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Steeped in tradition

For Bhai Harjinder Singh Srinagarwale, the Padma Shri acknowledges his contribution to Gurmat Sangeet
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Bhai Harjinder Singh hopes more youngsters take to singing Gurbani.
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2More than 600 years old, Gurmat Sangeet has been passed down through generations. Rooted in the classical tradition, it is based on ragas and taalas. Taught more from the perspective of the sacred lyrics, the tradition has been reinforced with the acknowledgement of prominent kirtaniyas by the Government of India. Bhai Nirmal Singh Khalsa, who passed away in 2020, became the first Padma Shri awardee for Gurbani in 2009. After that, Prof Kartar Singh, who passed away in January, was honoured with the same in 2021.
Bhai Harjinder Singh Srinagarwale is the latest to be bestowed with this fourth-highest civilian award in India. With hundreds of recordings to his credit, the Ludhiana-based and Gurdaspur-born singer is hugely popular in both India and abroad.
Bhai Harjinder Singh is not attached to any big gurdwara, the usual route to popularity. He also does not belong to a traditional kirtaniya family; his father was a soldier. But music was very much a part of the family, from both the maternal and paternal sides. Younger brother Bhai Maninder Singh also sings, as does his son Jaspreet Singh. Musically inclined, he enrolled to learn ‘shabad kirtan’ professionally at the Gurmat Sangeet College (started by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee in Amritsar in 1927). After training for two years, he started his singing career in 1980. Srinagarwale, the suffix, came after his three-year sojourn in Srinagar. When he returned home, the residents of Ludhiana started referring to him as Srinagarwale. The tag has since stuck.
The soft-voiced singer says things have changed a lot in all these years. “Learning the holy verse is so much easier for a kirtaniya. One can even read Guru Granth Sahib on the phone. Today, much more importance is being given to clear enunciation of the words and that’s how it should be. The difference between Gurmat Sangeet and shastriya sangeet is this only — the latter is ‘swar pradhan’, notes are most important. Gurmat Sangeet can reach the hearts of listeners primarily through the ‘shabads’ (hymns). Our Gurus used music as a means to convey their teachings. It is wonderful today to see thousands listening to our ‘kirtan’, and even singing along.”
On being asked to what he attributes his popularity, Bhai Harjinder Singh replies with humility: “I am acknowledged as being very ‘sureela’, but that is God-given, it is not due to any special effort or training from my side. My connection with the ‘shabads’ is also God-given. I am happy when people tell me I sing with ‘asar’; it is His blessings.”
He calls the Padma Shri a validation of his contribution to the art form. “I hope youngsters take to this great tradition. When I started singing, ‘kirtan’ was not really looked at with respect. It was considered a means of livelihood if there were no other options in life. Public perception needs to change. Getting this award is a blessing. I have received a lot of love from my audience, but this is a different acknowledgement,” he says.
— The writer is a Delhi-based music critic
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