNs (graces) informing the ucchAraNa are critical to Desi. The soft landing on the gandhAr from P through a grace of M and the eventual repose on R sweep a delicious arc. The gandhAr may be elongated (deergha bahutva)judiciously to create a brief chhAyA of Asavari and then dissipated by the nyAsa on R.

The uttarAnga activity is now characterized.

R M P D M P S", S"->P, D M P (M)g R
The gandhAr and dhaivat are varja in Arohi prayogas. The nishAd is often given short shrift as seen above. The avarohi meeND from S"->P is a stand-out.

M P n S", P n S" R", R" n S", S"->P, P n D P, D M P (M)g R
The nishAd is weak and must be carefully treated. A straight P D n S" and S" n D P are not recommended since they tend to strengthen Kafi's influence.

In the two-dhaivat Desi flavour, a soupçon of d is introduced occasionally through clusters such as P d M P (M)g R.

<-- Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande

It should to be evident by now that Desi's tonal space is not easy to get a handle on. Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande has chosen to place the rAga under the Asavari thAT (a somewhat questionable call) but the swaroopa and nuances of the different flavours have not escaped his critical gaze in his monumental exegesis, Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati. Bhatkhande has also documented the views of two of his gurus, Mohammad Ali Khan of Jaipur and Wazir Khan of Rampur, including a dhrupad, dekho ri eka maiN jogi, taught to him by the latter.

Wazir Khan of Rampur -- >

The ability of the peerless Pandit Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang" to cleave through and illuminate the rAga's core with precision, clarity and economy of thought is astounding.

<-- Pandit Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"

This discourse on Desi, a tour de force, was recorded over the telephone -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/jha_desispeak.ram

Several Desi classics are assembled below. The central lakshaNAs will be immediately recognized, the auxilliary details will show variance. We begin with the D-flavoured Desi.

In BAIJU BAWRA (1953), composer Naushad brought together Amir Khan and D.V. Paluskar for this nugget. Legend has it that when possible names were suggested, Khansaheb insisted on having D.V. Paluskar as his foil: Aja gAwata mana mero -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/baijubawra.ram

A younger Jha-sahab elaborates on two traditional compositions of 'Adarang' in this crisp AIR performance. The vilambit patwAra na lAge -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/jha_desi_vil.ram

And the chestnut, sANchi kahata haiN 'Adarang' yaha -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/jha_desi_druta.ram

The lakshaNAs emerge beautifully in D.V. Paluskar. The vilambit naiyyA mori bhayi is followed by the aforementioned Adarang druta, sANchi kahata hai -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/dvpaluskar.ram

Basavraj Rajguru -- >

Salamat Ali Khan -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/salamatali.ram

Basavraj Rajguru is in fine fettle in this mehfil recording. A traditional sAdrA is followed by Adarang's cheez -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/rajguru.ram

Desi is a vocalist's playground and very few instrumentalists are up to the demands placed by its exacting character. This selection of Ravi Shankar, sparing of the dhaivat, emits flashes of Sarang alluded to earlier by Jha-sahab -

<-- Bade Ghulam Ali Khan

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

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan's classic recording of his own bandish: manuvA larje -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/bgak.ram

The next several items exhibit the two-dhaivat flavour; the reader is encouraged to measure the respective proportions.

'Aftab-e-Mousiqui' Faiyyaz Khan -- >

'Aftab-e-Mousiqui' Faiyyaz Khan skillfully blends the dhaivats in his Desi cocktail. The hors d'oeuvre, an AlAp magnifique -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/fhk_alap.ram

The entree, Adarang's kHayAl sANchi kahata haiN -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/fhk_khayal.ram

For dessert, a dhamAr -

<-- S.N. Ratanjankar

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/fhk_dhamar.ram

S.N. Ratanjankar wields Adarang with a tinge of d through PdMP (M)g at 2:18 -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/snr.ram

Omkarnath Thakur's is mostly a D-oriented Desi. There is a fleeting AbhAs of d, for instance, just after 0:59 - kadama ki chaiyyA -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/ot.ram

Kumar Gandharva in his study -- >

Kumar Gandharva and his delectable, nuanced swara-lagAv -

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

In the concluding leg, we hear the d-flavour where, as a consequence, the Asavari anga is more explicit.

The Rampur doyen Mushtaq Hussain Khan sings a cheez of 'Daraspiya' (Mehboob Khan of Atrauli) -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/mhk.ram

<-- Kesarbai Kerkar

Kesarbai's revered rendition of Sadarang's composition, mhAre Dere Aa'oji, reveals Jaunpuri-like M P d n S" clusters, but watch out for the M P D n S" passage beginning at 2:01 -

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

Raga Govardhani Todi

Nissar Hussain Khan -- >

This aprachalita rAga is a specialty of the Rampur-Sahaswan vocalists although some Agra musicians (for instance, Faiyyaz Khan) have been known to render it too. As in the case of Desi, the "Todi" appellation is misleading because there is no Todi-anga in Govardhani Todi. The rAga rests on a Desi base and is supplemented with two special interleaving strands, one drawn from Kafi - M' P' D' n' S - and the other inspired by Darbari - M' P' (n')d' (n')d' S.

Nissar Hussain Khan -

http://www.sawf.org/audio/desi/nhk_govardhanitodi.ram

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