Pt. Ajoy Chakraborty - A class apart - Page 2

AMI TOMARI GAHI JOYN -AJOY CHAKRABORTY

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Thanks a lot dada. This is a great article and extremely informative.So happy to know we have such great musical festivals held in India. Thanks a lot. Indeed a gem of an article 👏 👏 👏 Thanks a lot Adi for starting this thread. The computer/site is playing some tricks, could not see the first page first time.

Originally posted by: Sur_Sangam

Thanks a lot dada. This is a great article and extremely informative.So happy to know we have such great musical festivals held in India. Thanks a lot. Indeed a gem of an article 👏 👏 👏

SS ji are you a Bong?

Originally posted by: Qwest

SS ji are you a Bong?

No, I am not. Please take that ji off. I am from land of five rivers, Punjab. I am guessing you are some where from South/East India😊

He made garlands of music

Ajoy Chakrabarty with his daughter Kaushiki. — Pic. by Goutam Ghosh AFTER THE expected rounds of applause, and some endearing comments by the chief guest, Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna who said, ''Felicitating Ajoy is a joy,'' the programme to honour Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, classical vocalist from Kolkata, on his 50th birth anniversary, began with songs by 18 Bengali talents of Chennai. No matter what yardstick is used to evaluate the singers, the spirit stood out in bold relief. Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty had a kind word for the eight women vocalists. He said, ''My regards to the women (ma-bonayra) who, despite their work at home, found the time to practise.'' Ajoy also promised to put together an educative series that would benefit the musically-inclined Bengalis living outside Bengal. There were attempts by some to find fault with the local talents, but the criticisms were summarily buried by the kind words Ajoy had for the singers. What finally mattered was the spirit, and on Friday evening (December 20) the Central Lecture Theatre at the Indian Institute of Technology, seemed to be floating on the good spirit of everyone present. What made the evening remarkable after a short break was the interactive session by Ajoy Chakrabarty. Despite a rusty voice - ''Amar gala-ay ekta bang dhukechhe'' (A frog has entered my voice box) as Ajoy put it - his excellent singing of a Vedic sloka set the tone for the evening. His exposition of the various aspects of a raga, alankar, and taan was not only educative but also had a superior quality that is hard to describe. As the clock ticked away, and chill descended on the IIT campus, Ajoy enthralled the audience by showing how the voice and the notes could be used to create waves and garlands. And when Ajoy finally stood up to leave, some in the audience requested him to sing the raga Hamsadhwani. Ajoy also introduced his daughter, Kaushiki, to the Hindustani ragasangeet lovers of Chennai. Kaushiki took over effortlessly and showed the quality of her father's guidance. Her presentation not only provided respite to Ajoy, but also indicated what the music lovers in Chennai could look forward to in the future. By the time Ajoy finally stood up and asked the audience for permission to leave, the clock registered 10.20 p.m., nearly four hours after the programme began. But none in the audience showed any sign of stress or enervation. It was obviously an evening well spent. Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty was born on Christmas Day in 1952, and many will readily agree that he is an unbelievable gift from Santa Claus to music lovers not only in Chennai but also to those all over India and abroad. It must be noted that four Bengali associations of Chennai - Bengal Association, T. Nagar; South Madras Cultural Association, Besant Nagar; Manabendra Smaranay, Anna Nagar; Dakshini, Anna Nagar - came together to organise the programme. One only hopes that the unity will continue and Chennai will see a unified Bengali Association in the future. If European countries can do it, Bengalis of Chennai can too.

GOUTHAM GHOSH

Music transcends gharanas'

