Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Weave Me A Warm Magic

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Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

She’s helped revive traditional weaves and, like the Mahatma, dreams of a loom in every home

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At 75, Suraiya Hasan Bose has energy levels that can put a teenager to shame. But when she chats, she exhibits the languid grace of a long-forgotten nawabi culture. As women work magic on the looms at her weavers’ workshop at Dargah Hussain Shah Wali (a village on the outskirts of Hyderabad), in the adjacent Safrani Memorial School run by her, children race around with unbridled enthusiasm.

Suraiya employs a large number of poor women, many of them widows, from the village. These women are trained to work on himroo, jamawar and paithani—fabrics that were brought into India by the Mughals. “I want to see these women stand on their own feet. I wish to see looms in all their homes and hope they can train future generations too,” she says. Suraiya’s unassuming demeanour envelops the large room as the women go about their work.

On the other side of the fence, the children’s learning curve, under Suraiya’s tutelage, spreads an air of hope. Like the women, students of the school too come from poor households—children of farmers, labourers or vegetable vendors. Suraiya charges them a nominal fee.

Suraiya attributes her passion to her father Badrul Hasan. Mahatma Gandhi too has been her idol. When Gandhi first visited Hyderabad, it was in front of Suraiya’s house that the first bonfire of English mill-made cloth was lit. Suraiya’s father died when she was only five but she had others to look up to. Her uncle Abid Hasan Safrani was the personal secretary to Subhash Chandra Bose and she was married to Bose’s nephew Aurobindo Bose. “My late husband was based in Calcutta, and used to be in and out of jail. Both our families understood the importance of Gandhi’s ideals of preserving traditional handlooms.” It is after her uncle that the weaving society and school are named since he was the one to encourage Suraiya to follow her passion for handspun textiles.

While Suraiya is credited with the single-handed revival of the Nizami-Persian fabrics of himroo, paithani and mashroo in Andhra Pradesh, she has also worked extensively in the village of Kanchanpalli, close to Warangal. In the early ’70s, due to lack of patronage, weavers in Kanchanpalli had almost given up their profession. They merely made decorative calendars woven with portraits. Suraiya encouraged them to make durrees. Today, over 500 weaver families in Kanchanpalli make a living through durrees and other weaves.

In Warangal too, when Suraiya began her efforts to revive weavers and fast-vanishing forms of royal designs, there were just two such families. Following Suraiya’s constant efforts, there are now a thousand families involved in weaving, research and development of textiles. Several of them also come to Suraiya’s workshop to learn the intricate art of himroo. Now, Suraiya plans to train women from the nearby villages of Hafizpet and Miyapur.

Funds are slow to come by but Suraiya believes if the passion is there, money will soon follow. As the school bell rings and children rush out, Suraiya says, “Half my heart is with them. Since they come from the poorer quarters, we also teach them to use cutlery, to speak softly and even pick up any garbage they find on roads and put them into dustbins. We basically want them to be honest and respectful citizens.”

Despite Suraiya’s busy schedule, she is at the school every day at 8 am. “What’s heartening is, marriage is not a priority for the girls passing out from my school. College is. That’s our greatest achievement,” she says, her eyes shining through her bifocals.

Her future plans? Adding weaving classes to the school curriculum. For like Gandhi, Suraiya’s dream is to see a loom in every home.

Contact Suraiya at: Safrani School premises, 1-86, Dargah Hussain Shah Wali, PO: Golconda, Hyderabad: 500008 Tel: (040) 23563792, 23560992.

source: http://www.outlookindia.com / Outlook / Home> Making A Difference / by Madhavi Tata / October 31st, 2005

Suraiya Hassan weaves magic, wants to revive dying textile art

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Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

“Mrs. Suraiya Hassan?”

“Haan ji, bol rahi hoon. Boliye..”, the grand old lady of Indian weaving greets me into the conversation.  Engaged in revival work of four different textile forms of Aurangabad, Suraiya has a fascinating tale to narrate.

SuraiyaHassan01MPOs24apr2016

Her journey began soon after she finished her Intermediate. Suraiya joined the Cottage Industries Emporium, a government institution where she learnt the art of salesmanship and production of textiles and handicrafts. It was a great learning experience spanning well over four years, says Suraiya.

It was while working here that a professor from a foreign country, Suraiya says it would be London, came to their Emporium and she was put in charge of showing her around. “She touched and felt everything and was so impressed with me describing the importance of each and every fabric and handicraft product that she thought I was wasting my time here,” says Suraiya on a lighter note recalling her toddler steps into the weaving industry. Eventually it was this lady who introduced Suraiya to her mentor Pupul Jaykar, of the Handloom Handicrafts  Corporation of India in New Delhi.

