Kumar Gandharva – The Innovative Genius
“And being in that state of creation is happiness.says J. Krishnamurti. This is probably why a true artist is so passionate about being innovative. Kumar Gandharva was an artist whose creative genius captivated music lovers over a period of more than six decades. His experiments and innovations They not only enriched the Raga Sangeet but also revived Bhakti Sangeet and explored the fields of folk music.
INFANT PRODIGY:
Born on April 8, 1924 in Sulebhavi, near Belgaum, in the state of Karnataka, Shivputra Siddramaiyya Komkali was gifted with unusual talent in childhood. At the age of 7 he could reproduce the performances of classical music masters like Ustad Abdul Karim Khan, Ustad Faiyaz Khan and Pt. Vazebua with incredible perfection. He was affectionately dubbed as Kumar Gandharva (the heavenly singer), the name that would shine with the brightness of the full moon in the sky of Hindustani classical music.
Although Kumar’s debut album contains Ragas Durga(“Sakhi Mori Run Jhun“) and Bhairavi(“Shyam Sundar Man Mohan“) was released when he was only 9 years old, but the eleventh year of his life proved to be a huge success. In 1935 he performed for the first time at the All India Music Conference in Allahabad in front of a large select audience of pundits and musicologists. , included Aftab-e-Mausiqui Ustad Faiyaz Khan and the famous playback singer Kundan Lal Sehgal. Very impressed, Sehgal invited him to Calcutta to perform at a music conference. In Kolkata, the young man sang a thumri”Piya Bin Nahin Avat” Chain in Jhinjhoti raga and nearly wowed the audience with his remarkable perfection and control. Later in 1936, she performed at the Jinnah Hall in Mumbai and the concert was once again a success. The next day, The Times of India and other newspapers were full of praise, recognizing him as “a future genius”.
PREPARATION OF A GENIUS:
Kumar Gandharva found his guru and mentor in Prof. BR Deodhar, Dean of Gwalior Gharana and disciple of Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar. Under his tutelage, Kumar not only learned various intricacies of Khayal gayaki and other genres of Hindustani music, but also became an independent musical thinker. in the prof. At Deodhar music school, he enjoyed the privilege of meeting and listening to the deans of various Gharanas of classical music, including Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Ustad Sinde Khan and Pt. Rajabhaiya Poonchhwale.
On April 24, 1947, he married a very beautiful girl, Bhanumati Kans. With a postgraduate degree from St. Xavier College in Mumbai, Bhanumati herself was a classical vocalist and she remained the inspiration behind Kumar’s innovations. But little did she know that she would soon have to shoulder all the responsibility of the family on her young shoulders. Just after five months of marriage, her husband was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis. The family moved to Dewas in Madhya Pradesh for Kumarji’s treatment. Bhanumati started working as a school principal.
It seemed that Kumar Gandharva’s career had come to an end. He had to go through a very complicated lung surgery. But he returned to the world of music in 1952 with a very distinctive style of gayaki that was all his own and a profound insight into the music that he had developed from his study of Malwa folk music during his forced confinement to bed due to illness. an illness. . He brought classical music back to its popular music roots and enriched both.
THE INNOVATIVE GENIUS:
Kumar Gandharva is considered a rebel of Hindustani classical music. But his rebellious spirit inspired him to experiment and explore the field of music. Instead of following the beaten path, he preferred to discover new paths in the field of musical performance. Although he always took the stage with a new set of bandishes, his performances of old bandishes were equally refreshing and charming. He also created many new ragas including Malvati, Ahimohini, Gauri Basant, Lankeshree, Lagan Gandhar, Sanjari, Madhwa, Madhsurja, Saheli Todi, Chaiti Bhoop, Sohni Bhatiyar, Durga Kedar and Bhavmat Bhairav. In 1969 he paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi with Gandhi Malhar as the Nation celebrated the centenary of the latter’s birth.
In 1961 his beloved wife Bhanu passed away. It was a big shock for him. He later married Vasundhara Shrikhande. She herself was a classical vocalist and selflessly contributed to all the innovations of her husband. In 1965 the first volume of the book ‘Anoop Raag Vilas’ was published containing 136 compositions in 107 ancient folk ragas, 17 own and 12 complex ragas. Kumar dedicated this to Bhanumati.
In 1966 he came out with a full concert on the theme of the rainy season-Geet Varsha. It was an unprecedented event in the field of classical music at the time. He presented this program with up to 18 compositions, including jayales, thumris, touch not Y bhajan. Then followed Triveni (1967), Mala Umajlele Bal Gandharva (1968), Geet Hemant (1968), Thumri Tappa Tarana (1969), Malwa ki Lok Dhunen (1970), Geet Basant (1971), Tambe Geet Rajani (1973), Tulsi Ek Darshan (1973), Rituraj Mehfil (1976), Gaudmalhar Darshan (1976), Tukaram Ek Darshan (1976), Surdas Ek Darshan and Hori Darshan.
He presented special concerts, each dedicated to his exposition of a particular raga such as Malkauns, Bageshree or Hameer. It usually showed different facets of a single raga with as many as five or six bandits, both traditional and their own. For him, a raga is as dynamic as a living being and has different incarnations at different times.
Perhaps Kumar ji was at his best when singing devotional songs, especially nirguni bhajans. he introduced bhajan of great saints like Kabir, Meera, Surdas, Tulsidas, Gorakhnath and Shivguru with an unmatched ability to highlight their meanings and create an exalted devotional environment. Nirguni Bhajans if it was”Sunta hai Guru Gyani“Y”ud jayega hans akela“of Kabir or”Bhola man jane loving meri kayaby Gorakhnath will always remain an all-time favorite among his fans.
Kumar Gandhrva received many awards including Sangeet Natak Akdademi, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan award. He was perhaps the only musician in whom people from other fields of art were interested as much as writers, poets, sculptors, photographers, painters and actors. This great musician passed away on January 12, 1992, leaving behind his wife, a son and a daughter. His son Mukul Shivputra and his daughter Kalapini Komkali are well-known classical singers and his grandson Bhuvnesh Komkali has started performing in concert and is an up-and-coming classical vocalist who can lead this everlasting tradition of creativity and innovation in music.
