Mukul in Delhi (2005)

In last three years Mukul Shivputra gave as many as many as twenty one
concerts in Delhi. All of those performances were remarkable for various reasons
other than the fact that anybody hardly gets an opportunity to listen to such a
disturbingly gifted singer as he is. Not only the performances gave us a glimpse
of the his thought process and the continuous development in his Gayaki ,but
also can be taken as a pointer as to the development and future course of
Hindustani Classical Vocal in 21st Century.

This is an attempt to understand his thoughts as expressed through the aforesaid

concerts. The Kansens who have heard his Gayaki need not be told about his
overall prowess as a performer.

However before I start with the concerts, which he rendered, it will be interesting
to dwell upon his approach towards Bandish and presentation of the Raga.

Mukul understands that the Bandish has always been in a certain sense given
the impression as though it had merely happened. And it is because of this
quality that the Bandish gives the feeling of becoming rather than a fully
structured composition, a musical artefact. It was Kumarji who perhaps for the
first time could actually perceive the tough, literary and musical core hidden like a
filament; within a musical DNA that holds the Bandish as real as any objective.
Mukul has enriched it beyond.

In Mukul”s gayaki two different landscapes are seen; one is of the Raga, and the
other is the lyrics of the Bandish. Both these landscapes are vital to his art. He
never uses all the techniques of expression and the vocal resources that he
possesses to exhibit the command of the art but often restricts himself to the
needs of the Khayal he is singing. At no time or occasion when he sang does the
listener get the feeling that he has sung himself out of the Raga. He stops singing
when he has said what he wants to say in that khayal, for that time. Kumarji had
always adopted the technique of telling you of the words of the lyrics of the
Bandish while he is introducing Raga----- one word here, another there---- and let
the composition begin to form like ice crystals on a freezing lake, in tiny stages…
tasting the feeling of the Raga against each single word of lyric till a stage is
reached when the entry of Tabla and beginning of singing of the Bandish seemed
revelatory, like a prophesy, slowly but surely, coming true. Mukul uses a different
technique altogether which I will enumerate later.
In short,, Mukul sings out of the Bandish and not out of the Raga. He
subordinates the Raga to the Bandish, never letting the Raga take priority over
the Bandish.. Mukul”s Raga Vistara earlier used to take on the lineaments of the
Bandish on account of which the Raga had come to exist. He used to show the
possibilities the Raga has in that particular embodiment of the Bandish he had
chosen to sing. However nowadays, his aalapi distinctly shows “Ragalapti” or the
Aroopa of the raga. Coupled with the “Rupakalapti” i.e. Bandish it is a unique
realm which he invokes.

A comparison with Kumarji and his contrast in Gayaki are must in order to
appreciate Mukul’s art as he also follows Kumarji’s uncompromising stance
towards the Tanpura and Laya. Like Kumarji Mukul also makes Tanpura perform
a function that enables it to enhance tension, add piquancy and offer resolution.
In other words, in his world of Khayals, Tanpura has a pivotal role in the pith and
grain of his art. It is no longer rendered as a mere background accompaniment.

In the aforesaid twenty one concerts he sang as many as 84 Bandishes in

different ragas including some Thumaries. Here I will be only speaking about his
renderings in Khyala as his Thumaries is the topic of a different article iself. Also
nowhere I would suggest that all these concerts were “Jami Hui Mehefils” He
could not perform in some concerts as per the expectations due to his indifferent
health. Though the thread of the thought process ran through the entire series, it
will be worthwhile to note the same.

In one of the concerts he sang Nayaki Kanada. The Raga has been extensively
sung by the performers and been heard by us. Mukul’s portrayal was markedly
different. The Bandish which he chose to sing Bada Khayal was an old one from
Gwalior. A paramparik one. Naina Nahi Mane . Mukul showed as to how this
Raga must have been originated. In other words, The Mula Strota (Mula
Pravaha ) and the thinking process . How this raga has arisen out of the
SARANG ang though it belongs to Kafi Thaat. He started his Aalapi and showed
MEGH in avaroha. He showed MADHMAD SARANG in aaroha. He showed as to
how these two combined in order to become a variant of SARANG known as
BADHANS SARANG .(even by showing a fleeting Dhaivata otherwise completely
alien to Nayaki) and taking this aalapi further he actually vocally showed the
transformation of Khula Madhyam of SARANG into the Madhyama of Nayaki
Kanada. As to how Ga MA Re Sa (Kanada Ang ) was incorporated in SARANG
pravaha as to arrive at Nayaki Kanada. He even showed its Komal Gandhara in
aaroha and its samvad with Madhyam and Komal Nishad in different manner
than that of which we are accustomed to. The Jod he sang for Nayaki was Suha.
Tu Hai Mohhmad Sa Darbar in Drut Ekatala. However he kept it distinctly away
from Sughrai by showing Mukta Madhayam . His nyasa on the same and use of
both the nishadas was an unusal Suha. He also sang Khambavati, Tilak Kamod
and Kausi (popularly known as Jog-Kauns) which I will not explain in detail. But
suffice to say that his thought process continued during the same.

In another concert he sang Shyam –Kalyan . He showed as to where exactly

Kalyan becomes Shyam . It was in a novel manner he established the Teevra
Madhyam of the Raga. He rendered three Bandishes. A Bada Khyala in RASIYA
MHARA , Jod was a drut Ek Tala AISO TUMHI SAN and a drut Teen Tala
SAWAN KI SANJH. Normally whatever Shyam-Kalyan that is heard or rendered
by the performers goes like PaGa Ma Re Ni Sa, Ni Sa Re … what is actually
shown is Kamod Ang in the same. It is sung or played as Shyam Kamod. Any
recent recordings by almost all the artists bear testimony to this fact. Mukul in his
rendering showed the hidden Gandhar with such a delicate swar lagava that
Kalyan and its teevra Madhayam was established on the backdrop of the same.
It showed an extraordinary sensitive Shyam Kalyan, which in fact is being tried to
explore in this Kalyan by our Purvasuries.

He showed too many gems, rare ones by way of some unusual Bandishes in last
three years in Delhi. I will now stop by describing his rendering of Khat, which he
rendered in Delhi on 29/1/2005.

It is Raga with controversial interpretation. It is said to be comprised of of six

Ragas i.e. Desi, Jaunpuri, Bahaduri, Bilaskhani, Asavari, Bhairavi. However
hardly anybody has till today shown such an interpretation. Vidyadhar Gunijan is
the known Bandish which is rendered in this Raga by Jaipur Gayaki. Mukul sang
bandish AAYI AMBUVA MOUR LIYA RE. This Bandish itself has an interesting
story. Kumarji heard it for the first time from Ustad Alla Rakhha (Zakir’s father)
when he sang it in 1940s in Devdhar School. When Kumarji met him after a gap
of 15 years he asked for this Bandish and took the same from him. The bandish
belongs to Punjab Gharana. Kumarji used to sing it by showing Aasavari and
Bhairavi Ang. Mukul after rendering the Sthayi, showed Bahar, Kanada, then
Shahana, Bilaskhani and Jaunpuri along with the traces of Bahaduri in the same.
It was amazing to listen to this thinking process coming out in upaj .

To sum up. I have been following Mukul’s Gayki from 1988 and have heard his
more than 50 concerts. Good ones and not so good ones. His continuous
development, may it be of the thought process or may it be of Swara conditioned
with Laya and its manifestation through unusual Bandishes has always been a
pointer of Indian Vocal Classical in 21st Century. After the death of Kumarji It is
Mukul who can perhaps show amongst all his contemporaries the path of
Classical Vocal in years to come.

Chinmoy Khaladkar.