It was a move Suraiya had not contemplated in life and it truly got her where she perhaps wanted to be. “Maine kabhi aisa socha nahi tha, lekin ye ek achchi opportunity thi, so I decided to go along,” says Suraiya (I had never thought of such a career move but when opportunity came knocking, I didn’t say no).

It helped that she had her uncle (chacha) Abid Hassan Safrani living in Delhi. He was with the Ministry of External Affairs initially and at one point was personal secretary to the legendary Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, recalls Suraiya.

Suraiya Hasan was recently honoured with the Devi Award
Suraiya Hasan was recently honoured with the Devi Award

Her association with Bose’s family

Suraiya was soon introduced to the Bose family through their ladies. From casual visits, the journeys


Little did she understand the importance of being married to Bose’s nephew except that Aurobindo too was a busy politician. “He was a trade union secretary with many big companies,” says Suraiya of her husband. She however, never got a chance to meet Subhash Chandra Bose.became personal and Suraiya got to know the family from close quarters. She then got married to Aurobindo Bose, Subhas Chandra Bose’s nephew.

From Delhi back to Hyderabad

After superannuation, Abid Hassan moved to Hyderabadand bought some land there. He was the one who called Suraiya back to the Nizam’s city and asked her to set up an independent handloom production unit.

“I wasted no time and got to my hometown to set up this unit. It was an exhaustive task but I would say worth the effort,” says Suraiya. It was here that she started work on the revival of four signature Persian fabric forms native to Aurangabad – Paithani, Jamawar, Himroo and Mashru. Thus was born Suraiya’s Weaving Studio, Suraiya’s weaving unit in Hyderabad.

During my visits to Aurangabad, I had seen many artisans work tirelessly on keeping this art alive, but in a very small way, often at their own homes. I therefore decided to make this sector a little organized in the hope that this dying art will have people following it

While she concentrated on her art, her husband used to visit her in Hyderabad when he had free time on his hand.

She is still in touch with the Bose family though the visits have dwindled in number after her husband passed away.

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Social enterprise

Suraiya selected a group of people to pass on her art. It was the widows, with no place to go to and children to feed that she thought would be her right target audience. “I used to sit with them for hours together and help them pick up the nuances. To train one artisan easily takes close to 3-4 months on an average and I later got an expert to help me with the training part. Doing it alone was becoming a Herculean task,” says Suraiya.

While she created an opportunity for widows to pick up the art, she helped by setting up a school in the same compound for their children. Called the Safrani Memorial High School, this institute houses classes for students from Nursery to Std 10, where children of her artisans attend school free of cost.

Aged 84 now, Suraiya says she has lots of work yet to do. When she is not supervising the work of her artisans, she goes to teach students in her school. She takes pride in the fact that they have all performed well and some have even gone abroad.

Well this love for education is not by chance, Suraiya says she would have inherited it from her father. He after all was the proud owner of Hyderabad Book Depot on Abids Road, most likely the first book store in Hyderabad which stocked foreign publications.

source: http://www.her.yourstory.com / YourStory.com / Home> Her Story> Inspiration / by Saraswati Mukherjee / January 12th, 2015

On a slow boat with Safrani

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Hyderabad, ANDHRA PRADESH (now TELANGANA) :

by Geeta Doctor

“He never ever mentioned his life with the INA, let alone the story that he had been the one to coin the greeting ‘Jai Hind’. To the rest of the world he might have been a freedom fighter, but to us he was always `Uncle Safrani’.”
Much loved Uncle...
Much loved Uncle…

To the rest of the world he might have been a freedom fighter and a soldier who fought alongside Netaji, but to us he was always “Uncle Safrani”.

Only much later did we realise that his real name was Zain-al-Abdin, or Abid Hasan as he preferred to call himself and that the stories he told us of his days in the Indian National Army were actually true.

“Compared to us, Safrani was a man of the world,” says my Mother looking back on the first time they met him, in 1948, on board a ship that was taking them to start the first of the Embassies that were just being opened.

Safrani was bound for Cairo, my parents were due to get off at Genoa and make the rest of the trip by land to Paris.

What they did not know then, was that they had been booked on a cargo ship. Some cabins had been hastily converted to accommodate First Class passengers. It would take the long route, going up the Persian Gulf, stopping at various ports to unload goods.

For my young parents who were leaving the country for the first time, with two small girls, my sister Surya who was two years old and myself, who was five, on a ship belonging to the Sindia Steamship Company as it was known then, Safrani was a wonderful guide. They had never left the shores of India.