Affectionate embrace... Ajoy Chakrabarty and M.Balamuralikrishna at the felicitation. — Pic. by S. R. Raghunathan. THERE WAS a detached intensity in Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty. He glowed like a drop of fire when I met him at the residence of Ashim Sehanobis whom he referred to as ''my local guardian.'' Excerpts from the interview. What were the difficulties you faced in childhood? Finance. My father is from Mymensingh, Bangladesh. He wanted to be a musician but my grandfather, a doctor, did not like the idea so my father left home. He became a refugee - living on the streets, eating when he earned and starving when he didn't. An astrologer told him that he should name his first son Ajoy. I have two mothers who are sisters. My first mother, whom I call Ma, never had children so my grandfather gave his third daughter in marriage to my father and we were born. I call my own mother Chhotoma. My father completed his Matric but mastered carpentry and weaving to survive. Much later he became a schoolteacher. Our home was called the weaver's house. In Ichhapur, there is not a house where I have not gone to sell Manipuri mats and saris made by my parents. When we sold saris we ate; when we didn't, we went hungry to bed. That taught me not to frown on anything. I learnt how to play the harmonium, tabla and to sing. My gurus were my father, then Pannalal Samanta, Kanaidas Bairagi, Gour Kishore Ghosh and Munawar Ali Khan. After some years Pannalalji said he had nothing more to teach me and took me to Kanaidas Bairagi. After 10 years Kanaidas Bairagi took me to Gnan Prakashji. So my gurus became my gurubhais. Imagine their magnanimity. It is rare. How did you overcome the tendency of people to trip you on the way? God's blessing and, it may sound incredible, I have always kept my head bowed. Indian music is an ocean, and I am tinier than a drop. Musicians must realise that they exist because of the subject. Nobody can know everything even in a single subject. If I know a crore, I do not know 50 lakhs. The realisation that I do not know dawns as I learn more. Do other artistes share this awareness? If it exists it will help the cause of Indian music. One cannot say it is there or it is not there. To claim that from Bengal - not West Bengal alone - Ajoy Chakrabarty is the only one who has the talent to reach the national or the international level is a lie. When people talk of ragasangeet they refer to Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu or Uttar Pradesh. But Bengal has been, is and will continue to be the best cradle for Indian ragasangeet. Shall we discuss the origins of Shrutinandan? Those who got the second and third places in competitions were no less talented than I was. But they are lost today. Each of them was gold, but only a brilliant goldsmith can make exquisite jewellery out of gold. Usually the teacher sings and the student repeats what he hears, ad infinitum. So the teacher imposes his learning. How can a teacher be sure that a student does not have finer musical sense than him? We need a process that will not crush a student's talent. Everyday I tell my students what my flaws are. Shrutinandan, with more than 800 children, stands for this process of training. I try to teach my students to become good human beings. Once you are a good human being, you will do well whatever you do. I first tried this on Kaushiki , my daughter, and when I got good results, I implemented it in Shrutinandan. I could have named my school ''The Ajoy Chakrabarty Institute of Music'' but I named it Shrutinandan. The name has 12 letters, standing for the 12 notes. The first and the last letters are S and N which stand for Sa and Ni. The monthly fee is Rs. 250. I stay at the Sangeet Research Academy but run Shrutinandan. The Academy knows that. My wife, I and 30 senior students take classes. Do you belong to any gharana? Up to a point a training system is needed because you cannot get something out of thin air. Gharanas have that system. But just as a child first grows up at home, then becomes a local boy, thereafter a nation's man and finally an international person, it is so too in music. If a musician clings to a gharana, how will he grow? The world of music is not restricted to one gharana alone. Today a musician says, ''Hamara gharana me ye hota hai. Aise hi karna chahiye'' (In our gharana it is done like this. This is how it should be done.) The desire to learn more does not become a disability if your faith has a proper mooring. What about music critics? How do you express your emotions? Through your voice. Music is an attitude. It must be felt. The only thing that matters is whether you, the listener, likes the music. Just as sweets cannot be tasted with your ears, music must be heard and experienced. For a long time I have been insisting that music criticism is impossible. When you write ''The depth of the madhyam of Malkosh...,'' how deep is it? Two inches or two feet? Human emotion has a range that is impossible to capture in words. The pain you suffer if you hurt the little finger of your right hand is different from the pain when you hurt the index finger of your left hand. But can you express the difference? What is the future of ragasangeet? It is brilliant. India leads the world today in software. And it will lead in music too. I only hope I live long enough to find my dreams fulfilled. I am burning 20 times faster than I should. To protect myself I must shut the door on your face. That is what many musicians do today, but must I? Thank you for giving me so much time.

GOUTAM GHOSH

Dada...

Ki bolbo tomake..???? You are just great..!!!!

Since morning I have been only hearing to the bengali songs of Ajoy Chakraborty especially Ghum aashe na...and kaushiki is also good. I have heard her before.

Thank you dada....👏👏👏

dada,
nomoshker..Shuprobhaat ,kemon achen ..
sorryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy adi 😳😳

i just saw this thread is opened by u and not dada..please forgive me..

thanks for opening 😊