‘The Secret Master: Arun Kashalkar and a Journey to the Edge of Music’ by Sumana Ramanan: A student’s masterstroke

Though she had attended concerts for many years and studied music intermittently, journalist Sumana Ramanan heard vocalist Arun Kashalkar for the first time at a private gathering in 2016. She had, like many others, been familiar with his youngest brother, Ulhas Kashalkar. But hearing the senior musician was a revelation. She decided to explore more about him and why he remained less known. She even started training under him.

Kashalkar’s life story is fascinating, and Ramanan captures it in vivid detail in ‘The Secret Master: Arun Kashalkar and a Journey to the Edge of Music’. Now 82, the maestro blends the Gwalior, Agra and Jaipur styles, with a stronger emphasis on Agra. From his early days in Pandharkawada, Maharashtra, to his shift to Mumbai, from his tutelage under ND Kashalkar, his father, to gurus like DV Panke, Rajabhau Kogje, Gajananbuwa Joshi, Ram Marathe and Babanrao Haldankar, from early performances to his focus on teaching and return to the stage, the book captures his path extensively.

While Kashalkar is the focus, the book does not stick to being a simple, chronological biography. Ramanan draws from her own experience of covering Hindustani music as a journalist, and takes up various subjects governing the genre. There are portions on the funding of concerts, the so-called ‘star system’ where preference is given to select artistes, an analysis of prominent event organisers Pancham Nishad, Banyan Tree and Art and Artistes, how smaller bodies promote the genre with passion, and even the role of the National Centre for the Performing Arts and its tilt towards western classical music. Some of these may seem like unnecessary diversions, but Ramanan makes some valid points.

Having studied under Kashalkar and seen many students gain from his advice, Ramanan is able to analyse his approach to the art of khayal gayaki, how he paid attention to minute nuances and how he would treat each raag. The maestro’s views are published through his quotes at the end of each chapter. At the same time, the writing does not rely only on personal observations or anecdotes shared by close associates. The list of references includes a wide range of books, articles and research papers.

Among the chapters, especially notable are the ones on the devoted following for Hindustani music in the smaller towns of Maharashtra, and the one emphasising how singers deal with problems of the voice.

The book caters to two kinds of readers. For the music lover not too familiar with theory and technique, there are sections describing gharanas, the difference between dhrupad and khayal, the Carnatic system, how Hindustani raags are composed, and the concepts of sur, taal and avartan. For trained musicians, students or connoisseurs, there are details of compositions and how Kashalkar approached individual raags.

Some readers may draw parallels between ‘The Secret Master’ and Namita Devidayal’s 2007 book ‘The Music Room’, because they are both about the writers’ gurus, providing information only a handful knew. In both cases, the authors are journalists. But the main difference is that Devidayal began learning from Jaipur-Atrauli gharana doyenne Dhondutai Kulkarni when she was a child and Ramanan started much later. Their approach and presentation style are also different. For her part, Ramanan narrates Kashalkar’s story in a fascinating manner, trying to ensure one learns other things in the process.

— The reviewer is a music journalist