He on the other hand was not only a member of the old Hyderabad elite, but had also studied for a while in Germany and travelled all over South East Asia, as Secretary to Subhas Chandra Bose.

“Safrani was one of those men who could make friends with all kinds of people. He was all over the ship. When it docked he would be the first to get off and go straight to the bazaars and return by evening with all manner of beautiful things. He was also a scholar who spent long hours with his Persian and Urdu poetry. There was nothing he did not know and seeing how raw we were, he made it his business to educate us in all the finer points of life. For instance, when we docked at the port of Basra he ran ashore and bought so many carpets that he ran out of money. But this did not worry him, he just made arrangements to borrow money on credit so that he could buy more. ” recalls my Mother.

In the evenings when the ship was at sea, he would take us to the top most deck and point out the stars to us and whisper stories to us about all the ancient sailors like Sindbad who had crossed these very seas. To us, he would become like Sindbad the Sailor himself. During the day, dolphins would follow us racing by our side, while as we made our way into Aden, where the local Indians received us like fabulous guests that had been sent by the newly Independent government of India to conquer the world, Safrani showed us how to be gracious in accepting the hospitality of strangers, who could also be family.

At Port Said, he transformed himself into an Arab prince, bargaining with the chattering hordes of intrepid vendors who climbed up from their small boats into the ship, teaching my parents to sip bitter coffee from small glasses and to taste the sticky sweet lumps of baklava.

By the time the ship sailed into the Mediterranean, Safrani had become the perfect European gentleman, as debonair as David Niven, as effusive as Signor Peperino, with his flowing moustache and his ability to charm the ladies, with his manner of bowing down to kiss a hand. Or as was the case with us to imprint our tender young cheeks with moist and noisy lip-smacking kisses. He became for us the kissing Uncle.

It was also a way in which he kept track of some of his possessions, the beautiful carpets, the pieces of porcelain and small paintings that he had left with us, just as a token of his friendship he said. “I want you to enjoy them as long as you like and when I need to sell something , I will come and collect a carpet or two.”

We were the guardians of his generosity. For though he bought beautiful things with the lavish style of an oriental Pasha, his house was always so full of people that he had quite often to sell them to keep the coffers flowing.

He left one ceramic vase with us. It still stands on a pedestal in a corner, converted now into a lamp stand, its deep blue and copper red tones changing colour with the reflection of the light. “It’s a very rare vase from China. Don’t ever sell it,” he advised, though he himself regularly sold many of his most cherished possessions.

When we lived in Geneva, he happened to be in Berne. His boss at that time was a dog-lover of epic proportions, so every evening as we stood beside him and listened, he talked to the dog, a large Alsatian, who had been left behind in his care, in Urdu, on the telephone.

On another occasion, he told us how the dog had finally died and he was “Chief Mourner” the had conducted the funeral honours. “It was a very touching occasion. I was so moved, I jumped into the open grave and recited some prayers over the dog’s body that I held in my own arms, before laying him into the earth,” he told us. Since he was laughing so much at the memory, we never knew whether any of this was true. Or whether like all the stories he had told us in the past, they were the stuff of the legendary quality that he wove around himself.

“He never mentioned his life with the INA, let alone the story that he had been the one to coin the greeting, “Jai Hind!” remarks my Mother, “Though it sounds very typical of him. He was a free spirit.”

Much later when one of us was passing through Denmark, where he was the Ambassador, we enjoyed the full force of his hospitality. He drove to the airport himself and though when we reached his house, it seemed to be so full of guests that evening, he had to find a room for us, right up in the attic. But as ever it was a fabulous evening. The dinner when it arrived was as full and rich as one of the tables from the days of the old Hyderabad style hospitality. He always managed to have as a hostess, one of his beautiful nieces from Hyderabad, who would quietly attend to the guests and see that no one was without food and drink.

When it was over, he insisted that we should go and enjoy the “Tivoli Gardens,” that was the star attraction of Copenhagen. As we looked at the giant Ferris wheels and the nightly display of fireworks exploding over the skyline of the City, Uncle Safrani had become like Barnum, a grand ring-master presiding over the “Greatest Show on Earth”.

And then we did not see him again.

We had heard that he had returned to his family home after retirement and become a gentleman farmer.

This is my final memory of him.

On a visit to a silk weaving unit on the outskirts of Hyderabad I found that someone had started a small farm, and on it a school for the children of the nearby village.

The owner, who had died some time back had created an enchanted garden of fruit trees. The fields next door were covered with jasmine bushes, dotted with fat creamy jasmine buds, that the children from the school came to harvest in the early morning. The air was filled with their fragrance as all over the field the butterflies were busy doing their own kind of harvesting.

