Rousing tabla, mellifluous vocals bring Harivallabh to a close
Aparna Banerji
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, December 30
Amid intense cold and the foggiest night of the season, the 144th Baba Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan came to a close in the wee hours this morning.
In a considerably smaller pandal (compared to previous years), heated by 30 heaters to fight the icy chill, tabla performance by a child prodigy followed by a morning raga ‘literally’, which went till nearly 5.30 am, brought the three-day sammelan to a close.
The day was ushered in by last year’s music contest winners — Siddheshwar Dasopant Undalkar (pakhawaj) and Simran Preet Singh (vocal) thumri. Pt Harsh Narayan followed with sarangi, accompanied by Ajaypal Singh on tabla. Later, Kashish Mittal accompanied by Pt Vindo Lele on tabla and Dr Vinod Kumar Mishra on harmonium presented khayal gayaki. A jugalbandi by Lakshay Mohan Gupta and Ayush Mohan Gupta, sitar and sarod, respectively, with Benares Gharana veteran Pt Ram Kumar Mishra on tabla set the tone for the evening.
The Mohan brothers — as they are popularly referred to — are grand disciples of Pt Ravi Shankar and their guru Pt Balwant Rai Verma, a senior disciple of Pt Ravi Shankar. They were followed by Prof Harvinder Singh’s khayal rendition (Pt Vinod Lele accompanied on tabla and Pt Vinay Kumar Mishra on harmonium, respectively) and Pt Nityanand Haldipur’s stirring flute tunes.
They were followed by Pt VJ Jog’s illustrious disciple, the honey-toned Mitali Banerjee Bhawmik, who presented mellifluous khayal gayaki, ending her recital with a stirring thumri in raga tilang. Bivash Sanghai (tabla) and her guru-sister and veteran artiste Paromita Mukherjee accompanied her on harmonium.
Bhawmik was followed by child prodigy Rimpa Siva on tabla. The wonder girl, who has come to the Harivallabh before, played fiery tabla bringing treasured rhythmic combinations gleaned from various gharanas as a packed pandal watched patiently and intently as she unfolded her musical wisdom. While various tabla artistes and schools of thought flourish in the state — tabla recitals are especially patronised by an eager audience. For such eagerly awaited recitals, the winter has never been an obstruction. Debashish Karmakar accompanied her on harmonium.