One of this man’s nieces, a really beautiful woman even in her later age, was running a weaving centre. She was pre-occupied in reviving some of the old Hyderabadi silk and cotton weaving traditions and did not have much time to talk. On her table was a photograph of a familiar face, the same moustache, the full lips ready to form themselves into a kiss, the all embracing smile, the jaunty glint in the eye.

“Safrani!” I exclaimed.

The beautiful niece, still glowing in her old age looked at the picture. “My Uncle” she said, quietly.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Young World / by Geeta Doctor / Online Edition / Saturday – March 23rd, 2002

Compering was an art for poet Ahmad

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Lucknow, UTTAR PRADESH :

Lucknow:

A poet, a novelist, a teacher and a champion of stylising compering into an art, Prof Malikzada Manzoor Ahmad breathed his last in the city on Friday. The 87-year-old, a well known face in the literary settings of the city was highly eulogised for creating a uniquely independent genre of ‘nizaamat’ (compering) for the thousands of poetry events he mastered with his spontaneous wit and humour.

Buried at night in the Fatehmi graveyard in Khurram Nagar on Friday, Ahmad, born in 1929, was a native of Faizabad. He had moved to Lucknow in the early ’60s as a lecturer in Lucknow University’s (LU) Urdu department from where he retired in 1989 after 30 years of service.

“Before him, compering a mushaira was just a sub-standard job. He transformed it into an art. His literary articulation and spontaneity, his wit and the way he weaved sarcasm and humour are unmatched to this date,” shared Prof Anis Ashfaq, former head of LU’s Urdu department who was also Ahmad’s student. Ashfaq also said that he was the one and the only person who exemplified compering and with him the golden period of the new art has gone.

A man who donned many hats, Ahmad also wrote poetry and several novels, including his biography ‘Raqs-e-Sharar’ wherein his narrative too was praised of bearing a uniquely creative style. “Even though my father was a man of the English language, Urdu was his passion and mission. He was a proponent of composite culture,” said Ahmad’s son Malikzada Javed.

Ahmad had served as the chairperson of the UP Urdu Akademi and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmad Urdu Memorial Committee. He also held a senior post in the All India Urdu Rabita Committee and was a receiver of the 2015 Ghalib Award for literary services to Urdu. He was condoled on his death by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and minister Azam Khan.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India /  News Home> City> Lucknow / by Yusra Husain / TNN / April 23rd, 2016

Rudra Veena exponent Ustad Asad Ali Khan passes away

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Alwar, RAJASTHAN / NEW DELHI :

Rudra Veena exponent Ustad Asad Ali Khan, one of the last existing advocate of the Khandarbani dhrupad school, passed away in the wee hours here today.

He was 74.

The classical musician, who represents the 12 generation of Jaipur’s Beenkar Gharana, breathed his last at the All India Institute of Medical Science at around 2:30 am, his adopted son and disciple Ustad Ali Zaki Haidar told PTI.

“I had taken Ustad ji to hospital in the evening for a routine check-up and he was admitted around 7 pm. They conducted routine tests. Around 2:00 am while he was watching TV in his air-conditioned room, I noticed he was sweating. He passed away a little later,” Haidar said.

Ustad Khan who was unmarried is survived by his nephew Haidar whom he had adopted as his own son at a very young age and trained to become his successor, said Pawan Monga, a disciple of the Rudra Veena exponent.

The musician, who received the Padma Bhushan in 2008 underwent training under his father Ustad Sadiq Ali Khan Beenakar. His father, grandfather Ustad Musharraf Ali Khan Beenakar and great-grandfather Ustad Rajab Ali Beenakar were court musicians in the princely state of Alwar where Ustad Asad Ali Khan was born in 1937.

His father later moved to the princely court of Rampur where he undertook to teach him music. For the next 15 years he learnt to play Rudra Veena, practicing 14 hours a day.

Ustad Khan was a artiste of the All India Radio and participated in ‘sangeet samelans’ and musical performances across the country and the world. He has also performed at concerts in Afghanistan, Australia, Holland, Italy, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the US and other countries.

Ustad Khan has also been a professor of music at Delhi University.

Rudra Veena, an instrument said to be created by Lord Shiva, has remained essentially unchanged for millennia.

It comprises a bamboo piece mounted on two gourds and has 19-24 frets fixed with beeswax with four main and three side strings having a range of four to four and half octaves. Unlike a sitar or sarod, the rudra veena does not have resonance strings.

Ustad Khan used to play dhrupad in tile kharbandi style, which is one of the four ancient styles of Indian music. It is named after Khanda, the Rajput warrior’s traditional sharp curved sword.

source: http://www.danindia.com / DNA / Home> India / PTI / New Delhi – Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

While my veena gently weeps

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders, World Opinion, , , , ,

Alwar, RAJASTHAN / NEW DELHI :

First impression: a small, wiry man with a gigantic string instrument.

Second impression: Once the frail man starts plucking the strings of the gigantic instrument and the melodious notes start flowing, you understand why Ustad Asad Ali Khan stands tall among today’s music maestros.

The only known living exponent of the rudra veena, Khansaab is probably one of the last of the musicians who combine traditional been techniques with an in-depth knowledge of the raagas.

“The rudra veena can execute all the subtleties of the human voice. Unlike the sitar and the sarod, it does not have tarap or resonance strings. Their absence allows the musicians to play shrutis or microtones, which are considered the ultimate in classical music. Iska awaz sabse buland hai.”

The Ustad should know. Trained by his father Ustad Sadiq Ali Khan, court musician of Alwar, Khansaab represents the legendary Jaipur beenkar gharana and traces his genius to his great grandfather Ustad Rajab Ali Khan. Being from the seventh generation of rudra veena players in the family, Ustad Asad Ali Khan’s relationship with this instrument of the gods is a passionate one. He challenges those who term the rudra veena as inflexible and a museum piece.

“These are excuses that people use to cover up their own inadequacies. Yes, it is a difficult instrument to play. But that is true of all classical music. It is not filmi music which you can learn in a few days,” he says emphatically.

Defending the rudra veena, Khan says, “The veena stands at the pinnacle of all stringed instruments. It is believed that the rudra veena was created by Lord Shiva who was inspired by Goddess Parvati. It was born out of his urge to create something that he could use to measure swaras and shrutis.”

But it is the man on this earth who has labelled this instrument “difficult”. “Isn’t the sitar difficult to play? Does not the sarod require years to master? Today’s musicians want the accolades easily without the hard work. It is they who have badmouthed the rudra veena,” he fumes.

For mastering the rudra veena you have to play by the rules, and Khan is unwilling to bend the rules. “The first requirement is to sit in the yogic vajrasana position. Unless you sit in that position, place the veena on the shoulder and use your breath as a modulator for notes, you cannot have the desired impact. The nuances of the notes will be lost if you change your posture. How many young people today can sit in that position for hours together?” he asks.

Raagas Mian ki malhar and Darbari Kanhada bring out the best from the rudra veena, feels the Ustad, who plays dhrupad in the Kandarbani style, which is one of the four ancient styles of Indian music.

Ustad Asad Ali is also against fusion music, which is seen as a way out to revive flagging interest in classical music. “Yeh hamaare shaan ki khilaaf hai. Fusion is not our job. We are not meant to compete with filmstars. In the drive to become commercially successful, we should not lose sight of our tradition and culture. Classical music and film/popular music have different positions in the world of music and that is the way to be,” he says.

Of course step-motherly treatment by the powers-that-be has also contributed to the decline of the rudra veena. “None of the five universities of music in the country teaches the rudra veena. Sadly, even I have taught the sitar in the Faculty of Music and Fine Arts in Delhi University for 17 years. The rudra veena is not taught there. Ultimately, the musician has to survive, and without a certificate, a rudra veena exponent will not get a job in any university,” he points out and laments, “Soon, we will have only foreigners playing the veena.” Currently, apart from a couple of Indian students, most of Khan’s disciples are from the West. His nephew Zaki Haider is also training under him, hoping to carry on the legacy.

“The government has to do more to preserve the fading tradition of the rudra veena. I have suggested that the recordings of Ustad Sadiq Ali Khan and other stalwarts lying with the Sangeet Natak Akademi should be marketed. I do not want any royalty, just make those recordings available before those tapes get destroyed. It may not mint millions, but millions of Indians will get to know their heritage,” he says. Carrying forward the task of telling the world about the instrument, the ustad is currently working on a book on the rudra veena, under a two-year fellowship given by the Ministry of Culture.

Unfortunately, it’s not just the rudra veena, but also the ustad who seems to have been forgotten by many. Despite being acclaimed for his musical virtuosity and for probably being the most well-known rudra veena player in the world, the country’s civilian honours have passed him by. “I do not want to lobby for such awards,” he says, but it can’t stop himself from adding that even harmonium players are feted by the public today while the rudra veena and rudra veena players are forgotten.

Gourds, frets and strings attached

SO we know that the rudra veena is rarely heard on the concert stage these days. That’s sad. But let’s get the vital statistics of this ornate instrument before it is forgotten. Musicians believe that the rudra veena is the ideal instrument for a dhrupad rendition because its sound has the same richness of overtones that the voice acquires with the practice of Nada Yoga.

This string instrument is different from the Saraswati veena in the way it is placed. The former rests against the shoulder while the latter is placed on the lap of the performer. Its basic structure is a bamboo mounted on two gourds with 19-24 frets fixed with bee’s wax. Additionally, there are four main and three side strings having a range of four to four and a half octaves. The gigantic dimensions also make it one of the heaviest instruments. At 10 kg, you can at best hope to balance the weight while sitting in the yogic vajrasana position.

If you want to be the proud owner of a rudra veena, you are going to be lighter by at least Rs 75,000. And you’ll also have to be patient. It takes at least a year to make a good rudra veena.

source: http://www.archive.financialexpress.com / The Financial Express / Home> Art & Enterainment / October 01st, 2006

Celebrating Urdu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, , , , , , , , , , , ,
Hyderabad, TELANGANA :
A student posing as Mirza Ghalib
A student posing as Mirza Ghalib
School children show how a language can be experienced and celebrated

It was an expo with a difference. No, it was not an art, fashion or product fair. It was all about language, something unheard of till then. The city of domes and minarets was witness to a unique celebration of Urdu. And it took school children to bring out the sweetness and magical lyricism of the Urdu language.

Titled after Daagh Dehlvi’s famous couplet ‘Urdu hai jiska naam …’, the exhibition hosted by students and teachers of Central Public High School, Khilwath, recently at the Mehboob Husain Jigar hall in Siasat daily was a runaway success. Students of different schools in the city and lovers of Urdu flocked the show necessitating extension of the expo.

Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are headed. The expo did just that.

It not only traced the history of Urdu but gave visitors something to remember long after they left the premises. Some of the finest Urdu couplets and ‘nazms’ were on display.

What added to the appeal was the way students donned the attire and looks of the famous poets of yore. One could see the poet of East, Allama Iqbal, reclining in his trademark black suit and Mirza Ghalib with his typical cone cap and snowy beard, holding a hookah. There was also Wali Deccani, Mohd Quli Qutb Shah, Mir Taqi Mir, Hazrath Amir Khusro besides writers like Ibne Safi, Premchander.

Students waxed eloquent about the works of the poets apart from reciting their verses. Presentation of ‘Shikwa’ and ‘Jawab-e-Shikwa’, the epic poems of Allama Iqbal by students was the high point of the expo.

“We decided to present the language in all its glory as these days everyone is talking about the decline of Urdu,” said Mohd Zafarullah Faheem, Director, Central Public High School.

The limits of one’s language are the limits of one’s world. But there was no limit to the poetical appeal of the expo. Wherever one glanced one was greeted by ‘shayeri’.

Talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to this head. And if you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart. That’s what the Urdu expo did — it went straight to the heart.

source: http://ww.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by J.S.Ifthekhar / Hyderabad – November 26th, 2015

Ustad Asad Ali Khan – Raga Multani – Rudra Veena – Rudra Vina – Dhrupad

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Alwar, RAJASTHAN / NEW DELHI :

Ustad Asad Ali Khan – Raga Multani – Rudra Veena – Rudra Vina – Dhrupad, Amsterdam 27th April 2003

Published on Apr 3, 2013 /  by Carsten Wicke 

Dear Friends, Music Lovers & Musicians,
we continue with an afternoon concert – played just two days after the Marwa in Utrecht at the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) in Amsterdam o

source://www.youtube.com

Mastering the king of instruments

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders

 

Jyoti Hegde. Photo Special Arrangement
Jyoti Hegde. Photo Special Arrangement

Jyoti Hegde, India’s only woman rudraveena artist, talks to Sowjanya Peddi about conquering the unconventional rudraveena and storming a male bastion

On a quiet farm away from the glitz of the urban art world, in a village near Sirsi about 125 km from Dharwad in Northern Karnataka, lives a young woman with her husband. Her name is Jyoti Hegde and she might not be splashed on newspapers but she is the first woman performing artist of the rudraveena in India. Rudraveena is a world heritage instrument, protected and promoted by the UNESCO. Jyoti follows the Khandarbani school of Dhrupad and her guru is the illustrious Ustad Asad Ali Khan.

Jyoti Hegde with Ustad Asad Ali Khan. Photo: Special Arrangement
Jyoti Hegde with Ustad Asad Ali Khan. Photo: Special Arrangement

In the rustic peace and unpretentious but generous hospitality of her home, she talks about her life and her views on Dhrupad and the rudraveena with Sowjanya Peddi. Here are the translated excerpts.

I was born in Dharwad, Karnataka, where my father was a range forest officer. I grew up in Belgaum and Sirsi. I liked dance and was particularly talented in drawing. I might have become a painter if a chance encounter with the rudraveena had not transformed my life. I was learning the sitar from my first guru Dr. Bindu Madhav Pathak and in a lec-dem one day, he played the rudraveena. The sound of the instrument haunted me. The gambhirta (sonorous resonant sound) of its tones was very different from the chanchalata (playfulness) of the sitar. I requested Pathakji to teach me, but he refused, saying it is not a woman’s domain. I persisted. I told my father about my wish. Initially, Pathakji refused my father too, but later he relented and said that “playing the rudraveena is not a woman’s forte but since she is so insistent, let us give her an old rudraveena that is lying at my house. Once she plays it for a while, she will give up the idea of her own accord”. This was like a secret pact between my father and him, unknown to me. But when Pathakji saw my commitment and determination, he eventually advised my father to get me a new rudraveena, at the age of 16, which I continue to play even today. I would go to Pathakji’s house by 7 a.m so that he could set me an exercise for the day.

He would return at 5.30 p.m. The entire day I would practise the single phrase he had taught me that morningI was so focussed that he once said I had gained the expertise of 10 years within a year. Within a year I won the first prize for rudraveena in the Akhil Bharatiya Akashvani Sangeeth Spardha in 1981-82. I was also enrolled as a regular artist at All India Radio. I also won the first prize in the Karnataka Youth Festival for three consecutive years from 1981 to 1983.

My gurus chronicle my journey from Khayal to Dhrupad. I learnt from Pathakji in the Khayal tradition. He used to compliment me, saying “she knows how to get knowledge from me”. Now after many years of teaching, I understand this was the biggest compliment. An early review commented that “the artist did not spare enough time for bandish rendition with sat sangat (jointly) on pakhawaj”. I felt the most prominent attribute of the rudraveena is its capability for nadopasana through alap. Playing with the accompanist is less important. I understood then that this instrument is not best supported by the Khayal. I discovered a book on Dhrupad by Thomas Marcotti titled The Way-Music: How to conjure with sounds? The book had a 90-minute music cassette attached to it. I was transfixed by the depth and richness of the notes and its emphasis on slow measured movement. I was drawn to Dhrupad from then on. Whenever an artist performs in the Dhrupad ang, whether sitar, surbahar or rudraveena, it will entail more emphasis on alap than on bandish.

I studied with Pt. Indudhar Nirodi for three years, who gave me a deeper understanding of Dhrupad through vocal training and taught me the subtleties of Dhrupad. After he left Dharwad, I approached Ustad Asad Ali Khan where I learnt for five years.

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Rudraveena is known as the king of instruments. All string instruments are shaped after it. According to Hindu mythology, Shiva is said to have taken inspiration from Parvati’s form and created this instrument. Shiva was the first to play this instrument and he taught it to Parvati who in turn taught it to Saraswati. It was restricted initially to the dev loka and was used for aradhana (devotion) alone. Later, Narad learnt it from Saraswati and brought it down to earth. In earlier times, it was used as accompaniment for veda mantra pathan (vedic recital) and with the yaga yagna (vedic rituals) of the rishi munis (sages). It held a place of reverence equivalent to that of the shank (conch) or jagate (circular plate/gong used in temples) that produce sounds during worship rituals but are not specifically used for producing music. It was treated with the same sanctity accorded to the sacred idol. Only select people were allowed to touch it and that only after purifying themselves.

Rudraveena is considered a measure to weigh the principles and grammar of the Dhrupad style of music. As Dhrupad evolved out of Sama veda chanting, the rudraveena also came to be considered the instrument to accompany Dhrupad. The shift must have been sharp and swift, as the music left temples and entered the Mughal courts. This brought a change in lyrics, tempo and style of playing. Dhrupad lyrics were chiefly based on the varnanas (description) of deities following the earlier devotional context. In the new context, more preference was given to prakriti varnana (nature description), shringar ras (romantic feelings) and songs praising the emperor/royalty. Both the rudraveena and Dhrupad rose to popularity from the 8th to the 15th and 16th centuries. This is the golden period for rudraveena, which produced artists such as Swami Haridas, Miya Tansen, Baiju Bawra, Gopal Nayak, Nayak Bakshu and Nayak Charju among others.

In Akbar’s times the instrument was very popular and prevalent. The rise of Khayal can be seen as a development of the above context. With Khayal, the sitar emerged as a more apt accompanying instrument its playful and rapid explorations. The rudraveena receded from the scene.

The rudraveena is a large and heavy instrument. Its strings are thick and plucking them requires strength. In addition, the original posture requires keeping the instrument on the body, which means carrying 3.5 kg to 5 kg for two or three hours in one sitting. Also, the sacred context of the instrument conventionally permitted only select classes of men to play or even touch it. It was a superstition that if women played it they will not be able to conceive children. One reason could be that the Vajrasan posture might have been considered harmful for the uterus. When my mother heard this she asked me to stop playing, but I was already so much in love with it that I could not think of leaving it. Eventually I got married and conceived a son. But some controversies persist. I could not play in the Vajrasan posture during my pregnancy and adopted the Sukhasan posture. After delivery, I continue to play in Sukhasan. I don’t believe earlier restrictions on women are valid in present times. The measure of what is sacred and pure is redefined in every era. We should interpret cultural norms and injunctions as indicative of demanding inner purity from the artist.

We live a quiet life on our farm. I get much support from my husband, son and daughter- in-law who help me with modern technology to take my art forward. I relish the peace and rhythm of farm life; it brings depth and anubhav (experience) to my music.

Dhrupad is the foundation for Hindustani classical music. Unless young people take it up, it will be lost to us. The rudraveena is also disappearing because no new generation is passionate enough to learn this demanding skill. They find it difficult to support themselves [financially]…. they look for quick fame. But the foundation of our newness should be based on our own culture. If we just rush into modernity that is not our own, it will be meaningless.

The instrument

The rudraveena cannot be bought off the shelf. Its making is unique, as it is connected to the player’s body. For instance, its length should be 11 times the hand span of the player. The tuning can be completed only after it is placed on the body. The playing is connected to the player’s breathing rhythm. Traditionally, it was played only in the vajrasan pose.

One tumba (gourd) is kept on the right thigh and one on the shoulder, the right hand plucks the strings going over the right tumba and the left holds the strings with the left ear touching the left tumba. Khanji used to associate this posture with the sacred Swastika.

The instrument’s centre falls between the navel and the heart. The vibrations circulate in our inner body with the sound of ‘om’ entering the left ear from the left tumba. The right tumba’s vibrations go through the lower body through the right thigh. These vibrations produce inner well-being and tune us to the universal nada (sound). The instrument is itself a tool of pranayam and yoga. For those who have not mastered breathing, it is a difficult instrument to learn.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Friday Review> Music / Sowjanya Peddi / November 26th, 2015

Six historical buildings awarded

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Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

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The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) on Monday awarded six historic buildings and their managements for efforts to conserve them.

“For its associational value as the birthplace of Hyderabad’s very own magic potion and as memorial to the legacy of Hakeem Farooqui, the Karkhana Zinda Tilismath is acknowledged,” reads the citation of the award given to the historic structure in Amberpet. Five other structures – the St. Francis Xavier church in Yapral, Ramgopal building on M.G. Road, Heritage Artillery Collection and Ranbir Hall at Artillery Centre in Golconda, Equestrian Centre Hyderabad Mounted Police in Saifabad, and the headquarters of AIMIM in Darussalam – were given awards.

A special citation was made for Doll House, a replica of the Residency Building that is now the Koti’s Women College.

The award to Equestrian Centre was in consonance with this year’s World Heritage Day celebrations themed by UNESCO to recognise sports heritage. In this context, the INTACH’s representatives recounted the contributions of noted sports personalities S.A. Rahim, the coach of India’s football team who led the country in Melbourne Olympics in 1956, and tennis player Ghouse Mohammed Khan.

Arjuna awardee Mir Khasim Ali was the event’s chief guest.

INTACH recognised the structures for their restoration and re-use while keeping intact their historic value. Reciting couplets of legendry poet Amir Khusro and Mirza Ghalib to describe importance of history and heritage structures, Air Commodore Suresh Badyal, the guest of honor at the event, said the armed forces have contributed to conservation of heritage structures and that organisations like INTACH should continue to conserve more structures.

INTACH convenor Sajjad Shahid recounted threats perceived to heritage, including the development of Metro Rail opposite the State Assembly and through Sultan Bazaar, while decrying G.O. 183 that allegedly robbed 160 heritage structures, rock formations and other historic precincts of legal protection that was accorded to them. Mr. Shahid informed the gathering that the High Court has stayed the order.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Staff Reporter / Hyderabad – April 19th, 2016